Tibetan Youth Immigrants in India

Grade Levels: 6 - 8

INTRODUCTION

This lesson will allow students to focus on the particular feelings and fears experienced by children who fled from Tibet to find freedom in India.

OBJECTIVES

Students will:

discuss an overview of the history of Tibet in the 20th century.

view paintings done by Tibetan youth living in India.

insert themselves into one of the paintings.

MATERIALS

World map or globe

Art Far from Home Worksheet

Websites about Tibet

Infoplease: Tibet
International Campaign for Tibet
Dalai Lama's Biography
Tibet At A Glance

PROCEDURE

1. Review what the students know about Tibet. Locate Tibet on a world map or globe. Tell them that although Tibet is today part of China, it was once an independent state, a self-governed country just like the United States. In 1951, however, the Chinese invaded Tibet. For more information about Tibet's history, visit Infoplease: Tibet and China, International Campaign for Tibet, or Tibetan Government in Exile: Tibet At A Glance.

2. Tell the students that the spiritual and political leader of Tibet is the Dalai Lama. Dalai Lama is a title similar to Pope. In 1959, the present Dalai Lama decided he must leave Tibet rather than submit to Chinese rule any longer. At just 24 years old, he and a group of monks – Tibetan elders who served as his teachers and advisors – made a dangerous trek to India, traveling through some of the world's highest mountains. In northern India, they established the Tibetan government in exile, where the Dalai Lama still lives and works today. Since then, many Tibetans have followed the Dalai Lama, making a similarly dangerous journey. Today, there are more than 120,000 Tibetans living in northern India. For more information about the Dalai Lama, view his official biography.

3. Have student view artwork done by Tibetan children on the web. They can visit Art Refuge or Tibetan Youth Paintings. It may also be helpful for them to explore other Tibetan art on the web. They can visit Early Paintings from Central Tibet or Contemporary Tibetan Art.

4. Divide students into cooperative groups. Have each group select a painting to examine and complete the worksheet.

ASSESSMENT

• If time permits, have each group share their painting and their reaction to it with the class.
• Use the Answer Key to evaluate student responses, or to lead a class discussion about their responses.

EXTENSION ACTIVITIES

• Compare and contrast the U.S. government (a democracy) and the Tibetan government (a theocracy).
• Have students research the Dalai Lama's award of the Nobel Peace Prize in 1989.
• Read about how Kosovar refugee children have used art: http://europe.cnn.com/HEALTH/9904/14/refugee.children/

STANDARDS CORRELATION

Understands instances of political conflict and terrorism in modern society

Understands the characteristics and merits of one's own artwork and the artwork of others

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