As someone who grew up reading Larry Gonick's Cartoon History of The Universe -- and these days enjoys things like Nick Bertozzi's Lewis & Clark or Evolution by the Cannon Brothers I'm firmly of the opinion that comics can make a dull subject so much more interesting to learn about. Now a Kickstarter project is looking to prove that theory with The Graphic Textbook, a school textbook offering better teaching through comics.Created by the nonprofit organization Reading With Pictures, The Graphic Textbook is a 144-page anthology featuring the talents of creators including Roger Langridge, Fred Van Lente, Ryan Dunlavey, Amy Reeder and Dean Trippe, aimed at grades 3-6 that hopes to, in the words of its editors, "prove once and for all that comics belong in the classroom by creating a comic that every teacher will actually want to use and a textbook that every student will actually want to read!" There's only one problem, however: They need your help to make it happen.


The project is looking for $65,000 in funding in order to be able to produce the textbook, and with four weeks left, still needs more than $55,000 to reach its target. New rewards for backers are being created at regular intervals, including DRM-free electronic copies of the finished book, original art from the book or being inserted into one of the stories (Speaking roles are available), but no matter how much money you're able to contribute, there's also just the basic reward of having helped out such a worthwhile project. After all, as the editors put it, "What better way to bring people together than by using comics to conquer illiteracy?"

The Kickstarter page for the project can be found here, with more information about the project available here.

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