In this article, the author describes one way to teach about religion in elementary school social studies using the C3 Framework IDM model. The compelling question that guides the lesson focuses specifically on whether Judaism is a race, religion, or ethnicity. Each compelling and supporting question in the lesson is connected to one or more…

This article is an attempt to create new ways for students to appreciate the complexities and diversity of the Middle East's foodways and thus of their people and societies. It takes a broad view of the region that is historically inclusive, stretching from Morocco and al-Andalus (Spain) in the west to Iran in the east and from modern-day Turkey…

Suggests and gives examples of classroom study of status symbols of a society as a way to introduce culture into the second language classroom. (BK)

Outlines a history of Costa Rica and its music. Cites sources for Costa Rican music and cultural information. (Author/LMO)

Describes program and gives example of lesson plans for using newspaper as method of teaching reading, writing, speaking, listening, and culture in second-language class. (BK)

Investigates the mathematical ideas in iconographic designs such as sand scenes, yawalyu, site-path designs, and guruwari from the perspective of formal language theory and provides short formal grammars that generate the languages of designs. Suggests the pedagogical value of viewing Walpiri iconography as mathematics and discusses whether the…

This compilation of instructional materials, activities, and curricula is based on materials developed in an intensive English as a second language and cultural orientation program conducted in Indochinese refugee processing centers in Southeast Asia beginning in 1980. Students in the 14- to 20-week program ranged in age from 16 to 55 years. This…

A series of conversations depicts the kind of encounters an imaginary immigrant might have with French people. (MSE)

By focusing on goegraphy, music, art, and literature, one teacher teaches her students about the history of Russian culture without having to fight student predjudice against the Soviet government. (PGD)

Describes an approach to teaching civilization that organizes course content so that students respond to it from their own personal experience. The approach also closely links the learning of cultural information to the learning of linguistic information. (MSE)

Various ways of incorporating area studies into the curriculum are examined. The three approaches mentioned in the title are found impractical. The best approach for the foreign language teacher is to put the language first, and bring in area study items where appropriate. (WGA)

Argues that most students lack a cohesive cultural self-identity and the historical background for constructing one. Outlines methods and lessons by which students can find their own stories and develop a stronger cultural self-concept, including oral history reports, reader-response journals, and memoirs. (HB)

A classroom technique designed for developing German second language vocabulary is expanded on for additional classroom functions and activities. The method uses a bag containing a variety of objects. The objects are drawn out of the bag and discussed in class. The contents of the bag should be unpredictable and unusual, and they should be changed…

This compilation of information and guidelines is based on materials developed in an intensive English as a second language and cultural orientation program conducted in Indochinese refugee processing centers in Southeast Asia. Students in the 14- to 20-week program ranged in age from 16 to 55 years. This volume begins with an "American…

The autobiography or personal narrative is recommended as a medium of instruction in foreign languages because it: (1) is an authentic document using language close to daily spoken language and simpler than literary language, (2) has a rich and substantial cultural content, and (3) captures the relationship between language and civilization. (MSE)