Education Budget Cuts

by swartzt | Create your own Cartoon at www.toondoo.com

created in ToonDoo!





Today....Use one of the many tools provided during this morning's session to create your own comic strip with the topic being "Educational Budget Cuts!" Please have fun with it as stated by Mark Twain: "Humor is mankind's greatest blessing".

Resources

Comic Lesson Plans

Sequential Smarts: A blog about using comics in the classrooms
Tuanua's Delicious Bookmarks
Becky's Delicious Bookmarks
Tuanua's Buzka links
Becky's Buzka's links

Buhler Technology Wiki

ToonDoo

ToonDoo
Web based application
free

Easy to use. Click and drag from a gallery that ToonDoo provides.
No educational version. There is a safe search option. Some inappropriate comics and comments. Navigation of site can be slow. (Maybe it is must my computer.)

hmmm... does either comic remind you of someone?

Cartoon #1 (Grumpy Teacher)

by jenniferflavell | Create your own Cartoon at www.toondoo.com

Cartoon #2 Web2.0 Teacher

by MPariso | Create your own Cartoon at www.toondoo.com

Mashon

Mashon.com
web based application
free
Very cool site. My Comic Book Creator has morphed into Mashon. The interface makes creating comics easy and fun. It is a social network, but the application does offer a lot. Comics can have pictures, video and audio add to them. I would think that a free education version of this application, would be a huge hit!

Make Beliefs Comix: Online Educational Comic Generator

MakeBeliefs
web based application
free

Pick and choose from the characters provided, change background color and add text. Easy to use and teachers do not have to worry about inappropriate material or the social network. Need writing prompt ideas? Makebeliefs offers a link to a writing prompt blog by Bill Zimmerman

Comiqs

Comiqs
web based application
free

Althought this site seems easier to use and create comics than Comeeko and Pikikids, This is not a school friendly version and therefore not my first recommendation to use in the classroom. When creating comics, this site does access pictures that have been uploaded to Comiqs server. They are some that not school appropriate. I heard a rumor that there might be a school version, however I have been unable to clarify that. I did send an email to the company to clarify the rumor but I have not received an answer.

Pikistrips and Comeeko

Comeeko and Pikistrips
Web based applications
Free
Comeeko is the adult version of Pikikids. Different interfaces but each site works the same. (Note: Neither application would be my first recommendation for comics in the classroom.)

Expression Questions is a bi-weekly assignment for 8th graders. At the beginning of the week students are given a topic to responded to by dialogue. Students simply change their dialogue according to the topic.

Pixton: Interactive Web Comics

PIXTON
Web based application
Personal accounts: Free
Pixton for Schools:see website for pricing starting at $12.00.
Watch Trailer

Comic Life

Comic Life creates comics with a simple drag and drop feature. Add a Comic Life tag in Flickr.

Comic Life has a Free 30 day download.