Educating with comics

Educating with comics

Comics are an excellent medium to inform and engage. Being a visual storytelling format, comics draw readers fully into the character’s world, his or her emotions and feelings. Just like a movie. I have the ability as a comic artist to set up the location, the scene, script, the characters, and everything else I feel necessary to communicate the message through the character’s story.

Meanwhile, humour is an equally excellent way to further engage readers as humour creates a connection. It’s also a great way to remember the story’s lessons.

Examples of how I used humour to entertain while teaching about topics such as stuttering awareness are featured on this page.

Ideas for topics mostly come from my creative brain, however, audience feedback has been very valuable in giving me ideas that resonate perfectly with readers, which, in turn, incite sharing.

A comic strip in 12 panels. Franky Banky starts by stuttering, A strange phennnnomenon happens when a flu flu fluent person talks to to to someone who stutters for the first time. He continues in the following panel, And that phennnnnomenon is ca ca called the look. In the third panel, he points to a nearby woman and says, allow me to dem dem demonstrate. In the fourth panel, he says to the woman, excuse me, mmmmmmadame. Yes, she replies. In the fifth panel he replies, do do do do you haaaaaave the ttttt. To which the woman gives him an exaggerated inquisitive look. Her faces is frozen in the following panel as Franky Banky explains to the reader, No no note how my subject ha ha has an inquisitive and perplexed look all over her efface. He continues in the following panel, that, my fiends, is the look. In the next panel he says, and there can be any nnnnumber of re reasons behind the look. One, she doesn't know what stuttering is. Never saw The King's Speech. Two, she watches too many hospital dramas and wonders if she should call emergency. Three, it's got nothing to do with your speech. She just realized she forgot to shower all week. In the final panel, Franky Banky is holding his nose and exclaiming as he hands her a deodorant stick, Pee you! Use ssssome deodourant, madame! With her arms outreached she cried, Quick! Quick!

The Great Name Search is a comic strip to explain that people who stutter never forget their names. Stuttering is simply a communication difference. The goal of the comic is to not ridicule well-meaning people for not understanding what stuttering is.

A comic strip in 12 panels. Franky Banky starts by stuttering, A strange phennnnomenon happens when a flu flu fluent person talks to to to someone who stutters for the first time. He continues in the following panel, And that phennnnnomenon is ca ca called the look. In the third panel, he points to a nearby woman and says, allow me to dem dem demonstrate. In the fourth panel, he says to the woman, excuse me, mmmmmmadame. Yes, she replies. In the fifth panel he replies, do do do do you haaaaaave the ttttt. To which the woman gives him an exaggerated inquisitive look. Her faces is frozen in the following panel as Franky Banky explains to the reader, No no note how my subject ha ha has an inquisitive and perplexed look all over her efface. He continues in the following panel, that, my fiends, is the look. In the next panel he says, and there can be any nnnnumber of re reasons behind the look. One, she doesn't know what stuttering is. Never saw The King's Speech. Two, she watches too many hospital dramas and wonders if she should call emergency. Three, it's got nothing to do with your speech. She just realized she forgot to shower all week. In the final panel, Franky Banky is holding his nose and exclaiming as he hands her a deodorant stick, Pee you! Use ssssome deodourant, madame! With her arms outreached she cried, Quick! Quick!

In The Look, the main character, Franky Banky breaks the fourth wall and demonstrates a typical reaction towards stuttering. Like The Great Name Search, the goal of the comic is to not ridicule well-meaning people for not understanding what stuttering is.

A choose-your-own adventure comic strip entitled, “Choose your own Franky Banky adventure!”. A female fox cartoon tending to her gelato stand asks a male customer named Franky Banky, “may I take your order?”. Franky Banky wants to say vanilla but he stutters his order. He is thinking to himself, “aw man”. There are three next step scenarios he can take. The first is he says, “uh, lobster” to which the girl at the counter says “Here you go!” as she hands him a lobster ice cream cone. In the next panel, Franky Banky is walking away eating the ice cream but is disgusted. “Lobster” he sighs to himself, “bleah”. In the second scenario, he stutters his order, “va-va-vanilla”. The girl says, “here you go!” As she hands him a vanilla ice cream cone. In the next panel, Franky Banky walks away feeling embarrassed. “Why did I have to stutter? Why? Why?” He asks himself. In the third scenario, Franky Banky stutters his order, “va-va-va” but is interrupted by the girl who asks “Would you like cherry? Lemon? Pickle? Poutine? Lobster?”. Franky Banky explains in the next chapter, “no, I stub stub stutter. Vanilla, please”. The girl says, “Here you go!” as she hands him a vanilla ice cream cone. In the next panel, Franky Banky is happily eating his ice cream and saying “Yum! Yum! This is the best vanilla ice cream ever!”

Choose Your Own Franky Banky Adventure is a parody of the choose-your-adventure books to illustrate to readers who stutter various options and consequences one has in speaking situations.

Related reading

Comics are an excellent medium to inform and engage. Being a visual storytelling format, comics draw readers fully into the character’s world, his or her emotions and feelings. Just like a movie. I have the ability as a comic artist to set up the location, the scene, script, the characters, and everything else I feel necessary to communicate the message through the character’s story.

Meanwhile, humour is an equally excellent way to further engage readers as humour creates a connection. It’s also a great way to remember the story’s lessons.

Examples of how I used humour to entertain while teaching about topics such as stuttering awareness are featured on this page.

Ideas for topics mostly come from my creative brain, however, audience feedback has been very valuable in giving me ideas that resonate perfectly with readers, which, in turn, incite sharing.

A comic strip in 9 panels. In the first panel, a female fox sitting at a registration table asking an approaching male fox, “Your name please?”. The male fox, names Franky Banky, is having trouble saying his name. In the second panel, the female chuckles and asks “Did you forget your name?”. Franky Banky replies with a nervous shock, “Jumping Jupiter! I have!”. In the third panel, shocked, the female replies, “Oh my goodness!”. Franky Banky asks “Will you help me re remember?”. The female replies, “It would be an honour”. In the fourth panel, Franky Banky thinks out loud, “Reginald? No.” The female suggests, “Perhaps Jasper?” to which Franky Banky answers, “No, I don’t think so”. In the fifth panel, the female suggests, “Leopold? Zebedee? Chester?”, however, Franky Banky replies no to all of them and adds, “I’m afraid it doesn’t ring a beh bell”. In the sixth panel, suddenly, his face lights up and he exclaims, “Oh wait! I haven’t forgotten my nay nay name”. The female replies, “oh that’s wonderful!”. In the seventh panel, Franky Banky laughs out loud and says “April Fool’s!”. In the eighth panel, he explains, “I haven’t for forgotten my nay name”. In the ninth and final panel, he continues, “I stuh stuh stutter”. The female blushes and says “Oh, sorry” to which Franky Banky replies, Don’t sw sweat it. My name is fff… fff… fur… fur... Franky Banky”.

The Great Name Search is a comic strip to explain that people who stutter never forget their names. Stuttering is simply a communication difference. The goal of the comic is to not ridicule well-meaning people for not understanding what stuttering is.

A comic strip in 12 panels. Franky Banky starts by stuttering, A strange phennnnomenon happens when a flu flu fluent person talks to to to someone who stutters for the first time. He continues in the following panel, And that phennnnnomenon is ca ca called the look. In the third panel, he points to a nearby woman and says, allow me to dem dem demonstrate. In the fourth panel, he says to the woman, excuse me, mmmmmmadame. Yes, she replies. In the fifth panel he replies, do do do do you haaaaaave the ttttt. To which the woman gives him an exaggerated inquisitive look. Her faces is frozen in the following panel as Franky Banky explains to the reader, No no note how my subject ha ha has an inquisitive and perplexed look all over her efface. He continues in the following panel, that, my fiends, is the look. In the next panel he says, and there can be any nnnnumber of re reasons behind the look. One, she doesn't know what stuttering is. Never saw The King's Speech. Two, she watches too many hospital dramas and wonders if she should call emergency. Three, it's got nothing to do with your speech. She just realized she forgot to shower all week. In the final panel, Franky Banky is holding his nose and exclaiming as he hands her a deodorant stick, Pee you! Use ssssome deodourant, madame! With her arms outreached she cried, Quick! Quick!

In The Look, the main character, Franky Banky breaks the fourth wall and demonstrates a typical reaction towards stuttering. Like The Great Name Search, the goal of the comic is to not ridicule well-meaning people for not understanding what stuttering is.

A choose-your-own adventure comic strip entitled, “Choose your own Franky Banky adventure!”. A female fox cartoon tending to her gelato stand asks a male customer named Franky Banky, “may I take your order?”. Franky Banky wants to say vanilla but he stutters his order. He is thinking to himself, “aw man”. There are three next step scenarios he can take. The first is he says, “uh, lobster” to which the girl at the counter says “Here you go!” as she hands him a lobster ice cream cone. In the next panel, Franky Banky is walking away eating the ice cream but is disgusted. “Lobster” he sighs to himself, “bleah”. In the second scenario, he stutters his order, “va-va-vanilla”. The girl says, “here you go!” As she hands him a vanilla ice cream cone. In the next panel, Franky Banky walks away feeling embarrassed. “Why did I have to stutter? Why? Why?” He asks himself. In the third scenario, Franky Banky stutters his order, “va-va-va” but is interrupted by the girl who asks “Would you like cherry? Lemon? Pickle? Poutine? Lobster?”. Franky Banky explains in the next chapter, “no, I stub stub stutter. Vanilla, please”. The girl says, “Here you go!” as she hands him a vanilla ice cream cone. In the next panel, Franky Banky is happily eating his ice cream and saying “Yum! Yum! This is the best vanilla ice cream ever!”

Choose Your Own Franky Banky Adventure is a parody of the choose-your-adventure books to illustrate to readers who stutter various options and consequences one has in speaking situations.

Related reading