1. Set Focus
Pose this essential question: Why might an ethnic or religious group want its own nation?
2. List Vocabulary
Share some of the challenging vocabulary words in the article (see below). Encourage students to use context to infer meanings as they read.
- allotted (p. 18)
- partition (p. 18)
- provisional (p. 18)
- contending (p. 20)
- armistice (p. 20)
- retaliatory (p. 21)
3. Engage
Have students think about and predict the potential issues that would need to be considered when dividing a region among two peoples. Explain that students will read about the U.N.’s attempt in 1947 to give both Jews and Palestinians their own nations. As they read, students should think about why it didn’t work and the consequences of its failure.