Muhammad: Legacy of a Prophet

Student Note Grids

By Susan L. Douglass and Aiyub Palmer

Overview

This brief procedure provides a format that helps students take notes on the film Muhammad: Legacy of a Prophet. The grid assists students in organizing their notes, and is necessary for completion of activities in several of the lessons.

Objectives

Students should be able to:

• Plan and record information from a visual and audio source
• Differentiate types and topics of information provided in the film
  Muhammad: Legacy of a Prophet

Procedure

1. Prepare the students to take notes on the concept of prophethood in Islam. They will record these different roles and the comments made about these roles by using Student Handout 1: Note-taking Grid on The Concept of Prophethood, of which students should receive 2 copies or one 2-sided handout. The following questions can be answered by the notes students make on the grid.
   
   
   • What roles did Muhammad play during his life?
     
     
   • What types of leadership did he carry out in his society?
     
     
   • What did the people in the film say about his leadership?
     
     
   
   
2. Prepare the students to take notes on the film by giving each student four single-sided copies or two 2-sided copies of Student Handout 2: Note-taking Grid on Muhammad's Life and Impact. Tell the students that the three different columns in the grid correspond to the three main categories of information in the film, which are indicated by the column headings.
   
   
3. Discuss the note-taking column format for viewing the film with the class and explain how it will be used.
   
   Notes in the first column will answer the question:
   
   
   • What were the major events in Muhammad’s life and in the community’s development, described in the film in chronological order?
   
   Notes in the second column will answer the following questions:
   
   
   • What are the personal qualities that a Muslim strives to achieve?
   • How did Muhammad model those qualities in his life?
   
   Notes in the third column will answer the following question:
   • How do the American Muslims in the film view Islam and Muhammad’s example as models for their own lives and modern conditions?

   The answers on the grid will help students complete many of the lessons in this collection. Tell students they may also create their own information anchors such as subject headings and keywords.