Honors English 9 and social studies classes were transformed on Thursday, January 19 as the classes traveled to the high school library to talk with Margaret Fontaine about her life as a Muslim American.

     Fontaine’s visit supplements a cross-curricular teaching unit that pairs the honors English 9 classes’ study of Persepolis, the graphic novel by Marjane Satrapi which discusses her experiences during the Iranian Revolution, with the honors social studies classes’ exploration of Middle Eastern history.

 According to honors English 9 teacher Rachael Zimmerman, “[Persepolis] provides ample opportunity for students to examine the influences that contribute to a writer’s perspective.  Students then compare this perspective to their own knowledge base, the media, the speaker, and a variety of other sources.” Rarely do students have the opportunity to explore such a different perspective on a text.

     During Fontaine’s talk, students learned some basic concepts of the Muslim faith, experienced accounts of daily and religious life, and were encouraged to ask questions about any element of the informational presentation.

     Fontaine spoke openly about her decision to convert from Catholicism to Islam during her time as a student at The Ohio State University. She shared how she thoroughly researched the religion and how that decision has impacted her family and herself.

     Fontaine ended her presentation by discussing the hijab, or scarf, worn by Muslim women. After sharing images of the various ways the hijab is worn around the world, Fontaine allowed students to examine some of her own hijab up close.

     Freshman Gavin Frick appreciated the content of the presentation, saying, “It helped me reflect on the book. The first two sections of the book were confusing because we didn’t have the background.”

     Fontaine’s informational presentation is one of many ways that Zimmerman and social studies teacher Megan Brar have scaffolded the students’ exposure to the topics of both war and the Muslim faith. Zimmerman also shares a letter with parents, inviting them to join the discussion with their students in the evenings to help bridge student understanding.

     According to Zimmerman, “Our classroom setting provides a safe environment where students can explore and ask questions about difficult topics.”