Imagine a childhood without comic books. The view would seem so dull, isn’t it? For a child, reading comic books is one of the most interesting fun activity. Most of us can recall some wonderful childhood memories of comic books; we read them under the covers after the lights were switched off, exchanged it with friends, or took them to school to peek at during the class. Can we ever forget the expectation and excitement with which we browsed through the bookstand for a new comic book?

Comic books come in many genres and every country has its own popular comic book heroes and villains. In India, until a couple of generations ago, children used to grow up reading the fun adventures of Chacha Chaudhary. The different characters from Tinkle, or Nagraj and Dhruv were also loved by children. Some comic book heroes like Superman, Spiderman and the heroes and villains of the Marvel world are popular among children across the world.

But comic books are not just about entertainment. Of late, many researchers and academics have started looking at comic books and graphic novels as educational tools for children. According to a research report in ncbi.nlm.nih.gov, “Comic books employ a complex interplay of text and images that gives them the potential to effectively convey concepts and motivate student engagement. This makes comics an appealing option for educators trying to improve science literacy about pressing societal issues involving science and technology.”

Comic books can be excellent learning tools for children who have a difficult time grasping concepts with texts alone. You can use comics to improve your children’s vocabulary, introduce them to arts and aid their imagination.

For more on comics, you can refer to the wonderful resources in this ClipBook.