Welcome!
This guide is meant to help students in Dr. Keegan's EDUC 204 course complete their graphic novel and midterm assignments.
- For help with education lesson planning visit this guide.
- For help in finding additional education research help please visit this guide.
- Email or schedule a research consultation with the education librarian Becky Leathersich for additional help.
Finding Graphic Novels
To find graphic novels (in Milne), use the search terms "graphic novels" (in quotes) and your subject area, theme or topic.
e.g. "graphic novels" AND friendship
In addition, consider searching for books that focus on teaching with comics or graphic novels. Many times they contain annotated book lists broken down by subject, topic, or grade level.
Catalogs/Databases
- Children's Literature Comprehensive Database This link opens in a new windowThe CLCD is the premier academic and research resource for courses needing to locate Children’s and Young Adult books and other media. The content includes over one million of fiction/non-fiction titles, thousands of awards and quality reviews including author/title links, lesson plans and teaching guides. The database offers multiple options including 50 search filters to find materials for determining interest & reading levels; selecting trade books based on standards; creating thematic, annotated biographies; interpreting reviews; developing classroom collections and more.
- Wadsworth Public Library (Geneseo, NY)Graphic novels in their collection
- YALSA Bookfinder DatabaseSearch 4,000+ books, audiobooks, and films from YALSA's book awards and book lists.
A few helpful websites about graphic novels & comics:
- Comic Book Legal Defense Fund Comic Book Legal Defense Fund is a non-profit organization dedicated to the protection of the First Amendment rights of the comics art form and its community of retailers, creators, publishers, librarians, and readers. The CBLDF provides legal referrals, representation, advice, assistance, and education in furtherance of these goals.
- Diamond BookShelf BookShelf is the graphic novel resource for Teachers, Educators, Librarians, and more! Our mission is to provide the latest news and info on comics and GNs!
- Graphic Guides Series Graphic Guides bring to life complex, theoretical topics like Quantum Theory, Logic or Postmodernism, and help you get your head around thinkers from Aristotle to Zizek.
- Let's Get Graphic: 100 Favorite Comics And Graphic NovelsNPR fan list of100 great comics for all ages and tastes, from early readers to adults-only.
- No Flying No Tights Original creator Robin B. here. I just want to broadcast my opinions to the world! Actually, no — I decided to create a page devoted to graphic novel reviews specifically for those who read them the most — mainly teens — and for those who might be involved in distributing them to teens — namely teachers, librarians, and parents.
- Using Graphic Novels in Education: Nathan Hale’s Hazardous Tales Welcome to Using Graphic Novels in Education, an ongoing feature from CBLDF that is designed to allay confusion around the content of graphic novels and to help parents and teachers raise readers.
- YALSA: Great Graphic Novels for TeensGreat Graphic Novels for Teens is a list of recommended graphic novels and illustrated nonfiction for those ages 12-18, prepared yearly by YALSA.
Additional Materials to Help With Assignments
Games Found in Our Collection
- Code Master: Programming Logic Game For all 60 levels you will have to use programming logic to help your Avatar collect the Crystals and land in the PortalCall Number: curr GAME COD
- Council of Verona The citizens of Verona have grown tired of the constant quarrel between the houses of Capulet and Montague. As ruler of the region, Prince Escalus has formed a council to help mediate the conflict and bring lasting peace to Verona. In Council of Verona players take on the role of citizens of Verona and have the opportunity to steer the story of Romeo & Juliet and determine who will rule Verona once and for all!Call Number: curr GAME COU
- Evolution : the dynamic game of survival In Evolution, you’re in the midst of a dynamic ecosystem of limited resources and hungry predators. What traits will your species need to eat, multiply and thrive? The answer changes with every game. 4000 different species to create.Call Number: curr GAME EVO
- Freedom: The Underground Railroad A challenging cooperative game pitting the players against the institution of slavery during the early 1800’s through the Civil War. Players work together for the Abolitionist cause, raising funds and helping slaves as they move from the Southern States to freedom in Canada.Call Number: curr GAME FRE
- Prime Climb: The Beautiful, Colorful, Mathematical Game This is a game of strategy and luck. See the 101 circle? It’s the big red circle at the center of the spiral. The goal is to land both your pawns on 101 exactly. A turn consists of four phases: roll, move, bump, and draw.Call Number: curr GAME PRI
- Race to Madrid: Play the Game and Learn Spanish Learn Spanish as you race to Madrid in this beginner to intermediate Spanish board gameCall Number: curr GAME RAC
- Spookies The haunted house looks even scarier than usual in the light of the full Moon. But the four brave friends and their dog dare to enter the haunted house. Who dares to climb up the highest? the player who has collected the most spookies-points at the end of the game is the winner! you receive spookies chips every time you venture into the haunted house or climb up one floor. The higher you climb, the more spookies you can collect. But if you take too high of a risk, you may lose some spookies as well, so use caution!Call Number: curr GAME SPO
This is just a sampling of the board games we have in our collection. To search for more games, click here.
Choosing an Education Research Topic
Choosing a topic can be a difficult task. It may be helpful to find some background information first. This process will help introduce new topics, highlight areas for further research and provide unique vocabulary. These terms or keywords can be used to locate resources.
Good places to look for background information include reference books (such as encyclopedias), course textbooks, and news articles.
Links to Education News Websites
- Education Week Education Week is a United States national newspaper covering K–12 education. It is published by Editorial Projects in Education (EPE), a nonprofit organization, which is headquartered in Bethesda, Maryland in Greater Washington DC. It is available in a variety of EBSCO and Gale databases.
Helpful websites on choosing a topic:
Creating a Research Question and Formulating a Search Strategy
After you have chosen a topic, it is better to start with a research question rather than a thesis statement. A research question, when appropriately written, will guide the research project and assist in the construction of a logical argument.
- Research Question (RQ) Recording SheetUse this guide to help you create a RQ.
After creating your research question, you are now ready to formulate a search strategy.
- Formulating a Search StrategyUse this template to help you formulate a search strategy.
Finding and Evaluating Scholarly Sources
After successfully narrowing down a topic and formulating a sound search strategy, you are ready to search for research articles that address your research question.
Recommended Education Databases. For additional databases visit this link.
- ERIC (EBSCOhost) This link opens in a new window ERIC, the Educational Resource Information Center, contains more than a million records, some of which are available in full-text.
- Education Source This link opens in a new window Education Source provides full-text access to hundreds of journals, conference papers, which cover all topics related to education.
Resources to help in evaluating sources.
- Helpful tutorial on how to evaluate a sourceEvaluating Sources for Credibility: What does it mean for a source to be credible? Why is it important to use these sources? How can you tell if a source is credible?
- Evaluating SourcesUse this worksheet to help in evaluating sources.
