The Power of
Words. Students have heard that phrase so often that
it sounds like a cliché. Marc Tyler Nobleman not only brings that phrase to life in two
riveting biographies, but he also shows how the biographies themselves helped
to right a wrong. In a Kids Post interview for the Washington Post, Nobleman talks about the research and
writing process for Boys of Steel and
Bill the Boy Wonder, his
biographies, respectively, of Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster, creators of
Superman, and of Bill Finger, who co-created Batman with Bob Kane. Finger never received credit for his work
until recently, thanks in large part to information uncovered by Nobleman.
Nobleman
travels frequently to give presentations and writing workshops, and he has
found that, from India to Indiana, people know about Superman and Batman. These superheroes tap into the human hunger
for tales of good vs. evil.
Below
are a few writing prompts for the classroom or for individual writers ages 8 and
up. Nobleman’s blog Noblemania.blogspot.com is a trove of
historic photos, comic book art, quotes and cool stuff.
CREATE YOUR OWN
SUPERHERO: Ask students to read Bill the Boy Wonder and to look at one or two Batman comic
books.
Classroom Discussion: How did Bill Finger help to create Batman? What traits, nicknames or pieces of costume
did Bill add? Ask students why they
think that superheroes and superhero comic books are so popular, around the
world.
Fight or Find
Peace: In most comic books, the superheroes use
physical force when they fight. Are
there other ways of being powerful besides physical force? Other ways of fighting back? As a class, brainstorm a list of people
(historic or contemporary) who were powerful without using physical force or
violence.
Classroom
Writing: Have students brainstorm attributes for their
own superhero. For example, what is the
hero’s super power? How and when does
the hero wield it? Is there a secret
identity or costume? Who is the hero’s
worst enemy and what are the enemy’s attributes? How and why did the hero become a hero and
the bad guy a bad guy? What makes the
superhero weak? What makes the villain
weak? (Remember, neither hero nor
villain need be human. Either or both
can be animals, objects, plants, germs, etc.)
Starting Strong: Begin a story about how your hero and villain
meet for the first time. Think about who,
what, when, where, and how. What brings
them together and when and where? What happens?
How do they fight? See if
students can figure out at least one way that the superhero fights the villain
in a non-violent/nonphysical way. What
happens then?
Examining Art: Choose a panel or two from a comic book and
show students how the illustrator showed a close up or an aerial view, for
example. Ask them what makes these
different views interesting and why the illustrator may have chosen to show
that. Ask them to do one part of their
story as a comic book panel, showing a close-up or an aerial view. How did that help them to think about their
story in a different way?
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