7th grade world history. And we were starting the chapters on the Middle East. Which meant we were discussing Islam.
The assignment consisted of reading about and doing a project about the Five Pillars of Islam.
Reading the chapter was slightly painful. I did not realize there were so many ways to pronounce Arab, Arabia, Muhammad, Mecca, Muslim, et cetera. I gently corrected. Some of them barreled through and tried to skip the new vocabulary.
We got to Koran. A student raised her hand. And gently corrected my pronunciation.
I let her guide us on pronunciation after this. Because I got pretty quickly that this was her religion we were talking about. And I'm no expert, so I'll go with someone who knows what she's talking about, even if she is a 7th grader.
Well, a 7th grader raised Muslim will know a lot more about it than me.
Thursday, October 9, 2014
14 comments:
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I teach a writing class and my students are always sharing insight that I find helpful. We can learn a lot from young ones.
ReplyDeleteEdge of Your Seat Stories
Yes, we can. So long as we the adults don't act like know-it-alls who believe that the kiddos can't contribute. I hear stories about how some teachers act like that, and it makes me shake my head.
DeleteThat is great that you acknowledge that she knows how to pronounce these words. i have seen plenty of teachers never listen to the students
ReplyDeleteGood teachers listen to their students and learn from them.
ReplyDeleteI wouldn't call myself a good teacher, but I do believe that we can all learn from anyone.
DeleteIt's not about age, it's about experience, right?
ReplyDeleteThat would be a tough one, but it sounds like you had the right person in class to help you with it!
ReplyDeleteThere were quite a few terms that were a challenge to pronounce.
DeleteJust curious, did the lesson plans also include doing anything on Christianity or Judiasm?
ReplyDeletebetty
Exactly what Birgit said! You are a good teacher. There are many who don't like to be corrected or dismiss a student's expert knowledge. Good for you Liz!
ReplyDeleteNope, not a good teacher. Never claimed to be.
DeleteI'm glad the student was brave enough to raise her hand and that you were open to letting her share her knowledge. And yes, what's wrong with teachers/adults who think that they know everything?
ReplyDeleteTricky topic! Religion and Politics...
ReplyDeleteIt was only an introduction to the concept, so there shouldn't have been anything controversial. At least, not for 7th graders.
Delete