Eastern Mediterranean Countries
SOME THINGS HAVE MOVED:
Judaism - I have moved this material to the World Religions section.
Christianity - I have also moved this material to the World Religions section.
Israel and Palestine
Judaism - I have moved this material to the World Religions section.
Christianity - I have also moved this material to the World Religions section.
Israel and Palestine
MAPS:
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There are two different versions of maps here. The first is only Southwest Asia. The second is Southwest Asia and South Asia. I was using the second map for a few years. This year, I have used the first map - the one of only Southwest Asia. You can choose whichever best meets your classroom needs.
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Version 1: SOUTHWEST ASIA (only)
My students don't get textbooks to take home. Therefore, I want them to be able to build their own reference resources through the year. I've come to believe that I need to show them EXACTLY what to do on the maps if I want them to have what they need for future reference. So I project the file you see below on the right onto the board while they do the maps.
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Version 2: SOUTHWEST ASIA and SOUTH ASIA
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Vocabulary terms:
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The questions below are for the video which follows it, "Amazing Jerusalem."
| Questions for "Amazing Jerusalem" video |
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Israel and Palestine
This is one of those topics that can be stressful to teach. I'm not interested in offending anyone (or everyone!) but I also think our students need to be informed about the history of this long-standing conflict.
When I teach about Palestine and Israel, I try to focus on historical context for the conflict and to focus on teaching thinking skills to my students. It's important for us to teach students HOW to think, not WHAT to think.
The United Kingdom's National Union of Teachers has an article giving advice on teaching about Israel and Palestine. I encourage you to read the entire article, Conflict in the Middle East - Issues for Schools. Their advice includes the following:
-- Teach students the skills of identifying assumptions and analyzing sources for bias and balance.
-- Teach students the skills for recognizing different points of view.
-- Encourage students to recognize that complicated issues do not have simple solutions.
-- Help students understand that in complicated situations there are often many and conflicting narratives, and that all may be equally valid.
-- Teach students to respect all opinions. Moderate negative thinking and strong emotions.
This advice applies well to any time we are teaching about controversial topics.
When I teach about Palestine and Israel, I try to focus on historical context for the conflict and to focus on teaching thinking skills to my students. It's important for us to teach students HOW to think, not WHAT to think.
The United Kingdom's National Union of Teachers has an article giving advice on teaching about Israel and Palestine. I encourage you to read the entire article, Conflict in the Middle East - Issues for Schools. Their advice includes the following:
-- Teach students the skills of identifying assumptions and analyzing sources for bias and balance.
-- Teach students the skills for recognizing different points of view.
-- Encourage students to recognize that complicated issues do not have simple solutions.
-- Help students understand that in complicated situations there are often many and conflicting narratives, and that all may be equally valid.
-- Teach students to respect all opinions. Moderate negative thinking and strong emotions.
This advice applies well to any time we are teaching about controversial topics.
Introductory PowerPoint: Israel and Palestine
This PowerPoint is VERY long, 75 slides actually. I made it, but I have never used the whole thing in this format. I have used parts of it combined with other materials. However, I'm putting it all online and will let teachers edit it and use parts as they see fit.
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Political Cartoon Analysis
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I find political cartoons (a.k.a. editorial cartoons) to be a good teaching tool when dealing with controversial topics. By their very nature, political cartoons lend themselves to presenting a variety of viewpoints. They allow students to take a step back from their own feelings or beliefs about a topic and to analyze the feelings and beliefs of others.
Political cartoons are always about opinion - the opinion of the cartoonist who drew the cartoon. I remind my students of that every time we look at political cartoons. I have a lesson introducing political cartoons in the Classroom Teaching Tools section of this web site. If your students have not worked with them before, you might want to do that lesson first. |
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This is a very interesting lesson from the University of Texas in Austin. More lessons on different areas are available at the UT Austin Scholar Works web page.
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This Google Earth map is centered on the Temple Mount and the Dome of the Rock in the "Old City section of Jerusalem. You can move around, zoom in and out, and switch between street map view and satellite view.
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