KinderSafari Posted March 17, 2010 Share Posted March 17, 2010 Okay, what do you think about graphic novels? I open them and my eyes just go crazy because of the drawings and small words - I have no interest in reading them. But I don't know how kids react to them. I thought it might be fun to have some educational things in a "fun form". Just because I don't find it a fun form, doesn't mean my kids wouldn't still enjoy them. It might be a way to review and remember stuff we've already covered in our "boring" textbooks... Any thoughts? What have your kids reactions been like? I'd love to hear pros and cons! I have seen them in the Timberdoodle catalogs, but I'm sure there are others. Any you would recommend or not recommend from anywhere? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nmoira Posted March 17, 2010 Share Posted March 17, 2010 I have no qualms about graphic novels, and we have a number of them for the kids. If you're looking for educational material, check out: Jay Hosler -- Clan Apis, The Sandwalk Adventures, Optical Allusions YKids -- Greek and Roman Mythology V1-3 (by Oh), Great Figures in History Series (Madame Curie, Leonardo Da Vinci, etc.), Everyday Science Series Jim Ottaviani Cartoon Guides to.... and Cartoon History of... (Gonick) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SquirrellyMama Posted March 17, 2010 Share Posted March 17, 2010 I have a son who loves graphic novels/comic books. I'll admit that he isn't old enough to read them well yet but soaks in the pictures and color. He's learning to read and has been coming to me and reading some to me. I think it really depends on the kid. This child loves pictures, color and is very observant. When we read a book we can't turn the page until he has seen every.single.detail in the picture. Kelly Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nmoira Posted March 17, 2010 Share Posted March 17, 2010 Oh, and it's not educational, but IMHO, the Bone series by Jeff Smith is not to be missed. You don't want the B&W omnibus, but rather the nine colour volumes plus prequel. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lisak Posted March 17, 2010 Share Posted March 17, 2010 My girls read these all of the time. They check them out from the library. So I purchased some from Timberdoodle for Christmas. They really like them. I prefer to read a regular book. But the oldest especially is artistic and cartooning is one of her favorite kinds of artwork to produce, so she loves the graphic novel. There are so many on the market, and you do have to be careful. My older daughter has Serenity which came from CBD. My husband has read these and he said they are fine. They cover some things we haven't really discussed much, like drug addiction, sex, alcohol, but that opens the door for the discussion. After all she is 15, so it is past time for these discussions. The girls read a lot of Marvel graphic novels. They seem okay to me from what I have seen. Nothing glares right off of the pages that would signal me to return to the library and never check out again. My husband did say he learned a few things from one of the novels that came from Timberdoodle. I don't remember specifics, but he really likes those. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted March 17, 2010 Share Posted March 17, 2010 My daughter likes graphic novels too -- mainly science fiction. Through them she has become interested in reading other things, such as The Manga Guide to Physics (and there's a whole set: chemistry, calculus, etc.); and she has begun to write her own versions of favorite books in comic form. She has also become interested in movie storyboarding. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
abbeyej Posted March 17, 2010 Share Posted March 17, 2010 They make my head spin -- but the kids (especially ds) have enjoyed a few of the ones Timberdoodle carries. We have several of the science ones and a few history ones as well. We've also got a few retellings of myths and legends in graphic novel form. We don't use them for "school" work, but if the kids enjoy them on their own time and they happen to reinforce some topic we've studied, or introduce some new concept, so much the better. If I had a child who was *only* willing to read graphic novels, I would likely limit them quite a bit. Since both of my kids read pretty constantly, I don't mind. But yeah, I personally can't stand to look at 'em. They make my head hurt. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wy_kid_wrangler04 Posted March 17, 2010 Share Posted March 17, 2010 My daughters didnt like them, but maybe they are geared towards boys? I might see what my boys think about them when they get older but they were a huge DUD for my daughters (luckily I checked them out from the library and didnt buy them!) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swellmomma Posted March 17, 2010 Share Posted March 17, 2010 My older 2 kids love graphic novels ESPECIALLY DS. I have thought about those ones at timberdoodle for this exact reason. Right now for every 1 regular book they take out of the library they take out 2-3 graphic novels and devour them in an afternoon. Right now they are the typical manga graphic novels, which is why I thought the timberdoodle ones would be a good addition to our home library. Maybe they will learn something about a topic other than a half demon's adventures (Inu Yasha for example). For ds graphic novels tie right in with his love of comics and video games. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Closeacademy Posted March 17, 2010 Share Posted March 17, 2010 My oldest loves them and they really helped her learn to read fluently. Her favorites are: Babymouse Leave it to Pet Time Warp Trio Peach Fuzz (about taking care of a pet ferret) Mostly they are fun and she enjoys reading them. I read some of the ones for teens/adults in the Magna style and they are interesting but I would really watch those as some get into some real issues. There is a guide or handbook out that goes through a lot of the title out there and tells you what they are like.:001_smile: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robsiew Posted March 17, 2010 Share Posted March 17, 2010 I'm wishy washy on them... thankfully, my ds/dd aren't really into them. I got a King Arthur one and I don't think my ds really read it... but I just got him a King Arthur book and he's devouring it. I think in small doses they can be okay, but personally I'd only let them read graphic novels in their free reading... not for school. The sentences tend to be short and choppy and the vocabulary, well...not challenging one bit... no where near what I want to expose them to in the limited time that I get to choose what they read! :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mindygz Posted March 18, 2010 Share Posted March 18, 2010 I was kind of against them, but probably mostly because I don't like them. But my dd7 is VERY visual and artistic, so I got her some from the library to look at. I had no idea that someone had done Nancy Drew and Hardy Boys graphic novels! Anyways, she happily read for 30 minutes from "Fashion Kitty versus the Fashion Queen," on Monday, and then another 20-25 minutes on Tuesday during our Reading Time, so I thought that was pretty great. In Jim Trelease's Read Aloud Handbook, he says that as long as the material is appropriate, graphic novels are fine. Anything that hooks the kid into reading and equating reading with pleasure is great, in his opinion. I thought that was a good way to look at things. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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