Creating Comics with Photoscape

Photoscape is a free software which you can download. This software has many uses but the one which I really like is the ability to create photo collages and add speech bubbles.

It would be interesting to hear how others would use this software. It is great for creating Digital Storytelling, comics, digital multimodal products and collages.

To create a comic click on 'Page'.

You can then select the size of the page and select the page template you wish.

Change the size by clicking on Edit, an A4 size is Width: 720 and Height 1040

You select the folder with images and click and drag the images into the collage.

To add the speech bubble, click on edit and then object. Customise the speech bubble.
You can then save the page as a jpeg file to your computer.

Creating Photo Collages can also be a great way to tell a story by choosing a theme or take photos of the same object from different angles.  I would love to hear ways you would you this software.

Creating Digital Multimodal Texts

With the introduction of the Australian Curriculum, there is an emphasis on the use of Multimodal Text in English. ICT offers a great range of tools to allow students to create digital multimodal texts, such as comics, animations, digital storytelling, video & audio, ebooks, poster & cover design and game design .

What are multimodal texts?

A text may be defined as multimodal when it combines two or more semiotic systems. There are five semiotic systems in total:

1. Linguistic: comprising aspects such as vocabulary, generic structure and the grammar of oral and written language

2. Visual: comprising aspects such as colour, vectors and viewpoint in still and moving images

3. Audio: comprising aspects such as volume, pitch and rhythm of music and sound effects

4. Gestural: comprising aspects such as movement, speed and stillness in facial expression and body language

5. Spatial: comprising aspects such as proximity, direction, position of layout and organisation of objects in space.

Multimodal texts can be delivered via different media or technologies. They may be live, paper, or digital.

(Bull and Anstey, 2010)

Link to Comic resources

Link to Online Story Makers

Photostory 3, Windows Movie Maker, Audacity, Soungle, Free Sound Project

Link to Online Animation Creators

Blog Post on Animations

Flip Flash Album Free

My eBook

Use software usch as powerpoint, publisher, paint.net or photoshop

Online: Sumopaint or Glogster EDU

Big Huge Labs: Magzine Cover Generator, Motivator Poster, Movie Poster

Scratch, Game Maker, Alice, Game Salad (Mac), Game Mechanic, Kodu,

Can create using powerpoint, online resources: News Map, Many Eyes, Gapminder, Periodic table of Visualisation Methods, Information is Beautiful

Tag Cloud: Wordle, Tagxedo

Anstey, M. & Bull, G. (2010) Helping teachers to explore multimodal texts. Curriculum Leadership, 8 (16)

Comix - Free Online Comic Creator

I love looking for new ways students can create comics. A colleague of mine passed on a link to me called Comix. It is described as a free preschool online game. It is very easy to use with simple click and drag on the page functions.


The site offers a range of images students can choose from. In the Draw section ,there are text options with speech bubbles or text box. You easily change the size of the cell and add more. Students can also draw and upload their own images. The great thing about this site is you don’t need to register and you can save the image as a jpeg when click on Publish. (It asks for author's name but you don't need to fill it out to save)

Students can use this site for many purposes:

• Creating a multimodal text
• As inspiration for a story
• To interpret a story
• Practice spelling words
• Create a sequence
• Create Big, Bigger, Biggest images
• A poster

Online Comics and Graphic Novels

Here is a list of Online Graphic Novels and Comics. They vary from being read online or download as a pdf. With these comics you can use them for comprehension activities, use them as stimulus to give students ideas when they are making their own, you can also look at characters, setting and the plot of the comic.

http://wormworldsaga.com/

The WormWorld Saga is an Online Comic and is available in a range of languages.  This makes it a great tool for learning laguages.

http://dckids.kidswb.com/

DC Kids offers a range of comics which are free to download.

http://www.thedreamlandchronicles.com/

The Dream Chronicles is an online Graphic Novel.

http://www.andyrunton.com/owly/

This site offers a range of comics which are free to download.  they are great for beginning readers andto use for visual literacy.

http://www.toon-books.com/rdr_one.php

This site offers a range of online comics for early Phase students.  They are also avaliable in English, French, Spanish, Russian and Chinese.



http://comics.com/

This site offers a range of Online Comics

This site provides free sample downloads of classics which have been converted into Graphic Novels such as Romeo and Juliet, Jane Eyre, A Christmas Carol and many more.  The site also provides teacher resources and comics with no text so students can interpret the images and add their own text.

http://anthropology.si.edu/writteninbone/comic/

This site is a Forensic Science Mystery better suited for older students.

http://www.howtoons.com/

Free 'How to' downloadable comics



http://cindispace.utdallas.edu/education/cindi_comic.html

Free Download

http://www.sciencecomics.uwe.ac.uk/index.php

Online Science Comics

http://www.grammarmancomic.com/twilight.html

Free Download comics on Biographies of the Twilight actors.

http://www.grammarmancomic.com/grammarcom.html

http://www.grammarmancomic.com/marvelidioms.html

http://www.kinsa.net/widgetFiles/file/Web%20of%20Deception.pdf

Free Download about internet safety

http://www.nsteens.org/Comics/HowMuchIsTooMuch

Online comic about internet safety

http://www.adrianbruce.com/machinima/macbeth/macbeth.htm

This link shows an adaptation of Hamlet created using a game similar to Machinima by Adrian Bruce.

http://www2.scholastic.com/content/collateral_resources/pdf/g/Scholastic_GraphixPages01.pdf

This is a great resource to about Graphic Novels.



Online Comic Creators Glog

I have had another play with glogster and created this Virtual poster. Move your mouse over the words and click to go to the link.

Wimp Yourself - Avatar Maker

Here is another fun avatar maker where students can create their own characters which they can then make a story or add them into a comic.

http://www.wimpyourself.com/

Conversations Between Characters

Here is an example of a homework assignment on investigating the important aspects of friendship.  First the characters were made using a WeeMee avatar creator app on my iPad you could use online avatar makers.  Then you can remove the background of the characters this can be done in 2010 PowerPoint, paint.net or photoshop.  Using PowerPoint, you can then selected the background setting and then work on the dialogue.  here is the finished result.

The idea of having two characters having a conversation means the characters can be talking about any topic such as reflecting, giving information, revison, speaking in another language, using spelling words etc.

Creating Characters for Comics

Yesterday I ran a Digital Graphic novel workshop for teachers which lasted all day.  We looked at a range of learning activities using comics to engage students in learning. One activity was to provide a comic with empty speech bubbles and the students add in the speech. This allows students to interpret the image and then decide on the appropriate text for the comic.

I have added these two examples here to show how you can create characters for comics by taking images One is simply using dinosaur toys and removing the background and replacing it with a desert scene. The second was created using a ball of modelling clay and pushing in features to create the characters. I have left the bubbles empty in case you want to have a play and add in the speech. These characters could also be used for Stop Motion Animation.

World of Zoo

http://www.worldofzoo.com/

I came across this game while wandering a computer games store, it is called World of Zoo.  I love Zoo Tycoon and this game seemed to have a few similarities. World of Zoo is much easier to play, making it great for younger students. The graphics are more cartoon looking rather than the realistic approach of Zoo Tycoon 2. This also makes the game suitable for younger students.  This is a PC game you can purchase, it also comes in Nintendo DS and Wii formats.

As you play the game you can unlock items and more animals. You can customise the animals and change their patterns and colours. Students also earn coins as they look after the animals and participate in challenges.  They can then buy items with their money. The appropriate environment and food are provided so students don’t need to decide what is suitable for the animal. The game provides information about the animals. Students can also write stories about their animals.

The feature which I find interesting is the built in camera. You can take photos in the game and they can be exported to your computer. So students can interact with the animals and then take photos. It is fun trying to get that perfect photo as the animals move around.  These photos could be used for a project, art activity, research task or used to create a comic.

This game is great to use with primary school aged students. It could be integrated into activities about animals, habitats, using money, numeracy, literacy and writing stories. The game can inspire many art activities such as painting or drawing from a photo students have taken in the game, create an animal mask, look at the colours and patterns on the animals and create a design, create puppets of animals or totem poles.

I have created a comic example, I used the giraffe images I took from the game and created the comic using Comic Life.