A History of Comic Illustration & Superheroes
 Comics began early in the 1900's and are defined as sequential images and illustrations that tell a story.
Illustration is a form of drawing in art.
 There are many kinds of comics. Comic strip that you would see in the newspaper, but the most notable form of comics are comic books, which generally feature superheroes or animals which can talk or possess human like traits.
 Some of the most famous comic book artists are Jack Kirby and Japanese artist, Osamu Tezuka. Jack
Kirby invented and drew Captain America, Hulk, Thor, The Fantastic Four and the Avengers. While
Osamu Tezuka created Astro Boy and a form of comics called Manga.
 The first superhero was created in 1933 and is the most famous superhero, (have the class guess who the first superhero is), Superman.
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A superhero is someone who possesses an extraordinary power and is dedicated to protecting the public. They are defined by their special power, their motivation and sense of responsibility, their secret identity, their back-story, and their distinctive costume.
Vocabulary
Comic
Illustration
Back-story
Sound Effect
Onomatopoeia (for 4 th and 5 th grade)- a word that is spelled as it sounds, “Oink, Meow, Bang, Crash”
Extraordinary
Materials
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Pre-printed pages with superhero figure and pre-printed speech bubbles and action noises. (can be used as cut outs or as a guide for students).
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Popsicle sticks
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Scissors
 Glue
 colored pencils, crayons and markers
 Mixed construction paper or mixed texture paper so students may create outfits for their super heros.
 normal graphite pencils (art pencils preferred, # 2 are okay, but students will feel more like an artist if they have art pencils.
 *Helpful hint! Be aware that colored pencils should not be used in a regular electric pencil sharpener, the wax may ruin the sharpener. Extra handheld pencil sharpeners might be required.
Project Overview
Students create a superhero by inventing a character and using the outline or drawing themselves a superhero figure to draw their character. Students will decorate their figure with unique and distinctive characteristics that they imagine using prompts from the teacher and will then add pre-printed speech bubbles and action noises. Students will have the opportunity to either cut out their superhero and glue it to a popsicle stick or draw a background for their hero. Teachers may choose to display their superheroes in other ways as well
(such as hanging from ceiling flying through the air, crawling on walls (like Spiderman) etc… Encourage children, although they may already love a super hero, to come up with their own super powers, not eat copy other superheroes.

Procedure:
1. The students will receive a paper with an empty contour of a child like figure standing/flying in a heroic pose. (grade K – 2 is more suitable for using empty contours). Grades 3 – 5 should be introduced to drawing their own figures by the teacher. Look at proportion of human body.
2. Talk the students through creating/drawing their character, have them draw on their hero as questions are asked about their character and write anything they can’t draw on the bottom of the page. Ask questions such as:
 What is the power of the hero (Limit them to one super special power. For older grades, have them think of world problems, like pollution, bullying, hunger, and see if they can come up with a superhero to help solve some of these world problems.
 Is your character human? Are they an Alien? Are they mixed with an animal? Encourage students to think out of the box.
 How many eyes does your hero have?
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Does you superhero have any extra appendages? Arms, wings, tail, pinchers, antlers, antennas?
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What color hair, fur, or feathers does your hero have?
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Do they have a funny hair-do?
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Name the hero and name their secret identity Example, Batman flies like a bat, Spiderman crawls like a spider. Kids can have man, woman, kid, girl, boy or student in the title of their name.
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What does their costume look like?
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Do they have a cape?
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Do they have a symbol or letter on their chest?
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Are they wearing a mask?
 *Superheros are not allowed to possess harmful weapons, only helpful ones.!! No guns etc… allowed in school settings!
 What is the past of the hero- how did they get their superpowers, were they born with them or did they get them in a radioactive accident, from drinking funky milk in the lunchroom, or from touching a magic stone? Come up with some ideas to inspire your super students!
 Where are they from? Are they from Earth?
 Involve a map or a globe, if there is a pull down map of the world use that. Use a globe or rent an atlas.
 Why did they become a hero, why do they care about their superhero power?
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What are some qualities of a hero? Let students answer and write on board – examples, kind, caring, they have courage, they are not afraid, they help everyone (except bad guys!)
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Make up a situation where your superhero had the power to help someone – prompt English teachers to encourage students to develop this story as part of after art class project.
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Make a display of all the superhero students for each class and grade to see! Look at how super we all are and what a difference we can all make!
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*Extra fun is if teachers come up with superhero teacher identities! What makes them a superhero?
Kids get more excited! This project should help students build individual confidence as well as see the benefits of similarities and differences between each of us!
(Simplify according to age of students, younger students should only attempt to write a sentence describing the power of their hero, “My hero can fly.”, “My hero is super strong”, ect. , while older students can write paragraphs, or short stories about their super hero back in English class after art lessons.
3. Give the students cutouts of noise bubbles/ sound effects. Allow students to color these in, cut them out and glue them on their paper (Grades K – 2) older grades and look at examples and learn how to create their own speech and noise bubbles... Encourage students to place their noises close to their superhero.

4. At this point have the students cut out their superhero along with any noise bubbles they glued on and glue this to a popsicle stick. If time is running out omit this step and have students simply draw in a background on their pages.
5. Allow a few or all students to learn about what each student’s special superhero creation and put on display!
Visual Art Standards
Objective 3 Grade 4
Recognize the connections of visual arts to all learning.
Standard 1
(Making): The student will explore and refine the application of media, techniques, and artistic processes
Objective 2 Grade 5
Create works of art using the elements and principles.
Use contour lines to indicate the form of objects.
Standard 3
(Expressing): The student will choose and evaluate artistic subject matter, themes, symbols, ideas, meanings, and purposes.
Objective 2 Discuss, evaluate, and choose symbols, ideas, subject matter, meanings, and purposes for students
' own artworks.
Predict aesthetic value in significant works of art; e.g., historical importance, communication of ideas or feelings, use of realism, monetary value.
Use a personal experience as inspiration to create a work of art.
Create a symbol to represent the student's interests or family heritage.
Convey an idea, such as pride or love of one's family, through a work of art.
Standard 4
(Contextualizing): The student will interpret and apply visual arts in relation to cultures, history, and all learning.
Objective 2 Connect various kinds of art with particular cultures, times, or places.
Collaborate in small groups to describe and list examples of major uses or functions of significant works of art over various periods during our nation's history; e.g., philosophy or religion, utility and use, documentation or history, ornamentation or decoration, self- expression.
Create a work of art that reflects a positive part of past or present American culture
Reading: Foundational Skills Standard 1 for first grade
Demonstrate understanding of the organization and basic features of print.
Recognize the distinguishing features of a sentence (e.g., first word, capitalization, ending punctuation).
Reading: Literature Standard 3 for Grade 3
Describe characters in a story (e.g., their traits, motivations, or feelings) and explain how their actions contribute to the sequence of events.
English Language proficiency, Grade 3-5, Standards of Language Art
Narratives
Produce grade-level narrative stories or reports
Fantasies
Answer WH- or choice questions about pictures of imaginary people, objects or Situations
Provide details of imaginary people, objects or situations to peers

Make up fantasies about imaginary people, objects or situations and share with peers
Point of View
Compare self with characters in literary works using graphic organizers or technology
Compare self with familiar persons (e.g., friends, family members, movie stars)
Students will have to compare their hero’s and stories with known superheroes.
Biography and Autobiography
Sort relevant from irrelevant biographical information
Walt Disney drawing Mickey Mouse

Charles Schulz drawing Charlie Brown

Charlie Brown Comic Strip

Adventures of Superman Comic Book Cover

Marvel Superheroes, created by Marvel Worldwide, Inc.

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