ReadWriteThink: November 18, 2009: Mickey Mouse appears in his first animated feature.

November 18, 2009

		On November 18, 1928, Mickey Mouse made his movie debut in Steamboat Willie, one of the earliest animated cartoons. This seven-minute film, directed by Walt Disney, was the first to combine animation technology with synchronized sound. From this short film, based on a cartoon drawing, Disney created one of the largest media empires in the world. image © 2009 www.clipart.com

Mickey Mouse appears in his first animated feature.

CLASSROOM ACTIVITY

Steamboat Willie was one of the earliest animated cartoons, a medium that grew from comic strips and Sunday funnies into a multimillion-dollar business. Invite your students to experiment with cartoon and comic strip drawings by collaborating to create a short, humorous story, with at least one main character that performs an action. When students have completed the short sequence, have them use the Comic Creator to make a flipbook.

Students choose one background and repeat it multiple times as they draw their characters’ actions from one frame to the next. When they’ve completed each sequence of drawings, they print out the pages, cut the frames, and staple them together to create a flipbook. By stapling all the pages together in one corner or along one side, students are able to flip the pages of the book quickly, simulating animation. Allow students to share their flipbooks with their classmates. Teams can also experiment with adding vocals in the background to synchronize with the images.

Lesson Plans

Comics in the Classroom as an Introduction to Narrative Structure
In this lesson, students in grades 3–5 examine the structure of a story through the use of comic strip frames, and use original comic strip storyboarding as a prewriting exercise. (See also Comics in the Classroom as an Introduction to Genre Study.)

Gabbing About Garfield: Conversing About Texts With Comic Creator
While critiquing Garfield comics, elementary students search for conventions specific to the comic strip genre. They then record their own written conversations, using the interactive Comic Creator.

The Comic Book Show and Tell
In this lesson, high school students write comic book scripts using detailed, descriptive language and exciting dialogue.

Comic Makeovers: Examining Race, Class, Ethnicity, and Gender in the Media
High school students explore representations of race, class, ethnicity, and gender by analyzing comics.

Web Links

Steamboat Willie
This page features a short clip of the 1928 cartoon that launched Mickey’s career.

The Walt Disney Family Museum
This website offers something for students of all ages. Students will enjoy film clips, interviews with Walt Disney, a comprehensive biography of his life, photographs with audio for kids, and special exhibits.

Why Teach Animation?
This site offers extensive information for teachers about animation history, animation techniques, and teaching animation in the classroom.

Origins of American Animation
This Library of Congress site includes 21 animated films and 2 fragments, which were produced from 1900 to 1921. Compare the animation in these early films to that in Steamboat Willie as well as that in current cartoons. Be sure to preview the films for their appropriateness for your students.

Texts

Lagonegro, Melissa. 2002. Steamboat Willie. Disney Books for Young Readers.
In this story, Mickey Mouse is a steamboat pilot who wants to impress Minnie Mouse. The book is based on Walt Disney’s first animated film with synchronized sound, Steamboat Willie.

Barrett, Katherine. 2001. Inside the Dream: The Personal Story of Walt Disney. Hyperion.
Middle school students will find this biography of Walt Disney very interesting. It offers beautiful illustrations and photographs never published before.

Canemaker, John. 2001. Walt Disney’s Nine Old Men and the Art of Animation. Hyperion.
This book talks about Disney’s earliest key animators. There are beautiful pictures and information about all nine animators. The book is recommended for adults and older students.

Dunham, M.I. 2004. Disney’s Junior Encyclopedia of Animated Characters. Disney Press.
This guide offers information about the animated characters in Disney cartoons, from Mickey Mouse to Aladdin.