Recommends the use of political cartoons in history instruction. Identifies characteristics of effective cartoons: (1) wit or humor; (2) basis in truth; and (3) moral purpose. Argues that the study of cartoons can promote creativity and social science skills. Identifies sources of cartoons. (SG)

Stories from "Nights with Uncle Remus" are examined for the messages beyond Harris's ostensible humor. The story plots are filled with degradations and stereotypes found in the slavery era. Whether authentic retold folk tales or "fakelore" constructed by Harris, the tales reveal information about Harris's audience, the White…

This article discusses sources of difficulty that language-impaired children and adolescents often have in understanding the various aspects of humor. General and specific techniques for remediating humor comprehension deficits are offered. Suggestions are also given for using humor materials in remediation of other areas of language impairment.…

Offers five strategies from teachers regarding self-evaluation of student writing, teaching sentence construction, research paper notetaking, using humor in the writing classroom, and student use of transparencies. (PRA)

The reactions of 60 gifted students and 60 regular students in grades 4, 6, and 8 to an audiotape of age-appropriate riddles, jokes, puns, satire, and nonhumorous items were compared. Results indicated that gifted subjects performed significantly higher in spontaneous mirth response and comprehension of verbal humor than the general population…

Discusses how one journalism instructor deals with disruptive students in her reporting, communication history, and ethics courses. Lists reasons for students' disenchantment. Notes that sometimes humor eases tensions. Addresses building respect in the college classroom. (RS)

Modern school executives have a bewildering number of management philosophies to choose from and a seemingly limitless supply of buzzwords and fads. In this poem, St. Peter (Heaven's chief executive) has trouble forming committees of subluminaries to help him decide which managerial types should enter the pearly gates. (MLH)

Discusses how managers can handle change and cope with stress, describes a number of books that address these issues, and relates them to library administration. Highlights include organizational change; stress reduction; human behavior and the tools of change; communication skills; leadership strategies; and the use of humor. (LRW)

Claims teachers and students can avoid taking themselves too seriously by developing dimensionality, the ability to recognize varied dimensions of others and of themselves. Suggests young adult literature is a dimensional aid that can help young readers understand themselves. (NH)

An anonymous school board member offers tongue-in-cheek advice to prospective school board members--starting out with the fact that, no matter how impressive board members' resumes are, their backgrounds will not fully prepare them to serve on school boards. (MLF)

A former substitute teacher explains how she won first-graders' attention and significantly improved deportment by pretending to be a Martian with different communication modes and hearing capabilities than terrestrials. Children painlessly learn tips on listening, communicating, and engaging in friendly behaviors. (MLH)

This study describes the development of a self-report measure of functional humor in relationships. People were asked to report on their own and their partner's use of humor in the marriage. The Relational Humor Inventory proved to be a useful instrument for tapping important positive and negative relationship behaviors. (Contains 30 references, 4…

Responds to an article that argues that in the study of bilingualism, conceptual representations should be treated as related but not equivalent to word meanings, as knowledge-based, dynamic and language- and culture-specific. (Author/VWL)

Freshmen in an orientation course at a state university answered questionnaires about their peer mentors' playful communication and about how well their peer mentors help them ease tensions of socialization. Results showed that a mentor's perceived playful communication helped the protege ease tensions of socialization. Proteges liked mentors who…

The authors' previous work with long-term family caregivers demonstrated the importance of conversational cues, the reliance on humor to convey sensitive information, and the ways in which the interviewer can follow up, with appropriate probes and nonverbal encouragement, to gain necessary insight into the caregiver situation. This article offers…