Why Every Middle Grade School Should Have Their Own Table Titans Club, a guest post by Scott Kurtz

To say that middle school can be challenging for kids is a bit of an understatement. You don’t need children of your own to know this. Most of us have terrible memories of that period in our life. I can remember my stomach doing flips the moment our bus pulled into the middle school parking lot (back then we called it junior high).

Seventh grade was a big shock to the system. We went from being the oldest kids in elementary school to being the youngest kids in middle school. Everything was bigger and different. Instead of one classroom we had a different one for each subject, all peppered throughout an unfamiliar building full of unfamiliar faces. I tapped into those memories when writing my new middle-grade graphic novel Table Titans Club. I wanted to show young readers how normal these feelings are, and how it’s possible to cope with them.

I survived middle school by clinging to friends. There was safety and comfort in classes I shared with them. We would cluster together during lunch breaks sharing stories and planning our free time after school. Most of which was spent reading comics and playing Dungeons & Dragons.

Back then D&D was more of a niche activity than it is now. The game is seeing widespread popularity in the mainstream and I couldn’t be happier about it. Roleplaying games helped my friends and I survive middle school, and I pulled from those memories when writing my new book, Table Titans Club. 

Now more than ever, roleplaying games like Dungeons & Dragons are a fun and exciting way to give middle graders the tools they need to navigate this time in their lives. The game, by design, encourages social interaction, problem solving and conflict resolution. It’s because of this, that I think every middle school should have their own Table Titans Club.

A club centered around D&D takes kids away from screens and puts them in front of each other around a table, working on a common goal, each with their own characters who have different but complementary skills. It teaches them how to work together and give each individual their moment to shine, and encourages them to express themselves creatively as they work together to write the story of their adventures together.

It improves reading comprehension and math skills. Roleplaying game manuals can be quite dense. There are detailed rules and complicated tables for students to break down and decipher. Most actions taken in the game involve making a random roll of a dice and modifying results with statistics from their character sheets. It’s a repetitive process that doesn’t feel like practicing math while it’s happening.

Tabletop roleplaying games are even being used as a therapeutic tool among kids with autism, ADHD, social anxiety and depression. Adam Johns is a friend and co-founder of Game to Grow; a non-profit organization dedicated to the use of games like D&D for therapeutic, education and community growth.

“Tabletop RPGs provide a chance for kids and teens to build a sense of teamwork, camaraderie, and shared experiences with peers. While on its face TTRPGs are just a game that is being played, for players who are socially isolated, struggle to build lasting friendships, or feel rejected from peers and the outside world, it is a chance to feel a sense of belonging; an experience that we all deserve to have.”

“Autistic youth who participated in TTRPG groups reported higher scores on a quality-of-life index following participation in the groups, particularly in the areas of friendships and emotional well-being. In addition to social competence, participation in TTRPG groups has been linked with a host of positive outcomes, from increased creativity, to positive attitude changes, to better moral reasoning.”

In my book, Valeria and her friends go through incredible lengths to save their club when its future is threatened. A fictional, but believable scenario when you consider how much these roleplaying experiences mean to middle-grade students who already participate in them.

Every school should have their own Table Titans Club. I’m sure glad mine did.

Meet the author

Scott Kurtz is the Eisner and Harvey Award–winning cartoonist who helped pioneer webcomics with his daily feature PvP. Since then, Scott has produced podcasts, animated series, and live roleplaying events, as well as a diary comic called MORT, which chronicles his time as a caregiver for his father. Scott can be found hiding from the coronavirus in the Pacific Northwest, though he occasionally leaves his studio to enjoy the dog park or visit his family.

@pvponline on Twitter

@scott_kurtz on TikTok

@toonhound on Facebook and Instagram

About Table Titans Club

Growing pains, adventure, and 20-sided dice abound in this new graphic novel series about a middle school Dungeon & Dragons club from Eisner and Harvey award-winning cartoonist Scott Kurtz.

Valeria Winters has an easier time finding trouble than making friends. A fantasy-obsessed nerd with the legendary confidence—and temper—of a Valkyrie, Val promises her mom that things will be different at her new school. “No more fighting!”

As if by fate, she meets the Table Titans right away—Alan, Andrew, and Darius, who run the school’s tabletop gaming club. Finally, Val has found her own adventuring party! And even better . . . a place where she belongs.

So when the future of the club is threatened, Val makes it her personal quest to save the Table Titans. She’ll have to face the fire-breathing wrestling coach and popular girl Kate, who seems out for revenge. Revenge for what? Val has no clue.

As the quest grows more and more complicated, Val wishes she was like her peaceful druid Lulani from the Table Titans’ campaign, whose calm voice always prevails. If she loses her cool in real life, Val might lose more than the Table Titans club. She’ll have to roll a natural 20 in charisma to keep her new friends together.

Set in the same universe as the Eisner Award-winning webcomic PvP, Scott Kurtz’s artwork blends zany, fantastical visuals with slice-of-life humor. For fans of fantasy and coming of age stories alike, Table Titans finds humor, heart, and adventure in a tale of friendship and finding your people.

ISBN-13: 9780823453160
Publisher: Holiday House
Publication date: 03/05/2024
Series: Table Titans Club
Age Range: 8 – 12 Years

Filed under: Guest Post