Palestine Teaching Trunk

3 of 3. If you are falsely accused of antisemitism, remember that you are not alone—nor should you be. Your union rep should accompany you to all meetings. Document everything. Send emails after each meeting summarizing what was said. Keep a record. Reach out to… Read More

2 of 3.  How can educators who teach about Palestine answer false allegations of antisemitism? Last weekend, two colleagues and I attended the NW Teaching for Social Justice conference and gave a workshop on this topic. We suggested using a toolkit developed by Nora Lester… Read More

1 of 3. Accusing educators who teach about Palestine of being antisemitic is part of a pattern, especially in the US, of anti-Palestinian racism. According to The Institute for the Understanding of Anti-Palestinian Racism https://antipalestinianracism.org/, anti-Palestinian racism includes:

We’ve just collected some of the most thought-provoking and active lessons from the Trunk and compiled them into a 2-week unit of study. Check out the 55-page lesson on the website menu called “Highlights”. We’ve included an updated Occupation Game, soldiers writings, a role play… Read More

Gaza is very small. It’s only 40 km x 10 km. Have your students draw a map of their own community and see where Gaza would fit. Below is an example using Seattle (map designed by Dennis Blum). Ask students to research what happened in… Read More

Teachers, you may already have been using the Promises DVD in your classroom. Here’s a way to extend the learning much further. First, show Promises (which introduces your class to both Palestinian and Israeli children). Next, show the update on the children, available as a… Read More

Roots Run Deep by Hamde Abu Rahma (available online or on loan in the Trunk) is a book I just discovered. Hamde, an accountant from the Palestinian village of Bil’in, became a photojournalist to document the impact of occupation after his brother was critically injured… Read More

The Trunk offers study guides to two movies that show the Palestinian narrative (The Land Speaks Arabic) and the Israeli narrative (In Search of Peace) of when Israel was founded and most Palestinians were forced from their land. You will find study guides to many… Read More

This curriculum can be taught in middle or high school. Students form Literature Circles to read young adult novels set in the Occupied Territories. The two novels are The Shepherd’s Granddaughter and A Little Piece of Ground. Enlarge the picture below to spot the two… Read More

This unit about cultural interactions is recommended for twelfth grade. In it, students learn about Palestinian culture pre-1948. Then they compare it with Palestinian culture in the Occupied Territories or in the diaspora in the present day.