Strand: World Religions with links to Meditation, Prayer and Worship and Faith in Action. Topic: Islam

Transcription

1 Strand: World Religions with links to Meditation, Prayer and Worship and Faith in Action Topic: Islam Stage of Development: Middle Adolescence, Late Adolescence Rationale: The holistic approach to teaching World Religions is reflected in this unit. Rather than take the phenomena of Islam, the focus is very much on beliefs. The theme that runs through the entire unit is how the experiences that Muhammad had in his life influenced his beliefs and those of Islam. For this reason, it is important to begin by examining the life of Muhammad. The Five Pillars of Islam are then used to explore Muhammad s beliefs further and to identify how they reflect those beliefs. Through studying key Islamic beliefs, the phenomena of Islam will also be studied but this is only within the larger context of the life of Muhammad and the Islamic understanding of God.

2 Islam Lesson Key Concepts & Questions 1 Introduction What is Islam? What are the stereotypes associated with Islam? Where do these stereotypes come from and why do they exist? Are they true? How do we know if they are true? What factual information do you have about the religion Islam? Lesson Structure Brainstorm what do you associate with Islam? Encourage students to be entirely open with their suggestions. Inevitably you will get some suggesting terrorism, extremism, suppression of women, 9/11. Ask students to identify where their associations come from and which ones might be stereotypes. Introduce concept of Islamophobia (there are countless resources on the internet which could be used here) and ask whether they can identify with it. 2 Brainstorm in pairs knowledge of Islam Feedback and collect information into a brainstorm on the board for the class to copy. Knowledge & Understanding: Values: Skills Resources PowerPoint Religions of the World distribution and student hardcopies. Five Pillars of Islam Notes The purpose of these two lessons is to recognise and acknowledge assumptions and stereotypes that might be associated with Islam and then begin to challenge those stereotypes by looking at some of the facts about Islam.

3 Ask which is the most populous Muslim country (Indonesia 180m Muslims) Project the map of world religions and print out copies for students to keep. Hand out Five Pillars of Islam diagram, explain what the Five Pillars are and briefly identify each pillar. diagram The Five Pillars of Islam notes. 3 Muhammad (pbuh) Who was Muhammad? What does pbuh mean? When did he live and die? Do Muslims believe that Muhammad was the son of God (as Christians do about Jesus)? How did Show Animated World Faiths DVD The Life of Muhammad or an equivalent resource. Create a question sheet to accompany the DVD or equivalent resource. Ensure that key features of Muhammad s life are identified, in particular those which shaped the Five Pillars of Islam. Animated World Faiths DVD The Life of Muhammad or an equivalent resource which documents the life of Muhammad. Before looking at the beliefs of Islam, specifically the Five Pillars, it is important to examine the life of Muhammad. The Five Pillars of Islam originated in the teachings of Muhammad and were influenced by his life. The Animated World Faiths series is excellent and includes an animation on the Life of

4 Muhammad s life shape his beliefs and those of Islam? Muhammad. 4 Shahadah and Islamic art. Why is the Shahadah of central importance to Muslims? Why are geometric patterns used to decorate mosques rather than images? What do geometric patterns represent? Write the Shahadah in the board and explain that it is the basis of Islam. Show PowerPoint Shahadah and Islamic Art. Accompany the PowerPoint with the African Sanctus Call to Prayer. This can be found on YouTube. Explain that there will always be a deliberate mistake in any of the patterns because only Allah is perfect. Students may like to create their own art using geometry to symbolise and aspect of Islam that they have learned about. There is a teacher resource on Islamic Art for background knowledge. PowerPoint Shahadah and Islamic Art. Islamic Art teacher notes. The Shahadah is the first pillar of Islam and contains the two basic Islamic concepts of Tawhid (the oneness of Allah) and Risalah (prophethood). It is the basis of all actions in Islam. The oneness and perfection of Allah is reflected in the use of geometric patterns in Islamic art and architecture.

5 5 Salah Link to Meditation, prayer and worship. Why is prayer of such importance to Muslims? Why do Muslims pray five times per day? Why do Muslims use prayer positions? Why do Muslims face Mecca to pray? How is the Shahadah of central importance when Muslims pray? Why do men and women pray separately? Refer back to the life of Muhammad and how he had a preference for prayer and meditation. Explain that Muslims pray five times every day, spaced evenly throughout the day pre-dawn, noon, afternoon, after sunset and evening but not at these exact times because of connotations of pagan sun worship. Prayer is five times per day so that Muslims are continuously conscious of Allah and communication with Allah. The call to prayer incorporates the Shahadah. Ask students what they know about body language some may be very interested in it! Hand out sheets with diagrams of examples of body language. Students work in pairs. Only give them one example for each pair. Ask each pair to prepare a drama scene which uses Search Google images for examples of body language gestures there are hundreds! For examples see Body Language examples. has a film of Salah.

6 6 Zakah and Ramadan Link to Faith in Action How are Zakah and Ramadan a reflection of Muhammad s life experiences? Why is it a duty to give to the poor? Why do Muslims fast during Ramadan? Why is Ramadan at a different time of the year every year? this body language. Each pair performs their scene to the rest of the class who have to identify what the body language is portraying. Link this to the Muslim prayer positions and ask what they might be symbolising. Link the facing of Mecca back to the life of Muhammad. Link charity and fasting to the life of Muhammad ( how did Muhammad s life shape his beliefs and those of Islam?). Muhammad was deeply opposed to the excess wealth of many Meccans and their refusal to help the poor. This emphasis on charity and solidarity with the poor is reflected in Zakah and Ramanan. Use PowerPoints Zakah and Ramadan to examine these two pillars. If time, students can go on the internet and research some of the Muslim charities which PowerPoints Zakah and Ramadan. en/gb/zakah is the website for the charity Muslim Hands. It contains useful information as well as a Zakah calculator.

7 benefit from Zakah. 7 Hajj Set up the classroom with 6 stations. At each station have about 5 copies of the corresponding station sheet. Station 7 is an exercise using the internet so you will need IT access. Introduce the Hajj as a compulsory event at least once in a Muslim s lifetime. It symbolises the unity of mankind in the presence of Allah. Hand out Hajj passport worksheets. Explain task to students. By the end of the lesson they should have a completed passport sheet. 8,9 and 10 Life as a Muslim Women in Islam Jihad The Middle East What is it like to be a Muslim? What is the status of women in Islam? What has conflict in the Middle East to do with 30 Days as a Muslim, a film by Morgan Spurlock, (Supersize Me) is an excellent introduction to what it is to be a Muslim. Morgan Spurlock lives with an American Muslim family for 30 days and has to do all that they do. This includes going to an Hajj passport Hajj stations Hajj station 1 conversations Hajj station 2 pictures Hajj station 3 diary Hajj station 4 facebook Hajj station 5 birds Hajj station 6 newspaper 30 Days as a Muslim by Morgan Spurlock DVD The focus of these last three lessons can be adapted according to year level, general interest or what you believe to be the most important issue.

8 Islam? Why do some terrorists, who call themselves Muslims, want to hurt people in the West? alcohol free bucks night and not being left alone with the woman of the house if her husband is not there. If you cannot find this film, you could use this lesson to explore women in Islam through researching through the website which has extensive information and opinion on the role of women in Islam. You may wish to use these last lessons to address the issues of Jihad and the Middle East. This is very important in combating Islamophobia or negative perceptions of Islam due to recent terrorist activity.