Before beginning this unit, teachers should already have introduced Japan. This unit should be used as a complement to teaching about Japanese culture. One way to start a unit on Japan is to have students create a Word Web from the word Japan. Download the example below to get an idea (Right-click and Save file  Word Web Example to download). After students have created their own Word Web, one class web should be made and the different points put up may be discussed. You may use Word, Inspiration or any diagramming software to create the word web. To lead into this unit, you can ask students what they know about Japan and make specific questions regarding their knowledge of Japanese culture, and questions about their knowledge of manga. You may also have students go to the Japanese Information Website, to the Web Japan page http://web-japan.org/ ,  and pick out one detail for six topics regarding Japan. Students should briefly describe why they chose that detail. After completing this exercise, students should have six details from six topics and a brief explanation for each. Discuss as a class several explanations.

As students are working on this Manga Quest, they should be filling out the Manga Classification Chart (Right-click and Save file  Manga Classification Chart to download) which you can view below. Students can also create their own online crossword puzzle on manga similar to the one on our Activities page. This will assist students to take a quiz (Right-click and Save Target As..  to download) on their knowledge of manga at the end of the unit. You may add more questions if you wish. Questions can be given to students as you start discussing manga since they will have to go through all the pages and several links to be able to answer them. Giving students the questions at the beginning, actually serves as a focus, since the questions cover all the material in the Manga Quest. To help students understand the influence of manga, they can create a word web on the word manga as they are researching the Manga Mania site.

Another exercise you may have your students do is to compile their own list of manga links and set up the links in APA style format using the Slate Citation Machine. Look at our webliography page for examples.

At the end of the unit, have students write a short reflective essay on their experience doing this unit or have students write an essay on what they feel is the greatest influence of manga on our society and why?

By going through the pages, links and exercises, students will be doing research, learning and having fun at the same time.

After researching different manga genre, what different facial and body features represent and how to draw them, groups must now create their own manga. Manga may be any appropriate genre. Manga must be 4 to 5 scenes long and contain a dialogue. Drawings may be computer generated or hand drawn and then scanned into the computer or groups may select to act out and record a 10 second manga scene on video.