Thank you to who?Comics for sponsoring this post and encouraging my child to read biographies in comic book form! Please click here to learn more about the app. And follow who? Comics on Twitter for updates!
It always makes me sound {and feel} old, but I’m just shocked at how interactive learning has become since I was a kid. Sure, my 3rd grader still has to memorize his multiplication tables and write out spelling words – there’s still a place for rote learning in the educational system – but it’s awesome how a lot of what he learns is based on a game format, displayed on a computer, or incorporates other interactive features.
One subject that doesn’t seem to have caught on to the age of digital learning as quickly as the others is history. Over the Christmas break, Boy Wonder became smitten with learning about famous baseball players in history. Other than reading a historical narrative on the web, his only real alternative was to head to the bookstore and pick up a hard copy biography. After blazing through those books, he moved to learning about Pearl Harbor and the Civil War.
My kid is a pretty good student, but because he’s a video gamer and a visual learner, the more interactive we can get with him, the better.
And now, there’s a really neat iPad app on the market that makes learning history and reading biographies a bit more fun for kids: comics on iPad meet history.
The who?Comics app is virtual comic book – only the characters aren’t Betty, Veronica or Spiderman – they’re important figures in history. Kids can learn about such folks as Bill Gates, Warren Buffett, Marie Curie, Vincent Van Gogh, Henry Thoreau, Abraham Lincoln, and many more.
My son checked out the Bill Gates and Abraham Lincoln comics.
The graphics on the comics are really high quality and they look and feel like a real comic book. We also liked that you could tap the bottom of the screen and easily look ahead to see where you were in each chapter of the book. My son said:
I really like the comics because they’re fun and not as boring as reading regular stuff. It makes it a lot more interesting.
One other fun element to the app is the badge system. You know how you earn badges on Foursquare for checking into places? Well with who?Comics, kids can earn badges for various achievements through their reading.
I do have a couple of cautions about the app.
First, the comics were extremely long. It took my son over an hour to read just one, spread over two nights. He did start to get a little frustrated with the length. That being said, a normal biography would take longer than that to read.
Second, the vocabulary was a bit advanced. Boy Wonder is almost 9 and reads above grade level, but there were some terms that I felt were a little complicated. There are definitions provided for some words and persons at the bottom of the comic page, yet I did still think that it was just a bit more advanced than I expected it to be.
Overall, a great and fun learning tool for kids who have an interest in learning about historical figures! I’d love to see them add some fun pop quizzes at the end of each chapter!
Thank you again to who? Comics for sponsoring my post. Please click here to learn more about the app. Visit who? Comics for updates. I was selected for this opportunity by the Clever Girls Collective. All opinions expressed here are my own. #CleverWhoComics #spon
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{ 4 comments… read them below or add one }
Cool idea!. Too bad they are so long. I think some kids may enjoy them while others may want to stick to easy to read stories. Thanks for sharing!
Diane – It’s All Good Until You Burn Dinner´s last [type] ..Meet the Family
As a teacher of English for sixteen years, I say whatever gets them reading and learning is good stuff.
I know some of my colleagues had “rules” about what constituted legitimate reading material…
But if my students were engaged and willing? I was thrilled. That was more than half the battle and more important than strict definitions of what constituted “literature.”
Historically accurate, interactive, challenging.
What’s wrong with that?
If I’d had opportunities to learn math via computer actitivites, I might be able to balance a checkbook accurately now.
This is a balanced and informative post – and a great example of a fair and honest sponsored post.
Thanks for telling us about the neat comic books!
Ann
Dr. Ann´s last [type] ..Real Marriage Story #6: How To Practice The Art Of Inclusivity And Make Your Spouse Happy
Glad to know about these. This would be too advanced for my girls now (ages 5 and 3) but in a few years I bet they would enjoy this sort of thing. Great review!
Barbara Davis´s last [type] ..Raspberry Chia Muffins