First up is ToonDoo. This site is free and allows you to create comics, comic books, and characters. You can use the images they provide you, or you can upload your own images. If you select this option, remember to check copyright before using pictures found on the Internet. The images can be manipulated to make them larger or smaller and change expression or orientation. The toons you create can be public, private, or shared with a few friends. If you chose the public option, other ToonDoo users can redo your toon. This could be a great way for your students to demonstrate their creative juices. You could create a toon and have them redo it to show how images can be interpreted many ways. The toon below took maybe 15 minutes to create. Yours probably won't take that long because I watched Gotham while working on it, and I played around with various buttons to see what they did. If you have used Comic Life before, then this site will be easy for you to use. The one thing I did not like about it is I could not add an extra box after I realized three would not be enough to make my point.
ToonDoo is great for quick cartoons, but it doesn't provide as much control over the outcome of the cartoon . That's where Pixton comes into play. Pixton allows for more manipulation than ToonDoo does. For example, ToonDoo allows you to move whole objects while Pixton allows you to move whole or parts of an object. Say you want to move a characters arm, Pixton will allow you to do that. Pixton also offers subscriptions for schools. A teacher can purchase his or her own account that allows up to 200 student accounts, or a school/district can purchase accounts for students. Depending on the scope of what you are wanting to do, the school/district pricing is probably the best option. I signed up for the personal account (non teacher one), and somehow managed to get a 7 day free trial of Pixton+. Fortunately it did not ask for billing information, so I thinking I won't magically be charged for it once my trial is over. I hate it when companies do that.
After many attempts to create a comic using Pixton, I have finally had success! It seems that logging in with Facebook was not the way to go when creating your account with Pixton. I had to delete the first account I created, and then make a new one because I would get about halfway through the process and be timed out. This doesn't have anything to do with the ease of site, but more friendly advice for setting up your account. Unfortunately the code provided so I could embed the image doesn't want to work. You will need to click on the word success above in order to view my comic.
My inspiration for this comic came while scrolling through the various setting options provided by Pixton. I saw the ball pit and immediately shouted BAZINGA! when I saw it. If you are not familiar with The Big Bang Theroy, then I suggest you watch this clip. I used the basic option when creating my comic, but there is an advanced option that allows you more control than the basic. The advanced option would be great for a vocabulary project or having students demonstrate understanding of a concept. You could also have students create their own political cartoons.
A third online option is Make Beliefs Comix. This site is very limited in what you can use to create your comic, but would be great for making quick comics or using with young children because you do not have to create an account to use it. It's also good for students who can't seem to remember a password longer than a day. Here's a sample of a comic I created using the site.
You can't save comics to a profile like you can Pixton or ToonDoo, but you can print and email them. I took a screen shot of this one in order to upload it.
Of the three, I found ToonDoo to be the site I enjoyed the most. It was easy and I had enough control over the objects for my needs. I think Pixton might actually be better, but my trouble with getting it to work and the embed link not working has left me with some sour grapes.
If you do not want to use a website for your comedic creations, you can use apps. Earlier in the post I mention Comic Life. This is a computer app you can use to make great comics. You will have to pay for this, so I recommend convincing your principal or district to buy licenses so all students can use it.
Tellagami is an app for your smart phone that will allow to create animated videos. These would be great for video announcements or as an updated oral book report. There is a free version and an education version that cost about $5. This one will allow for longer "gamis". They're pretty easy to make. Here's a link to one I made.
https://tellagami.com/gami/CCV12S/
Go forth and tickle some funny bones!
Brittany
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