India and China: Teacher Tips

Teacher's Guide

July 19, 2000 Update
Remember, the "Kids' Versions" are aimed at K-6.

The team generated the following reports:	Try the following activities:
Yang-Yang - Grand Dreams of the Mighty Yangzi River *Kids Version available The team visits the construction site of the Three Gorges Dam in Yichang and discusses the reasons for the building of this dam and its political, economic, environmental, and social implications.	Students take roles representing the following different factions involved in the controversy of building the Three Gorges Dam: the Director of the dam project, villagers who will lose their homes, and environmentalists. The students, in character, then participate in a mock town meeting to discuss the long term effects of building the dam.
Team - Marco of the Million Lies? *Kids Version available Story of Marco Polo's journey from Venice to Beijing. History and description of Yuan dynasty and Kublai Khan	For discussion: What would it be like to enter a culture for the first time that was completely unlike your own? What might have been similar, nonetheless? Activity: Teachers would present students with Chinese art books and have the students pick out which artifacts they would choose as representative of the Chinese culture to bring back to Venice.
Kavitha - Youth in Power: The Red Guards of Communist China *Kids Version available The team reflects on the role of youth, especially the Red Guards, during the Cultural Revolution.	Watch the ABC afterschool special program called "The Wave" in class. Follow-up: Compare and contrast the two situations involved in the article and the movie where someone in power convinces youth to follow their dictate.
Abeja - Dragons, Temples, and Mighty Rivers - Where Legend and History Swirl Together The Team visits the ancient irrigation project in Dujiangyan, China, built in the 3rd century BC by a man named Li Bing during the Warring States Period at the end of the Zhou Dynasty. Learn about the project, the temples built to honor them, and the legend of the dragon buried under the massive irrigation canal.	Have the students create their own legends behind the construction of their school. Discuss further study of the religions practised during this time period in history inluding other myths, legends, and temples.

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