Take a Walk in My Shoes - TeachersFirst · Take a Walk in My Shoes ... Your task is to research the viewpoints of the Palestinians, ... Synthesize your notes and write a rough draft

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Take a Walk in My Shoes

A Cultural Look at the Conflicts in the Mid-EastGrades 7-9 Social StudiesAuthor: Christine Archer-Davison, Parker, CO

Duration: Approximately 2 weeks; 50 minute class periods

InvitationHow can we engage students in constructing a historical understanding of conflicts in the MiddleEast? How can we help students develop an independent and sophisticated understanding of theevents in the world today?

A Snapshot The Middle East is a place of many conflicts. Since Israel became an independent nation in 1948, ithas been the focus of many news articles. Israel has significance for three of the world’s largestreligions -- Islam, Christianity and Judaism. It is important for students to examine how history,culture and geography influence a person’s perception toward a particular place.

Begin the unit with a background study of Middle Eastern physical and political geography. Studentsshould also be familiarized with culture, current events and history of the regions. This particularlesson is just a piece of a Middle Eastern Unit. It is used to help students further comprehend theongoing conflict in Israel, Gaza Strip and the West Bank.

State Standards Addressed• Students know how to use maps, globes and other geographic tools to locate and derive

information about people, places and environments.• Students know how personal knowledge and experience influence an individual’s perception.• Students know the physical and human characteristics of places, and can use this knowledge to

define and study regions for the purpose of interpreting patterns of change.• Students know how culture and experience influence people’s perceptions.

Software And Technology Materials RequiredComputers; Claris Home Page; Videocamera; HyperStudio; PageMaker; Avid CinemaOptional: Culturegrams; Time Traveler CD Rom; National Geographic World Geography Laserdiscand CD-Roms; Netscape; Scanner; Digital camera

Required Reading Materials• British and the Jews Of Europe 1939-1945 by Wasserstein• Israel by Mary Jane Cahill• The Palestine Conflict by Neal Bernards• Israel by Library of Nations

ActivitiesStudents will work together in small groups of 4-5. Students will share the responsibility of researching,synthesizing and presenting their information. Groups will work in the classroom at computer stationsand in the library.


Students will create presentations about the historical, geographical and cultural implications that haveinfluenced the views of various groups of people found in the Middle East. Assuming the role of aPalestinian, Jew or Brit, students are to explore how their assigned group felt about Israel during the timewhen the Israeli state was formed. Presentations will be based on research in print and electronic media.Presentations will be delivered to the whole class and followed up with discussion.

AssessmentStudents are assessed on their ability to:

1. Address the inquiry questions in a suitable manner2. Understand the points of view of various types of people3. Synthesize information into diary format4. Provide both physical and cultural reasons for the conflict that occurred in the Middle East5. Evaluate and process geographical data6. Present their work7. Use technology8. Write clearly


ACTIVITY #1- The PalestiniansA Cultural Look at the Conflicts in the Mid-East

IntroductionTo better understand the different viewpoints regarding Israel, your group is to assume the role ofPalestinians. Your task is to research the viewpoints of the Palestinians, and find out how they feltabout Israel during the time of the formation of the Israeli state. You will then synthesize thisinformation and create a multimedia diary from the Palestinians point of view. The diary will becompleted on HyperStudio and include related media.

Suggested Research Questions• How did Palestinians feel about the geographical area occupied by Israel?• What role does religion play in the situation in Israel?• What were the Palestinian attitudes about Israel?• What justification did your group have for their attitudes and the actions they took?• Could Israel have been located somewhere else?• How are the Israeli and Arab economies linked?• Did the Arabs use the land differently than Jews, and if so, how?

Phase 1Meet as a group to determine the major areas of your research and to decide who will research whicharea. Divide your group into thirds. Send one-third of your group to each of resource stations(books/magazines, CD-Roms, Internet). You should take written notes and jot down any visuals thatmay be used later in your presentation. You need to obtain information that will help you understandhow your group of people felt about Israel. Graphics, pictures, maps, charts and related items shouldalso be collected to support your diary entries.

Phase 2After the initial research has been conducted, you will assume the role of your researched peoplewho were alive during this time period. For your role, you will write down 3-5 diary entries thataccurately describe events of the time period and attitudes toward those events. You are, in essence,to "walk a mile in that person’s shoes." Synthesize your notes and write a rough draft of your diaryentries. Storyboard your presentation and begin pulling your resources together.

Phase 3With a rough draft of your diary entries and the supportive pictures you have collected, you willcreate a HyperStudio stack. The stack will contain approximately nine cards. For formattingpurposes, there is a handy background of an open book already available in HyperStudio. Pleaseplace your diary entries on the right-hand side of the book and supportive graphics on the left side.This will take approximately one week to complete with a working knowledge of HyperStudio. Aftercompletion of the assignment, you will present your diaries to the class. Your classmates and teacherwill assess the diaries, and you shall also assess your own work.

Follow Up/Extension Activities• After hearing all sides of the issues, write a reflection paper that examines your current beliefs on the

situation.• Have a mock peace talk to try and come up with a solution.


ACTIVITY #2 - Current Events PollA Cultural Look at the Conflicts in the Mid-East

AssignmentDesign and administer a video opinion poll analyzing the public’s understanding and opinions ofconflicts in the Middle East.

Suggested Research Questions• How did Palestinians, Jews and British feel about the geographical area occupied by Israel?• What role did religion play in the situation in Israel?• What were the Jewish and Palestinian attitudes about Israel?• How did the British peace-keepers feel about the nation of Israel?• What justification did each group have for their attitudes and the actions they took?• Could Israel have been located somewhere else?• How were the Israeli and Arab economies linked?• Did the Arabs use the land differently than Jews, and if so, how?

Phase 1Meet as a group to decide on questions that you will administer by personal interview and who isyour target population. Make sure your questions are relevant to the task at hand.

Phase 2• Decide on the roles for polling (interviewer, camera person, observer, note taker). Then set up

appointments for your interviews.• After the interviews have been conducted, synthesize your notes and draft a script.• Using footage from the interviews, create a video presentation using Avid Cinema that reflects

current attitudes and understandings of events in the Middle East.

Phase 3With a video of your interviews, edit and polish your video presentation. This will takeapproximately one week to complete. Include a brief analysis of the weaknesses/biases of your poll.After completion of the assignment, you will present their video to the class. Your classmates andteacher will assess the video, and you will also assess your own work.

Follow Up/Extension Activities• After hearing all sides of the issues, write a reflection paper that examines your current beliefs on

the situation.• Have a mock peace talk to try and come up with a solution.


ACTIVITY #3 - The JewsA Cultural Look at the Conflicts in the Mid-East

AssignmentTo better understand the different viewpoints regarding Israel, your group is to assume the role of theJews. Your task is to research the viewpoints of the Jewish population, and find out how they feltabout Israel during the time of the formation of the Israeli state. You will then synthesize thisinformation and create a multimedia diary from the Jewish point of view. The diary will becompleted on Claris Home Page and include related graphics.

Suggested Research Questions:• How did Jews feel about the geographical area occupied by Israel?• What role does religion play in the situation in Israel?• What were the Jewish attitudes about Israel?• What justification did your group have for their attitudes and the actions they took?• Could Israel have been located somewhere else?• How are the Israeli and Arab economies linked?• Did the Arabs use the land differently than Jews, and if so, how?

Phase 1Meet as a group to determine the major areas of your research and to decide who will research whicharea. Divide your group into thirds. Send one-third of your group to each of resource stations(books/magazines, CD-Roms, Internet). You are to take written notes and jot down any visuals thatmay be used later in your presentation. You need to obtain information that will help them tounderstand how your group of people felt about Israel. Graphics, pictures, maps, charts and relateditems should also be collected to support your diary entries.

Phase 2After the initial research has been conducted, you will assume the role of your researched peoplewho were alive during this time period. For each role, you will write down 3-5 diary entries thataccurately describe events of the time period and attitudes toward those events. You are, in essence,to "walk a mile in that person’s shoes." Synthesize your notes and write a rough draft of your diaryentries. Storyboard your presentation and begin pulling your resources together.

Phase 3With a rough draft of your diary entries and the supportive pictures you have collected, studentscreate a web page to be shared. The page will contain diary entries and links related to the topic athand. This will take approximately one week to complete with a working knowledge of Claris HomePage. After completion of the assignment, you will present the diaries to the class. Your classmatesand teacher will assess the diaries, and you will also assess your own work.




ACTIVITY #4 - The BritishA Cultural Look at the Conflicts in the Mid-East

AssignmentTo better understand the different viewpoints regarding Israel, your group is to assume the role ofBrits. Your task is to research the viewpoints of the British, and find out how they felt about Israelduring the time of the formation of the Israeli state. You will then synthesize this information andcreate a diary from the British point of view. The diary will be completed using PageMaker andinclude related graphics.

Suggested Research Questions:• How did Brits feel about the geographical area occupied by Israel?• What role does religion play in the situation in Israel?• What were the British attitudes about Israel?• What justification did your group have for their attitudes and the actions they took?• Could Israel have been located somewhere else?• How are the Israeli and Arab economies linked?• Did the Arabs use the land differently than Jews, and if so, how?

Phase 1Meet as a group to determine the major areas of your research and to decide who will research whicharea. Divide your group into thirds. Send one-third of your group to each of resource stations(books/magazines, CD-Roms, Internet). You are to take written notes and jot down any visuals thatmay be used later in your presentation. You need to obtain information that will help you tounderstand how your group of people felt about Israel. Graphics, pictures, maps, charts and relateditems should also be collected to support the diary entries.

Phase 2After the initial research has been conducted, students will assume the roles of their researchedpeople who were alive during this time period. For each role, you will write down diary entries thataccurately describe events of the time period and attitudes toward those events. You are, in essence,to "walk a mile in that person’s shoes." Synthesize your notes and write a rough draft of your diaryentries.

Phase 3With a rough draft of your diary entries and the supportive pictures you have collected, begin work inPageMaker, creating a printed diary. The diary will contain approximately nine pages. Be creativewith your formatting and design. Try to make it as authentic as possible. This will take approximatelyone week to complete with a working knowledge of PageMaker. After completion of the assignment,you will present your diaries to the class. Your classmates and teacher will assess the diaries, and youwill also assess your own work.



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Take a Walk in My Shoes - TeachersFirst · Take a Walk in My Shoes ... Your task is to research the viewpoints of the Palestinians, ... Synthesize your notes and write a rough draft