Create Your Own Superhero

Lesson Summary

In this creative project, students will imagine and design their own superhero—complete with powers, backstory, and personality. Through drawing, writing, and sharing, they'll build a compelling character from scratch. They'll also learn to draw dynamic poses using the comic book illustration process: penciling, inking, and coloring. To complete the challenge, each student will also design a nemesis—because every great hero needs a worthy rival.

Lesson Objectives

Explore the elements that make superheroes exciting and memorable.
Develop creative writing and visual storytelling skills.
Learn basic figure drawing and anatomy for dynamic action poses.
Practice the comic art process: pencil → ink → color.
Create both a hero and a villain from your own imagination.

Origins Story: Louis Levon was a graduate student with a degree in chemical engineering. He was young and brilliant with a bright future ahead of him. His dream was to developed household cleaning products that were made of natural ingredients, with no harmful chemicals. He experimented with the properties of lemons and limes to produce a safe disinfectant spray. One day in the lab, he was having lunch and accidentally chugged on some disinfectant formula he was working on. This gave him disinfectant power and super-human abilities. From that day on, he vowed to rid the world of super germs and viruses, like COVID-19.

Lemon-Man

Superhero Name: Lemon-Man
Civilian Name: Louis Levon
Age: 26
Hometown: Yorkshire England
Super Power: He can fly and has super-human strength and speed but his most powerful weapon is sour spray that comes out of his hands. He can disinfect any surface with it. When he squirts his enemies in the face, they are temporarily blinded and cry like a baby.
Weakness: Milk. It destroys his sourness and makes him drowsy.
Personality: Very bitter. He is angry about how unhygienic people are. Comes off as arrogant. Speaks with a British accent.
Enemies: Super-Germs, COVID-19, Super-Villains, Poop

Conversation Starters

Who’s your favorite superhero, and why?
What powers or personality traits do you think make a superhero interesting?
If you could invent your own hero, what would they fight for?
Would they have a funny side? A tragic past? A secret identity?

Materials

Sketchbook
Pencils & Erasers
Black permanent markers (fine + bold)
Colored pencils, markers, or watercolors

Mini Anatomy Warm-Up

Before jumping into design, we’ll review some simple human anatomy:

Learn to draw the body in motion using gesture drawing
Understand balance and posture to make your characters feel real
Practice dynamic poses to bring your superhero to life

No need to memorize muscles—just focus on movement, energy, and form.

Human Anatomy

Before we begin drawing the figure, we will go over some basic human anatomy. They include moving joints and body parts that an artist should be knowledgeable about. We will study anatomy without getting overly concerned with every muscle and bone.

Character Design Process

Brainstorm Your Superhero
Use these questions to build your hero:
- What’s their name?
- What are their powers?
- What’s their origin story? (How did they get their powers?)
- What’s their personality like?
- What motivates them to protect or fight?
- What’s their greatest weakness?
- What does their costume say about them?
Sketch Your Hero
- Begin with loose gesture sketches to capture energy and pose
- Choose one pose and develop it into a full pencil drawing
- Focus on personality in posture, costume, and expression
Write a Character Profile
- Include name, powers, backstory, personality, and weakness
- Add fun or quirky details—this brings your hero to life
Get Feedback
- Share your sketch and story with a classmate
- Ask what stands out, what feels clear, and what you could improve
Final Illustration
- Refine your drawing with clean pencil lines
- Add a title with your hero’s name in bold, creative lettering
- Ink your design with permanent markers
- Color your superhero using any medium you enjoy (pencil, marker, watercolor)
Design the Nemesis
Create a villain who challenges your hero
Think about how their powers, personality, or goals contrast
Sketch and profile your villain just like your hero

Key Vocabulary

Gesture Drawing – Quick sketches that capture the movement and energy of a pose
Center of Balance – The invisible point where the body stays upright and grounded
Pose – A position or posture that expresses character or action
Inking – Outlining your drawing in pen to make it bold and clear
Rendering – The process of adding color and detail
Nemesis – A character that opposes or challenges the hero

Reflection & Sharing

What was the most fun part of creating your character?
What does your superhero reflect about you or your values?
How does your design make your character feel unique?
If your superhero had a movie, what would it be called?

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