Humor and Child Development

After the last post, I started thinking about humor and how it is used. One very important thing to know is that a sense of humor develops as our brain's develop. Young children do not understand complex wit or sarcasm. In fact the use and understanding of sarcasm don't develop until sometime in the mid to late teens. Sarcastic humor can actually be very detrimental to children before they understand it's complexities.

Example: A popular student is having a bad day and complains about being picked on and how no one likes them.

Humor Response: (with a smile and a twist of humor) Oh, nobody likes you? That's probably true. Everyone always talks about how they can't stand to be around you. That must be why you always walk down the hall with about 25 friends!

For a student who has a developed sense of sarcasm, this is clearly a way of showing the silliness of their complaint. But imagine how a student who has not yet developed this sense might feel. They will take it literally. The incongruency of the last sentence from the first sentences will likely be lost on them. They will focus on the literal words that the teacher said and may take them to heart.

It pays to be careful and evaluate a child's ability to find humor in situations before using sarcasm with them. Some people develop this skill later in life, while some seem to never quite grasp sarcasm. Although sarcasm is a very fun and useful form of humor, it needs to be wielded with care.

For those able to grasp sarcasm, here are some fun cartoons on social issues such as body image, drug use, and overpopulation.

Rebekah Engle is a teacher in an alternative high school. She is very involved in her community and writes a local blog called Look What's Happening in Salem.