Christianity: Key Beliefs

Before we jump into today's post, it's worth mentioning that the end of the grading period is Friday.  If you haven't checked your grades in a while, now would be the time to do it.  If you're missing anything, in any class, I would get it done.

Yesterday we looked at the diversity within Christianity.  Today we're looking at some key beliefs that (almost) all Christians share.

• Monotheistic: there is a God.  There is only one God.
• God loves the world.
• People sin - which took away access from God.
• God sent his son, Jesus Christ.
• Jesus Christ took the punishment for human sin.
• People can now have access to God again.

No matter what religion I'm teaching, I always try to offer the students a chance to correct me if I have misrepresented the beliefs of that religion.  I try to do that on here as well.  If you (students or adults) think that any of the bullet points above aren't shared by the majority of Christians, let me know.

One aspect of Christianity that generally arises is of the deity of Christ: do Christians believe Jesus Christ is God?  I tell my students that the majority of students believe Christ is God, but that there are some branches of Christianity which differentiate between Christ being God's son, and Christ being God.

We don't watch too many videos, but we watched one in here today.  It wasn't riveting, but it covered the basic concepts, beliefs and practices of Christianity.

If you want the extra credit for reading and discussing the blog, look at the list above.  Would you change anything?  If so, what?  Would you add anything?  Write me a note and tell me.  Have the adult you read it with sign the note.  Turn it in tomorrow.

As always, thanks for reading.

SYCNYSBYTHDWNSRLYLGHT

Yesterday I mentioned we discussed the development of written language. I taught the kids that language was originally a mnemonic device - meant to help them remember something already knew, rather than to impart new information. Many ancient languages didn't have a strict grammar, spaces, capitalization or punctuation rules. When the students asked how they would read it, I gave them some examples. For yesterday's extra credit, they were to show you the examples and bring in the paper signed... Well, some of my students showed some great examples, others forgot how to do it, so I'll post some examples here. (I know that Y is sometimes a vowel, and often is in here... I'm keeping it in to make these a little easier...)

SYCNYSBYTHDWNSRLYLGHTWHTSPRDLYWHLDTTHTWLGHTSLSTGLMNG

or

MRYHDLTTLLMBLTTLLMBLTTLLMBMRYHDLTTLLMBTSFLCWSWHTSSNW

or

PLDGLGNCTTHFLGFTHNTDSTTSFMRCNDTTHRPBLCFRWHCHTSTNDSNNTNNDRGDNDVSBLWTHLBRTYNDJSTCFRLL

I'm sure you can come up with a lot more. The point is, you wouldn't be able to read those if you didn't already have some idea of what they said. Once you know what it says, you can pick out individual words - this is what made going from an oral history to a written history possible.

Today, we finished up the Christianity video. We started comparing Judaism and Christianity. Since Christianity came out of Judaism, there are a number of ways they overlap, and some good comparisons that can be made.

In order to get the extra credit today, discuss the following questions with your parent/whoever's in charge at your place. (If it's a parent reading the blog, discuss them with whoever's in my class...)

-What are some similarities between Judaism and Christianity?
-Why do they both trace their roots back to Abraham? Why is this a big deal?
-They both have a holy scripture, but how is it that the scripture between Judaism and Christianity are so similar?


After you've discussed this, extra credit can be awarded if you write the following on a piece of paper and have the adult in the discussion sign it: I wish we could learn about roller coasters in every class. Parents, don't forget that by signing this you're confirming that you really did talk about this stuff...

P.S. In case you didn't figure out that top stuff, it's The National Anthem, Mary Had a Little Lamb, and The Pledge of Allegiance.

Time Travel

Ahhhh... The Grandfather Paradox.  If you were to travel back in time and kill your grandfather - you wouldn't be born...  Which means you couldn't travel back in time to kill your grandfather... which means your grandfather lives.  If he lives - you'll be born... which means...  Ugggggg!

I love time travel.

It came up while we finished talking about the monotheistic (believes in 1 God) religions today.

Think about this:

• Christianity: 2.1 Billion
• Islam: 1.6 Billion
• Nonreligious: 1.1 Billion
• Hindu: 1 Billion
• Chinese traditional: 394 Million
• Buddhism: 376 Million
• Primal-Indigenous: 300 Million
• African Traditional: 100 Million
• Sikh: 23 Million
• Juche: 19 Million
• Spiritism: 15 Million
• Judaism: 14 Million
• Baha'i: 7 Million
• Jainism: 4.2 Million
• Shinto: 4 Million

This is all taken from the more and more reliable Wikipedia -  though I don't advise using the site for academic purposes.

Here's the question I asked: I only teach 5 religions during the year.  Judaism is not in the top 5.  Why do I teach about Judaism?

It's the grandfather paradox.  Judaism is taught because of its influence.  Without Judaism, Christianity and Islam would not exist as we know them today.  Furthermore, the influence extends past the religions: Israel (and the teachings of Judaism) influence the Middle East as a region today.

Some students still got caught up in the difference between being the "founder" of a religion, and "tracing roots back to..."  As in, the founder of Christianity is Jesus Christ.  However, Christianity can trace its roots back to Abraham.

I told a story about this.  It involved Papa John in most classes.

You probably read this because you want extra credit.  Well, I hope you discussed the three monotheistic religions.  Write down two sentences telling me how the discussion of the blog went - maybe tell me what you talked about.  Have the adult you read the blog with sign the paper.  Turn it in on Monday.

Have a great weekend.  I can't believe it's already here.

Mono, Poly, and Pan

Mono = One

Poly = Many

Pan = Everything or all

We started off the lesson finishing up yesterday's lesson, and introducing the terms monotheism (the belief in one god), polytheism (the belief in many gods), and pantheism (the belief that everything is god).

Normally, when I teach religions, I start with the "three major monos."  And I teach them chronologically, so we start with Judaism since it came first c. 1700 B.C.  Then move to Christianity c. 33 A.D., and then move on to Islam c. 632 A.D.

However, this year, I decided to start with Christianity, since the majority of my students have some background with this.  Even if they are not Christians themselves, many have been exposed to the ideas of Christianity by their peers or neighbors.

I gave them a little pretest to see if any of them knew anything about the religion.  I asked if they could name any of the 10 Commandments, any of the Gospels, or if they knew the "Golden Rule."

Some classes asked a LOT of questions.  ...I mean a lot.  I fielded questions about some controversial subjects: adultery, homosexuality, creation and evolution.  I was as honest as possible - probably being overly cautious not to misrepresent either side.  If I felt like the topic was controversial, I tried to point them back to you (that is, the adult that is reading this with the student from my class...)  

For instance, when a student 6th hour said, "I get where babies come from - you know, I came from my mom, and she came from her mom, and on and on and on... but where did it start?"  I had to pause.  And during my pause, when someone else shouted out, "I heard we came from monkeys!" I had to hold up my hands, and pause a little longer.

I tried to preface what I said with, "Many _____________ believe" because even inside Christianity, Judaism and Islam there is much diversity about beliefs.  And the same is true with science: while the vast majority of the scientific community may agree on the evolutionary model, there is diversity in the hows and whys: for instance, the consequences of genetic drift.

For the record, in the class where the student shouted out, "I heard we came from monkeys," I told the class that that's not actually what evolution teaches, but rather we came from a common ancestor.  Either way, we didn't really have time to get into it, so we didn't.

It's 3:30 and I still have to put in some grades, so I'm going to cut this post short.

If you want extra credit for reading and discussing this post, write out the definitions of monotheism, polytheism, and pantheism.  Then, have the adult you read and discussed the blog with sign the paper.  If you have any thoughts, questions or comments, you can put them on there as well - or leave them in the comments section of the blog.  (Sorry, I censor swears...  This includes rap lyrics...)

Also, your friends are forgetful.  I had a lot of people turn this in because you guys reminded each other to do it.  Thanks for helping one another out.  

Judaism to Christianity

I am exhausted. My seventh hour class certainly enjoys talking.

We'll be spending the next several days on monotheistic religions. Today I incorporated some language development into the lesson. I gave a brief overview of pictograms and idiograms without going into too much detail or defining those words. (I linked some wiki definitions if you're so inclined...)

We talked about how written language was not originally meant to be read, but developed from a mnemonic device (proto-writing), and that Ancient Hebrew was written in a later developmental stage... (I didn't use all those words, so parents... if you're kid says I didn't teach them that stuff, I did... but not in that way...)

I gave them an example or two of how that would work. Ancient Hebrew was written without vowels, spaces, lower case, or punctuation. Some students asked how this worked, so I wrote something on the board for them. (Most every class had something different, that way they couldn't cheat.) You could have them write it down for you right now to see if you can figure it out.

We then talked about the Hebrew name of God, YHWH - and the reason some people won't say the name. This all hit a number of standards, including language development and religions. And I thought it was very fun.

We started into Christianity by watching 15-20 minutes of the video that the department uses. Honestly, I don't think any of us (teachers) really love these videos, but they're the best ones we've found. Every year we talk about making our own. Maybe this is the year...

To get the extra credit: Ask whoever is in my class to show you what mnemonic language would look like... have them write something without spaces, vowels, lower case, or punctuation and see if you can figure it out. Then discuss some of the similarities between Judaism and Christianity.

Sign the piece of paper that they wrote on, and have them turn it in for 5 extra credit points.

Comparing Judaism and Christianity/ Timeline Practice

We started out class with some timeline practice today.  If you're checking the blog because you were absent and want the extra credit, that's what you have to do.  You can GET A COPY HERE, or I may have an extra at school.  No promises though... if I'm out and you don't have a copy, print it out at the Media Center.

Here's a key to remember when you're working with timelines: if you have to jump over "0" you add.  If you stay on the same side of the timeline, subtract.  (And yes, we know there's no year ).

We've been studying some of the similarities between Judaism and Christianity...  The major ones.

Obviously, there are a lot - since Jesus Christ was Jewish and followed the Jewish customs, and law.

I'll try to post the big stuff tomorrow after students turn in their Venn diagrams.  (That reminds me, if students didn't finish their Venn diagrams - or if they were absent - they've got homework.  ...Most people should be done.)

If you just showed up for the extra credit, here's what you have to do.  Read and discuss the blog with an adult.  Tell the adult 3 similarities between Judaism and Christianity.  Write down one.  Have the adult you read and discussed with sign the paper.

Turn it in tomorrow.

Until then, have a great day.

Religious Diversity Within the Monotheistic Religions:Part I

First of all, we managed to stave off any snow days and keep our 4-day weekend. ENJOY IT!

We've been studying 3 monotheistic religions: Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.  Quick - students, if you're reading this with an adult, turn to that adult and tell them what monotheistic means.

TADA!  Look!  They've learned something!  (Seriously, if they didn't get that right...  I just...  Look it up on google...)

Today students finished copying down a cladogram on the 3 monotheistic religions.  Here's what they copied.

I also made a version using Prezi, and I've got to say: it's pretty good.  Check it out if you have time.  (It's easier and makes more sense if you view it on a desktop.  Just click the first arrow once you're in.)

A couple of the main things I wanted students to get out of this presentation were that the 3 monotheistic religions trace their roots back to Abraham, but also that there's great diversity within Christianity - and even great diversity within the denominations of Christianity.

I understand that one of the failings of this presentation is that it doesn't show the diverse thought within the other religions.  And it should.  For instance, check out this picture on the denominations within the Sunni and Shia branches of Islam:

(The image was created by Angelpeream.)

Well, it's a work in progress.  I'm hoping to continue improving it every year I teach.

While I have a lot more I want to say on the topic, I'll say that's all for now.

If students want extra credit, they may read and discuss this blog with an adult.  Once they've finished, the student should write down 3 thoughts about the Prezi.  Then, have the adult sign the paper.

Turn it in Tuesday.

Enjoy the 4-day weekend.

Diversity Within Christianity

We've moved from discussing economics into discussing religions.

Before break, I introduced the concepts of monotheism, polytheism, atheism, etc...  We started learning about Judaism.

Today, we've moved into Christianity, and we're looking at the diversity within the Christian faith.

I've created a Kahoot to try to show this to the students.  If you're interested in seeing it, CLICK HERE.

You'll have to be at a computer, and have a smart phone, or tablet ready as well.  (The students used laptops in the classroom.)

If you want extra credit today, write down 3 of the main beliefs of Christianity.  (If you were absent, you may google them.)

Have the adult you discussed this with sign your paper.  Turn it in tomorrow in the extra credit tray.

Don't forget that Friday is the last day of the grading period.

Books Are In

The Hunger Games were dropped off this afternoon.  I'm so excited!  We've been reading a little bit here, a little bit there, but we haven't had enough for every kid.  Needless to say, sharing is not the forte of every student...  I think tomorrow will be a Hunger Games day.  I want to be done by break so the other teachers can get to it before the movie comes out.

Class today went well.  We're still comparing Judaism and Christianity.  Next week we'll start on Islam.

One thing that came up in class today was the benefits of television.  We talked about strength in unity, and the importance of having a homogeneous culture.  This came up both in studying Judaism/Christianity, as well as today's reading in The Hunger Games.

It's late, and I have to put in a bunch of grades (video viewing guide)... so I'll save you from reading and discussing a ton.

Question of the day: Why did I say TV is a good thing?  We talked about Sponge Bob in most classes.  Do you remember?

One more question:  In studying religion, I asked the question: "Have you ever played a game with the kid, only to have the kid change the rules on you in the middle?  (I think I used the example of a kid making a "new base" in the middle of a game of tag...)  What did that question have to do with the religions we're studying?

In order to get the extra credit, discuss those two questions and bring in a sheet of paper signed by the adult you discussed them with.  Include the phrase: Bakers bake bread for Prim.  Adults, by signing the paper, you're saying you really did discuss this with your kid.  : )

I've been enjoying getting the extra credit slips of paper.

Monotheism: Abraham's Journey; Judaism, Christianity, and Islam

Yesterday we started class by reading a passage from Genesis - from the Christian and Jewish Holy books.  According to Jews and Christians, God and Abraham made a covenant, or agreement/promise.

You can read what we read HERE.  They answered a few questions from the reading.

After they were done, we had a little refresher on the ancient civilizations of Mesopotamia and Egypt.  Abraham left Mesopotamia, and by the end of the passage we read yesterday, ended up in Egypt.

We reviewed the polytheism of these ancient civilizations, and then I read a section from the Qur'an.  In book 6, God shows the errors of polytheism.  Abraham tries to explain this to the people of Mesopotamia, but they will not listen.  (In fact, later in the Qur'an Abraham's father threatens to stone him if he doesn't accept the Mesopotamian gods.)

You can read the section of the Qur'an HERE.  (We actually read 72-81.)

The point of yesterday's lesson was that all three major monotheistic religions trace their roots back to Abraham.  An interesting thing to consider: the lives of more than 3 billion people today are directly influenced by that man.  (2 billion Christians, and 1 billion Muslims.)  That doesn't even take into account the number of non-religious people whose lives are influenced by him because of the countries in which they live.  Governments are set up that use the Qur'an or Bible or Torah to help inform how their countries are run.

Side note: In a couple classes, we discussed social media: many of my students have Facebook or Instagram.  We all agreed that it's fun when people "like" the stuff we post.  I happen to love being able to experience winter.  Driving in to work yesterday, the trees looked AMAZING, so I snapped a picture.

Social media connects us to other people.  It allows us to influence others.  It's crazy to think about how much influence Abraham has had on the world.  How many people would follow him on Facebook or Twitter...

We finished out yesterday by beginning a map of Abraham's journey.  Instead of giving it as an assignment, we're completing it as a class.

We haven't finished it yet.  I plan on wrapping it up tomorrow.  I'll post a picture when it's finished.

Today we've moved on from Judaism and Christianity to Islam.  We watched the Islam video - the last video we'll watch for quite some time.

If you want extra credit today, you need to write two names on a piece of scrap paper, then have the adult you read it with sign the paper.  All three major monotheistic religions trace their roots back to one man, who is it?  Who is the founder of Islam?  Those are the names you need.  ...Well... you should also make sure your name is on it...

...Man... I didn't even get to tell how I time-traveled with a couple classes...  Was it your class?

Thoughts on Hinduism

I know I said I would link to an old post today... but I find it's also nice for me to type out what's going on.

Maybe I already talked about them on here.  If you find these same stories in a different post, well bully for you!

Some thoughts:

Good gods, bad gods:

Growing up, I always thought of Hinduism as having "good gods" and "bad gods."  For instance, Brahma - the creator, and Vishnu - the preserver were "good gods," and Shiva - the destroyer was a "bad god."  I'm not sure whether this idea came from what I was taught of Hinduism, or from applying my Judeo-Christian culture/ world-view into the context of Hinduism.

For instance, in Christianity, God the Father is the Creator.  And He is good.  Satan destroys, and he is bad.  Technically, I'd argue he's the worst.  Literally... the worst.  Jesus says in Matthew, "Don't fear anyone who can destroy your body, rather fear the one who can destroy your soul." 

So, maybe I thought Satan destroys... destruction is bad... Shiva destroys... Shiva is bad.

But that's not the approach Hinduism takes.

I told the kids it's more like this.

Think of a gallon of milk.

The milk is created.  And that's good.  Your parents go to the store, and buy it.  They put the gallon in the fridge, where' it is preserved.  And this is also good.

Now, I have a 2 year old daughter.  Sometimes we give her a sippy cup of milk.  And sometimes she loses it.  There have been times we found the sippy cup days later.  Have you ever smelled spoiled milk?

We destroyed whatever was left in that sippy cup.  Poured it down the drain and washed the cup before the stench filled the house.

And that was a good thing.  The destruction was good.

Shiva destroys when it is time for something to be destroyed.  And it's a good thing.  And Shiva - the destroyer is also the re-creator.

To all my Hindu readers out there, I know that this is a vast over-simplification.  And I realize that - just like Christianity - there are many different beliefs in Hinduism.  If anybody ever wants to leave comment or thoughts, or clear anything up.  Please feel free.

In the mean-time, if you're in my class and want extra credit for reading and discussing my blog, discuss the milk analogy with the adult you read the blog with.  Write 2 or 3 sentences telling me whether you guys agree with the analogy.  Then, have the adult sign the paper.

Turn it in on Monday.  Have a great weekend.

Moksha: Equating versus Relating

I had multiple students point out that I haven't posted anything in 10 days.

I make no apologies.  Teaching takes a lot of time.  :)


We're moving from Gandhi and the Indian independence movement into the study of Hinduism.  (This seems like a natural progression since Gandhi was Hindu.)

One of the (minor) struggles I've had in teaching is getting students to relate, but not equate.  And sometimes, I don't even want them to relate two things - but they do.

Many of my students are Christians.  Many of those who aren't Christian are at least familiar with Christianity because they live in Northern Indiana.

So, when they hear about avatars: Hindu gods that come to earth in the form of humans - many draw comparisons to the Christian belief in the incarnation of Jesus Christ.  But Christians wouldn't say Christ was an avatar - they would say he is God (or the Son of God.)  Maybe students could relate the two, but definitely don't equate the two.

In Hinduism, Shiva is the destroyer.  In Christianity, Satan is the destroyer.  But Shiva is not Satan.  In Hinduism, Shiva is not even evil.  Here, I'd like students to neither relate, nor equate.

Christians believe in heaven.  Hindus believe in Moksha.  Moksha is not heaven.  Again, noting the similarities is fine.  Equating them is not.

When I hear students equate, it usually sounds something like this, "Oh... so Moksha is the Hindu heaven?"  Or "Oh... so Shiva is the Hindu version of Satan."

No.

Moksha is the Hindu afterlife, but it's not the "Hindu heaven."

Maybe, if I have time tomorrow I'll give you a better description of Moksha.

If you want extra credit for reading and discussing the blog, write a couple sentences telling the difference between relating and equating.

Have the adult you read the blog with sign the paper.

Turn it in tomorrow.

Happy Birthday Poppy!

Look, I know you're not here to hear about my kids, but it's my daughter Penelope's birthday, so I thought I'd post this picture that my wife sent to me this morning:

*Sigh*  They grow up so fast.  She's two today.

In class we're finishing up the three monotheistic religions: Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.  We looked at the 5 pillars of faith again, and then did an interactive Venn Diagram.

There will be a quiz coming up pretty soon.

But tomorrow we're moving on to Hinduism.  I haven't decided yet if I'm going to break the religions apart - you know - give a quiz on the three monotheistic religions, and then a separate quiz on Hinduism and Buddhism.  I'm leaning on giving one test covering all the religions we've studied.

Last thought: one of the vocabulary words that's going to be on the Wellness vocabulary test on Friday is monogamous.  This is where learning those prefixes and suffixes comes in handy.

If you're in my class and want extra credit for reading and discussing the blog, make sure you read it and discuss it with an adult.  Tell them the 5 Pillars of Faith from memory, if you can.  Tell them about the Venn Diagram we did together as a class.  Explain how it worked.

Then, write the quote: "Happy birthday, Poppy."  on a piece of paper, and have them sign it.

2 Hour Delays Won't Get My Praise...

...although, it's nice to have a little extra time to prepare in the morning.

We accomplish a lot less when we have less time.  (That's my brilliant contribution to the day's dialogue.)

We finished up filling out the chart on Judaism and Christianity.  We'll discuss Islam over the next couple days, and we'll probably have a little quiz over the topics next week.

We also read an article on Abraham, and saw why the three major monotheistic religions traced their roots back to him.

Two hour delays shorten everything up.  Yesterday's post... today's post...

I'm off to make new seating charts.

If you want extra credit, read and discuss the blog with an adult.  (I know, there's not much here today...)  Write the date on a scrap piece of paper.  Put your name on it, and have the adult you discussed the blog with it sign it.

Turn it in tomorrow.

Progress Reports and an Influx of People Wanting Extra Credit

So, progress reports come out tomorrow.  And we just took a little quiz that a lot of people got Ds on.  SOOOoooo... I'm anticipating an influx of students who are looking forward to some extra credit.

You've come to the right place.

We've finished studying religions.  You should now know the difference between monotheistic and polytheistic religions.  What theocracy is, and when it comes into play.  You should know some differences between the monotheistic religions - what Jews and Christians believe about the Messiah, for instance.  What are the Five Pillars of Faith for Islam?  What does "poly-morphic monotheism" mean?  Which religion is it specifying?  Which religions believe in karma and reincarnation?  How is the idea of karma in Hinduism different from the idea of mercy in Christianity?

We'll come back to the religions in review, but we're done for all intents and purposes.

For now, we're doing some moderate review - both for the ISTEP, and for our final, which is coming up in about 3 weeks.

It's been a while since we've discussed globalization, standard of living, or human capital.  Hopefully you still remember the differences between limited and unlimited governments.  More recently we've talked about colonization and imperialism.  How many of you remember the colonization simulation?

Does anyone remember why you learned TKWA?  Not just what each letter stands for, but why you learned it?

If you want extra credit for reading and discussing the blog with an adult, you need to read and discuss it with an adult.  To get the points, write the answer to at least 3 questions asked above.  They can be any three questions.  Third paragraph.  Fifth.  Have the adult you read it with sign your paper.  Turn it in tomorrow in the extra credit tray.

Odd Man Out

What is an American?

We're spending a decent amount of time studying cultures in my class right now.  Our social studies department gives 8-10 examples of "ingredients" of culture.  For instance, here are the ones I use:

• Food
• Dress
• Language
• Religion
• Government
• The Arts
• Customs
• Ethnicity
• Values
• Standard of Living

There are more, of course.  (Sports, history, architecture, etc...)  And perhaps some don't belong - is government an ingredient/part of culture or is it something that influences/creates culture: like climate or weather?

Either way, it is perhaps important to note "odd man out."  I feel like this is especially true in America.

When I went to China or when I lived in Haiti, it was evident early on that I was a minority ethnically.  I remember times in Haiti where people would want to touch my hair because they'd never seen hair like mine before.  (My brother got this even more than me because his hair wasn't just blond when he was a kid, it was white.  Our Haitian friends called him, "Blanc Blanc.")  In China people snuck pictures of us, and there were multiple occasions where people asked to take pictures with us, or especially with our daughter because they'd never seen a white person in the flesh before.

We weren't from those cultures, and it was evident.  Our language, our mannerisms, our food preferences...  Most everything screamed, "FOREIGNER!" even though we were trying to embrace the culture we were in.

That said, we can be a part of a culture, and still be the "odd man out."  For instance, although the Han Chinese make up 92% of the Chinese population, there are other ethnic groups that are also Chinese.  And those other ethnic groups are Chinese as well.

I'm pausing to note that there is a difference between culture and sub-culture.  And I'm also acknowledging that within nations there are often multiple cultures.  But lets not get distracted.

There are times you can be part of a culture - completely part of a culture - and still not embrace certain ingredients of that culture.

I believe this to be especially true in America.  In fact, I believe one of America's cultural traits to be diversity.  Even though the majority religion in America is Christianity, there are non-Christians who are part of America's culture.  Even though American cultural food includes McDonalds, there are some who enjoy Pad Thai.  America's ethnicity has always been diverse - more so now that ever.

I have a confession to make: I don't like baseball.  I struggle to watch games when I'm with friends who understand the intricacies of the game.  And I know that baseball is American culture.  It's America's Pastime.   

But I'm still American.  And I still embrace American culture.  But when it comes to baseball, I'm the "odd man out."

Students can earn extra credit by reading and discussing the blog with an adult.  In order to prove that they've read and discussed the blog, they need to write down one example (other than baseball) of how someone can be an American, but be the "odd man out" with certain cultural ingredients.

Similarities Between Judaism, Christianity, and Islam Venn Diagram

If you've been keeping up with what we're doing in class, you know that we have a quiz on Tuesday.  It will include some multiple choice questions, as well as an essay section.

If you're interested in knowing the essay questions ahead of time, here they are:

1.  Compare the 3 major monotheistic religions we have studied.  Describe how they are similar, and how they differ.  Explain their main beliefs and practices.

2.  Who was Abraham?  Where was he from and why is he important to each of the three monotheistic religions?  What do each of the three monotheistic religions believe about him?

In class today, we took 3 mini-quizzes.  Two dealt with the pictures of the Five Pillars of Faith for Islam that the students had drawn yesterday.  I gave them a practice quiz first using pictures students had drawn last year.  Then they traded their pictures and gave each other a "pictionary quiz."

Then, we looked at some of the different beliefs of the 3 monotheistic religions we've been studying and put them on a Venn Diagram.  After I showed we went through the list, and they placed each on their own Venn Diagram, the students went and placed them on the board.

If you want some added practice, you could do it again.  Here's the Venn Diagram followed by the list:

1.Bible
2.Trace their roots back to Abraham
3.Name of God = YHWH
4.Monotheistic
5.Does not eat pork
6.Founder is Jesus Christ
7.Founder is Abraham
8.Founder is Mohammed
9.5 Pillars of Faith
10.10 Commandments
11. Believe in a Messiah
12. Believe Jesus is the Messiah
13. Believe the Messiah has not arrived yet.
14. Uses the Old Testament/Torah
15. Uses the Torah only
16. Uses Old Testament AND New Testament
17. Uses the Qu'ran
18. Believes Jesus is God
19. Believes Jesus is a prophet
20. Believes Jesus was just a man
21. Oldest (c. 1700 BC)
22. Middle (c. 33 AD)
23 Newest (c. 600 AD)
24. Jerusalem is a holy city
25. Some branches/denominations wear head-coverings
26. Originated in the Middle East
27. Two greatest commandments are love God and love people

And now for the answers.

...

Don't cheat...

...

If you want extra credit today, you should have read and discussed the blog with an adult.  It'd probably be a good idea to think about which essay you're going to write.  You could even write a rough draft.  (No pressure though, it's the weekend.  ...Lets keep work at work...)  To prove that you were here, write a paragraph from your discussion, and have the adult you read the blog with sign it somewhere.


If you want to look at some other stuff to study, check it out:

...You could always quiz yourself.  Though, make sure you'relaxing a little bit too.  It is the weekend, after all.

A Couple Games

To get the extra credit today, play the Middle East Geography Games found HERE.

We spent a little time today discussing similarities between the three monotheistic religions - Islam, Christianity, and Judaism.  One of the similarities we mentioned is that they all originated in the Middle East.

Some of the students were unsure of what/where the Middle East is, so I talked about the term a little bit - and how it's Eurocentric - and therefore, one could argue - ethnocentric.  (Basically, the term comes from the European point of view.)

Here's a nice picture:

To get the extra credit today, students have to play the game (play the "country" column - in the middle) 5 times, and show an adult that they've played it 5 times. Once they're done, have the adult sign a piece of scrap paper, along with the scores.

God

Religion is tricky when it comes to the classroom... especially when it comes to social studies. Indiana Standard 7.1.4 states: Describe the historical origins, central beliefs, and spread of major religions. (Individuals, Society and Culture) Example: Hinduism, Buddhism, Confucianism, Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.

I'd like to point out that is one standard. ...For 7th grade. One standard out of 52 such standards... Isn't that like, 6 undergrad credits right there?

Most years I teach the facts, dates, and names - but I've found there's no real connection with the students. So today, I asked a personal question: "Do you believe there is a God? If so, how does He (or She) want you to live your life? If not, how do you determine how to live your life? Please answer using at least 5 complete sentences."

We talked (at length in some classes) about the rights and privileges of living in the United States. We talked about religious freedom and religious persecution. We talked about respecting the rights of others while maintaining the integrity of our own beliefs. Overall, I thought it went really well, especially given the fact that we also reviewed the test and read a little bit of The Hunger Games.

I would also like to add that I didn't answer questions about my personal beliefs inside the classroom. While it's no big secret, I want the classroom to be as free as possible.

If you're reading this for extra credit, discuss the following questions:

How important is religious freedom in the United States?
Is it important to learn about other world religions?
How does religion impact our lives here in Indiana?

In order to get the extra credit, students have to bring in a piece of scrap paper signed by the adult they discussed this with. Grandparents/Parents/Step-Parent/Etc... by signing the paper, you're saying that you did read the blog and discuss it with the student that's bringing it to me.

Abraham, Moses, King

We are continuing on with our study of the monotheistic religions.  While we finished up Judaism yesterday, we'll be bouncing around a little bit throughout the whole unit.

If you recall, I've taught that all the monotheistic religions trace their roots back to Abraham.  He's also the founder of Judaism.

Yesterday we watched a clip of Martin Luther King Jr.'s last speech.  He gave it the day before he was killed.  Many people see the speech as prophetic, as he talks about wanting to live a long life - but not worrying about what will happen; not fearing any man.

Here's the clip:

The clip ties in with a couple things we've talked about.  First, he mentions totalitarian (i.e. unlimited) governments.  I used this to remind the students that they know what totalitarian governments are.

The second is the reference to the Promised Land.  We just finished reading Genesis 12:1-10, where God promises land to Abraham.  King is drawing a comparison to an America that was promised, but had not yet been delivered.  And he seemed to realize that he would not live to see those promises fulfilled, but he believed they would be.

Today we started discussing Christianity - and the different beliefs within the faith.  Tomorrow, we'll continue and start to introduce Islam in earnest.

If you want extra credit for reading and discussing the blog with an adult, you should watch the MLK clip with them, and discuss the clip as well.  Write down at least 3 sentences based on your discussion.  Turn in the paper tomorrow.

The February extra credit name of the day is Sojourner Truth.