Here I Am Again.........

It has been awhile. School work and my new job seem to have me burning the candle at both ends. I am struggling with how I want to make my new connections. I have always been intrigued by how strong of a role faith (belief) has in the lives of others. Particularly, those who have been oppressed. One of the religions that I researched in my last entries was Judiasm. I am still eagerly awaiting answers from my expert in that area: our local rabbi. She was last preparing for High Holy Week and was unable to answer my survey, but promised to do so in a couple of weeks. I think I will e-mail her again, because I am feeling a prompting to begin to look further into the Jewish religion and into their years of oppression focusing particularly on the Holocaust. I began researching this week about Children of the Holocaust for a unit that I am preparing for my 6th graders. I will be working with the technology teacher and the literature teacher as students read Number the Stars. I think this novel shades an important light on some of the unsung heroes of the Holocaust. As I look through resources, I am intrigued by the plethora that abounds about the Holocaust. But to be honest, introducing the information at this age is something I often struggle with.
For those of you who are educators or parents a couple of questions: 1. What age is too young to present this information even at a limited level? 2. How much visual information on the Holocaust should students view prior to middle school? Hope to hear from you...Shelly

Reflecting and Wishing

In reality, my main wish is that I had submitted the surveys to my experts sooner. As the daughter of a religious leader, I realize how very busy, these servants get and, therefore, why I only received one survey back. When doing this project with my students, I will definitely have them interview an expert as a part of their information seeking. The answers from a person that we can see versus a book or an online article make everything feel much more personal. I have learned a TREMENDOUS amount in such as short time not just about world religions, but about technology, digital photography, and mainly, myself. There have been many, many frustrating moments yet the triumph of coming close to the end of this project quite amazes me. I recently attended a workshop where the speaker spent the entire time trying to help teachers understand the way kids feel. His statement reverberated in my head throughout this entire project; the statement "Students do not think the way that you do, but they feel the way that you do." In other words, those feelings of inadequancy, frustration, intrigue, and triumph, are things that they will more than likely feel as they move throughout the project. My goal will be to walk along side them with understanding and empathy for having been there myself.

I enjoyed the use of gimp, picasa, inspiration, and learning to use and upload a screen shot in this project. All this is so new and exciting to me when I moved beyond the frustration level. My professional links and resources are cited below.

I hope you learn something; more than anything else, I hope you walk away knowing that believing in a God bigger than we are makes life much more joyful. Shelly

Professional Sources:

www.religioustolerance.org
www.workersforjesus.com
www.doe.state.in.us
www.picasaweb.google.com
www.temple.abi.org
www.onlinecfc.com
www.brescia.edu
www.thirteened.online
Armstrong, T. (1994). Multiple Intelligences in the Classroom. Alexandria, VA: ASCD.
Callison, D. (2006). The Blue Book.
Gardner, H. (1993). Frames of Mind.
Marchant, K. (2003). Great Religious Leaders.
Martin, M. (1985). The Kingdom of the Cults.
Stripling, B. (2003). Curriculum Connections.

Taking the Leap at Waving

It has been an interesting day. I spent some time driving around the city photographing houses of worship for my MI project starter. I am intrigued by the multitudes of religions represented in such a small area. I was able to locate houses of worship for Judaism, Catholicism, Christianity, and Islam. The only major world religion not represented in my small city is Hinduism. I, however, found an impressive visual online. You can view my project starter at www.picasaweb.google.com/smain6 be sure to click on World Religions as my albums are growing. This project starter is just that the first steps in my MI Unit on World Religions. It encompasses the first 3 steps of the Big 6--task definition, information seeking strategies including locating sources and information use. The synthesis and evaluation steps will allow students to choose their own projects to continue research and to present their knowledge. The project choices will encompass all of the multiple intelligences.

Connecting the Standards

As I continue to deliberate on the wrapping phase, I do a double check of the Indiana social studies/history academic standards. I couldn't remember the exact wording; although since I taught social studies for years, I knew there were standards in the middle school level dealing with world religions. Social studies standard 6.1.2, 7.1.4, and high school standard GHW.2 all connect to my final MI project that I plan to use in the classroom:

• 6.1.2-Describe and compare the beliefs, the spread and the influence of religions throughout Europe and Mesoamerica.
• 7.1.4-Describe the historical origins, central beliefs, and the spread of major religions.
• GHW2-Examine the impact and spread of major world religions.

These standards all connect to the origins which will include religion leaders, basic tenants, and historical background of the major religions that I have researched. My plan is to do the MI unit in connection with the middle school social studies teacher as a prelude to a debate that will be conducted on major world religions.

I plan to incorporate the Big6 model with the MI project as a step by step guide to students as they wonder through the research cycle. The Big 6 as described in The Blue Book (Baker, p.585) shows the steps as Task Definition, Information Seeking Strategies, Information Use, Sythesis, and Evaluation. These steps along with the Four-Step Model in the MI Unit will go a long way in helping students inquire and learn about world religions and the impact of faith.

Wrapping It Up for My Students

Taking this journey of inquiry and discovery for me has been insightful and frightening. The topic, itself, is one we tend to walk around on tippy toe. As I've said before, I am not sure why; I just know we do. I also know that many, many students have posed questions to me about why people believe and what they believe so there is room for their inquiry. Social studies standards in grades 6-8 dealing with world culture and belief systems could easily be fulfilled using a MI unit on World Religions. I feel that the Multiple Intelligence model developed by Dr. Howard Gardner would provide a safe, effective unit for inquiry of this delicate subject.

When an educator begins to look for ways to incorporate the multiple intelligence theory into his or her lesson plans, it can be overwhelming, but it is always rewarding. The Four-Step Model developed for use with Dr. Howard Gardner's MI theory (Frames of Mind) can be easily adapted and used and will be a technique that I use when I present the World Religion unit to my 7 and 8th grade students. The four step model includes : the main lesson, centers (based on the different intelligences), sharing and reviewing, and individual projects implementing the multiple intelligences. The sharing and reviewing step will be pivotal; it involves journaling, oral presentation of learned materials, and large group discussions. The main lesson is a "15-20 minute multimodal overview of the topic to be studied that day. Each main lesson consists of a lecture presented by the teacher or student, including visuals, possibly kinesthetic activities, and provocative questions, many of which are left to explore" (Campbell). My plan is to use visual images that are commonly connected to faith and religion to spawn intrigue and spur inquiry.

Comparing and Contrasting-Taking Inquiry a Step Further

Looking back at my initial questions: 1. How does faith shape a person 2. What does a person's religion and philosophy have to do with actions and lifestyle 3. Who are the religious leaders in each faith and what contributions did they make 4. What are the main beliefs of the major faiths 5. What role does prayer play in the major faiths 6. What role does faith play in the major religions and how is it defined in each; I have determined that in reality the ones that intrigue me most are questions 3-6. In this section, I will contrast the beliefs of Buddhism and Islam on the same questions that I addressed via the expert in the post on Christianity.

Islam--the term Islam means submission; believe that there is one god, Allah, and their purpose is submission to him. They follow the "Five Pillars of Islam--1. the Muslim profession of faith; 2. Praying 5 times per day 3. Fasting 4. Giving to charity; 5. Going on a pilgrimage to Mecca once in their lifetime"

The Muslim profession of faith comes through the Shahadah which is spoken morning and night "I witness that there is no God but Allah, and that Muhammad is the prophet of Allah." As is obvious from the Shahadah, Muslims submit to Allah and consider Muhammad the last prophet.
Prayer plays an obvious role since Muslims pray five times per day; in contrast to this the Christian Bible teaches that Christians are to "pray without ceasing." My personal interpretation of this is that we are to be in a constant connection with God so that our every decision is taken to Him. In regard to the afterlife, Muslims believe that "death is a time when they can be close to God. They do not believe that you will enter Paradise just because you have lived a good life. They believe that God will determine that." Christians believe that only faith in and acceptance of Jesus' righteousness with get them into Heaven. That good works are simply an outworking of their faith and trust in Jesus. "Not by works, lest anyone should boast."

Buddhism--do not, in reality have gods. Siddharta Gautama is, however, considered a major figure in the religion. Buddhists live by the Four Noble Truths: "1. suffering; 2. its cause; 3. its cessation; 4. the way which leads to cessation. The goal of Buddhism is Nirvana--"achieving a saintly condition on this earth." In contrast to this, Christians and Muslims believe that that is impossible on earth; only in the afterlife. Buddhists also believe in reincarnation which is not a belief that is shared by any of the other major world relgions except for Hinduism. Rather than prayer, Buddhist practice meditation. Since there are no gods or singular God in Buddhism, the question of faith's role is really relegated to faith in the tenents and beliefs.

Buddhism--

Ask the Expert

Pastor Survey Answers

I was thrilled today when I opened my e-mail and I had received my first response from one of the experts that I surveyed: the pastor. His answers mirror my own beliefs so there were no surprises there, only validation. I have attached his survey answers in a screen shot; I will deliberate on them here. I have not yet received any answers from my other two experts so today, I went on a search for some new hard resources. I found these in Muhammad and Islam by Marchant, Kerena and The Kingdom of Cults by Walter Martin. Both gave me new information on Islam and Buddhism; two of the world's largest religions.

There were two answers given by the Christian pastor that I feel spotlight the differences in Christianity and other faiths: Q1. What are the main beliefs of the Christian faith? A: "Many religions have similar ethical teachings such as love and forgiveness. Of course Christianity shares those teachings with others. But there are major distinctives of Christianity. Christianity is the only religion in the world that has as its primary feature the humiliation of its deity. And every other religion teaches that man achieves bliss in the afterlife by living a good enough life here and now. Every other religion teaches that "heaven" is a reward for a good enough life. Christianity contradicts that and says no one is good enough to achieve or earn an afterlife like that. All of us fall short of God's standard for acceptance and we all deserve condemnation."

Q2: What role does faith play and how is it defined in the Christian faith? A2: "Faith is believing, trusting, and acting based on what we believe about God. If we believe He is truthful, powerful, all-knowing etc. we will act on what He said. We will obey and be zealous to please Him." "Without faith it is impossible to please God" (Hebrews 11:6) Faith is never blind. It acts, believing the promises and character of God. He loves it when we show we trust Him."

The pastor went further to state that in reality Christianity is not so much a religion as a relationship. A relationship with the Creator of the universe. This is another distinctive between other religions. Few other faiths believe that it is possible to have a personal relationship with their god (God).

On the role of prayer, he stated that it is really healthy communication with God. We listen to him through the scripture and we communicate back to him through prayer. In my next blog, I plan to contrast these tenents with Buddhism and Islam. Until then........................

It's All About the Inquiry

The more that I work on this project, the more the connections begin to be drawn. It is truly much easier to feel comfortable and at ease in researching something that you are curious and passionate about. As a member of a faith community, faith has become something that is as close to me as breathing. I, however, fail to realize very often that others are as passionate about their own beliefs as I. How will I ever truly understand others if I don't understand those things that they are passionate about; those things that make them tick? As a teacher, I can see the connection to inquiry learning. We inquire of those things that draw us in. As Daniel Callison The Blue Book, 2006) states, "The most exciting and natural form of learning and teaching is inquiry." Knowing that we are created as spiritual beings makes us naturally curious about the spiritual aspect of our being. In addition, being wired to learn differently, the ability to investigate the belief systems of others would be a unique form of inquiry learning in all the Multiple Intelligence arenas. I was fascinate by the thirteen\edonline Multiple Intelligence Unit on World Religions. Not only does it allow students to investigate, but also to openly question; something that unfortunately, we rarely do particularly in regard to faith and religion. Hopefully tomorrow, I will have perspectives from my experts--the pastor and the priest. I hope to visit some houses of worship in the next few days. Until then, I continue my research. Shelly

Webbing and Wiggling

Iheard back from 2 or the 3 religious leaders that I contacted. Both the Rabbi and pastor are willing to answer my questions; however, the Rabbi is preparing for High Holy Week and it will be several weeks before she (and yes, I said she) has the opportunity to get me the answers. Until then, I will continue my virtual quest. On an aside, I didn't realize that there were female rabbis. I began to web together the information that I have gathered so far and the information that I have uncovered is indicated on the web. The numbers continue to intrigue me the most. I guess that when you are a person of faith; sometimes you feel like there are not many of you. Statistics, however, prove that to be incorrect. When I viewed the website www.workersfor jesus.com; I found that the five major world religions make up 80% of the world's population. These include: Judiasm, Christianity (includes both Protestants and Catholics at this site), Buddhism, Islam, and Hiduism.

Going a Step Further

As the questions continue to arise, I determined that it was time to step out of the watching and wondering into the connections of webbing. I sent a survey of six questions to leaders in the Christian, Jewish, and Catholic faiths today. The questions were: 1. How has religion shaped who you are today; 2. What does a person's religion or philosophy have to do with lifestyle and actions; 3. Who are the religions leaders in your faith and what are their contributions; 4. What are the main tenents of your faith; 5. What role does prayer play in your religion; and 6. What role does faith play and how is faith defined in your religion. Some of these questions have been adapted from the thirteen/ed online MI unit on World Religions. Specifically, I see a huge alignment to social studies standards in both the middle and high school levels. I am excited to make these connections. In addition to the survey, I did some extensive online searching to find information on the largest world religions and basic beliefs of these religions. After several ask.com questions on largest world religions and role of faith in major religions; I was taken to www.everystudent.com and www.religioustolerance.com to find answers. I guess I was surprised to find that Islam is by far the largest religion with over 1.84 billion followers.

Watching and Wondering

I am intrigued often that so many people have the same questions and the same doubts, yet we rarely want to be truthful about this. Faith is one of those arenas. I believe that we are created by a God who gave us a unique ability to wrestle with, question, and find answers. However, we often get so wrapped up in the doubt phase that we stop there. The conversations that I have with my son often propel me forward in the question and answer phase. I want to seek out answers for him and in the end find answers for myself. How about that for inquiry learning? My students often do the same for me. Since I teach in a private school, it is easy for me to have these conversations. Most often, the questions go back to "Why do you believe it and how do you know?" The answer of, I just believe is sometimes not enough. As I move through the watching and wondering stage, I have determined to develop a unit on World Religions. The unit will examine religious leaders, beliefs, and religious texts. Please note that this is not to question my own faith; I know that it will only serve to reinforce it. Throughout the next week, I plan to send a questionnaire to a local Christian pastor, a Catholic priest, and a Jewish Rabbi; I will be interested in their answers in my unit development. Until then.....Shelly

Why I Think of This So Often

Faith is an intricate part of my life. I remember as a child pondering, doubting, questioning faith often in my mind and verbally. As a parent, these same questions have returned via my youngest child. We have spent many hours discussing the reality of faith in our lives and the impact that it has on both of us personally. There are days (very few) when the reality of faith seems far away; most days, however, it is as close as the air I breath and the people I love. Until tomorrow, Shelly