Wall Fountain Made between 1800 and 1850 Persian, Qajar Dynasty Molded glazed composite body with polychrome underglaze painted decoration Gift of Mrs. Wilson W. Mills (54.194) Click the image for more information.

Preparation:

An American Mosaic was conducted intermittently over a four-month period as we studied early American history. We began with Chapter 3 in our 8th grade American history text, The American Nation. Within this chapter, both Europeans and Africans come to America.

In Chapter 4 ‘The American Revolution’, the section ‘A National Culture’ examines the varied heritage of European settlers and Native Americans in the 13 colonies. We took a closer look at the Southern Colonies, also, as African slaves became an important part of American culture.

We looked at how these cultures were represented in celebrations, and traditional crafts. We researched what early Americans did when they found leisure time. We gathered graphic examples of these forms of art and craftwork.

We identified several common celebrations teenagers and adults have, then and now. We examined what people do and produce during these celebrations. We also looked at examples of how people express their celebrations and national pride.

At this point in our study of American History, our class visited the DIA to see three works of art, each representing a different culture:
Romare Bearden’s Quilting Time, Native American Man’s Shirt, Islamic Tile Fountain.

We used slides of these works in class to review our DIA visit before beginning our Web Quest activity.

Throughout our study of American History, students can be reminded of the contributions of our multicultural population as we explore industrial growth and our need for skilled craftsmen from Europe and Asia, and our boundless westward expansion.

Resources:

Carnes, Mark and Garraty, John. The American Nation. Boston: Addison Wesley.
Our 8th grade text book .
Information on the 10th edition published in 2000-2001 can be found at
http://occawlonline.pearsoned.com/bookbind/pubbooks/garraty_awl/

Additional Web sites for Islamic/Arabic research:

http://www.tulane.edu/~MECCA/images/images_islam.html
coins, mosques, decorations, wood work, metal work

http://oak.cats.ohiou.edu/~muslimst/islam7.html
culture surrounding the Muslim girl, marriage and family

http://www.suite101.com/article.cfm/arab_culture_and_identity/23446
*information on Arabic food and hospitality

http://www.traderscity.com/abcg/cultur10.htm
photo of womens' clothing, cultural guide

http://www.traderscity.com/abcg/cultur11.htm
*information about the family structure and roles of family members

http://www.albany.edu/history/middle-east/culture.htm
*resources about Middle Eastern art, language, food, etc

http://www.lacma.org/islamic_art/figures/fig6.htm
*images of Islamic art that can be clicked on and viewed

http://www.iranian.com/Iranica/Sept97/Decor/
*example of design used for decorative tile

http://islamicity.com/food/
-photos of Islamic foods which can be clicked for recipes
-list of lawful and unlawful foods on sidebar

http://www.guardian.co.uk/flash/0,5860,837833,00.html
Ramadan explained

http://islamicity.com/KidsCorner/
quizzes, games and activities for children

Teacher resources:

http://www.education-world.com/a_curr/profdev009.shtml
teacher resource for teaching about the Middle East

http://www.mslma.org/selection/institute01/Islam.htm
resources for teacher with annotated bibliography of books for children


* resource included in Islamic Tile Web Quest