The world of Superman, Batman, and Spider-man might be exciting, but it’s hardly educational, right? Well, that’s where you’re wrong, my friend. Comic books and graphic novels are increasingly becoming useful in education. In fact, teacher R.J. Casey of Elk Grove, Illinois, recently got a grant to put comic books and graphic novels into the school library at his elementary school.
“In doing research, I found what an up and coming thing (comic books) are in education. They’re getting someone excited to read,” said Casey, a fifth-grade teacher at Adolph Link Elementary School. “It’s my passion to get graphic novels into education. It’s my passion because I’m a comic book nerd.”
The goal is to get the reluctant reader to pick up something, anything, and have him or her read it. If Wolverine can succeed where Huckleberry Finn did not, so much the better. The key is to get kids to start reading; once they’re hooked, you can expand outward. Though, given how good graphic novels are these days and how bad some modern literature is, maybe graphic novels are starting at the top!
Tags: comic books in the school library, comic books and graphic novels in school, graphic novels in schools, Adolph Link Elementary School, Elk Grove, Illinois, R.J. Casey, teacher gets grant to put comic books in the school library, comic books, unusual reading initiatives