*(Easy)

Fisher, Leonard Everett; David and Goliath
Waldman, Neil; Two Brothers: A Legend of Jerusalem
Geisert, Arthur; The Ark
Gelman, Rita; Queen Esther Saves Her People

*(Average)

Yolen, Jane; O Jerusalem
Chaikin, Miriam; Ask Another Question: The Story and Meaning of Passover
Chaikin, Miriam; Joshua in the Promised Land
Chaikin, Miriam; Exodus
Cohen, Barbara; I Am Joseph
de la Mare, Walter; Stories from the Bible: From the Garden of Eden to the Promised Land
Fisher, Leonard Everett; The Wailing Wall
Haugaard, Erik; The Rider and His Horse  H/F  Roman occupation
Schwartz, Lynne; Four Questions  Passover explained
Simon, Norma; Passover

*(Challenging)

Kuskin, Karla; Jerusalem, Shining Still
The Bible; various versions

*(Read-Alouds)

Patterson, Jose; Angels, Prophets, Rabbis, and Kings from the Stories of the Jewish People
Speare, Elizabeth George; The Bronze Bow  H/F

*(Resource)

Everyday Life in Bible Times  National Geographic Society
Goldreich, Gloria; A Treasury of Jewish Literature: From Biblical Times to Today
Keller, Werner; The Bible as History

Simulations:

Islam  Interact  7-15 hrs
Christendom  Interact  10+ hrs

Video:
Christianity in World History  ENC#880358  14 mins  dated
Hanukkah  EMC#885284  11 mins
Holy Land: Judaism, Christianity and Islam in the Middle East  EMC#883245  25 mins 
Homeland: Israel and Palestine  EMC#883253  25 mins
Iraq: Cradle of Civilization  EMC#884214  60 mins
Iraq: Cradle of Civilization  EMC#883172  28 mins
Islam: 600-1200  EMC#882289  26 mins
Islam and the Sciences    EMC#885558  23 mins
Islam: The Faith and the People  EMC#885418  20 mins
Israel  EMC#881255  14 mins
Israel: Land of Destiny  EMC#883177  28 mins 
Judaism: The Religion of A People  EMC#885421  24 mins
Mesopotamia: Return to Eden  EMC#886002  48 mins
Middle East: Cradle of Civilization  EMC#885983  40 mins 
Middle East: History and Culture  EMC#885966 22 mins
Middle East: Israel  EMC#885774  22 mins
Middle East: Land and People  EMC#885775  22 mins
Seven Wonders of the Ancient World  EMC#886007  60 mins
Seven Wonders of the Ancient World  EMC#883071  60 mins
The Story of Oil  EMC#883251  25 mins

Software:

Pathways Through Jerusalem  The Learning Company
Ancient Civilizations  ENTREX
Exploring Ancient Cities  Sumeria
Ancient World 2000 Decision Development

Internet:

http://home.beseen.com/
alumni/judaism/
Links

http://metalab.unc.edu/
expo/deadsea.scrolls.
exhibit/intro.html 
Dead Sea Scrolls

http://www.imj.org.il/
Museum of Israel

http://www.imj.org.il/archaeology/

http://eawc.evansville.edu/
index.htm

http://www.julen.net/aw/

http://www.holidays.net/passover/
Passover on the Net

http://hsc.csu.edu.au/religion
/courses/1unit/crs_stud/teachers/56/
taiindex.html  advanced

http://www.artsmia.org/mythology/
aifffiles/nebuchadnezzar.aiff
soundtrack story

http://www.artsmia.org/mythology/
myths.html 
comparative mythology

http://www.wsu.edu:8080/~dee/
HEBREWS/EXILE.HTM

http://www.plaguescape.com 
Caution: graphic

History of Israel 
http://www.israel.org/
mfa/go.asp?MFAH00kt0
Description: Visit the Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs to learn their view of the history of Israel from ancient times to the present. This is a very large site with many images and links to current archaeological digs.
Comments: Great images and lots of information!
Resource Type: Mix of Text and Graphics
Graphics Content: High
 

Jerusalem in Old Maps and Pictures
http://www.israel.org/
mfa/maps.html
Description: This site explores the land of Israel and its capital city, Jerusalem, boast the longest unbroken succession of maps of any country in the world. Through a choice selection of maps, this exhibition presents the cartographic history of the city which King David established as his capital 3000 years ago. 
Comments: Wonderful graphics but takes significant time to load.
Resource Type: Map
Graphics Content: High
 

Project Judaica Foundation: Jewish Cultural Contributions
http://www2.judaica.org/pj/
Description: Hitler and the Nazis sought to show that the Jews were an inferior people. This site offers a collection of resources that demonstrate the vast contributions to humanity by the Jewish people through all times, and in many countries of the world.
Resource Type: Mix of Text and Graphics
Graphics Content: High
 

Artifacts of Israel
http://research.haifa.ac.il/
~hecht/archaeology/
index.html
Description: This site at the Hetch Museum in Haifa has archeological artifacts from Israel's ancient history. 
Comments: There is little descriptive text to go along with the pictures of the artifacts. Students will need to do supplemental research to make much sense of the material. 
Resource Type: Mix of Text and Graphics
Graphics Content: High
 

Biblical Jerusalem
http://www.israel-mfa.gov.il/
mfa/go.asp?MFAH00j80
Description: Here are pictures of artifacts with text tracing the history of ancient Israel from the perspective of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of modern Israel. 
Comments: This site takes a long time to load.
Resource Type: Photos or Pictures
Graphics Content: High
 

Chart of the History of Judaism
http://philo.ucdavis.edu/
Courses/RST23/chart.txt
Description: This outlines the development of Judaism, using a timeline format which includes significant events which affected Jews and Judaism. The information was adopted from the University of Pennsylvania Religious Studies course 014 (R. Kraft, revised January, 1993)
Resource Type: Secondary Text
Graphics Content: High
 

Jerusalem Mosaic
http://jeru.huji.ac.il/
open_screen2.htm
Description: Here are several online tours of this ancient Middle East city around which so much conflict has arisen. Tours cover both historic and modern sites, with a bit of commentary about the places visited.
Resource Type: Mix of Text and Graphics
Graphics Content: High
 

Maps of Jerusalem
http://city.net/maps/view/
?mapurl=/countries/israel/
jerusalem&page=maps
Description: Here are two maps fo Jerusalem that zoom in for a closer look. See the neighborhoods of the various religious groups in the Old Quarter.
Resource Type: Maps
Graphics Content: High
 

Plumbing in Jerusalem
http://www.theplumber.com/
jerus.html
Description: Jerusalem was located 2500 feet above sea level. How did people get their water? Find out the answer in this intriguing article from Plumbing and Mechanical Magazine. 
Resource Type: Secondary Text
Graphics Content: High
 

Scrolls from the Dead Sea
http://metalab.unc.edu/
expo/deadsea.scrolls.exhibit/
intro.html
Description: This exhibition of the Scrolls From the Dead Sea: The Ancient Library of Qumran and Modern Scholarship brings before the American people a selection from the scrolls which have been the subject of intense public interest. Over the years questions have be en raised about the scrolls' authenticity, about the people who hid them away, about the period in which they lived, about the secrets the scrolls reveal, and about the intentions of the scrolls' custodians in restricting access. Come see for yourself at this Library of Congress site.
Resource Type: Mix of Text and Graphics

http://www.ofcn.org/cyber.serv/
academy/ace/soc/elem.html

gopher://bvsd.k12.co.us:70/11/
Educational_Resources/Lesson_
Plans/Big%20Sky/social_studies

http://www.col-ed.org/cur/

http://www.mcrel.org/
connect/plus

http://www.trinity.edu/departments/
education/core/newplans.htm

http://ericir.syr.edu/Virtual/Lessons/
crossroads

http://talk.startribune.com/cgi-bin/
WebX.cgi?homework-14@@.ee6b2b9 
homework help

http://www.hmco.com/hmco/school/
search/activity.html 
*Houghton Mifflin

http://www.mcrel.org/connect/
lesson.html#social

http://www.nwrel.org/sky/Classroom/
Social_Studies/Social_Studies.html

http://www.nationalgeographic.com/
resources/ngo/education/ideas.html

http://www.rims.k12.ca.us/SCORE/

http://www.eduplace.com/ss/ 
*Houghton Mifflin supplemental 
games, quizes maps

http://www.socialstudies.com/
index.html

http://www.mmhschool.com/teach/
socialstud/socstu1.html

Maccabees and Their Place in Jewish History
http://score.rims.k12.ca.us/
activity/maccabees/
You are a journalist employed by The Detroit News. The editor has asked you to follow up the news item, "Long-lost cave reveals burial tombs of Maccabees" with an in depth feature for the weekend edition. He wants a two page spread with text and graphics entitled, "The Life and Times of Judah Maccabee."
Author: Joyce and David Mollet

Other titles may be substituted with teacher approval.

Presentations will be evaluated based upon the following standard rubric:

Sample Rubric:
4 Points:  *Gathers relevant, accurate information
         *Shows thorough understanding of content
         *Exhibits outstanding insight and creativity
         *Communicates ideas clearly and effectively
         *Presentation is clear and highly informative
3 Points:  *Gathers sufficient, accurate information
         *Shows adequate understanding of content
         *Exhibits moderate insight and creativity
         *Communicates most ideas clearly and effectively
         *Presentation is understandable and provides sufficient information
2 Points:  *Gathers limited, accurate information
         *Shows partial understanding of content
         *Exhibits limited insight and creativity
         *Communicates a few ideas clearly
         *Provides very limited information
1 Point:   *Fails to gather accurate information
         *Shows little or no understanding of content
         *Does not exhibit insight or creativity
         *Is not at all informative 

   Computer and/or artistic skills should not be a prerequisite for this assignment; consideration should be given to skill levels evaluation should be based upon the quality of assembled research data.

The students are given a map showing the location of the civilizations of the Kushites.  The students choose one civilization shown and write an essay explaining in what ways geography influenced the development of that civilization.  The essay includes achievements of that civilization, how the river influenced the development and why these achievements are important today