A Point of View Lesson Using Comic Strips

MakeBeliefsComix is a website that makes it very easy to create comic strips. It offers a variety of characters, backgrounds, objects, and speech bubbles that students can use to create their own comics. With a click of a mouse, students can choose characters and rearrange objects.

It is very intuitive, so even 3rd grade students will have no problem with this website. Students will not be able to save the comics that they have created, but they can print the comic or email it to you if you are wanting to take a grade.

MakeBeliefsComix also has a variety of printable resources that 3rd grade, 4th grade, or 5th grade teachers might find useful. There are blank templates, writing prompts, and more.

Check out the point of view comic strip below for an example!

After introducing your students to point of view (maybe with one of these fiction books that will help you teach POV, or using one of these POV mini lessons), use one of the ideas below for a student project!

1. Have students "debate" a topic by creating a comic strip. Some students can create a comic strip supporting one side of an argument, while other students can support the opposing point of view.  (Check out these point of view writing prompts for ideas on debate topics.)  Or, students could discuss both points of view in one comic strip, with each box presenting a different viewpoint.

2. Have students create a comic strip that explains different characters' point of view. After reading a fiction story, upper elementary students can create a comic strip about the viewpoints presented in the story.

For example, after reading the book Amazing Grace, students could create a comic strip that shows the point of view of Grace, her grandmother, and the students in her class.

3. Have students create a comic strip that explains the author's point of view (or challenges the author's point of view). If you have read a nonfiction book about Abraham Lincoln, where the author believes that Abraham Lincoln was one of America's greatest Presidents, students could create a comic strip showing the author's point of view. (There's even an option to include Abraham Lincoln in your comic strip!)

Or, have students challenge the author's point of view in a different comic strip.

4. Have students create two different comic strips - one from first person point of view and one from third person point of view. This is a fun way to have 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade students practice 1st and 3rd person point of view.

Find more point of view ideas, including a free point of view activity, POV mini lesson ideas, and higher order thinking questions to incorporate into your point of view lessons!