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For Teachers
- Discussion Prompt/Mini-Lesson on Iranian Identity Using a YouTube Rap Video. An overview for teachers and a handout (song lyrics, notes) for students.
- The Ottoman Empire: Teachable Issues (click here - and be sure to toggle on the notes so that you can read them as well as the slides.)
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Jewish beliefs and practices - powerpoints by Lori Riegel, Religious and Cultural Education Coordinator, Handmaker Jewish Services for the Aging
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Islam: Myths and Realities (notes/explanations to go with the powerpoint and powerpoint for a stereotype-busting introduction to Islam that can be adapted for middle school students through adult learners). For a great opening to the lesson, use the short, thought-provoking music video from YouTube that shows the diversity of American Muslims: A Land Called Paradise. *Also you can give out the "Quick Facts about Islam" handout below.
- Muslim Rescue and Resistance during the Holocaust: (1) a research paper specifically referencing pedagogical implications, (2) a resource list of related books/DVDs for secondary and post-secondary teachers, (3) lecture and accompanying powerpoint.
- Middle East: Myths and Realities (notes/expanations to go with the powerpoint and powerpoint). Similar to the Islam presentation, this gives a broad overview of the Middle East.
- Travels in Iran: A Teacher's Journal (click here for New York teacher Louise Forsyth's impressions of Iran)
- Countering Anti-Islamic Rhetoric: a list of resources about Islam
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For Teachers and Students
- World War I in the Middle East (a 6-page overview of the origins, home front, and diplomatic events surrounding World War I in the Middle East)
- Quick Facts about Islam (a 2-page intro. to Islam - that can be printed on both sides of a single sheet)
- Persian New Year (Nowruz) (a 2-page intro. to a major holiday, celebrated in Iran and other countries in central/western Asia)
- Palestinian-Israeli Conflict (a short, 6-page intro. to the origins of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, the conflict itself, the issues separating the 2 peoples, and the peace process)
- Fringes of the Middle East: Bosnia (a brief, 5-page overview of Bosnia from its medieval - Ottoman - roots through modern times)
- Understanding Ethnic Identities in Bosnia
- Fringes of the Middle East: Kosovo (a brief, 2-page overview of the historical roots of the Kosovo crisis of the 1990s)
- Who Are the Kurds? (a brief, 3-page fact sheet about the Kurdish people)
- Fun Facts about the Middle East (a 1-page cultural "trivia" page)
- Ramadan: Fact Sheet and Activities for Children/Teens
