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Another burka in the wall

From the teacher’s notes in ISLAM: A Simulation of Islamic History and Culture, presented as evidence in a lawsuit filed against the Byron Union School District in California on behalf of Christian students attending Byron/Excelsior Public School. As part of the simulation, seventh-grade students were instructed to memorize Muslim prayers and to imitate fasting during Ramadan by skipping lunch. The suit is currently pending before the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals.

How will ISLAM work? For about three weeks, your students will simulate becoming Muslims. Your students will be assigned to a city, choose an Arabic name, and compete in several phases of the simulation.

As in other cultures, appropriate clothing is worn according to the dictates of climate, occasion, etc. Boys could wear an Islamic head covering, or “kaffiyeh,” held in position by a head cord, or “agal.” For girls, a long-sleeved dress, or “chador,” can be used and the head covered by a scarf. If a parent or student is good at sewing, a possible activity would be to use an appropriate design for everyone in a group. This could really build group loyalty. Stress that those students who do not dress up will not be allowed to actively participate and must sit at the back of the room.

To give extra flavor to the presentation, you should use proper phrases like “God willing” and “Allah has power over all things.”

Perhaps, to capture a mood, you could locate and play Arab music or music from other Muslim countries. A stirring substitute for difficult-to-find Middle Eastern music could be the music from Lawrence of Arabia, available on videocassette and CD.

Efforts such as these can make your time during ISLAM much more rewarding.

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SEE ALSO: Islam; Religion in the public schools

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