Wide Angle. Global Classroom. Lesson Plans

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Prep for Teachers

Prior to teaching, download the Microsoft Word document titled Web Resources which contains the resources from the RESOURCES section for the students to use in their research (or see our printable page). Prior to the lesson, a fee needs to be paid for use of THE NEW YORK TIMES archives article, "Dreams of Land Collide as Israeli Settlers Grow in Numbers": (http://www.nytimes.com/2002/07/03/international/middleeast/03SETT.html). Make sure that your computer and the computers the students will be using have the necessary media players to play any video clips, which are Shockwave, Real Video, and Quicktime. CUE any videotapes to the segment(s) you plan on using to support your lesson.

If students will not have computer and Internet access, prepare Resource Packets for students with printouts of materials from the sites listed in the RESOURCES section.

When using media, provide students with a FOCUS FOR MEDIA INTERACTION, a specific task to complete and/or information to identify during or after viewing of video segments, Web sites, or other multimedia elements.

Introductory Activity

What is the Israeli-Palestinian conflict about?

Step 1
Write the term "Israeli-Palestinian Conflict" inside a web on the board.

Ask students to share all the words, ideas, events, or feelings they associate with the term. Record students' contributions on the web.

Ask for a volunteer to briefly describe the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Ask what the two sides are struggling over. Is this a new struggle?

Step 2
Point to Israel on a map of the world, indicating where Gaza and the West Bank are. Explain that these are the Palestinian territories currently occupied by the Israeli army.

Distribute color copies of the following map of and statistics about Israel and the disputed Palestinian territories:
http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/middle_east/conflict/map.html

Have students locate Jerusalem. Ask why there is particularly intense conflict over this city.
Have students identify the West Bank and Gaza and read the population statistics on these areas. Ask how many Israeli settlers live in the West Bank.

Step 3
Give a little background on the conflict (depending on whether the class has been introduced to the history of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict prior to this lesson):

Explain that the root cause of the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict is that both sides lay claim to the same land, each arguing that the land rightfully belongs to them for historical and religious reasons.

In 1947, after WWII, the United Nations passed a resolution calling for the partition of Palestine: it was to be divided into a Jewish State and an Arab State, and Jerusalem was to be internationalized. None of the Arab nations, however, recognized this resolution or Israel's declaration of independence in 1948. During that year, six Arab nations declared war on Israel. This war and two others in 1967 and 1973 redefined the boundaries of Israel and the Palestinian Territories again and again, with Israel gaining more territory each time.

There have been two Palestinian uprisings, or intifadas (translated as the "shaking off" of Israeli rule), one beginning in 1987 and the other in 2000. Each intifada has led to more aggression on the part of the Israeli army, followed by more violence on the part of Palestinians, and so forth. This cycle of violence has been particularly brutal in the past few years. The Israeli occupation of Gaza and the West Bank and the existence of Israeli settlements in these territories has led to tremendous anger and frustration among Palestinians. Likewise, the constant threat of suicide bombers to civilian Israelis creates an atmosphere of fear, anger, and distrust in Israel. There has been great loss on both sides: since September 28, 2000, more than 1,400 Palestinians and nearly 450 Israelis have been killed

Learning Activity: Creating Fact Sheets

Step 1
Explain that students are going to work in small groups to create their own Fact Sheets on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict using a number of resources and their own prior knowledge of history and current events. The Fact Sheets should emphasize the most important events, political figures, and historical information. They can also include images such as maps, photographs, graphs, etc. Be creative!

Step 2
Organize the class into small groups and hand out the Web Resources document and draw students' attention to the section on timelines and background information.

If you do not have computers and Internet connections in the classroom, indicate the appropriate section of the Resource Packet for the timelines and other background resources.

Allow ample time for group work.

Step 3
After groups have completed their Fact Sheets, collect their work.

Homework: Hand out index cards and ask students to write two questions they have about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict so far. Students should put their names on the index cards because their questions will be answered and returned to them.

Learning Activity: Using Fact Sheets to Answer Classmates' Questions

Step 1
Collect the index cards and redistribute them so that each student gets another student's questions.

Ask students to get together with their groups from the previous day and redistribute the Fact Sheets from the first learning activity -- each group receives another group's Fact Sheet.

Step 2
Explain that each group needs to use the Fact Sheet they have just received, along with their own knowledge, to answer the questions on the index cards. If there are questions that the group cannot answer, ask a representative from that group to come and write these lingering questions on a piece of chart paper posted at the front of the room.

Allow time for students to complete this task.

Step 3
Collect the index cards. (The teacher may choose to review the answers the groups provided to make sure there are not any inaccuracies. The index cards should be returned to their owners the following class period).

Step 4
Refer to the lingering questions, if any, on chart paper at the front of the room. As a class, work together to answer them. If any require additional research, ask for volunteers to pursue the answers for homework as extra credit.

Learning Activity: What types of violent and non-violent responses are there to the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict?

Step 1
Create a web on the board or on chart paper with the term "conflict" in the middle. Ask the class to brainstorm all the ways in which people can respond to conflict in general, and point out that these may include violent and non-violent responses, strategies, and types of resistance. (For example, students may mention: armed resistance, sit-ins, letter writing, terrorism, education, diplomacy, etc.)

Record students' responses around the "spokes" of the web.

Step 2
Ask students if they can think of examples in U.S. history when people used non-violent strategies and actions to respond to conflict. (E.g. boycotts and sit-ins during the Civil Rights era).

Ask for examples in U.S. history when people used violent strategies and actions to respond to conflict. (E.g. the Civil War, slave uprisings).

Step 3
Explain that, in the next few activities, students will be discussing a few of the violent and non-violent ways in which Palestinians and Israelis respond to the ongoing conflict, and to the pain it has caused both sides. Emphasize that the examples students will be exploring do not necessarily represent the way the majority of Palestinians or Israelis think, nor do they represent all the points of view among Israelis and Palestinians. These are just examples or case studies of responses to the conflict.

Explain that students will be working in small groups to explore and understand one example or case study in preparation for a culminating activity called a Fishbowl. In this exercise, four students (one from each small group from the previous activity) will role play four different people with different perspectives on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and on what means should be employed to address that conflict. The rest of the class will look on and listen to these four students debate and discuss the issues and their perspectives. Then, after 8-10 minutes, four new students (one from each group) will take the place of the four already in the Fishbowl and the discussion will resume -- with the new students adding new points and arguments to the discussion. If time permits, after another 8-10 minutes, four new students will enter the Fishbowl, etc.

Step 4
Have the class form four groups and assign them the following perspectives:

Palestinian militant
Israeli settler
Palestinian peace activist
Israeli refusenik soldier

Learning Activity: Develop talking points in preparation for the Fishbowl

Step 1
Have students refer to their group's section of the Web Resources document. (Or refer each group to the appropriate section of their Resource Packets if you are using print resources and do not have Internet access in the classroom and enough computers for each small group).

Also give each group a few sheets of chart paper and markers.

Step 2
Explain that groups are going to use the resources provided to explore the particular point of view assigned to them. The task is for each group to develop "talking points" they will use in the Fishbowl activity. Explain that talking points are a set of important points or arguments from a certain perspective.

Step 3
Group work. (May take up to two class periods).

Step 4
Collect the talking points and review them overnight, making sure students' language and arguments are appropriate and respectful.

Culminating Activity: Fishbowl

Step 1
Hand the talking points back to the small groups, and give them a few minutes to review them and to read any comments or corrections written by the teacher.

Step 2
If possible, have students form a circle with four chairs in the center. If this is not possible, seat the first four students at the front of the room.

Step 3
Remind students how the Fishbowl activity works:
In this exercise, four students (one from each small group from the previous activity) will role play four different people with different perspectives on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and on what means should be employed to address that conflict. The rest of the class will look on and listen to these four students debate and discuss the issues and their perspectives. Then, after 8-10 minutes, four new students (one from each group) will take the place of the four already in the Fishbowl and the discussion will resume -- with the new students adding new points and arguments to the discussion. If time permits, after another 8-10 minutes, four new students will enter the Fishbowl, etc.

Remind students that their comments and arguments need to remain respectful at all times, even when arguing or disagreeing with another point of view.

Step 4
Fishbowl activity.

Closing/ Reflection: Pass an object (a ball, stuffed animal, flower, etc.) in a circle and ask students to share how the perspectives explored in the Fishbowl made them feel. Students have the option to pass if they do not feel like sharing.

If time permits, pass the object in the circle again and ask students to share one hope they have for the future of the Middle East or for the world in general.

Cross Curricular Extensions

"Lesson: Violence As a Means of Resistance," WIDE ANGLE, PBS.
http://www.pbs.org/wnet/wideangle/classroom/lp4.html
Use this lesson plan to explore the theme of power & politics. Students examine the use of violence in struggles against perceived oppression, as in the conflict between Chechnya and Russia.

"Lesson: What are the causes and consequences of Muslim-Hindu conflicts in India?" Religion and Ethics Newsweekly, PBS.
http://www.pbs.org/wnet/religionandethics/teachers/lp_conflict.html
Using the case study of the historical conflict between Muslims and Hindus in India -- particularly in the province of Gujarat, this lesson explores whether religious beliefs can ever legitimize violence; whether religious conflict is an inevitable human experience; and possible resolutions to situations of religious conflict.

NewsHour Extra Lesson Plan: Voices of Hope and Seeds of Peace
http://www.pbs.org/newshour/extra/teachers/lessonplans/world/peace_5-21.html
Seeds of Peace is a camp where Arab and Israeli youths come together to learn about the "other" and to learn how to reconcile their differences. This lesson will engage students in reading reflective essays from students who have participated in the Seeds of Peace experience.

"Lesson: The Power of Nonviolent Action: South Africa and Poland," Educators for Social Responsibility Metropolitan Area
http://www.teachablemoment.org/high/nonviolence.html
A set of readings and activities that examine the question of nonviolence using case studies of late 20th century events in South Africa and Poland.

The Poetry of Peace, MidEast Web
http://www.mideastweb.org/poetry.htm
Poems in Arabic, Hebrew, and English written by young people about reconciliation and peace. Have students read selections of poetry from this site and create and share their own poems, dramatic performances, or artwork for peace. This activity could provide an opportunity for students to express their creativity through poetry, art, spoken word, etc.