pre-2011 middle school ideas

[Anonymous]

Buddhism and Its Spread Along the Silk Road
http://www.silk-road.com/artl/buddhism.shtml
I already posted this site under China curriculum but this seems a better place. This is an excellent overview story about Buddhism spreading through the trade routes. Illustrations are very good.

[Anonymous]

Lyn mentioned getting the overheads. I have them, as in, the ones that came in their China/Japan box set last spring. They are, by and large, flat and lacking in interesting colors. I really was disappointed and have expressed that dissatisfaction directly to them several times. If you can get the slides that came in earlier versions, you may be happier. I doubt whether you could do any sharing of them without the company objecting. They want everyone to pay the mega-bucks/set that they charge. Oh, I do like a lot of their lessons, but you need to really walk through them ahead of time. There's no way to do them without a lot of xeroxing, but the students really get a lot out of them so they're a worthwhile add-on to each unit. I've had some difficulty deciding how best to assess and score these projects. Anyone who has a good idea on this, please post.

[Anonymous]

When I teach about religions in Asia, I include a mandala art project. I recently found a most amazing book. It is about 3 feet tall by 2 feet and it has vivid printed images of traditional mandalas. It's called "Celestial Gallery" by Romio Shrestha. There is explanation of the symbols and some background information for each print. It's an expensive book. It retails for about $125, but I have found it on amazon.com for $79. Personally, I think it's very important to have as many authentic visual samples for the students to model. I thought this might be of interest for anyone who teaches about Buddhism. It's a great vehicle to bring many ideas to the students.

[Anonymous]

The idea that students could read and compare newscasts from around the world and share their viewpoints is such a incredible idea. I would enjoy participating in something of that nature. What a truly worthwhile (beyond educational-- enlightening) endeavor for students to see the viewpoints of their peers from a global perspective.

[Anonymous]

There are also a few videos (In Chinese) that explain and capture the spread of Buddhism through the Silk Road. I have watched a series of these Chinese movies which are translated in Vietnamese. If this series of videos get translated in English, i think they would make an incredible educational material to teach Buddhism.

[Anonymous]

This is a little off topic for Asia, but I have/ am creating a website for 7th grade teachers and students to discuss curriculum and other pressing topics. There is a writing section for each unit, and we are not yet to Asia, but there will be a China topic by February 1. The site also has a blog, with a thread for each unit. Students need to register for the blog, and I have all responses emailed to me, with blocking power, so it is pretty safe. We would like to have other students and classes join us. The site will continue to be improved and added to. especially the interactive parts. The address is: http://home.apu.edu/~dbrittenham/connections/
I also have a powerpoint on Japanese Castles at http://home.apu.edu/~dbrittenham/517/Castleleaf.htm
It looks best in Netscape, I have not been able to resolve a couple of problems in Explorer.

[clay dube]

Debbie's presentation on castles is quite helpful. It works fine in Netscape/Mozilla/Firefox. It includes photos (she took the Miyajima ones in 2003 when she participated in an NCTA study tour to Korea and Japan), diagrams, and lesson assignments. She also has helpful links to related books and more.

A reminder -- please follow Debbie's lead and share resources you create as well as those you find. You can copy and paste her web address into your browser or you can click on the link below to see it:

http://home.apu.edu/~dbrittenham/517/Castleleaf.htm

[Anonymous]

One thing I did last year with my students was to introduce them to the three beliefs system (Buddhism, Confucianism and Daoism) with some materials from the HIstory Alive series. The material was some condensed notes and you had to have the students highlight important features about each belief system.
As a followup, I gave them a homework assignment in which each student had to decide which belief system is most similiar to me as their teacher. They had to defend their answer by tying together the way I run my class and my discipline policies to the beliefs of either Buddhism, Confucianism or Daoism. Most kids thought I was a Daoist, because they said I go with the flow of things a lot and don't "trip" about little things like other teachers do. The troublemakers and the overachievers of the school said I was more of a Confucianist because I promote respect for elders, hard work and education.
The next day I had some of the kids present their point of view to the class and debate it informally for a few minutes. It was a fun way to present the Three Beliefs System and also to get the kids to think a different way.
Ryan

[Anonymous]

Today while in class and discussing facets of "The Pillow Book," an idea popped
into my head from a passage that describes some outfits she hates. It would
be a great thing for students draw everything in their closets they hate and
want to get rid of, as one idea. Studentscould read the passage in English class, write about
clothes they no longer like, explaining the reasons why and tell what it is they would
like to have. Another idea for an art project would be for students could make a collage of items, no longer in vogue, at least in their minds, and compare it to the The Pillow Book. Thanks

[Anonymous]

Exploring Cultures Through Art China and Japan by Scholastic is a fantastic resource to have. There are 25 art projects and other activities that can be used as supplemental lessons to enrich student learning. Each lesson has background information as well as simple and clear directions. Some interesting lessons include name chops (China), calligraphy (China and Japan), woodblock prints (China or Japan), elevation map (China and Japan), scroll landscapte paintings (China and Japan) and Bunraku puppets (Japan). This book includes lessons focusing on geography, culture, cooking and field trips. Check it out for some great ideas![Edit by="jchan on Jan 21, 8:12:46 PM"][/Edit]
[Edit by="jchan on Jan 21, 8:14:10 PM"][/Edit]

[Anonymous]

Make your own printing block

For teachers who are teaching Ancient China, here's a fun idea for you! The ancient Chinese carved printing blocks out of wood. You and your class can make printing blocks by drawing a design and tracing it onto several pieces of lightweight cardboard. Cut these copies and glue them on top of one another. Then glue them to a piece of heavy carboard so the design is raised above the surface. Cover your printing block with ink and start printing!

[Anonymous]

I also think it is important to incorporate art in the teaching of different cultures since that not only reflects their aesthetic values but often is used to represent their philosophies and traditions as well. One of the forms of art I use to teach China is calligraphy because it is so highly valued in China, and because it allows students to, both figuratively and literally, translate their thoughts into Chinese. This makes it possible for them to more closely identify with, and appreciate this culture.

There are various sources for teaching some of the basic strokes and characters in Chinese calligraphy. History Alive has some very good lessons on this. I use handouts that I made from the book Long is A Dragon. The students make an English to Chinese dictionary of about 15 different characters (mostly the ones with th fewest strokes, such as Man, big, mountain, up, down, one, two, ten, etc.) Their homework is to write a simplified sentence using four of these characters.

In class the next day they work in pairs to choose one such four character sentence to write. Each practices writing two of the characters with a brush and black water colors as ink ( in a large class this avoids mishaps which might stain clothes.) Then, each pair is given a blank 8 1/2 x 11 inch sheet of paper which they fold in half, then folded two more times to the side to form eight rectangles about 2 x 5 inch. When they open it, they write their four character sentence in the top right rectangle, and trade it with another pair who has finished their sentence also. Each pair rights their sentence on the paper, starting on the top right, then middle right, bottom right, and likewise across the paper. Each also writes their names in small letters in the rectangle with their sentence. When the paper is filled, the last pair takes it back to the first pair whose job then is to translate all the sentences. In this way, each person gets a chance to write and read in Chinese.

This usually takes two to three days, but if you have extra time, more characters and more practice can be done before the paired writing. I've found that while some students think this is too difficult to do at first, they end up feeling very proud that they can actually read and write some in Chinese.[Edit by="sperez on Mar 22, 11:30:53 PM"][/Edit]

[Anonymous]

Another idea for China is to give student groups, either in twos or fours, information about the various inventions made in China, such as the compass, gunpowder, paper, porcelain, printing, etc. They must learn who invented it (if possible), when, where, how, and why, and what materials were used. Since none of these were known in the West, the students must then create a commercial, either as a live presentation, or a video, to introduce and sell this new invention to the West. Students watching the commercials must take notes on these same characteristics, and in this way they learn about all these inventions. I have found its best to have two or three different groups do each of these inventions so all the facts are covered.

[Anonymous]

I like to introduce medieval China (if I may use that term simply for chrononlogical reference) by showing parallels to the fall of Rome, and to the rise of feudalism in Europe. I also try to show common themes and methods of political, economic, and cultural development when I teach Islam, Africa, and other units as well. Of course, I also spend time on the unique characteristics and contributions of each culture. However, helping students see the common larger themes that are present in all civilizations not only provides a familiar schema for students to use, but also allows them to see the shared humanity of all cultures.

In Across the Centuries, this is particularly effective for its chapters on China. I cover China after I have covered Rome, Islam, Africa, and early medieval Europe (up to the rise of towns about 1100.) Hopefully, by then students understand the progression of creating order, then economic development which creates the time and wealth for cultural achievements. They can also predict problems which will lead to a collapse, since internal problems almost always precede invasions.

Starting on p. 192, I ask students to find similarities between the causes of Rome's and the Han Empire's collapse. They can see a corrupt, selfish, upper class, invasions from the north, landowners refusing to pay taxes, and army generals fighting each other. Of course, there were some other different problems, such as floods, which I also ask students to note down as well. Comparisons like this can be done in a Venn diagram, or the new "Y" chart, with similarites forming the bottom part of the Y.

On p.194, I ask students to compare the second paragraph under "A Period of Unrest" to the time in Europe after the fall of the Western Roman Empire. The paragraph is almost a perfect description of feudalism in medieval Europe. I ask students to use the terms they learned for feudal Europe as they write on their comparison charts (knights, lords, peasants, castles.) Since I spent time on the methods Charlemagne used to try to bring order and culture back to Europe (not all of these are in Across The Centuries) I also ask students to find parallels to these in Emperor Wen's policies (collecting and hand copying classics, regional governors, travelling inspectors.) Of course, here the differences are even more important (more organized system of administration, large public work projects, encouragement of different belief systems, etc.), and I ask students to explain how these might have affected the success and endurance of Wen's policies even after he died.

Students are often surprised to find so many similarities, especially if they had thought of China and other Asian civilizations as very strange and different from the West.[Edit by="sperez on Mar 25, 1:58:27 PM"][/Edit]

[Anonymous]

Because we have so many immigrant students with little or no knowledge of English, I have started using the comic book or storyboard method of students turning in some of their reports on different topics. They include all of the necessary information without stressing over the correct phrasing or vocabulary. I find that more students turn in work with this technique. It also helps with our mainstreamed special ed students who sometimes get lost on a research paper project.

[Author]

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