MarcoGram February 2005 -- A Touch of Whimsy

A Touch of Whimsy
Theodor Geisel, better known as Dr. Seuss, once said: "Nonsense wakes up the brain cells. And it helps develop a sense of humor, which is awfully important in this day and age." If long winter days are beginning to wear on your students, nonsense is just what the doctor ordered! Serve up a batch of silly stuff from this month's MarcoGram and watch your students come alive. Use the activities below to get started, then scroll down for more links and resources on this topic.

Image of the human brain courtesy of Richards Institute of Education and Research.

1. Nonsense is funny, and whatever is funny is bound to make us laugh. Laughing is good for us – it boosts our natural immunity, improves our mood, and if it's boisterous enough, provides some key muscle groups with an aerobic workout. Laughter also is related to activity in five areas of the brain.

How do you feel after a good laugh? What sorts of humor make you laugh? How is humor sometimes used to make people think about more serious issues? Why might someone use humor in this way?

Because laughing is so desirable and so closely tied to brain activity, many authors, including Dr. Seuss, have used humor to thoughtfully comment on social issues. For example, the ongoing struggles between the Yooks and Zooks in Seuss's The Butter Battle Book closely parallel the animosity between the United States and the former Soviet Union during the Cold War. The Lorax subtly entreats readers to take better care of the environment. Ask students to pen jokes, poems or short stories that use nonsense to express their feelings on topics of personal importance.

Explore the relationship between laughter and thought in:

"Seuss and Silverstein: Posing Questions, Presenting Points" (9-12) from ReadWriteThink, International Reading Association and the National Council of Teachers of English

"The Laughing Brain 1: How We Laugh" (9-12) from Science NetLinks, American Association for the Advancement of Science

"The Laughing Brain 2: A Good Laugh" (9-12) from Science NetLinks, American Association for the Advancement of Science

Oh, the Places You'll Go! By Dr. Seuss New York: Random House Children' s Books, 1990. ISBN: 0679805273.

2. Dr. Seuss is well known for his fanciful illustrations as well as for the stories they accompany. In fact, before he launched his writing career, Seuss worked as an illustrator in the advertising industry. It was his wife who encouraged him to put his two extraordinary talents together.

Do you prefer to read books with pictures or books without pictures? Why? How can illustrations help readers understand a story?

Read to the class a poem about a real-life place (such as "Pussycat, Pussycat, Where Have You Been?" by Mother Goose). Discuss the place described in the poem. Where is it? Have you ever been there? What do you think it looks like? Ask students to create illustrations that would help others better appreciate the poem. Challenge students even further by asking them to illustrate an imaginary place out of their own imagination.

Learn more about illustration and poetry of place in:

"One If By Land, and Two If By Sea!" (3-5) from Xpeditions, National Geographic Society

"Reading Illustrations" (K-4) from ARTSEDGE, The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts

3. Some people use mnemonics, or tricks, to help them remember something important. In Dr. Seuss's books, many of which were written for beginning readers, he often repeated words that sounded alike to help children remember which letter combinations made those sounds. So while his stories might sound like nonsense, he employed a certain logic. That same logic can be applied to learning numeric concepts.

As a class, develop original mnemonics that will help students recall the value of currency. Bring in an assortment of coins and talk about how much each is worth. Show students a penny and discuss ways to remember that its value is one cent. For example, look at the coin's appearance. It is the lone copper coin in circulation; hence, it is the "only one," same as its value. Another idea would be to create a Dr. Seuss-like rhyming mnemonic to express the penny's value, such as "A penny is not many." Keep in mind that mnemonics often reflect individual thoughts, interests and experiences. Encourage students to share all of their ideas. Repeat the process for the other coins.

Help students easily remember math concepts in:

"Clickety Clack, Let's Keep Track!" (3-5) from EconEdLink, National Council on Economic Education

"Let's Count to Five: Focus on Two" (K-2) from Illuminations, The National Council of Teachers of Mathematics

"Let's Count to Five: Three in a Set" (K-2) from Illuminations, The National Council of Teachers of Mathematics

"The Little Red Hen" (K-5) from EconEdLink, National Council on Economic Education

4. A century before Dr. Seuss delighted audiences with his stories, the British poet Edward Lear wrote and illustrated scores of rhymes, stories and limericks about whimsical characters in silly situations. Like Seuss's oddball creatures, Lear's characters especially appealed to children.

Do you have a favorite character from a book, TV show, movie or your own imagination? Have you ever pretended to be that character? What did you do to "become" the character?

In Twenty-Six Nonsense Rhymes and Pictures, available on the Edward Lear Home Page, Lear wrote a short rhyme for each letter of the alphabet. Allow students to explore their whimsical sides by acting out any of these rhymes in class. Ideally, one rhyme should be assigned to or selected by each student, but you may adjust as necessary for the size of your class. One student (or the teacher) should serve as the narrator. Use costumes and props to turn your classroom into a fantasy world straight from the imagination of Edward Lear! If time permits, invite younger students at your school to watch the performance and share in the fun.

Read more of Edward Lear's nonsense poetry in:

"Edward Lear, Limericks and Nonsense: A Little Nonsense" (3-5) from EDSITEment, National Endowment for the Humanities