B is for Balloon! | Word of the Month

💬 Speech Balloons!

If you’ve ever read a comic book—or even doodled your own—you’ve definitely seen one of these: a little bubble floating above a character’s head, filled with words, whispers, or *WHAAM!*s. That’s a balloon—the building block of comic book dialogue and a quiet hero of literacy.

In comics, balloons carry voices, thoughts, sounds, and even silence. They’re where written language and visual storytelling meet.

We’re highlighting Balloon as our Word of the Month because it represents something simple yet powerful: the act of giving voice to a character—and to a reader.

🎈 What Makes Balloons So Important?

• They teach tone. A jagged balloon might mean someone’s yelling, while a cloud-like one shows a quiet thought. Kids learn to “hear” written language through visual cues.

   

• They support early readers. Because balloons break dialogue into small, manageable pieces, they help kids follow conversations and decode words without getting overwhelmed.

   

• They show that words matter. Every font, shape, and placement is intentional—and that helps readers understand context, emotion, and pacing.

💬 Every Kid Deserves to Be Heard

Every young reader deserves to see themselves in the stories they love—and to find their voice, one balloon at a time. Whether it’s a whisper, a roar, or a laugh, comics give kids a space to speak, imagine, and grow.

The next time you read a comic, see how many speech balloons you can find!