The Vine: August 23, 2013
I’m a fifth-grade teacher seeking some inspiration.
My poor kiddos only get art (and music) once a week, and I have been attempting to bring as much exposure to the arts into my general-ed classroom as possible. As of lately, I have been especially focusing on visual literacy. My question is actually twofold.
Part the first: I am looking for some good recommendations for graphic novels that have some level of literary value. Maus may be thematically above my readers, but I would like to challenge them past Diary of a Wimpy Kid and Captain Underpants (ugh).
Secondly, I would love some novel recommendations that center around a real artist or piece of art. Could be a painting, sculpture, photography, or something I haven’t yet considered. I already have literature circle sets for Blue Balliet’s books, including Chasing Vermeer and The Calder Game. I’ve recently been inspired by Rebecca Stead’s Liar & Spy and its inclusion of Seurat.
Checking in with the usual teacher resources has not turned up anything that has thrilled me. I suspect that the Nation may have some ideas that better align with my style. My fifth-grade readers range from a third-grade reading level up to early high school. While I do have some very strong readers, I still need to steer clear of any questionable content. Love to push them, though!
Thanks,
Mr. G
Hit it, Nation — but please keep it to three (3) suggestions per comment so they don’t get too tl;dr. (You can always post again if you’re feeling really strongly about a fourth. Or…fourteenth. Which probably won’t happen because y’all hate to read.)
(…hee.)
Tags: Ask The Readers Blue Balliet kids popcult Rebecca Stead
May I just say, you all, that you are the bet bunch of readers on the Internet (hyperbole possibly deserved). The ability to just pour forth awesomeness is inspiring. It ALMOST makes me wish I were a teacher. But it definitely gives me some YA alternatives to add to my reading list. That living in the Met would have gotten me going as a child, but I think it will now, too.
I second the recommendation for Ursula Vernon’s Digger series, and also recommend her Dragonbreath series.
Another second for the Dinotopia books (the big beautiful ones, not the little novels), and along the same lines (in style, tone and physical form) as Dinotopia is “The Voyage of the Basset”, by James C. Christensen.
King of Shadows by Susan Cooper has the main character travel back in time and perform in the original staging of A Midsummer Night’s Dream–so theater, not art, but it’s still something. And I’ll second The Egypt Game and The Westing Game; both are excellent.
I hope I’m not too late, too, but “A single shard” by Linda Sue Park would be a good book. Korea, long ago, celadon pottery, coming of age…http://www.amazon.com/Single-Shard-Linda-Sue-Park/dp/0547534264/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1377803890&sr=1-1&keywords=a+single+shard
1. The Anholt’s Artists series is great, and centres around the stories of real children who met/influenced the work of artists like Picasso, Matisse and Van Gogh.
http://tinyurl.com/pmqb2qo
2. Anything by Anthony Browne, particularly Voices in the Park. While he doesn’t use the graphic novel format, his use of illustrations to convey mood, feeling and different perspectives is beautiful and incredibly powerful, and taps into your visual literacy focus
http://tinyurl.com/pqwyko8
3. Marcia Williams’ series of comic strip classics: Robin Hood, The Iliad, Canterbury Tales, Greek Myths and Legends etc.
http://tinyurl.com/px6s98s
Okay so I’m super late to the game, but if you’re looking for high-quality graphic novels I’d recommend finding a classic that was made into a graphic novel. Off the top of my head I know that Black Beauty, The Jungle Book & Treasure Island have graphic novel versions. Here’s a link to a good collection, but this is by no means all of them: http://www.booksource.com/Products/Graphic-Novel-Adaptations-Of-Classic-Literature__S-GNC-spc-12-13.aspx
there are also come great history related ones: http://www.garethstevens.com/browse.asp?Category=Spanish%3A+Hi-Lo
Lastly if you were interested in doing a lesson on the impact of visuals on storytelling you could use something like the Lightning Their by Rick Riordan which has both a novel and graphic novel version. http://www.amazon.com/The-Lightning-Thief-Graphic-Olympians/dp/1423117107/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1378604194&sr=8-1&keywords=rick+riordan+graphic+novel
Good luck!
Add me as another voice for “Bone”. It’s a great series, and the public library near me also has it on their “Kid’s Book Club” list.
Also, I highly recommend “Girl Genius”. Unfortunately, most of the graphic novels are out of print, BUT due to popular demand, the first three graphic novels are out in a new Omnibus edition, with the promise of more to come. My 8-year-old stepdaughter is reading it now, and she loves it. (http://www.girlgeniusonline.com)
Finally, I’m not sure if this falls in with what you’re looking for, but I know that a number of Shakespeare’s plays have been made into graphic novels. You may want to preview them before giving them to your kids, as some are patently ridiculous, while others are pretty awesome.