Cartoons and Comics and TELLEGAMI!!!!!!!!!!!

First and foremost, I am a cartoon and comic FREAK.  Always have been.  I am super-excited to explore these sites to see if they are corny or legit.

ToonDoo

As soon as I saw ToonDoo's page pop up on my browser, my excitement level escalated 500% just thinking about the possibilities!  The synaptic connections in my brain fired off with classroom and library application ideas galore at just the mere glimpse of the home page.  As I registered for the site, I hoped it would be user-friendly.  Here's what I made using ToonDoo:

In. Love.  I'm in love with ToonDoo.  I made this thing in about 15-20 minutes, from concept to publishing.  There are so many backgrounds, characters, props... I can't even.  I had no idea what I was going to make when I selected this three-panel layout.  ToonDoo's inventory is inspiring.  There is SO MUCH to choose from, it's unreal.  The tools are very simple to use.  I only wish it had an undo button or function because there was a couple of times that rotated an object and didn't like it and when I hit the opposite rotate button thinking it would balance it back out, it didn't.  I know kids are going to LOVE using this as much as I did.  In fact, I'm going to sign my son up for the site RIGHT NOW and see what he can do.  Parent of the Year Award coming my way SOON.

Pixton

Excuse me?  This homepage gets me even more jazzed than ToonDoo!  The slideshow of features seems to indicate that I can change facial expressions and body positions of the characters!  Could this be EVEN BETTER than ToonDoo?  Is it too good to be true?  Here's what I made:
The process of creating this comic took significantly longer than ToonDoo, and involved my laptop crashing when I was nearly done.  (Whined to my husband and we ordered me a Macbook Pro from HSN because this always seems to happen when I am in the middle of working of a project and my iMac never crashes.)  Thankfully, after a cool-down session, I logged back on to Pixton and most of my work was still there, so Pixton DEFINITELY scored points with me there for auto-saving without my knowledge.  Because there are so many more features on this site, pieces take longer to create.  User opportunities to personalize are so much greater and I feel like students would WANT to put more effort into their pieces.  I mean, I made a nine-panel comic strip because my storyline just became that developed.  I'll have to look into the cost of using this site, but geez Louise!  It's amazing.  UH-MAZE-ING.  Plus, there is an UNDO button.  Yes!!!! I can imagine giving this to my kids at the beginning of the year to create a graphic novel or comic book that involves certain aspects of our curriculum.  Only bummer is you can't save unless you have paid access; I managed to publish and embed.  Still, I can't get over it.  If the next site is even better than this, I'm probably going to die.

Make Beliefs Comix!

OK, so I didn't die.  Not nearly as cool as Pixton or ToonDoo, but pretty neat for as simple as it is. I mean, I made this little gem in like seven minutes (that includes quickly figuring out how the tools worked).

 No registration required is a PLUS for teachers, but of course, the features are limited in exchange for that.  If a teacher needed a quick, easy way for students to make comics online, THIS is the ticket.  A few simple no fuss tools make composing a comic a cinch.  Plus, the characters are inspiring. I mean, I had no idea what I was doing until I saw that little teacher-y cat and then BOOM!  Brain exploded and this little dorky comic was born.  This site probably had the easiest save feature.

Tellegami

The second I opened this app after downloading it to my mini, I knew I was going to love it.  I also didn't bat an eye about downloading the in-app purchases to upgrade my avatar and to use the dictation feature on my first use of the app because I KNOW I'm going to use this like crazy!!!  I made two videos, one with dictation and one with my voice:

Obviously, the British accent, even though awkward in pronunciation at times, sounds five thousand times better than my always awkward Darlene Connor-sounding voice.  This app is one of the best things to ever happen to me.  Tellegami is like playing Barbies and then having the power to make them actually talk!  Dream. Come. True.  Besides that, the functions are so easy to use and understand.  Kids are going jump at the chance to use this app, I mean literally.  If I show them a Gami and tell them they can make one with a free app on their iPads, they're going to implode!  I can't wait.

I'll need to explore the "for educators" side of these sites/apps some more to see what additionally is offered, but I'm sold on all four programs to use in the classroom.  For sure students will create their own booktalks or micro-presentations about research topics using Tellegami.   Just think of how helpful this could be to those kids who are terrified of oral presentations?  I also think that comic strips will create a new way for students to tell their own stories and offer a way to show content knowledge using the highest of higher order thinking skills: synthesis.  ToonDoo and Make Beliefs Comix! will be my go to for quick projects and I'll leave Pixton to long-term projects.  I'm still amazed by the magic of these sites.  

P.S.  When I registered my almost 11-year old son for ToonDoo and showed it to him, he couldn't get his laptop out of my hands fast enough.  Later, he peeked over my shoulder eager to see what else I was working on in terms of comics.  He's going to be in my class this next year, so I know at least ONE of my students will be game for a cartoon classroom.