Comics & Cartoons Program

Preparation

Step 1: Gather mentor texts on cartooning and drawing, such as How to Draw Comics the Marvel Way and Draw 50 Dinosaurs, as well as books in cartoon format, such as Calvin and Hobbes collections. Cartoon pages from newspapers and magazines that use a cartoon format, like Zillions, are also good resources.

Step 2: Reproduce the cartoon frames from the template below.

Step 3: Draw a cartoon example with a caption, or invite a staff member or a child hanging around the reference desk to help make cartoon examples. Make copies for the workshop.

Step 4: Check Writing Box supplies.

The Workshop

Step 1: Distribute books, magazines, and comics. Talk about the different kinds of cartoons and where they can be found.

Step 2: Show your example and, if you can, create one or two frames of a cartoon as the children watch. Emphasize that you don’t have to be an expert or a “good” artist to create a cartoon and that cartoons don’t have to be funny. A cartoon can be about anything that happened that day.

Step 3: Give out crayons, pencils, markers, erasers, and cartoon templates, along with as many templates as the kids want.

Step 4: Give a five-minute warning for cleanup. Remind children when the Writing Boxes are available to use in the library. Clean up the area and put away supplies.

Step 5: Take a few minutes to share the work.