Great Reading: Bookmark It!

Volume 32, Number 2, December 2004

Websites

Islam & Muslims

Kate Houston Mitchoff

Understanding Islam and Muslims
www.islamicity.com/Mosque/uiatm/un_islam.htm

Prepared by The Islamic Affairs Departmentfrom the Embassy of Saudi Arabia in Washington, DC, this site answers basic questions about the Islam religion and Muslim people, including the importance of Muhammad and the five pillars of Islam.

Islam: Empire of Faith
www.pbs.org/empires/islam/

At this companion web site to a PBS program, students will learn about the Islamic faith, its beliefs and traditions, how the religion influences art, literature and architecture and how medieval Muslims greatly contributed to the study of math and science. Students can also review a timeline of the religion’s history and read short biographies of six significant Muslim people, including Muhammad, Saladin and Rumi. The site includes an Educator section that includes lesson plan ideas.

Islam
www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/islam/index.shtml

The BBC provides this well-organized and informational web site about the Islam religion. Students will learn about Islamic customs, beliefs, worship, history and holy days. Of particular interest is the explanation of the division between the Sunni and Shia people. The site also includes a glossary of terms.

The Islamic World to 1600
www.ucalgary.ca/applied_history/tutor/islam/

This site from the University of Calgary gives in-depth information about the beginnings of Islam. Students will learn about the birth of Islam in context with European history and the Persian, Byzantine and Roman empires. They will also better understand the political and cultural events that influenced the Islamic faith, including the first Islamic dynasty, Mongol invasions, and the rise of the great Islamic empires of the 15 th and 16 th centuries.

Kate Houston Mitchoff: School Corps Librarian, Multnomah County Library, Portland, OR.
E-mail Kate.