Using Graphic Novels for an Adult ESL Book Discussion

By Allie Gourley

Before I begin discussing how we, the ESL office at the Arlington Heights Memorial Library (AHML), use graphic novels, I’d like to set the scene a bit first. The context of our book discussions is most likely different from many of you, but I’m confident the strategies we’ve used can be applied in your own context.

In the ESL office at AHML, we offer a wide variety of services for our students. Our students are mainly AHML library cardholders, but we also have students from surrounding library districts as well. They come from all over the world with varying levels of English ability. It’s important to note that almost all of our students are adults. Some of our ESL services include one-on-one tutoring, conversation classes, computer programs, citizenship classes, etc. Book discussions take place once a month. We read six books a year. Each book has one daytime and one evening discussion to accommodate student schedules. Students are given the book and a set of discussion questions one month before the book discussion date. We encourage them to complete the book and questions to the best of their ability. Since student English levels vary so much in our program, we try to have a variety of titles available throughout the year. For example, this past year we offered one book titled The Builders, which was one of our shorter options and great for beginning level students. We also offered Fahrenheit 451, a good challenge for our more advanced students.

Previously, I’ve used the graphic novel Maus: A Survivor's Tale by Art Spiegelman with students and with great success. We’re currently planning our 2020 ESL book discussion list, and we have two graphic novels lined up, Relish: My Life in the Kitchen by Lucy Knisley and The Arrival by Shaun Tan. I’d like to share some options for using graphic novels in an ESL book discussion. I’ve used these methods in the past and plan on using similar ones for Relish and The Arrival.

1. Your classic book discussion
This is what we do a majority of the time in our discussions. They revolve around the set of discussion questions we give the students beforehand. The questions vary from comprehension based to opinion-based questions, anything that will help the students follow the book and be interested in talking about it. We also have a section on our question sheet for new vocabulary. Students can write the word and page number, and then at the beginning of the book discussion, we go over some of those new words. If there was a movie adaptation of the book, we might play the trailer for the movie and talk about the ways the movie was different from what we imagined, etc. For a book like Relish that has a very obvious theme, we’d also have related follow up questions to spark any more conversation.

2. Build your own story
This version takes some prep and scaffolding. Depending on the book you’re reading, you can use it as inspiration or just a jumping-off point. Ask the students to bring in pictures that relate to them. The pictures can be found online, or they can use family pictures. Then they can start creating their own graphic novel about their lives. This is a great activity that encourages students to use their words thoughtfully to build a story that is also supplemented by pictures. You can take this as a chance to work on tenses as well.

3. Build your own story 2.0
Our second graphic novel, The Arrival by Shaun Tan, presents a unique opportunity. There are absolutely no words whatsoever, only pictures. First, virtually anyone of any English level can read it. Yes, even looking at just images can count as reading. Second, it allows for a great discussion in storytelling. Students can make up their own stories based on their pictures. It’s interesting to see the different tales that can be spun off the same set of images depending on the student’s English level and cultural background.

Allie Gourley is an ESL Advisor at the Arlington Heights Memorial Library.


Using Graphic Novels for an Adult ESL Book Discussion By Allie Gourley Before I begin discussing how we, the ESL office at the Arlington Heights Memorial Library (AHML), use graphic novels, I’d like to set the scene a bit first. The context of our book discussions is most likely different from many of you, but I’m confident the strategies we’ve used can be applied in your own context. In the ESL office at AHML, we offer a wide variety of services for our students. Our students are mainly AHML library cardholders, but we also have students from surrounding library districts as well. They come from all over the world with varying levels of English ability. It’s important to note that almost all of our students are adults. Some of our ESL services include one-on-one tutoring, conversation classes, computer programs, citizenship classes, etc. Book discussions take place once a month. We read six books a year. Each book has one daytime and one evening discussion to accommodate student schedules. Students are given the book and a set of discussion questions one month before the book discussion date. We encourage them to complete the book and questions to the best of their ability. Since student English levels vary so much in our program, we try to have a variety of titles available throughout the year. For example, this past year we offered one book titled The Builders, which was one of our shorter options and great for beginning level students. We also offered Fahrenheit 451, a good challenge for our more advanced students. Previously, I’ve used the graphic novel Maus: A Survivor's Tale by Art Spiegelman with students and with great success. We’re currently planning our 2020 ESL book discussion list, and we have two graphic novels lined up, Relish: My Life in the Kitchen by Lucy Knisley and The Arrival by Shaun Tan. I’d like to share some options for using graphic novels in an ESL book discussion. I’ve used these methods in the past and plan on using similar ones for Relish and The Arrival. 1. Your classic book discussion This is what we do a majority of the time in our discussions. They revolve around the set of discussion questions we give the students beforehand. The questions vary from comprehension based to opinion-based questions, anything that will help the students follow the book and be interested in talking about it. We also have a section on our question sheet for new vocabulary. Students can write the word and page number, and then at the beginning of the book discussion, we go over some of those new words. If there was a movie adaptation of the book, we might play the trailer for the movie and talk about the ways the movie was different from what we imagined, etc. For a book like Relish that has a very obvious theme, we’d also have related follow up questions to spark any more conversation. 2. Build your own story This version takes some prep and scaffolding. Depending on the book you’re reading, you can use it as inspiration or just a jumping-off point. Ask the students to bring in pictures that relate to them. The pictures can be found online, or they can use family pictures. Then they can start creating their own graphic novel about their lives. This is a great activity that encourages students to use their words thoughtfully to build a story that is also supplemented by pictures. You can take this as a chance to work on tenses as well. 3. Build your own story 2.0 Our second graphic novel, The Arrival by Shaun Tan, presents a unique opportunity. There are absolutely no words whatsoever, only pictures. First, virtually anyone of any English level can read it. Yes, even looking at just images can count as reading. Second, it allows for a great discussion in storytelling. Students can make up their own stories based on their pictures. It’s interesting to see the different tales that can be spun off the same set of images depending on the student’s English level and cultural background. Allie Gourley is an ESL Advisor at the Arlington Heights Memorial Library.
Fall 2019 - Fall 2019