Building Background Directions: Use this sheet to take notes from the Building Background PowerPoint slides on Day 1 of the investigation.

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1 Building Background Directions: Use this sheet to take notes from the Building Background PowerPoint slides on Day 1 of the investigation. 1) SEE-THINK-WONDER What do you SEE in the What do you THINK this image? is an image of? What do you WONDER about this image? 2) In your own words, what is a region? 3) Which region of the United States do we live in? 4)TURN & TALK: Which countries do you think are part of the Middle East region? Color them in on the map below: 5) MAKE A PREDICTION: Based on what we ve learned so far, why might people have different ideas about what the Middle East is and where it is located? This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License Read.Inquire.Write. University of Michigan readinquirewrite@umich.edu This content can be re-used in other work as long as attribution is given to the authors: The Read.Inquire.Write. team at the University of Michigan. Indicate if the original was changed.

2 Middle East Patterns (Source 1) Headnote: This source comes from a textbook used in many college geography classes. It was first published in 1989, and the most recent version was published in One of the authors, Colbert Held, has a Ph.D. in geography from the University of Nebraska and worked for the U.S. government in many parts of the Middle East for 16 years. The other author, John Thomas Cummings, worked for almost 30 years for different organizations in the Middle East. Scholars all accept that the Fertile Crescent is the center of the Middle East. They believe the core region includes the general area from Northeast Africa to South Asia. We agree that the region extends from the western border of Egypt to the eastern border of Iran, and from the Black Sea to the Arabian Sea. Our core area could have also included countries such as Libya and Sudan, because of their location and close ties to the countries that we have included. Other countries like Afghanistan or even Somalia also have ties to the countries in our core region. Many scholars argue for a Greater Middle East, a Middle East/North Africa (MENA) region. However, despite religious and historical connections, North Africa and the Middle East have different histories, interests, and goals. There is basic geographic and historic unity across the core Middle East region. Attribution: Adapted from the geography textbook, Middle East Patterns: Places, Peoples, & Politics. Written by Colbert Held & John Thomas Cummings in AFTER YOU READ (1) What does the textbook Middle East Patterns help you understand about the Middle East region? (2) How reliable is this source for understanding which countries should be included in the Middle East? Reliable Unreliable 3) Box the parts of the source that help you think about the central question. Revised

3 Encyclopedia Britannica (Source 2) Headnote: This source comes from Encyclopedia Britannica, founded in 1768 and based in the United Kingdom. An encyclopedia is a reference book that provides information about many different topics. The Editors of Encyclopedia Britannica are usually experts on the topics they write about. They update information published online regularly based on feedback from scholars in each field. The Middle East includes the lands around the southern and eastern shores of the Mediterranean Sea. It extends from Morocco to the Arabian Peninsula and Iran and, according to some definitions, sometimes beyond. By the mid-1900s, a common definition of the Middle East included the countries of Turkey, Cyprus, Syria, Lebanon, Iraq, Iran, Israel, the West Bank, the Gaza Strip, Jordan, Egypt, Sudan, Libya, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Yemen, Oman, Bahrain, Qatar, and United Arab Emirates. Events since the mid-1900s have increased the number of countries included in the definition of the Middle East. The three North African countries of Tunisia, Algeria, and Morocco are closely connected with the Arab states. In addition, American government officials often include Afghanistan and Pakistan in connection with the Middle East. Attribution: Adapted from Encyclopedia Britannica. Written by the Editors of Encyclopedia Britannica in AFTER YOU READ (1) What does Encyclopedia Britannica help you understand about the Middle East region? (2) How reliable is this source for understanding which countries should be included in the Middle East? Reliable Unreliable 3) Box the parts of the source that help you think about the central question. Revised

4 Is There a Middle East? (Source 3) Headnote: This source comes from a book about the different meanings of the Middle East. The author, Dr. Michael Bonine, was a professor of Geography and Near Eastern Studies at the University of Arizona. He was also Executive Secretary of the Middle East Studies Association from MESA promotes the study of the Middle East and its members come from around the world. Different geographers and map-makers think of many different countries as the Middle East. There certainly is no agreement on the definition and boundaries for this region. And often the Middle East (or the Middle East and North Africa) is never defined. We have also seen that maps and atlases are confusing and not consistent. For example, since September 11 th, 2001, Afghanistan and Pakistan have suddenly taken on new importance. Now they are included on maps of the Middle East. Any large world cultural region is constantly changing. Defining specific boundaries often makes it more difficult to understand that region and the people that live there. I argue that there is indeed a North Africa/Southwest Asia cultural region. It should be referred to as the Middle East or perhaps the Middle East and North Africa. I propose that the most appropriate region is one that has been used by many experts and writers: the Middle East and North Africa. However, even if we agree on the name, the exact boundaries of this region are unclear and debated. Attribution: Adapted excerpt from the book, Is there a Middle East?: The evolution of a geopolitical concept, published in From the chapter, Of Maps & Regions: Where is the Geographer s Middle East? by Michael Bonine. AFTER YOU READ (1) What does the book Is There a Middle East? help you understand about the Middle East region? (2) How reliable is this source for understanding which countries should be included in the Middle East? Reliable Unreliable (3) Box the parts of the source that help you think about the central question. Revised

5 TeachMideast (Source 4) Headnote: TeachMideast makes educational resources to teach students about the Middle East and Muslim world today so they are [prepared] to handle difficult policy decisions in the future. In this excerpt from their website, they describe the different ways the region has been defined and point out here both physical geography and cultural factors should be taken into consideration. The Middle East has a long shared history and a shared religious tradition, being the birthplace of the three main monotheistic religions of Judaism, Christianity and Islam [All] but two [countries] are Arabic-speaking majority countries, the exceptions being Iran (where the national language is Persian) and Israel (where the national languages are Hebrew and Arabic). Likewise, many experts also include the other countries [whose] history and culture are tied to those of the other countries of the Middle East. There are two common mistakes that are often made when referring to the Middle East. The first is to confuse the Arab world with the Middle East. The Middle East is a very diverse region, with many languages and cultures The second common mistake is to equate the Middle East and Islam. While Islam began in the area that is now the modern state of Saudi Arabia, it has spread over the centuries so that there are communities of Muslims all over the world. Attribution: Excerpt from What is the Middle East? from TeachMideast: An Educational Initiative of the Middle East Policy Council at teachmideast.org, updated August AFTER YOU READ (1) What does the website TeachMideast help you understand about the Middle East region? (2) How reliable is this source for understanding which countries should be included in the Middle East? Reliable Unreliable (3) Box the parts of the source that help you think about the central question. Revised

6 Your Writing Assignment: to National Geographic Maps Background: National Geographic is one of the largest scientific and educational organizations in the world. They make over 300 wall maps. A lot of social studies teachers use National Geographic wall maps in their classrooms. This is the Middle East wall map that National Geographic currently sells: Attribution: Map from National Geographic Store, accessed Oct. 2017, The cartographers, or map-makers, at National Geographic Maps are asking for feedback about whether they should revise this wall map of the Middle East. They want to know which countries you think should be included in the Middle East. Your Task: Think about the source and central question for this investigation. Then, write an argument in an to National Geographic Maps (mapsinfo@natgeo.com) that makes an interpretation about which countries should be included in their Middle East map. Use evidence from the sources we read in class. Make sure your includes a CLAIM, EVIDENCE, and REASONING. Revised

7 Mentor Text: Sample to Annenberg Learner Mark the CLAIM, EVIDENCE, and REASONING in this Dear Annenberg Learner staff, The Midwest region of the United States should include 12 states and extend from Ohio in the east to North and South Dakota in the west. Organizations like National Geographic and the U.S. Census Bureau define the Midwest region. For example, the Geography Division of the U.S. Census Bureau lists the following states in the Midwest region: Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, Ohio, Wisconsin, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota. In addition, a map of United States Regions from National Geographic also shows the same 12 states listed in the Midwest. This shows that two different organizations agree on which states are in the Midwest. This evidence is reliable because it comes from expert geographers that work for the U.S. government and a major educational organization. Please revise the map of U.S. regions currently listed on your educational website, so that students and teachers will understand which states are part of the Midwest region of the United States. Thank you for reading my ideas. Sincerely, Jake from State Farm Revised

8 Planning Graphic Organizer Guidelines: Your is an argument that makes an interpretation. It should have a Claim, Evidence to support the claim, and your Reasoning about how the evidence supports the claim. Before you begin writing, think about the sources and decide which sources help explain which countries should be included in the Middle East region. Take brief notes to plan your writing below. Use the useful language chart on page 9 to help you turn your notes into sentences in your interpretation. Claim Which countries do you think should be included in the Middle East region? Evidence #1 What details, quotations, or information from the sources supports your claim? Evidence #2 What details, quotations, or information from the sources supports your claim? Reasoning Explain how the evidence supports your claim AND why is your evidence reliable. Revised

9 USEFUL LANGUAGE for writing your interpretation: Making a claim: The Middle East region should include.. I think that the Middle East region extends from.. Experts do not agree about where the Middle East Providing evidence: Professor Michael Bonine, for example, says that "..." For example, Encyclopedia Britannica says.. Another example is that a geography textbook and a geographer both refer to The headnote tells me that. Reasoning: This means that.. This makes me think that.. This shows that This source is reliable because. However, the source might not be reliable because.it is possible that.. Revised

10 REFLECTION GUIDE GOALS DONE? ( ) I AM GOOD AT I AM WORKING ON THINGS YOU MIGHT BE GOOD AT OR NEED TO WORK ON CLAIM EVIDENCE REASONING I wrote a claim that states an opinion or interpretation. I included information from the source(s) as evidence to support my claim (e.g., from the headnote or attribution). I included a quotation from a text as evidence to support my claim. I shared my reasoning to explain how or why my evidence supports the claim or to explain how reliable the source(s) are. - The claim states an opinion. - The claim focuses on which countries should be included in the Middle East. - The claim makes sense given the evidence. - The evidence relates to my claim. - The evidence is persuasive. - The evidence is specific. - The evidence is accurate. - I include quotation marks around the quotation. - I say where the quotation comes from (author/date). - The quotation helps someone understand my claim. - I say what the evidence tells us. - I explain why the evidence is reliable or unreliable. - I explain how the evidence supports my claim. Revised