Yes, using a graphic novel in the ELL classroom appears to be counterproductive at first but I swear by it. Not only does it give your students a point of visual reference for what they are reading but it also has the added benefit of not only being a really cool thing to do in class but it also can encourage them to want to read even more!
This past year, in my 5th grade ELL class, we read the books Smile and Sisters by Raina Telgemeier.
The great thing about these two books is that they are realistic fictions based on the authors life experiences, they provide dialogue that is true-to-life, and the illustrations are fresh and captivating. At first my students were 'iffy' about reading 'comics' in the class. One of them even expressed to me that she felt like she might get into trouble if anyone found out she was reading graphic novels when she should be "learning to use English better". I agreed, which is why we used these books to compare and contrast how people speak in 'real life' and how people are taught to speak. The way we learn to speak and the way we are taught to speak are two completely different things! For an ELL student this can be extremely confusing. But as we dove deeper into the story my students began to see what I meant. We also began to compare written text in novels, books, and graphic novels with how we speak. Some of my students where even able to point out that their YA novels, when compared to my adult oriented novels, used different language in order to capture the spirit of her readers. YA novels (and graphic novels especially) tend to use a lot of 'slang' words that are meant to help their younger readers better identify with the characters. I sometimes wonder how often a YA book editor has to look up a new word they haven't encountered before in order to be sure that it isn't an editing mistake!
However, I did remind my students that this sort of writing would not be acceptable in the classroom except when we are writing stories that would require this type of dialogue.
By the end of the two weeks we spent reading each book, my students had developed a pretty healthy appreciation for how language can be used creatively. I found that using graphic novels was also a great took for improving not only literacy but also my students ability to edit sentences, make inferences (by recognizing 'unspoken emotions' through images alone and then being able to use language to describe their thoughts about the image), and to develop the ability to write an outline breaking down the story into a Plot Diagram.
They were also able to point out their own use of slang and began to appreciate when and where it should be used (no LOLs written in your term papers, LOL :D) and on top of this, they couldn't wait to read more! So I encourage you to try out graphic novels in the class room. Here are some helpful links to how others have used graphic novels and also some research behind their use. Have fun!
Using Comics and Graphic Novels in the Classroom - National Council of Teachers of English
Teaching With Graphic Novels - School Library Journal
Using Comic with ESL/EFL Students - The Internet TESL Journal
Graphic Novel Resources for Educators - Get Graphic!
This past year, in my 5th grade ELL class, we read the books Smile and Sisters by Raina Telgemeier.
The great thing about these two books is that they are realistic fictions based on the authors life experiences, they provide dialogue that is true-to-life, and the illustrations are fresh and captivating. At first my students were 'iffy' about reading 'comics' in the class. One of them even expressed to me that she felt like she might get into trouble if anyone found out she was reading graphic novels when she should be "learning to use English better". I agreed, which is why we used these books to compare and contrast how people speak in 'real life' and how people are taught to speak. The way we learn to speak and the way we are taught to speak are two completely different things! For an ELL student this can be extremely confusing. But as we dove deeper into the story my students began to see what I meant. We also began to compare written text in novels, books, and graphic novels with how we speak. Some of my students where even able to point out that their YA novels, when compared to my adult oriented novels, used different language in order to capture the spirit of her readers. YA novels (and graphic novels especially) tend to use a lot of 'slang' words that are meant to help their younger readers better identify with the characters. I sometimes wonder how often a YA book editor has to look up a new word they haven't encountered before in order to be sure that it isn't an editing mistake!
However, I did remind my students that this sort of writing would not be acceptable in the classroom except when we are writing stories that would require this type of dialogue.
By the end of the two weeks we spent reading each book, my students had developed a pretty healthy appreciation for how language can be used creatively. I found that using graphic novels was also a great took for improving not only literacy but also my students ability to edit sentences, make inferences (by recognizing 'unspoken emotions' through images alone and then being able to use language to describe their thoughts about the image), and to develop the ability to write an outline breaking down the story into a Plot Diagram.
They were also able to point out their own use of slang and began to appreciate when and where it should be used (no LOLs written in your term papers, LOL :D) and on top of this, they couldn't wait to read more! So I encourage you to try out graphic novels in the class room. Here are some helpful links to how others have used graphic novels and also some research behind their use. Have fun!
Using Comics and Graphic Novels in the Classroom - National Council of Teachers of English
Teaching With Graphic Novels - School Library Journal
Using Comic with ESL/EFL Students - The Internet TESL Journal
Graphic Novel Resources for Educators - Get Graphic!
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