The Other: Africa The springboard: Literature unit: Honors: The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver Explores post-colonialism

through the lens of an American family, the Prices, who go to the Congo to missionize. Advanced: Little Bee by Chris Cleave Explores illegal immigration and the plight of refugees through the lens of a Nigerian woman, Little Bee, who is detained in Britain and then sneaks into the country. Both works not only convey the vulnerability of peoples subject to an oppressor s whim but do so by enlarging the topic to include the injustice women experience at the hands of an oppressive patriarchy. Chumash: Shmot Fittingly, the school is learning Shmot, so the idea of minority rights can be underscored through the concept of kigerha yitemb eretzmitzrayim. Art: Sophomores will complete an art project with AhuvaMantell based on the work of Kara Walker, who uses silhouettes to explore American slavery and oppression of blacks.

Israel: I. My sister Semadar Goldstein, who lives in Israel, will present, via the web, an exciting multi-media presentation on the integration of Ethiopian Jews into Israeli society. Controversy: Students are made aware of and discuss the problem of Sudanese refugees in Israel. The balance between pragmatically defending Israel s right to be a Jewish state and our responsibility to care for those who are victims of genocide or are simply being mistreated in their homelands is discussed. The discussion of the Sudanese leads to the conclusion that we should/must do something to help those in need: Chesed: Jewish Heart for Africa The organization supports the Israeli economy and bolsters Israel s image in the world by bringing Israeli technologies to Africa, to help Africans improve their lives. The organization has helped over 150,000 Africans by providing electricity, water and other material, medical and educational needs. See media materials. Green-a-thon: Because the technologies JHA provides are all environmentally friendly, sophomores will participate in a Green-a-thon, where they are sponsored to be green. Students tweet their green practices, creating a live record of their environmentally friendly acts. The Green-a-thon will, hopefully, happen with Shalhevet, a high school in LA (where Aaron Keigher now works!). Interdisciplinary Gala in Honor of JHA All sophomores will complete a literary unit on the work of fiction and will create an African mask with Mrs. Mantell. All sophomores will be responsible for work done in History and English classes and will, in addition, pair with a classmate to create a media presentation on the combined topics of the pair. Topics include: History/current events: Nineteenth- or twentieth-century history of the Congo, Nigeria, Uganda, Ethiopia, Tanzania, Mauritania or any other African country (outside of Egypt) that interests you An overview of the current situation of any African country (outside of Egypt) that interests you; the Sudan is of particular importance since Southern Sudan became its own country this past summer The history of Apartheid The Rwandan genocide

II.

Focus on a key figure in African history, such as Nelson Mandela History of the Putti Village, Uganda, where 130 indigenous Orthodox Jews live Focus on a Jewish community in Africa America and its response to Darfur/Sudan America and its response to Sudanese or other African refugees The Lost Boys of the Sudan The oil industry in Africa The diamond industry in Africa The current famine in Ethiopia Southern Sudan becoming a country Geography and zoology: The African savanna Animals of the African savanna Endangered species of the African savannas Wildebeest migration in the Serengeti Mt. Kilimanjaro Victoria Falls on the Zambia-Zimbabwe border Fish River Canyon in Namibia Sossusvlei clay pan in Namibia Okavanga Delta in Botswana Virunga Mountains in DRC/Uganda/Rwanda borders North Africa vs. South Africa American history: Overview of Africa s slave trade to America America s involvement in a country on the African continent Literature: Literary analysis of The Poisonwood Bible Literary analysis of Little Bee A student would be expected to do research on some literary aspect of the book that was not discussed in class Read and analyze an additional book about Africa: The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind, Kaffir Boy, What is the What, for example. See your teacher for additional suggested titles. Ernest Hemingway s use of African settings or imagery in his short stories Economics: An overview of the economics of the solar or agricultural technology working in Israel and Africa; how are they funded? How do they make money? How do they help African countries become more economically viable? The economy of an African country/region and a way it is seeking to improve its GDP How the latest medical technologies are being funded in Africa

Science: How does solar technology work? How do irrigation technologies, like drip irrigation, work? Aside from drip irrigation, what are other innovative agricultural technologies? What are the latest medical technologies that are helping Africa? A discussion of the struggle to make Africa malaria-free AIDS in Africa Doctors without Borders in Africa Foreign Language: Research French or Portuguese involvement in an African country Israel and Africa: WhyJHA is good for Israel politically Why helping Africa is good for Israel politically The Sudanese refugee problem in Israel A history of the Ethiopian Jewish community The integration of Ethiopian Jews into Israeli society Education: Discuss advances in education being made in a country/region in Africa African arts: Create decorations for the gala based on African art Research different genres of African art Research African music

Tentative dates: November 2: Sophomores are introduced to the unit; Rachel Ishofskyfrom JHA makes her presentation to the sophomores; the green-a-thon as well as the research project is explained. Students select their research topic. November 14: The Poisonwood Bible and Little Bee are due, along with completed reading journals. Teachers discuss the books over the course of the week and assign the composition response, due with the research project. November 17: Controversy over Sudanese refugees in Israel is discussed in class; then students go to shul for JETS presentation on Ethiopian Jewry November 21-December 2: Students are given selected periods in English and History during which they can prepare their research projects, compositions, interviews and gala presentations The Gala, December 4:

Students will have prepared their individual research projects by December 4 and will have worked with a partner to create a shared project, using some type of technological platform, that they then present to visitors at the gala.

Collaboration: Shalhevet High School in Los Angeles, CA will be collaborating with us on various parts of this project. Outcomes of the unit: Personal and social: y Awareness of the suffering and extreme poverty of people in the world and the need for Jews to care for those people y Awareness of the problem of illegal immigration, a problem that American history teachers can then explore y Awareness of the balance Israel has to maintain between preserving its Jewish character and helping those in need; being able to articulate an answer to those who say Israel is an apartheid state y Ability to do something other than just read and learn about an issue: create and execute a fund-raising event that addresses all of the above problems and does it by promoting a greener environment and a cause that helps Israel and the world and that brings together Jews from all backgrounds Educational: y Greater close reading ability and understanding of how literature pertains to life y Opportunity to write across the curriculum y Opportunity to develop skills in technology (the students have not yet made wiki pages and can be taught how to make and embed scribd documents and other widgets) and to collaborate with other students using technology y Opportunity to engage with peers from another state on an issue relevant to them as Jews and as global citizens y Opportunity to use a creative art or to delve into a science, economics, math or political/social topic in a way that is not offered in the course of ordinary classroom learning