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Remember
September 11
(6-12)
Remember
to Laugh
(n42)
Subject
History,
government, arts
Objective
Identify
humor as means of social criticism and healing.
Time
Needed
One
class period
Materials
collection
of political cartoons from 9/11 and just after,
unlined white paper, pen or pencils.
Lesson
Step
1: Conduct a brief discussion on the tone of life
immediately after 9/11. Do you remember the cancellation
of the Emmy Awards…What an event the return
of David Letterman and Jay Leno to the regular
TV schedule was? (try to get a recording of the
Letterman show from your local affiliate if you
can). Why was it inappropriate to laugh? What
finally made it ok? What did we laugh at?
Step 2: Divide the class into small groups of
3 or 4. Give each group a sample of political
cartoons. Have them write down the topic and qualities
of each cartoon . Observe differences in style,
type of humor. What tools did the cartoonist use?
(satire, irony, physical humor, plays on language
etc.)
Step 3: Briefly share and discuss observations
with class.
Step 4: In your small group, create your own cartoon
based on a current event (local or national)…make
it quick …don’t get hung up on the
“art”…content is the point of
this class…Stick figures can work if the
message is right.
Step 5: Share
Step 6: Closing Activity…..
In a tight circle facing in (if your class will
do it, have everyone lie on the floor with their
head on someone else’s stomach creating
a mob of connected people...it definitely adds
to the fun…but the level of discomfort must
be low.) Count off the class by ones. Beginning
with “One” student say Ha! (as in
Ha!Ha!) as many times as their number. “One”
says one Ha!, Two says Ha!Ha!, Three says Ha!Ha!Ha!
and so on…in order without missing a beat.
If someone misses their cue or fails to do the
correct number of Ha!’s the group needs
to start over again. Rarely does the group succeed
as the game falls apart in laughter…REMEMBER
TO LAUGH
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