Gone are the days of children sneaking comics past diligent parents and teachers watching out for sub-par literature. The comics of today not only have plenty to offer, they are gaining well-deserved recognition and awards. Take advantage of the natural affinity children have for comics and use them as a powerful teaching tool in your classroom. The following tips, tools, and resources will get you started.
NGAkids Art Zone offers an array of interactive online art activities that are fun for children of all ages. Interactives such as Sea-Saws, Faces and Places, Photo Op, Dutch Dollhouse, Jungle, Still Life, and Collage Machine encourage compositional experimentation and a vivid understanding of collage and photomontage techniques; Brushster, PaintBox, and SwatchBox are painting tools that encourage free expression and visual experimentation.
Kids' Vid is an instructional web site that gives teachers and students the tools necessary to implement video production in the classroom. Video production can be intimidating to the novice. Not to worry. It is nothing more than a method for recording research and expressing creative ideas. Video production, if properly implemented, is more than a new toy for students. It provides the tools and the means for students to create and display serious work in a new, exciting and engaging way that is appropriate for all age groups and abilities. This is a place for serious fun.