Teach China covers a wide variety of topics relevant to all K-12 teachers and is consistent with national, state and local curricula including the National Standards for History, National Standards for Geography and the New York State Social Studies Standards. Through Teach China, K-12 teachers across the United States have a unique opportunity to participate in professional development courses taught by experts in the field, gain access to high quality curriculum materials, and travel to China on guided study tours. Participants and alumni of the program are also provided with the opportunity to leave their own mark by developing curriculum materials for Teach China. In addition to the excellent professional development opportunities provided on a day-to-day basis, the program offers a rich networking opportunity for teachers interested in interacting with other like-minded educators and experts who share a common vision of the need to provide today’s students with the kind of global education critical for success in the 21st Century.

Educators who participate in Teach China view Chinese history and culture through the multidisciplinary perspective of the social sciences, geography, religion and thought, literature, the visual arts, politics, the environment, film, popular culture, and other areas of interest to all grade levels. Enriched by this knowledge, these educators can strengthen their students’ cultural sensitivity, transporting them from the known and familiar to the unknown and unfamiliar, exciting their interest by exploring daily life and cultural change in the world’s oldest continuously existing society.

Our focus is not only China-specific themes, but also China’s relations with the world community: China’s role in cultural exchange and cultural diffusion is as old as the fabled Silk Roads and as new as the “Made in China” labels seen everywhere today.

The program is made possible through the generosity of the Freeman Foundation with additional support from the National Endowment for the Humanities, the United States Department of Education, and other private and public foundations.

CURRICULUM RESOURCES

Teach China with the help of teachers and scholars from all over the US develops new, accurate and interesting curriculum units closely aligned with national, state and New York City curriculum mandates and adaptable for educators at all levels throughout the United States.

Educators across the country are using Teach China’s award-winning book, From Silk to Oil: Cross Cultural Connections Along the Silk Roads, and accessing the program’s on-line units, which are readily available on this website.

Travel the deserts and mountain passes of Central Asia with From Silk to Oil: Cross-Cultural Connections Along the Silk Road. This book of global studies curriculum, funded by the U.S. Department of Education and produced by China Institute, begins in the second century BCE and ends in the contemporary period.

The twenty-three curriculum units consist of a lesson plan, written and visual documents, maps, tables, and even a Silk Roads board game. There is also a glossary; lists of additional resources; and a CD with the entire text and color images-including hotlinks to relevant websites-in PDF format.

From Silk to Oil is directed at teachers of high school world history, global studies, social studies, geography, literature, and art. Some units will also be suitable for advanced middle school, community college, and lower level university survey courses.

To order a copy, please e-mail chopping@chinainstitute.org.

SUMMER STUDY TOUR 2010

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