Instructor Resources
Please check our online resources below for K-12 educators, faculty, students, and the MESP community at large.
You may also contact us with questions you have about teaching topics related to the Middle East and North Africa.
Teaching Materials
Arab American history and culture
- Arab American National Museum — Resources for Educators — Lesson plans, virtual galleries, storytime videos, activities, and resources introducing Arab American history, culture, and contributions. Their English-Arabic Storytime is particularly appropriate for younger children.
- Arab American National Museum — Coming to America — Classroom activities about Arab immigration, including a suitcase activity and a lesson on Arab immigration.
- Arab American National Museum — Living in America — Activities exploring Arab American communities, activism, and everyday life.
Art, culture and religion
- Metropolitan Museum of Art — Art of the Islamic World — Excellent visual resource with lessons on Islamic art, calligraphy, geometric design, science, trade, and history. It can be adapted across K–12.
- Smithsonian National Museum of Asian Art — The Art of the Qur’an: Educator Resources — Art-based materials for introducing Islam and the Qur’an through manuscripts and visual culture.
Books and children’s literature
- Georgetown Center for Contemporary Arab Studies — Arts and Literature for Children and Youth — Children’s and young adult literature, music, poetry, and teaching materials that provide entry points into Middle Eastern cultures and experiences.
General Middle East resources
- TeachMideast — One of the most useful general resources for teachers. Includes country profiles, articles, videos, films, historical information, and classroom materials covering the Middle East and North Africa.
- Georgetown CCAS — Teaching Resources — K–14 materials on history, geography, religion, contemporary issues, literature, and culture.
- Georgetown CCAS — Geography, Travel & Trade — Particularly useful for world geography and global history, with materials on Ibn Battuta, Mansa Musa, Indian Ocean trade, cotton, and the incense routes.
Islam and world religions
- Stanford Program on Islamic Studies — K–12 Resources — Curated resources for teaching about Islam and Muslim societies, including materials from universities, museums, and educational organizations.
- Metropolitan Museum of Art — Art of the Islamic World — Lessons connecting Islamic art to history, mathematics, science, literature, and visual arts.
Arab American experiences
- Arab American National Museum — For Educators — K–12 lesson plans and multimedia materials on Arab American history, immigration, culture, and identity.
- Arab American National Museum — Tours and Educational Programs — Virtual and in-person programs specifically designed for elementary, middle, and high school groups.
Middle East history and contemporary issues
- PBS Global Connections — Middle East Educator Resources — Background readings, timelines, and lesson plans covering politics, religion, culture, economics, geography, natural resources, women, stereotypes, and U.S. foreign policy.
- PBS Global Connections — Lesson Plans — Classroom activities on mapping the Middle East, oil and water, political cartoons, women, religion, U.S. foreign policy, and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
- TeachMideast — Broad collection of country profiles, historical materials, films, articles, and classroom resources.
High school courses specifically focused on the Middle East
- Georgetown CCAS — Middle East Studies High School Curriculum — A complete high school elective curriculum introducing students to Middle East studies, including units on the region, gender and family, and Palestine/Israel/U.S. relations.
- Georgetown CCAS — Curriculum Materials — Teaching units on Arabs and Arab society, Islam, Islam and politics, and contemporary issues.
- Rethinking the Region — Online Educational Resources — A large collection of high-school lesson plans and resources covering Arab culture, history, literature, film, politics, economics, religion, and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Islam and Muslim societies
- Stanford Program on Islamic Studies — K–12 Educator Resources — Particularly strong for teaching Islam, Muslim societies, Iran, Islamic art, and the distinction between Arab and Muslim identities.
- Metropolitan Museum of Art — Art of the Islamic World — Seven substantial teaching units connecting Islamic art with history, literature, mathematics, science, geography, and trade.
Israel/Palestine and contemporary issues
- Georgetown CCAS — Teaching about Palestine — Historical and contemporary materials, including workshops, teach-ins, and resources designed for K–14 educators.
- Georgetown CCAS — Contemporary Issues in the MENA — Materials intended to help secondary teachers place current events in broader historical and regional contexts.
- List of Resources for Educators – Teaching on Genocide: This resource list includes genocides both past and present from around the world
Programs and Councils
Middle East Outreach Council (MEOC) — A national network of K–12 and college educators focused on improving understanding of the Middle East. Offers professional development information, a member forum, teaching resources, an annual meeting/workshop, and the Middle East Book Award for children’s and young adult literature.
TeachMideast — An educational outreach initiative of the Middle East Policy Council providing K–12 resources, workshops, webinars, and professional development for teachers incorporating the Middle East into social studies and area studies courses.
Georgetown University Center for Contemporary Arab Studies (CCAS) — K–14 Education Outreach — Offers teacher workshops, professional development, summer institutes, curriculum development, teaching units, and resources on the Middle East and North Africa. It has served thousands of educators through its outreach program.
University of Chicago Center for Middle Eastern Studies — Educational Outreach Provides teacher workshops, curriculum consulting, in-service presentations, public lectures, and other professional development for K–12 educators. It also hosts the Chicago Arabic Teachers Council.
University of Arizona Center for Middle Eastern Studies — K–12 Educator Programs — Offers professional development opportunities and lesson-plan competitions. Its Teachers Collaborating Across Borders (TCAB) program connects U.S. teachers with teachers in the Middle East and North Africa through international dialogue and virtual exchange.
Ohio State University Middle East Studies Center — Teacher Training — Provides summer institutes, short-term workshops, lecture series, field trips, online discussions, and other professional development for P–12 educators.
North Carolina Consortium for Middle East Studies — Teacher professional-development opportunities offered through the two universities’ Middle East studies outreach programs.
University of Chicago — Chicago Arabic Teachers Council (CATC) — A professional organization for K–12 Arabic educators in the Chicago area. Activities include workshops, conferences, and performances for Arabic teachers and students.