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Jimmy MartinezDan I completely agree with you with using as many different lenses as possible when it comes to our teaching. Using poetry to teach is definitely not utilized enough when it comes to teaching history. I also really enjoyed your idea on using DBQ's along with poetry and art to help them expand on their writing and analysis. I have been trying to implement more DBQ's in the classroom because it helps understand the different points of views from important historical figures at the time and you are also exposing them to primary resources.
Jimmy MartinezGerlinde, your idea of the "Poetry Around the World" group is absolutely fascinating! I love the idea of of learning about new cultures and applying different poems to the different countries. Every society has different ways of expressing themselves and this idea completely rocks. I think when you expose children to these different cultures and their beauties you are not only teaching them a lesson about poetry but more importantly about tolerance.
Jimmy MartinezI also enjoyed how Professor Yan compared the art from the Gu Kaizi and Diego Velazquez to help distinguish the similarities. I think many societies tend to focus on the differences and what sets them apart from other societies. There needs to be more focus on comparing similarities because although we all have different customs or were raised differently we are more similar then we are different.
Jimmy MartinezThe phenomenon that is Kpop is very interesting and their fans are DIEHARD. One of my students even went to the BTS concert and she never speaks in class but the day after she came in with all this merchandise and she really came out of her shell. I even heard they broke records set by the Beatles! Now that is impressive and represents the power/influence that music has on our society. I love the Korean culture and I was raised in an area where I was exposed early to it and so I welcome anything Korean with open arms. I would love to learn Korean but I must admit that I am very intimidated by the language.
Jimmy MartinezI would love to incorporate more music and poetry into my curriculum and I believe that a Sijo poetry slam would be the perfect activity. This resources does a fantastic job of explainging the basics of a Sijo poem. Not only would help my students be more creative but it would also challenge their writing skills. Once I get my students to focus on their passions then the rest would be to let them work in constructing their own poem, whether it be on Cardi B or ceviche. This exercise fuses passion with expression and really produces a genuine piece of work and I can't wait to apply in the classroom next year.
Jimmy MartinezI recently visited the Japanese American National Museum over the weekend and it was fascinating! I thouroughly enjoyed the museum and I learned many new facts about the Japanese culture. I had no idea that Japan is consisted of 6,852 islands...that is incredible! I also really liked the exhibition by Mark Nagata because it brought back some feelings of nostalgia. It reminded me of my Pokemon days and playing with my older brothers Transformers. "Kaiju" translates to "monster" and was the main influence behind the infamous Godzilla, which has been remade a number of times. Another nostalgic feeling came when I came across the Goosebumps section! I loved those books growing up and read almost every single one. This museum would be a perfect candidate to take my students to because of exhibitions like "Kaiju vs Heroes." Toys and video games are very much relatable to my students and it would be easy to incorporate lessons based on these subjects. Another exhibition I really enjoyed was "Common Ground:The Heart of Community" as it explores the beginnings of the Japanese and their acclimation to America. I would definitely recommend the Japanese American National Museum because it does a great job of educating everyone about the rich culture of the Japanese and their influence on America.
Jimmy MartinezI used to intern at the Museum of Tolerance as a museum facilitator and I had the opportunity to learn more about the oppression that the North Korean people must deal with on a daily basis. Through the tour there are many interactive and informational pieces that challenges people to question the ideas of tolerance in our society. To be honest I had very little knowledge of North Korea and what I discovered at the Museum of Tolerance blew my mind. While training to be a facilitator I discovered that there are many people in North Korea who suffer from malnutrition and there was a survivor that told of his experience through a video. It was shocking to say the least. This man had escaped North Korea once without his family and when he realized he would not be able to help them he returned to the horrible conditions his family was in. Back in "hell" as he put it, he began to watch his families health deteriorate due to malnutrition and the diseases that are associated with it. First, one of his daughters died and then his youngest finally perished. Distraught by seeing his children die in front of his eyes he finally gathers the courage to leave North Korea with his wife. Before they leave though his wife catches ill and soon perishes. With his last bit of strength he finds a way out of North Korea into South Korea and here he starts speaking against the evils of his homeland. This was truly horrendous to see and the strength that he shows is remarkable. The teaching of tolerance is one of the most important lessons you can teach about in history and I believe that the Museum of Tolerance is fantastic in getting this message across.
Jimmy MartinezThe Stanford History Education Group is a priceless resource that I have been using since one of my colleagues recommended it to me in my first year of teaching. I have gone back again and again to retrieve great lesson plans and input them into my units. One of the first lessons is the "Lunchroom Fight" lesson that teaches students about multiple perspectives. The students love this activity/lesson because it deals with real life issues and is very relatable. This lesson on the Korean War has students read different historical accounts and allowing students to compare and contrast these fidnings. I would recommend SHEG to any fellow historian/teacher because the lessons are really engaging and the students love them.
Jimmy MartinezCrazy Rich Asians deals with many cultural differences between Chinese and Chinese-Americans. It is based on the best-selling book by Kevin Kwan and it really shares the polarity between "Chinese-born" and their "Chinese-American" counterparts. Rachel (Constance Wu) plays an economic professor that goes to Singapore with her boyfriend Nick Young (Henry Golding) and begins the roller coaster of meeting his family. In Singapore she realizes that he comes from money and the dynamic of their relationship changes immediately. This movie was fantastic (I've watched it about 3 times now) and it really does a great job of showing the polarity between the Chinese-American and Chinese cultures. The expectations that Nick Young's family has for him is to take over the family business and his mother plays a very believable villain as she tries to tear them apart. I would use this film to show the differences in these cultures and to show these cultures and their views towards each other.
Jimmy MartinezI also love to show the CNN/Student news in the morning because it does a great job of informing the students about current events. They watched the development of the U.S.-North Korean nuclear standoff and were well informed about the situation. Many of my students were scared of getting wiped out by massive nuclear weapons. Watching this kind of news is critical in introducing these different cultures into our students lives. Like most 8th graders my students are fascinated with technology and the Asian influence that it has on our local and national economy. Without the CNN student news I belive that many of my students would basically be cut off from learning what it going on with our foreign neighbors.
Jimmy MartinezI would like to thank Dr. Dube, Catherine and all of the other professors for taking time to teach about the wonderful and rich history of East Asia. This was a very enlightening experience and I would definitely recommend it to my colleagues and any other educator interested in learning more about Asian history. Not only were the lectures really engaging but I also loved the activities that we were able to partake in. One of my favorite activites was the Sijo poetry and creating my own poem about the love of the Dodgers and baseball. I will incorporate this in my classroom and I believe it would be a really fun activity and a break from the monotony. This activity would help students become more creative and write/speak about one of their passions. Another activity that I thoroughly enjoyed was the debate on the different school of thoughts. It was very interesting and I could really see my students being really engaged and animated when defending their different viewpoints.
I feel as if my students who are predominantly Latino know very little of the different Asian cultures. Teaching about culture is very critical in their understanding these different nations. I would love to take them to the Japanese American National Museum, Chinese American Museum or the Korean American National Museum so that they could immerse themselves in those different cultures. I would also like to host an Asian potluck to have them experience these different foods as maybe this could be the catalyst for change in acceptance of these foreign cultures. Tolerance is a very difficult lesson to instill into some students because they are raised with one line of thought. Some important issues that were raised was the idea of male superiority and the importance of trade, specifically with California. Discussing these issues with our students is critical in helping them understand the important relationships that we hold with Asian nations.
Jimmy MartinezI really enjoyed the lecture for session #4 and enjoyed learning more about Japan, which I know very little about. One thing that struck me as very interesting was that the Japanese government refuses to let excavation of their important historical sites because of the possibility that it would take away from the originality of the culture. The possibility of having connections of ancestry to Korea must anger the Japanese government greatly. The best line from professor Hirano was that "There is no such thing as a homgeneous society." I think this is such a powerful line because it shows that no society is purely one race. This nationalistic way of thinking can obviously lead to views of racism and eventually lead to genocide.
Jimmy MartinezOne of my favorite activities, which I must admit I was not too excited about in the beginning, was the sijo activity. I would love to incorporate this into a lesson and would tailor this by creating a rap sijo. Most of my students love rap and I could really see them getting into it this activity. Here is my sijo:
The day is bright and the stadium roars with cheers;
Jimmy MartinezAs a farmer and true legalist I would definitely turn my father in to the authorities as we believe in direct and harsh punishments. The law favors no individual man and is therefore applies to ALL MEN. Although he is my father and it pains me deeply to turn him in it is still the right thing to do. I could not live with such a dirty concious and our society would not be able to flourish to its fullest capacity if we bend the rules for a few. Harsh punishments are the only way for a society to learn their lesson. Sorry father but you knew the rules when you broke them and you shall reap what you sow!!
Jimmy MartinezThis article was very insightful and helped me to understand the development of early Japan and their harsh treatment towards the natives. This "kill the savages" kind of attitude has been repeated over the ages but the level of brutality against the "dirt spiders" really shocked me. People do genuinely fear things they do not know. The same applied to Pizarro when he conquered the Incan's and Cortez when he conquered the Aztec's. No matter when the time period or where on earth it happened the native peoples were usually treated with disdain or tossed aside. I could definitely use this story as a parallel in my U.S. history course because we are starting the period of the Indian Removal Act.
