The Basics of Ancient Maya Civilization

This lesson was reported from:
Adapted in part from open sources.

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The Dubai Mall, Sharia Law, and Social Norms: No Short-Shorts, No PDA

This lesson was reported from:

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Bartolomé de Las Casas and the Atrocities of the Spanish Conquistadors

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The Americas: A Free, Open Textbook in Progress

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Who made your smartphone? Globalization, raw materials, and slave labor from Potosi to Silicon Valley

Globalization is nothing new – the indigenous peoples slaving away in the Potosi mines 500 years ago could tell you all about it, while Europeans cracked the whip in order to buy Asian-made goods at affordable prices. Add in the fact that the mines were supplied with food and coca by African slaves laboring away in the low lands, and you have a template for the modern integrated global economy – exploitation, unequal rewards, and all. Continue reading “Who made your smartphone? Globalization, raw materials, and slave labor from Potosi to Silicon Valley”

Empathy in Action Bingo: A Different Kind of Social Studies

Continue reading “Empathy in Action Bingo: A Different Kind of Social Studies”

Now More Than Ever: Lesson Plans on the Basics of Islam and the Modern Middle East

Some of these girls are refugees from Syria and Iraq.  Now, through the mercy and compassion of others, they are safe, fortunate enough to attend school in Bahrain.  But there are many more just like them still hoping to escape the conflict and war that continues unabated in their homeland. 

If only the United States – self-proclaimed greatest nation on Earth  – could hold itself to the same standard as Bahrain.

The President of the United States – acting from fear, ignorance, and prejudice, in defiance of the America’s best virtues, of tolerance, inclusion, and mercy – has unilaterally decided that Islam is the enemy.

Educators, do your part! Teach the next generation of American students that Islam is not the enemy. The enemy is extremism, whether it comes from Aleppo or Washington.
 
Find time in your class for one of these lessons on the history, beliefs, culture, and humane values of Islam.

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The Basics of Islam

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Five Pillars to Hold Myself Up: What do Muslims Believe?

What are the basic teachings of Islam, and what does it mean to be a Muslim? Continue reading “Five Pillars to Hold Myself Up: What do Muslims Believe?”

Muhammad, the Prophet of Islam

Who was Muhammad, and how did the Arab world of the seventh century shape his teachings? Continue reading “Muhammad, the Prophet of Islam”