Look! In the library! Is it a librarian? Is it a book? Faster than a reading turtle! Able to carry books taller than a giraffe’s neck! Wilder than a monkey checking out library materials! It’s SUPER ANIMALS!
photo by Paige Bentley-Flannery
Imagine if all of your favorite Super Animals from picture books, chapter books and graphic novels arrived at the library to…Save the Day! HeroBear and the Kid by Mike Kunkel, Ready Rabbit Gets Ready by Brenna Maloney, Extraordinary Warren, A Super Chicken by Sarah Dillard, Superworm by Julia Donaldson, Fashion Kitty and the Unlikely Hero by Charise Mericle Harper, Super Fly Guy by Tedd Arnold, Superfab Saves the Day by Berengere Delaporte, Turbo the Hamster in Captain Awesome Takes a Dive by Stan Kirby, all of the Super-Pets in the DC Super-Pets series, and a brand new book, Super Fly: The World’s Smallest Superhero! by Todd H. Doodler. Picture it! Now we are ready to create comics at the Super Animals! summer reading program at the library.
Read Superworm by Julia Donaldson (or one of your favorite super animal books.)
Create your own comic book:
- Draw a Super Animal. Supplies for each table include colored 8 x 11 paper, white paper, pencils, markers, glue sticks, and scissors.
- Draw Big! Draw one Super Animal in action with your group of kids. (If you have more time, have everyone draw one BIG Super Animal and display them around the room. Supplies: colored pencils and butcher paper.
- Talk about your Super Animal.
- Describe your super animal. A Super Frog? A Super Flamingo?
Super Flamingo! by JC and P. Photo by Paige Bentley-Flannery
- What is their super power? Check out the Big Book of Superheroes by Bart King for super ideas.
photo by Paige Bentley-Flannery
- Share a story idea.
One story idea: The children’s chapter books are disappearing from the library! They start to re-appear a month later in the outside reading garden in the shape of animals. First, a HUGE penguin book sculpture appears, the following week, a HUGE zebra. Every Saturday after Book Buzz, another new chapter book disappears. Who is taking the books out of the library? Is it Sneaky Snake? Or Master Mouse? And why are they making animal sculptures out of children’s chapter books? - Who will save the day?
- Continue to share Super Animal powers around the room.
- Create a comic with six frames and dialog bubbles so kids can tell their animal’s story: intro to your super animal, where? what? how? and an ending. (You can always add more.)
- ZAP! Act out your Super Animal comic book. (If you have time.)
photo by Paige Bentley-Flannery
Explore more Summer Reading programs at Deschutes Public Library.
Check out some of the other SUPER animal summer reading programs:
Wildlife Superheroes at NYPL
Be a Hero, Save a Butterfly at Arnolds Park Library
Great Stuffed Animal Superhero Sleepover & Storytime at Belvedere Tiburon Library
Animal Superhero Show at Mason Public Library
Comic Book Websites:
www.makebeliefscomix.com/Comix/
artroche.com
www.mykidsadventures.com/create-comic-strip-kids/
http://www.toon-books.com
The fabulous Dana Horrocks and Lindsey Krabbenhoft share four Superhero and Hero songs to get us ready for Summer Reading at the library! Thank you, Dana and Lindsey.
Are you ready for Every Hero Has a Story at your library? My library cape is on…SHAZAM!
Happy Summer Reading!
Super Animals! by JC and PF photo by Paige Bentley-Flannery and the ComicBook! app.
Please share your comic book and super animal ideas or photos in the comments below.
Paige Bentley-Flannery is a Community Librarian at Deschutes Public Library. For over fifteen years–from Seattle Art Museum to the New York Public Library to the Deschutes Public Library-Paige’s passion and creative style for art, poetry and literature have been combined with instructing, planning, and providing information. Paige is currently serving on the ALSC Notable Children’s Book Committee, 2015 – 2017. She is a former Chair of the ALSC Digital Content Task Force and member of the ALSC Great Websites Committee.
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