News from Berlin

News from Berlin – The U.S. Embassy in Berlin and the John F. Kennedy Institute organizes a seminar on comics in the classroom on 21st October at the John F. Kennedy Institute.

The U.S. Embassy has invited the journalist, lecturer, comic book writer, graphic novel author and “comics ambassador” for the U.S Department of the State, Josh Elder, to give a lecture on the role of comics in the classroom and in library collections.

Elder, who taught himself how to read from comics, is a committed crusader for the cause of comics in the classroom and is trying to bring comics closer to children and to their teachers and parents. In 2009 Elder brought a group of like-minded academics and comic professionals together to create a nonprofit literacy organization called Reading with Pictures.

This group have created a book, more precisely a teaching tool, called “Reading with pictures: Comics that make kids smarter”. It is a game-changing tool for the classroom and beyond. It features more than a dozen short stories that address topics in Social Studies, Maths, Language Arts and Science and help children learn how to read in a new way.

Since it’s inception, Reading With Pictures has provided hundreds of development seminars in schools and well known comic conferences around the U.S. These seminars help educators to get acquainted with the project and the book itself, and is furthermore a great way to bring comics into the classroom The organization has also published “The Reading with Pictures Anthology”, a book that demonstrates how comics can bridge the gap between entertainment and education. This book has also been nominated for two Harvey Awards, an award that is rewarded for achievement in comic books.

For more information about the organization Reading with pictures:

http://www.readingwithpictures.org/

News from Berlin – Berlin Global