AUG 16 — In this current age and time, comic books nowadays aren’t the usual “wu xia” or the Marvel Comics version. We have really good quality reads like the comics posted on this page. Not only are they highly creative in their storyline, some of the graphics are truly drawn in such fine details that the phrase “A picture speaks a thousand words” cannot be truer than this.
For children who have learning issues, regardless of whether it is ADHD, ADD, dyslexia, dsygraphia, asperger, autism, etc, while some of them might be struggling to read, comic books never fail to enchant them with tales of scientific wonders, mind-boggling adventures and significant memorable historical facts and events. They would have otherwise been left in their own little cocoon, totally oblivious of what is happening in a world they can’t grasp due to the condition they are in. They might not be able to read well but they can create images in their mind with untold creativity and curiosity.
In the fast pace world our children are living in, they hardly have time to hear themselves speak. Much less have the time to finish a novel in a day or two. Our children are so examination focused and result orientated that all the reading they do come from reading of textbooks and revision materials. Thus, comic books provide a certain relief in the sense that they help our children to relax and process information in a different way.
If you have read Asterix, Tin Tin, Calvin & Hobbes, Survival Series and the Treasure Hunting Series, you will find that the level of English used in these comic books is of quite high quality. Way much tougher than the level of English used in our UPSR examination. So in a way, comic books help to improve your children’s language skills too.
Another important factor to consider, everyone reads comics nowadays. So reading comic books in a way does help your children have better rapport with their friends as they have common topic of discussion. On top of that, sharing comic books among friends definitely seals their friendship for life.
Of course, too much of something can be addictive, spending too much time reading novels or indulging too much time doing school revision work can be counterproductive. Naturally, we need to make sure that our children are able to divide their time appropriately to ensure that books, comics or novels, can only be read when all tasks have been completed. Boon or bane??? You decide.
* This is the personal opinion of the writer or publication and does not necessarily represent the views of The Malay Mail Online.
