Religion, culture, and local history
Developed by: Lisa Hairston

 Summary: The class will make detailed directions to each cemetery using the GPS from a known location [IH 35]. Locate additional information on the cemetery name and investigate the burial customs of the Christian religion and contrast it with another religions burial customs.
Connection to Curriculum: The Global Issues High School class is studying the cultures, climate, and geography of the world. As part of the Social Studies and Special Topics TEKS the student will use primary and secondary sources to acquire information. They will use critical thinking skills to locate, organize, analyze and use data collection to formulate theories of the cultures of different religions and compare other burial customs to a local burial customs.
Time: This unit will cover several class periods and 2 field trips.
Season: This unit could be taught any time during the year.
Materials:
Alphasmart 2000
GPS
Internet
Research books
Digital Camera
Computer workstations with printer
Objectives:
The student will be able to give detailed directions to a place using specific landmarks.
The student will be able to understand the burial customs associated with different religions.
The student will be able to compare and contrast the burial customs of two religions.
The student will be able to identify the impact of geography on burial customs.
The student will have the knowledge of the GPS to show and teach a 3rd grade student how to use it.
The student will teach a 3rd grade student how to use a digital camera and take photos of headstones.
The student will mentor 3rd grade student in math, graphing and directional skills.
Procedure:
The student will be shown the proper use of the GPS.
The student will be shown the proper use of the Alphasmart in cataloging the cemetery records.
The student will investigate the name of the cemetery on the Internet and in local history materials.
The student will research the burial customs of different religions with research materials found in the library, on the Internet and through other sources.
The student on the field trip will catalog 10 different headstones, take digital photos of the headstone and compare for correctness.
The student will take the GPS and from IH 35 make detailed directions to the cemetery.
The student will mentor the 3rd grade class in their objectives.
The student will compare and contrast in a paper the burial customs of two religions.
Questions:
What assumptions can you make from the information you gathered in the cemetery?
Identify what information is found on headstones in the cemetery?
Why do you think that information is historically significant?
Can you identify the religion from the headstone?
Explain why geography could play a part in a burial custom?
Identify why burial customs and death customs are a part of a culture.
Identify differences in burial customs over the time from the first to the last burial in a cemetery.
Why would there be a difference in cemetery customs in one religion?
What is changing in burial customs in this century?
Evaluation:
The student with the use of digital photos will verify all data cataloged at the cemetery. The student will also check the 3rd grade student’s data entry. The student will write a paper answering above questions, using proper grammar, bibliographic information and research skills this paper will be turned in to the teacher.
Expanding the lesson:
Research Native American burial customs.
Identify different motifs found in cemeteries and their significance.
Identify and explain why certain materials were used in headstones and around burial plots.
Research materials used in burial containers and customs from past decades.
Identify and explain the introduction of standards and laws concerning burial and cemeteries up to the present day.
Resources:
Printed materials:
Barley, Nigel : Grave matters: alively history of death around the world -- Holt, New York, 1997.
Bergin, Edward : Definitive guide to underground humor: Offbeat Pub. 1997.
Brood, Jeffery :World religions – Saint Mary’s Press, Winona, Minn. , 1998.
Brown, Stephen F. :Christianity -- Facts on File, New York, 1991.
Colman, Penny: Corpes, coffins and crypts: a history of burial – Holt, New York, 1997
Fale, Timothy, ed. : Worldmark encyclopedia of Cultures and daily life, Gale, Detroit, c 1998.
Gordon, Melton: Encyclopedia of American religions – Gale, Detroit, 1999.
Gordon, Matthew : Islam – Facts on File, New York, 1991.
Hagen, Steven: Buddhism plain and simple, -- Broadway Books, New York, 1999.
Hartz, Paula : Native American Religions – Facts on File, New York, 1997.
Hartz, Paula : Shinto – Facts on File, New York, 1997.
Hirschfelder, Arlene: Encyclopedia of Native American religions: Gale: Detroit, 1999.
Hoobler, Thomas : Confucianism, -- Facts on File, New York, 1993
Jacobs, Louis : Jewish religion, a companion – Oxford Univ. Press., New York, 1995.
Keister, Douglas:Going out in style : architecture of eternity – Facts on File, New York, c1997.
Maestro, Guilio : Story of Religion – Clarion Books, New York: 1996.
Morrison, Martha :Judaism – Facts on File, New York, c 1991.
Rushton, Lucy :Death customs – Raintree Steck Vaughn , Austin, Tex, 1993.
Singh, Nikky :Sikhism – Facts on File, New York, 1993.
Wangu, Madhu : Buddhism , -- Facts on File, New York, , 1993
Wilkinson, Philip : Celebration of customs – Facts on Filel, New York: 1997.
Wilkinson, Philip Illustrated dictionary of religion – DK Pub. New York, 1991.
  
Internet Resources:
The student will review one Internet web site and evaluate it against the Website Criteria Scale.


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