September 27, 2004

Robert Kane, 13, created this political cartoon, entitled "Osama Bin Laden." (click on pic for larger view)

Robert Kane, an eighth grader at JFK Middle School in Port Jefferson Station, New York, loves art—so much so that he sometimes gets in trouble for doodling in class. His mom, Patricia Kane, isn't too happy about that. But she is happy that his former teacher, Mrs. Melissa McMullan, was able to help him put his interests in drawing to good use by taking part in a class project on political cartoons.

Last year, Mrs. McMullan worked with Susan Silverman, a New York-based educational expert, on involving her students with this project.

Because she just retired this year as a classroom teacher with the Comsewogue School District, Silverman knows lots about the mandatory tests given to New York public school students. They're filled with document based-questions—otherwise known as DBQs—that require students to analyze and synthesize primary source documents, like political cartoons.

Last year, Silverman created her own online DBQ project called "The Joke's on" to provide free resources for teachers who want to show their students how to create and interpret political cartoons—which just happen to be types of primary source documents that many middle schoolers seem to have an affinity for.

Based on his experience with the project, thirteen-year-old Robert Kane believes political cartoons are a good way to help kids his age talk about their feelings on current events, like the war in Afghanistan and Iraq.

Commentating on his own political cartoon called "Osama Bin Laden," which was picked by Silverman to be displayed in a gallery in "The Joke's on" Website, Kane says he wanted to show that spending money and resources to search for Bin Laden is misguided. Kane has Bin Laden sitting across a candlelit table from President Bush. The two are playing the game Battleship. After Bush yells out, "B-4," Bin Laden utters the words, "Miss. Bush you stink."

Kane says that he had lots of fun collaborating with his friends when he drew the Bin Laden cartoon. He'd ask for advice about how to get a point across and he says his friend Derek was always happy to share his ideas. Robert and Derek went on to draw an introduction page for Silverman's cartoon Web page.

Patricia Kane, upon seeing some of her son's drawings, was surprised at how engaged he is by politics. She already knew that he, along with the rest of the family, has many concerns about his 41-year-old dad's upcoming October deployment to Iraq. (He serves in the National Guard and will probably drive a fuel truck there.) But the cartoons really drove that point home.

"The Joke's on" is online.

Silverman says that many teachers are turning to political cartoons in the classroom to help kids express themselves, develop their thinking skills, and to explore their artistic sides. She believes that political cartoons are important tools in helping teachers talk to their students about politics and their ideas about world affairs.

The Politics
Frank Swoboda, President of the Herb Block Foundation, agrees that kids can learn a lot through political cartoons. His organization was founded with a bequest from the legendary Washington Post cartoonist, who died in 2001. One of Block's desires for the foundation was that it support and encourage future political cartoonists in order to help keep alive the craft of commenting on politics through cartoon images. "Herb was definitely one of the premier social commentators around," says Swoboda.

The Herb Block Foundation also has information about scholarships for high school seniors interested in pursuing a political cartooning career.

To fulfill Block's wishes, the foundation is in the process of awarding a grant to the American Association of Editorial Cartoonists that will help establish a Web site filled with curricula for social studies and journalism teachers to use with their students. The grant will likely be awarded in the next month, and organizers say that the resulting Web site will be a good place for students and teachers to visit and learn about the politics in political cartooning.

Greg Timmons, a recently retired Portland, Oregon teacher, often used political cartoons in his classrooms to help teach middle and high schoolers. Based on his expertise, he developed a lesson plan for the kid-friendly PBS NEWSHOUR Extra Web site, focused exclusively on political cartoons.

Since kids don't have the same frame of reference as adults, they see political cartoons differently, says Timmons. Most of us don't think twice when a cartoonist draws a donkey and expects us to see a Democrat. But a student, says Timmons, might wonder, "Are all Democrats jackasses?" That kind of inquiry would allow Timmons to talk about good old President Andrew Jackson, an early master of spin. (When he ran for President in 1828, opponents tried to label him a "jackass" for his populist views. Jackson used that label to his own advantage by using the donkey on his campaign posters. Later, in Jackson's presidency, the donkey was used in drawings to illustrate his stubbornness because he vetoed a recharter of the National Bank.)

Timmons' political cartoon lesson plan is online.

Timmons adds that classroom discussions involving political observations sometimes become very esoteric as students try to see into the mind of the cartoonist and interpret what he or she is trying to say. One question of longstanding debate from one of Timmons' students: Did the cartoonist mean something deeper when he exaggerated the size of Bill Clinton's nose?

Age-Specific
Interpreting political cartoons usually requires lots of thought. "It really takes a higher level thinking skill to figure out what the artist is saying," says Silverman. "Where is he or she coming from? What's their perspective? Sometimes I don't know myself, but it's fun to research and figure this stuff out."

Karen Kliegman, a library media specialist from Albertson, New York, created an online project last year to help educators teach different age groups of kids about the perspectives and symbolism in political cartoons. She recommends many ways to get different age groups thinking about the cartoons, like having younger kids look at cartoons not based only on politics, but on topics they might understand better, like bullying.

Kliegman's "WebQuest" is available online.

Kliegman says that the symbols used in political cartoons are often interpreted differently based on the age of the child looking at them.

"I find that students at the upper elementary age are the youngest that can understand the cartoons in popular media," adds Timmons. "However, political cartoons can be created to meet any audience and can contain images and references that most age groups can understand."

In exploring the symbolism of political cartoons, Kliegman has students think about animals and how they often represent other things. A shark, for example, could refer to a sports team, or someone out to make money at another's expense, or might even be a reference to golfer Greg Norman. The point is that many meanings are possible, so students must work to find the ones that fit best.

Creating Cartoons

One of Mrs. McMullan's students created this cartoon, entitled "Uncle Sam." (click on pic for larger view)

Silverman believes that half the fun in teaching kids with political cartoons is helping them come up with their own. That's why "The Joke's on" encourages students to create political cartoons based on current events. Silverman has posted some student-drawn cartoons on her Web page, along with questions about the pictures that students can respond to in their classrooms.

Silverman isn't accepting any more cartoons to post, but teachers still frequently contact her about student submissions. Because the project remains online, she says that the student cartoons will be able to be used for years to come. "It really inspires kids to create their own when they see so many great examples from their peers," she says.

Timmons has some advice for teachers who want to help kids create their own political cartoons: "Sometimes this can be a challenge as students can be very self-conscious about their art ability, but this becomes less of a problem once they understand that the quality of the art is not the important thing. The message is."

Resources

• Tips for getting kids reading newspapers are available from Newspapers in Education.
• Connect for Kids' 'Uncle Sam's Kids
• Connect for Kids'Pop Culture Politics

Rob Capriccioso is a former staff writer for Connect for Kids.