1. Comics and Critical Thinking
Ontario Teacher’s Federation
It’s About Time – Critical Thinking and Technology
Ministry of Education – Teacher Learning and Leadership Program
Sally B. MacDonald
Teacher-Librarian Sunnybrae Public School

2. Visual Components of a Comic
Borders and Gutters

3. Borders
Borders are used to surround the panels of a comic and to enclose word, thought and caption balloons.

4. Line Weights of Borders
The lines weights are used to represent different effects and moods.
Rough or jagged – anger or distress
Thin wavy – weakness or spookiness
“Electric” – radios, TV, telephone dialogue
Burst borders or double-bordered balloons represent loud shouting
Rounded panel borders/ uneven – flashbacks
(Anina Bennett)

5. Borders
Tobin, Paul
Ferrari, Alessandro

6. Electric Balloons
The jagged edge of a word balloon represents that the voice is coming from a radio; over an intercom, TV, and in these two examples from a computer and an GPS.
Fisch, Sholly
Snider, Jesse Blaze

7. Gutters
A gutter is the space
between the panels of a
comic.

8. Gutters
Gutters are very important as they represent the events between the action happening within the panels.
Gutters can represent a time lapse of seconds or years.
Readers imagine what happens between the panels in the gutters.
It is important that the transition between panels is smooth and coherent.
(Anina Bennett)

9. Gutters
Tobin, Paul
Ferrari, Alessandro

10. Panel Transitions
Scott McCloud, author of “Understanding Comics” has identified six different transitions between panels.
1. Non-sequitur – no obvious connection between imagery in panels.
2. Aspect to aspect – depicts different elements of place, mood or concept. Common in Manga.

11. – same subject in a sequence of different moments but with little time lapse
3. Moment to Moment
Snider, Jesse Blaze

12. 4. Subject to Subject – different subjects in the same scene
Fisch, Sholly

13. 5. Scene to Scene
– panels that show completely different scenes. The gutters represent a substantial distance between time and or space. The dialogue, captions and panel compositions are extremely important in the bridging the scenes.
Tobin, Paul

14. 6. Action to Action
– same subject in a sequence of different yet connected actions – more time lapse
Fisch, Sholly

15. Works Cited
Barbera, Hanna, and Ivan Velez. "Chills and Spills! Scooby-Doo!" Comic Strip. Ed. Harvey Richards. Vol. #152. New York: DC Comics, Print.
Bennett, Anina. "Visual Language: Writing for Comics." Bigredhair. Web. 14 Dec <
Bledsoe, Glen. Comic Life. Computer Software. Comiclife.com. Web. 11 Jan <
Ferrari, Alessandro. "Walt Disney Comics." Comic Strip. Ed. Aaron Sparrow. Walt Disney's Comics and Stories. Vol. #702. Los Angeles: Boom Kids, Print.

16. Works Cited Continued
Fisch, Sholly. "Batman The Brave and The Bold." Comic Strip. Ed. Michael Siglan. Mixed Signals. Vol. 13. New York: DC Comics, Print.
McCloud, Scott. "Cartoon." World Book Student. World Book Inc. Web. 11 Jan <
McCloud, Scott. "Comics." World Book Student. World Book Online. Web. 11 Jan <
Norton, B. (2003). The Motivating Power of Comic Books: Insight from Archie Comic Readers. The Reading Teacher, 57, 140–147.

17. Works Cited Continued
Snider, Jesse Blaze. "Toy Story: The Return of Buzz Lightyear Part 2." Comic Strip. Ed. Aaron Sparrow. Disney Pixar. Vol. 1. Los Angeles: Boom Kids, Print.
Tobin, Paul. "Marvel Adventures The Avengers." Comic Strip. Ed. Nathan Cosby. Vol. 36. New York: Marvel Inc, Print.
Waid, Mark, and Landry Walker. "The Incredibles." Comic Strip. Ed. Aaron Sparrow. Disney Pixar. Vol. 4. Los Angeles: Boom Kids, Print.
Danuta Woloszynowicz- “Comic Life- A Tool to Motivate Struggling Readers and Writers”. SMCDSB Curriculum/Technology Consultant 2009