Hornets, Comics, and Books! Oh My!: Using Photo Comics for Instruction, Promotion, and Participation in the Library

Abstract

At the Emporia State University library, we wanted to create a library tour for our First-Year Seminar program that would go beyond the simple, “Here’s what’s in the library.” We also wanted to differentiate it from the Amazing Library Race activity we usually conduct with freshman composition classes, since we assumed there would likely be many participants who had already participated in that activity. Additionally, we wanted to make it more involved than a simple scavenger hunt. We decided to have students collaboratively create their own library guides using iPads and a photo comic app, which acted as an informal authentic assessment. This activity allowed them to creatively learn about important spaces and services in the library and, perhaps more significantly, asked them to consider how those spaces could be useful to them in their college experience.