I’ve been on a zine kick for a while now, and recently had the chance to walk teachers through making their first zine.
We worked on creating their own zines, which was fun and made many of them uncomfortable, which is perfectly OK. I compiled some quick links and information, and we discussed potential ideas they might consider and run with when working with students.
Oh, and here’s the zine I made during one of the sessions. Feel free to use it to introduce the idea of zines to your peers and admin.
What Is a Zine?
- A zine (short for “magazine” or “fanzine”) is a small-circulation, self-published work, often made by hand, that can take many forms—comics, essays, art, collages, instructions, etc.
- Because zines are informal, tactile, and often DIY, they offer a low-stakes way for students to share voice, experiment with layout or narrative, and synthesize content in creative formats.
- Zines are used in classrooms to teach skills such as media literacy, personal narrative, research synthesis, visual thinking, and more.
Folding a Zine — The One-Sheet Method
One of the simplest and most powerful forms is the one-sheet zine (fold, cut, fill).
- Austin Kleon walks through exactly how to fold a single sheet of paper into a mini-zine
- More zines from Austin
Tools, Templates & Digital Zine Options
| Resource | What It Offers | Link / Notes |
| Zine-O-Sphere | Substack exploring zines, art, culture, and DIY publishing. | https://abigailschleifer.substack.com/s/zine-o-sphere |
| “Using Zines in the Classroom and How to Make a Single Page Booklet Zine” (OER) | Includes guidance + printable master flat for one-page zines | CUNY Academic Works |
| SCU Library’s Zine Guide | Walkthroughs for physical & digital zines, plus design tips, templates | SCU Library Guides |
| The Arty Teacher: How to Make a Zine | Step-by-step guide with photos, cutting/folding instructions, and classroom ideas | The Arty Teacher |
| “Teaching with Zines” (ZineLibraries.info) | A compiled zine (yes, a zine) with resources, best practices, and reflections on using zines in education | zinelibraries.info |
| Barnard Zine Library – Lesson Plans | Sample lesson plans, ideas across content areas, ways to scaffold, suggestions for grading/feedback | zines.barnard.edu |
| TUIMP: The Universe In My Pocket | “Using Zines in the Classroom and How to Make a Single-Page Booklet Zine” (OER) | arXiv |