Entry 9: Multimodal Compositions

 Recently, I had the opportunity to teach the class about the narrative genre. This genre was an exciting one to focus on because it not only connects to a multitude of other genres, but it represents the story structure we try and teach from an early age. We not only need to teach about creativity when it comes to writing but also introducing the structure and technical aspects. The narrative genre allows for us to combine both in fun and exciting ways. The chapter for the narrative genre was an exciting read and if you noticed, as you read the chapter, there were quite a few charts that listed a variety of mentor texts. Using mentor texts is such an important tool for young readers and writers because it gives them the ability to see how writing can come together. The more someone reads, the better they become at writing. Since stories are introduced from very early on, it leads young readers to copy that story structure. I know that as a child, I thought stories needed to have "Once upon a time" in the beginning. This awareness of story structure came from reading fairytales. As I was doing research about this genre, I asked myself, what would happen if we changed the mentor text to something unexpected? How would students be affected when introduced to a different style of writing? 

The answers to these questions were found in the article I discovered for the teaching genre project. I found an article written by Ashley Kaye Dallacqua that details what happened to a classroom that was introduced to graphic narratives. The students in this classroom gained appreciation for a different form of writing and took on a bigger role as a writer. Graphic narratives allow for writers to combine art and writing in one single place. This narrative style can expand the way we think about writing. Dallacqua states that " graphic narratives have the ability to transform the ways we think about reading and writing in language arts classrooms and ways students think about themselves as readers and writers" (p.273). This type of narrative allows for a new type of ownership to take place over a students work. They can incorporate multiple writing styles to create a fun and captivating story. Through research and spending time reading different graphic narratives, students were able to identify these works as mentor texts and notice the ways in which theses narratives were composed (Dallacqua 2018, p.279). Giving students the opportunity to become their own researcher and figure out how these graphic narratives fit in the realm of writing, allowed for students to get daring when it came to their own work. I have also seen this type of excitement when this genre is introduced.

At Brockport, we recently completed a book initiative where the whole school was given a copy of a graphic narrative titled Dragon Hoops. This graphic narrative detailed a teacher at a school in California who became interested in the high school basketball team and the team's journey through the course of a season. The picture down below is the cover of the book and what the inside looks like. I saw first hand the excitement that students had when they were introduced to this type of writing. Many students didn't recognize this narrative as an "acceptable" form of writing. By showing the validity of this style, it allowed for students to become more creative in their own work. I had a student who did not like to participate in writing and was very closed off. When I introduced this book and the writing style, this student became excited and invested in the writing process. This student took a new ownership over their work and became a more confident writer. Acknowledging the ever changing and evolving way in which to tell a story, we can make students become engaged in the writing process once again. We need to be able to be diverse when it comes to telling stories. Stories are often reflective of others experiences, it would make sense that this genre be an evolving and diversified genre. 

Students can become re-engaged and learn how to work with mentor texts when they are introduced to a diverse catalogue. We can see this first hand when graphic narratives are introduced to students. We see excitement and a new way to engage with stories. This type of narrative can help to keep things fresh and interesting in the classroom. One of the biggest takeaways was that this type of narrative allowed for students to change how they viewed stories and to take a new form of ownership over their work. We should continue to look for new ways for students to vocalize their stories. I have a feeling we won't be disappointed!

References 

Dallacqua, A. K. (2018). "When I write, I picture it in my head": Graphic Narratives 

as Inspiration for Multimodal Compositions. Language Arts , 95(5), 273–286.