One of my favorite ways to take memes beyond “hey, is this funny?” is to start with a question like, “Does anyone relate to this?” The moment we pause to consider whether a meme actually applies to our own lives, we enter the mindset I want students to explore.
My follow-up question is usually something like, “What else might become overwhelming if you ignored it for a while or couldn’t deal with it for a day or two?” Students often mention chores, like taking out the trash or doing dishes, which makes for great early connections. But in every one of the ten classes I visited with this meme, someone eventually said “emotions” or “mental health.” That’s the thread I was waiting for. As soon as it came up, hands went up, and students began sharing.
We’ve all ignored emotions we didn’t want to deal with, and many students could relate to the idea of “crashing” like the wave in the meme because of it. It turned into a powerful moment and a fun way to take memes to a deeper level.
Give it a try: what could you change the text in the meme to so it still feels relevant?
-Brian Mannas