Unit on Islam

The following unit was submitted by Karen Currier of Moultonborough Academy:  

Incorporated within a World Studies (10th grade) unit on Islam, Three Cups of Tea becomes a centerpiece for a discussion on peace (and the true meaning of an often misunderstood religion and culture: Islam). As an introductory activity, I had my students (three different sections of 90 minute blocks) enter our room, set up in small pods, and take a card which asked them to write down the name of someone in their class who they had worked with/spoke with/knew the least. Once the groups of two were established (I was prepared to tweak the groups as I needed to as many students were tempted to sit with their best friends) students were given various "real world" -- social responsibility-type questions-- to ponder, discuss, and record notes on, but began with prompts that asked the students to simply get to know one another first (to discover similarities, differences, etc.). Eventually, the questions moved toward opinion, i.e.: Do you think the U.S. should be contributing aid to countries in need, and if so, in what capacity, with what "strings" attached, if any? Will the world ever achieve peace, and if so, what is the best avenue toward this goal? For each "level" of question, I served the students a cup of tea, until they had transitioned through the three levels of questions and three cups (actually, about 1/3 cup servings to be practical) of tea. We discussed the symbolism of the tea: hospitality, growing from "stranger" to "friend" to "family." Finally, after discussion which touched on each of the questions students pondered and answered in their groups, students were asked to reflect on the activity.
For more on this, with actual materials, I will be posting a link in the near future.

Curriculum Development

The following ideas developed from the Three Cups of Tea Curriculum Development Team.  In its current form, this is simply a list of ideas for lesson planning.  It is our hope that in the future, these ideas will continue to evolve as the teachers who are using Three Cups of Tea in their classrooms are developing lessons and contributing project ideas, work samples, objectives, student outcomes, rubrics and/or any other information they would like to share.  Please feel free to add comments or links. If you have questions or have something to add to the blog, please email me at ljlorio@gmail.com.

General Curriculum Ideas:

• Tie-in ICT Standards, Literacy and Social Studies frameworks
• Islam courses at colleges/universities 
• Introduction to Islam
• Introduction to Central Asia cultures
• Study of Taliban/radical Islam (contrast negativity)
• Field Trip to mosque
• Interview refugees
• Study of Ecosystem in remote regions of Pakistan and Afghanistan

Project Ideas:

• Kindness Project
  
• Mountaineering Unit
• Tea cups - share a cup of tea
  
• Pen Pals with Pakistani students
  
• Pen Pals with other students reading Three Cups of Tea 
  
• Create a blog for kindness/awareness/peace
  
• Research Project - Pakistan or Afghanistan 
  
• Community project promoting Pennies for Peace
  
• Compare/contrast Christianity and Islam
  
• Research women's roles and other issues of social order
  
• Central Asia project incorporating the themes of Geography
  

Lesson ideas:

• Write letters/book review for Three Cups of Tea with specific reasons you recommend it.
  
• Write persuasive letters to potential donors for Pennies for Peace or the Central Asia Institute
  
• Interview Pakistani teachers (discuss vocabulary from book, teaching challenges, curriculum, etc.)
• Compare/contrast schools in Pakistan with schools in the United States including challenges students and teachers face in both countries. 
• Analyze important quotes from the book, (for example: "...terror doesn't happen because some group of people somewhere like Pakistan or Afghanistan simply decide to hate us, it happens because children aren't being offered a bright enough future that they had a reason to choose life over death."  Explain your interpretation and discuss whether you agree or disagree and why. 

Thematic Connections:

• Redemption
  
• Peace/Generosity
  
• Global Awareness
  
• Activism
  
• Character Education
  
• Poverty
  
• Hope
  

Technology connections:

• Powerpoint
  
• Animoto Video
  
• Baraka Video
  
• Podcasting
  
• Facebook Forum
  
• United Streaming
  
• Flip Video
  
• Twitter
  

Hope and Redemption in the 21st Century

The following is a curriculum unit created by Kathy Loring of Moultonborough Academy.  

Grade and Course Level:  Juniors (AP Language and Composition)

Using a variety of texts and media, students will explore the answers to the following essential questions:   

• What responsibility does an individual have to society?
  
• What influence does culture have on our relationships with each other?
  
• How do I resolve my responsibility to the world?
  
• How do I determine when social action is appropriate?
  

The main objective of this is for students to gain an understanding that the differences between humans are really quite insignificant.  Compassion and cooperation are more important than our differences.  Ultimately, students will write a synthesis essay utilizing information from the various texts/films to support their response to the essential questions.  

Resources:

The Myth of Sisyphus by Albert Camus

The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini

The Audacity of Hope by Barack Obama (excerpts)

Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson

Baracka (1992) by Ron Fricke

Literature Review

Young adult and children's literature related to Middle Eastern countries will be reviewed.  The focus will be on fostering an understanding of youth and their cultures in this area of the world.  The reviews will include a short synopsis, vocabulary, activities, related films, and further suggestions to enhance curriculum.  For more information, please contact Jerilyn Dolan at jerilyndolan@gmail.com and Barbara Cunningham at bcunningham912@gmail.com.  

Bridging Cultures

A special education interdisciplinary project between our World Cultures and Alternative Curriculum English 9 classes at Newfound Regional High School will introduce students to Three Cups of Tea and follow up with writing introductory letters and sending school materials to one of Mortenson's Pakistani schools. Upon meeting the Pakistani teachers who will be visiting Plymouth State University through the PELI Institute this summer, we will identify which school to "adopt".  Our goal is to build a bridge between two cultures by fostering an ongoing exchange between the students.  For more information, contact Jerilyn Dolan at jerilyndolan@gmail.com and Barbara Cunningham at bcunningham912@gmail.com.

Many thanks!

Many thanks to Kathy and Dave McCabe of the Governor Wentworth Regional School District, Jamie Meyers of Kingswood Reg. High School, Jasmine Tyler of Woodsville High School, Jerilyn Dolan and Barbara Cunningham of Newfound High School, and Karen Currier and Kathy Loring of Moultonborough Academy for your dedication, time and energy in helping to generate the project and lesson plan ideas to share with educators through our blog. Looking forward to the "unveiling" of those ideas in the week ahead!