It's not a rule, but I do see this as being more true than not: There's less
overlap between avid "traditional" book readers and graphic novel readers than many people might suspect. It's frequently a one-of-the-other proposition. You either like one, or the
other. As we as educators learn to recognize that there are different learning styles, we must also recognize that there are also different reading styles, and the two often coincide.
That is, visual learners are more likely to prefer graphic novels than traditional texts. Non-visual learners are less likely to appreciate graphic novels.
I know for me, graphic novels are too visually stimulating and thus daunting, so I've never enjoyed them. This seems to be true of a lot of people who grew up reading "text." They can get lost in words. Pictures and word bubbles interfere like someone shouting in your ear.
I also think the assumption that graphic novels are automatically better for kids with ADD is overstated, too. For SOME readers, the graphic elements interfere with any focus that might be achieved and the mind wanders to issues of color choices, stories the pictures suggest but are not part of the actual narrative, you name it! From bubble to bubble, who knows where my mind wanders? Sometimes it never comes back.
For others, the daunting task of "all that gray" in a traditional text keeps them from getting anywhere, and the digestible morsels of text in a graphic novel is just what they need to proceed with reading at all.
No conclusions here, just insights. I'm still learning. Aren't we all?
I know for me, graphic novels are too visually stimulating and thus daunting, so I've never enjoyed them. This seems to be true of a lot of people who grew up reading "text." They can get lost in words. Pictures and word bubbles interfere like someone shouting in your ear.
I also think the assumption that graphic novels are automatically better for kids with ADD is overstated, too. For SOME readers, the graphic elements interfere with any focus that might be achieved and the mind wanders to issues of color choices, stories the pictures suggest but are not part of the actual narrative, you name it! From bubble to bubble, who knows where my mind wanders? Sometimes it never comes back.
For others, the daunting task of "all that gray" in a traditional text keeps them from getting anywhere, and the digestible morsels of text in a graphic novel is just what they need to proceed with reading at all.
No conclusions here, just insights. I'm still learning. Aren't we all?
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