INTE 6710 ~ Creative Designs for Instructional Materials Project 2: Graphic Novel Handout Design Document

Aimee Cameron Willis

October 2, 2011

1. Significant Purpose Halloween is an entertaining holiday that most everyone celebrates in some way, either by dressing up, attending a social function, or simply handing out candy to visiting trick-or-treaters. However, since it is not a national holiday and has come under scrutiny for the last several centuries, most people do not actually know the history behind or understand the roots of their current celebratory practices leading up to and culminating on October 31st. There is a great historical significance to this time of year, which is actually one of the worlds most ancient celebratory and ritualized holidays. The title of this instructional comic is Halloween: Death Gives Life to a Holiday, and the targeted audience for the handout will be 12-15 social science students. Although I originally wanted to title it Halloween: A History and Celebration, I feel that the updated title invites the learner by engaging their curiosity and lends instant stickiness to the topic and handout. Most learners in this age group thoroughly enjoy the practices and annual rituals that come along with celebrating Halloween, which include pumpkin carving, recounting ghost stories and donning costumes. There is a treasure trove of intriguing history, information and little known facts that the average learner is not aware of even though they celebrate this day in some form or fashion every year. This gap in knowledge between the rote celebration of and the reason why we ritually celebrate Halloween every year is the reason why this handout has a significant purpose. The instructional comic will serve as a fun, engaging and entertaining way of educating the learner about a practice in which they already engage. Social science class is an excellent setting and appropriate opportunity to engage in the activity that this graphic handout will serve as precursor to. Learners will gain insight into the intriguing cultural historical phenomenon that serves as the foundation to our current annual celebration of Halloween. The timing of the introduction to this topic is also key in engaging the interest of the targeted learners. Introducing this unit of study during the
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month of October will garner more interest, as the activities of the month are directly related to the subject matter, which creates a connection to what the learner is doing in their life outside of the classroom. Again, this connection will create a more memorable learning experience because content will be within a concrete context. This handout will create an opportunity for learners to identify their current practices with the history underlying their actions. Halloween is not only just a story, but a story of us, our culture and why we continue to engage in its annual celebration. An ancient European pagan tradition that has permeated the cultural fabric and has been transferred across time and space into the current multicultural phenomena is an incredible story brimming with attention grabbing information. Even if the learner is not American born, or from European descent, most immigrants, in some way, take part in the annual events that are part and parcel to celebrating Halloween, whether they are an active participant or a passive observer. With this handout, the learner realizes the opportunity to become an informed participant privy to the historical significance of the holiday and their actions. Key characteristics of the intended audience are:
1- Similarity in age (12-15 year olds)

2- Attendance and participation in a Social Science classroom 3- Experience with using and remixing Pixton comics 4- Exposure to the customs accompanying the celebration of Halloween

Although this instructional comic can be downloaded as a pdf and distributed in paper form, the power of this handout will be in its online accessibility and interactivity. Also, the tool, Pixton, allows for the hosted comics to be remixed by other users, which means changing and adding to comics that are already posted. For this instructional comic, the comic character Marnie will lead the learner through the story of Halloween, which will culminate in the learners participation in remixing the Pixton comic and inserting themselves into the story. Marnie, the comic story guide, will introduce the topic and provide an interesting account, after which she will engage the learners in a series of questions. The learner will then remix the comic and insert themselves into the story and answer the questions based on the information from the story. Therefore, as a result of the handout and activity contained within, the learner will be able to respond to the questions based on the story, as well as adopt a better working knowledge of the
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history of Halloween, resulting in a connection between their actions and the story behind the holiday. The significant purpose is also evident in the objectives set forth to target instructional goals and measure learning success that the handout is designed to accomplish. These ojectives are Given the content of the instructional comic story, the learner will
1- Correctly answer the 3 following questions posed by Marnie, the comic

character guide a. Considering what you have read and in your own words, what do you think the origin of Halloween ghost stories is? b. Where and why do you think the modern practice of pumpkin carving originated? c. Why are cats, bats and owls associated with Halloween? 2- Identify one example of how the History of Halloween relates to your current practices or observations of other practitioners 3- Express one opinion as to how the knowledge of the story of Halloween will affect yourpractices or observations of the holiday going forward These objectives are subordinate to learners previous experience and knowledge of Pixton and remixing Pixton comics (which will have been addressed during learning units prior to this activity), which results in the learner inserting his/herself into the story, answering the questions and reposting his/her version of the comic for peers to review and respond to. 2. A Picture of the Future Ideally, life after the handout will result in a more meaningful experience of Halloween. The story of Halloween is something that can be shared and passed on, even to the point of these learners relaying this information to their parents; other interested parties, and ultimately shared with their own children. Stories are meaningful vehicles by which we transfer information, so I hope that the story of Halloween presented by the instructional comic is meaningful and relevant enough that they can connect what they do now with what has been done for ages. Again, the instructional objectives below will aid in determining whether or not the instructional comic accomplishes what it is designed to do Given the content of the instructional comic story, the learner will

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1- Correctly answer the 3 following questions posed by the Marnie, the

comic character guide a. Considering what you have read and in your own words, what do you think the origin of Halloween ghost stories is? b. Where and why do you think the modern practice of pumpkin carving originated? c. Why are cats, bats and owls associated with Halloween? 2- Identify one example of how the History of Halloween relates to your current practices or observations of other practitioners 3- Express one opinion as to how the knowledge of the story of Halloween will affect your practices or observations of the holiday going forward

A picture of the future will also include convey correlation between the learners acquisition of knowledge and thoughtful application of it, as outlined in the table below Learning Objective 1- Increase knowledge about the holiday of Halloween - its history and significance. Assessment to test successful attainment A. Correct response to instructional objective questions 1 (a-c) B. Relevant responses to Journal topic: Top Five List of Things I didnt know about Halloween A. Pertinent responses to instructional objectives 2 & 3 B. Observance of quality and applicability of feedback/participation during class discussion after completion of instructional handout. Differentiation: discussion could be in the form of discussion thread on Edmodo or actual verbal class discussion.

2- Produce thoughtful correlation

between the Halloweens past and the now, present, observance of the holiday.

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Pixton is a wonderful tool that will allow for ease in observation of whether or not learning objectives have been met, but will also provide a social platform for learners to observe and learn from their peers remixed comic postings. The responses listed in the remixed comics will allow not only the instructor to measure learning success, but will also benefit other learners who can comment on and make suggestions to peer posted responses. Oftentimes, the learner will gain more insight from peer made comments than instructor suggestions, especially in this age group of targeted learners. This handout and assignment also lends itself well to differentiation for learners not proficient in working with Pixton, or those that want to create and manually draw their own comic. The instructional comic can be printed in a pdf format and the learner can then respond to the questions and tasks on paper. This alternative is also great in the event that access to computers and Pixton are limited, which means the learning objectives can be accomplished at a time (in this case October, prior to Halloween) regardless of whether or not the technological tools are readily available in the school or classroom. Another benefit of this story inspired comic handout assignment is that is can be part of a larger, cross curricular learning unit. Therefore, an ideal of glimpse into the future would see the Language Arts class introducing reading and writing topics based on cultural reference points related to the origins of Halloween, such as Gaelic, Celtic or Latin American samples of corresponding literature. Home Economics class would be an ideal opportunity to reinforce the story of Halloween and learning unit on its history by implementing activities that facilitated the learner in preparing traditional Halloween fare, such as soul cakes, barmbrack or colcannos. Learning content across multiple subject areas reinforces connections and establishes meaning outside of the specific activities. As an instructional designer of this handout, I may not see the long term implications this assignment has on the learners. However, I endeavor to develop an engaging handout that recounts a tale that the learner can connect with and will facilitate him/her in increasing knowledge and consideration of the history of this ancient holiday. Ideally, this knowledge will transfer into meaningful celebration and appreciation of Halloween for years to come. 3. Clear Design Values

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Design Decision #1: Start with a Compelling Intro In order to grab learners attention, I felt it was a priority to develop a compelling introduction to the subject matter, Halloween. Ultimately, it was a happy accident that I stumbled upon the Comic Book feature of Pixton, which I feel has contributed a real graphic novel authenticity to this project. As Pixton only allows for 14 rows of panels on its longest comic, I had to create a Comic Book with a table of contents and cover to continue the story and bring it together. If design is about finding solutions, then this solution has actually improved the product by giving the feel of an actual comic book (Reynolds, 2009, p. 27). The only difference is that its virtual, which I think the targeted audience will find interesting and fun. The image and design I chose for the comic book cover, the comic character I developed named Marnie, and the initial panels that introduce the topic and question the learners knowledge are all designed to function as a compelling introduction. If introductions are everything according to Medina, then I felt it was really important to spend time developing these aspects (2008, p. 116). Images that are striking, a character guide that is cute and funny and questions that pique the learners interest will create more brain structures, called door handles in Medinas book, that emphasize the initial moments of learning and provide the learner with more ways to store and retrieve the information presented (2008, p. 116117). All these tactics play a role in elaborate encoding, which creates a stronger memory of the event and information (Medina, 2008, p. 119). The more I can do to elicit initial interest in the topic, the more likely the learner looks forward to the subject matter. Learner interest plays a major role in remembering the information presented. Design Decision #2: Use Annotated Graphics and Images to Clarify and Visualize Relationships Although I was initially hesitant and worried about the requirement of using at least 2 visual elements to support visual relationships, I wound up realizing the benefit and aesthetic importance of them and incorporated 5. They were fun to make and reinforced my own understanding of the subject, as well. The first diagram represents the relationship between bonfires, mosquitoes, bats and owls. I placed the graphic on top of an image of people gathered around a bonfire to support the relevance of the graphic. This single image summarize[s] everything presented in the narrative of the panel in a simple, easy to understand, visual manner (Roam, 2008, p. 19). The second diagram is that of an annotated map that shows the distance between Celtic Ireland and Rome. The graphic is designed to show the learner the distance and difference in celebratory practices, which visually defines the special relationships of the objects by representing placement, proximity, overlap, distance, and direction (Roam, 2008. p. 174).
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The third image represents the two cultures, Celtic and Roman, colliding in 50 BC. Although very simple, I think the visual nature, as well as the elements chosen to represent the two cultures and the collision, have a maximum impact on a learners understanding of the content and helps their visual thinking come alive (Roam, 2008, p. 148.) The fourth graphic is a Venn diagram that represents the separate, yet converging practices of Samhain and Pomona. The separate, but overlapping content illuminates the special relationship between the two practices and aids in visually reinforcing the concept of converging cultural practices (Roam, 2008, p. 189). Lastly, the fifth graphic shows the evolving etymology of the modern day term Halloween. I think it is important for the learners to understand where the term originated, since it is a bit of a nonsensical word if you do not know its genesis. As Roam states, if you are interested in following the entire line of detail, start from the beginning (2008, p. 148). Design Decision #3: Tell a Story The benefit of designing a project for Social Science class, is that you are dealing with the history of people and places over time. And, what is history but a story. Therefore, I focused on recounting the narrative of Halloween using Marnie, the guide, in a story like fashion. Combined with the visual backgrounds of each panel, I wanted to pull readers into the world of story and create a reading experience so seamless that itfelt like being there (McCloud, 2006, p. 1). If what people remember is the story, then I felt that this aspect of the graphic novel handout required a lot of thought, planning, research and implementation (Reynolds, 2008, p. 19). I spent ample time, prior to even beginning development on the comic, researching online resources, reviewing online video content from trusted sources like the History Channel and referring to Wikipedia to correctly determine definitions for pertinent vocabulary. All of these efforts were the backbone to the actual narrative that is designed to be story-like in structure and told from the guides point of view to illustrate causal relationships and highlight unexpected, resourceful ways in which people have solved problems and show how the celebration of Halloween developed and has continued and morphed over time (Heath, 2008, p. 160). Design Decision #4: Use Relevant Backdrops to Illustrate the Story Although I have already discussed the use and justification of annotated graphic visuals to support best practices in design, I also want to discuss my decision to select and use appropriate visual backdrops for the panels in the graphic novel handout. I spent a great deal of time researching Creative Commons licensed images to serve as illustrative panel backdrops that visually supported the narrative text in an effort to combinewords and picturesto create effects that neither could create separately (McCloud,
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2006, p. 4). This combination is meant to capitalize on the theory that we learn and remember best through pictures, not through written or spoken words (Medina, 2008, p. 240). Using relevant images that confirm and visually support the narrative story will aid learners comprehension and retention of the content. By communicating [the narrative] with pictures [learners experience] more efficient information transferbecause it takes less effort to comprehend (Medina, 2008, p. 239). Each image selected as a backdrop was chosen to visually illustrate the narrative text within the panel. Design Decision #5: Provide the Opportunity to Rehearse Pixton is an excellent tool to support the design decision to design a learning product that allows the learner the opportunity to rehearse the content. Since Pixton is a social learning tool that allows users to remix posted comics, the learners have the opportunity to remix the Halloween comic by creating a character for themselves, inserting the character into the story and responding to read and recall questions posed by the guide, Marnie. This activity allows the learner to rehearse the information they have been told explicitly, which supports keeping [information] in the working memory (Medina, 2008, p. 130). There is also the opportunity to describe relationships between the history presented in the comic and the learners current practices and observations. This description helps push information into the long-term memory (Medina, 2008. p. 130). The opportunity to rehearse, explain and describe fosters a more active, unpassive audience that makes for sticker content, which reinforces the learners comprehension and retention of the subject matter (Heath, 2008, p. 162). 4. Formative Evaluation Response The following section addresses the questions I asked of my peer reviewers, why I asked those questions and their responses. I have indicated my attention to those responses regarding my final presentation within their feedback in black text. Questions: 1-Do the images for each backdrop illustrate clearly what the comic guide, Marnie, is trying to convey? If not, please indicate which images could use revisiting and why. I asked this question in order to find out if each image that serves as a backdrop clearly expresses the story and the dialogue that the comic guide is discussing.

Reviewer 1:

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I think you did an excellent job picking out your backdrops! All the images seemed to support your storyline very well. [Here are the few ideas and questions I could come up with.] a) On the frame where you talk about asking their priests, the druids, to pray, are there any REAL pictures of druids? Do they look different in any way to be distinguished as a druid? Or do they just look like normal people? Although there are modern-day Druids, they do not have a historic connection to the ancient Druids. So, pictures are not available. However, the statues of Druids, like the one represented in the panel in question, are found all over Ireland. Therefore, I feel comfortable leaving the wooden carving image of the Druid priest in place. b) The slide where they painted scary faces on themselves, can you find any examples of these "scary face paintings"? The narrative that goes along with this image states that Celts painted scary faces on themselves and gourds. The image is that of a painted gourd. Although I considered replacing it with a face, ultimately I felt like the image of the gourd was of most importance because it ties in with one of the concluding questions asked of the learner Where does our modern day practice of pumpkin carving come from? c) The slide with earth worship and offerings - is the bowl supposed to represent earth worship and offering? Yes, that is exactly it. The bowl is set atop a tree stump filled with offerings and does represent earth worship and offerings. Since the reviewer is asking question, but not offering feedback that it is confusing, I feel comfortable keeping this image in place. d) The slide about All Saints Day, what does the candles represent? Many people observe All Saints Day by lighting candles in the church in anticipation of All Souls Day. Reviewer 2: Great job, Aimee! I learned a lot! You did a really nice job picking out background images for Marnie to tell her story with. The 12th frame in part 1 (the picture of a white face with blue eyes and mouth) is a little tough to figure out at first. I think a clearer picture of a painted face or gourd (or zooming out on this one) might be easier to recognize. I panned out on this image so that the face of the gourd was more clearly decipherable. In addition, the picture of the people with the fires where you discuss the druids reading the burnt remains is tough because it is blurry. I wasnt sure what that picture was supposed to be of.

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I replaced the image in question with another image of people gathered around a bonfire that more clear and decipherable. 2- Do the annotated pictures/visual elements (Venn diagram, map, etymology of the word "Halloween", visual of Celtic and Roman forces clashing, relationship of bonfire/bats/owls) fit well within the story? If not, please elaborate or provide feedback on how to improve them.
This question was designed to provide feedback that would enable me

to revisit any confusing or unnecessary annotated pictures or visual elements. Review 1: Yes. I wanted to comment on your diagrams/charts/etc. They were such a great idea. It really visualized what you were trying to explain. I don't know what would make it better. It fits very well and they make the story more clear. Based on this feedback, I felt confident that the annotated images are pertinent and clear and did not make any changes. Reviewer 2: I really like the annotated pictures, they clearly demonstrate your point. The diagram of the mosquitos, bats, owls at the campfire visually represents the connection very well. The only one that slightly confused me with the etymology of the word Halloween, but that may have been because I jumped to that frame and didnt read the frame before it (oops). I revisited this image and decided that the narrative part of the panel explains the evolving etymology of the word Halloween, so I did not change the annotated picture. 3-Are the questions at the end of the story for the reader to remix and answer posed clearly and does the story provide enough information to thoroughly answer each question? I asked this question so that I could get feedback on whether or not there was enough information in the story to answer the concluding questions, as well as to confirm whether or not the questions were posed clearly enough. Reviewer 1: I believe I can answer all the questions except for the carving of the pumpkin one. I'm not sure exactly which frame that was explained in. Sorry. Maybe I missed it somehow. I reviewed this issue and, as explained above, the image and description of Celts painting scary faces on gourds is the panel that provides the

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information to answer this question. Also, the other reviewer did not indicate this question as confusing in their feedback, so I have left it as is. Reviewer 2: Im not sure what age group you have created the comic for, but I am assuming at least middle school level, based on the material. In light of that, I think the questions are posed clearly and you remind them that they have already learned how to remix, so that part shouldnt be a problem. I like that you posted questions at the end to test their comprehension. Yes! This comic is created for a targeted audience of 12-15 year old Social Science students. This feedback makes me feel confident that the comic is age appropriate. 4-Does the story as a whole flow well with appropriate pacing or are there areas that could be polished, elaborated on or omitted? This question is designed to elicit feedback on how well the story flows too slow, too fast, too boring, etc. Reviewer 1: I think the story flowed well. One thing I was thinking while going through your presentation was that it did have a lot of words. It was a lot to read. Is there any way to perhaps shrink the talking a little bit? Meaning, are all those informations necessary? I mean they were very interesting and really good. But for someone who does not really enjoy reading, it was a lot. Just a comment. In reflecting on this feedback, I considered the opinion of the reviewer and weighed it against what the comic is supposed to accomplish. In essence, it is a history lesson that spans thousands of years in about 52 panels. Even though the reviewer does not enjoy reading, he still comments that it was interesting. Ultimately, I feel comfortable that the targeted learners will prefer this type of history lesson to a more conventional one in which text books and limited visuals are provided. Reviewer 2: I am in awe at the amount of information you were able to convey. The story flowed well and provided lots of information without it being information overload. I have no suggestions for this part. This feedback supports my decision stated under Reviewer 1s feedback. I am happy that my peer reviewers found the lesson/handout interesting and that they feel like they learned somethingthat is the point of the assignment! Hooray!

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5-Are there any panels where the color of the solid background, the image, or Marnie (the guide) are too contrasting or not contrasting/clear enough? If so, please indicate which panels and what element(s) need retooling. Although I wanted Marnie to be dressed in black, I had concerns about the amount of contrast between her and the background in some panels. So, this question is asked to get feedback on the opinion of the reviewers about this issue. Reviewer 1: Sometimes, the clothes on your guide blend in with the blackness of the background, but it's not that big of a deal for me. I adjusted the clothing color on the guide in all panels to create more contrast. She was originally wearing all black, but I adjusted her color palette by updating her shirt to gray/white and pants to dark blue. Reviewer 2: I liked the background colors you chose for the frames where you werent using any actual photos. There were just a few that werent as contrasting as the others.

In Part 1: Frame 5 Marnie is standing in front of a tree and there is not as much contrast as when she stands between the trees. I addressed this issue by updating the color of clothing Marnie wears from black to white shirt and blue pants.

In Part 1: Frame 15 Marnie is gesturing towards the bonfire scene. Her dark clothes cause her body to be slightly lost with the dark background of the scene. Again, I corrected the contrast issue by improving it lighter clothes on guide which improves visibility on dark backgrounds.

In Part 2: Frame 18 Marnie is discussing the parades. Again, the photo behind her is relatively dark and so are her clothes.
Same as above corrected contrast using lighter clothes for guide.

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Bibliography
Heath, C., & Heath, D. (2008). Made to Stick: Why Some Ideas Die and Others Survive. New York: Random House. McCloud, S. (2006). Making Comics: Storytelling Secrets of Comics, Magna and Graphic Novels. New York: Harper. Medina, J. (2008). Brain Rules: 12 Principles for Surviving and Thriving at Work, Home, and School. Seattle, WA: Pear Press. Reynolds, G. (2009). Presentation Zen Design: Simple Design Principles and Techniques to Enhance Your Presentations. Berkeley, CA: New Riders. Roam, D. (2008). The Back of the Napkin: Solving Problems and Selling Ideas with Pictures. New York: Portfolio/Penguin Group.

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