Yasser+Arafat

Background:

Yasser Arafat was born in Cairo, Egypt, so I have chosen to focus on Egypt for this activity. The geography of Egypt is unique because it is actually divided in half by the Nile River. The highest lands are in the south and the land slopes gently toward the Mediterranean Sea. There are mountains located on the southern Sinai peninsula--some of these reach over 8530 feet high. The land at the Mediterranean is at sea level. There are also 3 deserts in Egypt: the Libyan, Nubian, and Eastern. They have been important barriers for protection from groups who have wanted to invade. Arafat was not in Cairo long before being shipped off to live with his uncle in Jerusalem. After 4 years he returned to live under the care of his sister. By age 17, he was smuggling arms to Palestine to be used in the fight against the Jews and the British. Interestingly enough, Palestine is where he was awarded his Nobel Peace Prize, "for his efforts to create peace in the Middle East."

My primary focus for instruction is going to be on the mummification process of Ancient Egypt. The goal is for the students to come away knowing the basic beliefs about mummification and have an understanding of how the process took place. We will look at several photos/short video clips in addition to a quick mini-lesson featuring more direct instruction. Then comes the fun--the students will each make their own mummy. I have not yet decided the best mediums for this process, but it will be a great activity for the kinesthetic learners of the class. The culminating activity of this lesson (which I anticipate will span about 2 days) will be a class discussion--I will pose the question, "Based upon what we know of Yasser Arafat and his winning the Nobel Peace Prize, do you believe that upon his death he should have been mummified in his home country of Egypt?" We will have had a preliminary discussion about Yasser Arafat and what he did in Palestine, but I want more emphasis to be placed on Egypt.