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Laugh and learn with satire and technology

This lesson for grade 12 will help students to distinguish between satire and parody. Students will analyze several examples of both satire and parody, and will work in groups to plan and create their own examples of satire. Teachers are encouraged to use blogging and VoiceThread technology to enhance student interaction.

Format: lesson plan (grade 12 English Language Arts and Information Skills)

By Kerri Brown Parker and Allyson Young.

Sarcastic "stamp" from the Stamp Act crisis

The Pennsylvania Journal and Advertiser published this suggestion as to the appearance of stamps used in accordance with the Stamp Act of 1765.

Format: image/newspaper

"A Society of Patriotic Ladies"

In Revolutionary North Carolina, page 2.8

1775 cartoon, published in a London newspaper, satirizing the "Edenton Tea Party" at which prominent North Carolina women signed a petition supporting the American cause. Includes historical commentary.

Format: cartoon

The Yellow Kid

The Yellow Kid was the lead character in Richard F. Outcault's 1890s comic strip Hogan's Alley, one of the first Sunday supplement comic strips in an American newspaper The Yellow Kid was a bald, snaggle-toothed child with a goofy grin in a yellow...

Format: image/illustration

Revolutionary North Carolina

Primary sources and readings explore North Carolina in the era of the American Revolution. Topics include the Regulators, the resistance to Great Britain, the War for Indpendence, and the creation of new governments.

Format: book (multiple pages)

Consider the source

Information is everywhere — especially in the presence of the Internet. It's hard enough for adults to make sure that information is valid, but it's even harder for students to make that judgement. Here are some suggestions for helping students learn to recognize bad information when they see it.

By Bobby Hobgood.

Back to the future!

In this lesson plan, students research the history of an important invention and present what they've learned through an annotated timeline, historical fiction journal accounts, and VoiceThread technology.

Format: lesson plan (grade 8 Information Skills)

By Diane Ruby.

Martin Luther's Reformation in Hugo's The Hunchback of Notre Dame

The setting of Victor Hugo's novel, The Hunchback of Notre Dame is the fifteenth century, the transitional period between the Middle Ages and the Renaissance/Reformation era. This era ushers in the period known as the modern age and historical events are chronicled through Hugo's novel. Hugo sets The Hunchback of Notre Dame at the decline of feudalism and the infancy of absolutism through Louis XI (Spider King), the rise of a urban middle class and the beginnings of commerce as it is known today. Primarily this novel satirizes the Catholic Church's absolute power -- its abuses, and its excesses. Students will discover how Hugo's satire operates to show the Catholic Church's abuse of power during the late Middle Ages and the early Reformation in The Hunchback of Notre Dame.

Format: lesson plan (grade 9 English Language Arts and Social Studies)

By Nancy Webber.

Resources on the web

Exploring satire with The Simpsons

Using the images from the television show, The Simpsons, students explore the elements of satire—exaggeration, incongruity, reversal, and parody. (Learn more)

Format: lesson plan (grade 9 and 11 English Language Arts)

Provided by: IRA/NCTE

Exploring satire with Shrek

Using the animated film, Shrek, students identify common characteristics of fairy tales and evaluate how this form of literature makes satirical social commentary. (Learn more)

Format: lesson plan (grade 9 English Language Arts)

Provided by: IRA/NCTE

From Dr. Seuss to Jonathan Swift: Exploring the history behind the satire

In this lesson, after exploring the historical allusions in Dr. Seuss’s The Butter Battle Book, the whole class discusses the history behind a passage from Gulliver’s Travels. (Learn more)

Format: lesson plan (grade 12 English Language Arts)

Provided by: IRA/NCTE

The pros and cons of discussion

This comprehensive lesson challenges students to discuss the question, “Are people equal?” and compare their answers about current society to answers to the same question about Kurt Vonnegut's futuristic short story, “Harrison Bergeron”. (Learn more)

Format: lesson plan (grade 11 English Language Arts)

Provided by: IRA/NCTE

Scartoons - Racial Satire and the Civil War

Introduces the topic of caricature and satirical cartoons in newspapers and propaganda pamphlets during the Civil War in the US. (Learn more)

Format: website/general

Provided by: University of Virginia