Activity 01
Jigsaw: Rise Factors
Divide class into expert groups on ideology, geopolitics, funding, or propaganda. Each group prepares a 3-minute presentation with evidence from primary sources. Regroup into mixed teams to share and synthesize findings into a class concept map.
Analyze the ideological and geopolitical factors that contributed to the rise of ISIS.
Facilitation TipBefore the Jigsaw Research, assign each group a distinct factor (e.g., oil funding, sectarian tensions) and provide a clear one-page source set to prevent overlap.
What to look forPose the question: 'How does the use of social media by groups like ISIS fundamentally alter the nature of warfare and state control compared to previous conflicts?' Facilitate a class discussion, encouraging students to cite specific examples of propaganda and recruitment.
UnderstandAnalyzeEvaluateRelationship SkillsSelf-Management
Generate Complete Lesson→· · ·
Activity 02
Debate Carousel: Counter-Strategies
Pairs prepare arguments for or against strategies like airstrikes, ground troops, or sanctions. Rotate to debate three stations, noting strengths and weaknesses on shared charts. Conclude with whole-class vote and reflection.
Explain how non-state actors challenge traditional notions of warfare and sovereignty.
Facilitation TipSet a 6-minute timer for each carousel station in Debate Carousel so students focus on concise counterarguments rather than long speeches.
What to look forProvide students with a short case study (e.g., the Battle of Mosul, the fall of Raqqa). Ask them to identify two ideological factors and two geopolitical factors that influenced the conflict's outcome and the role of non-state actors.
AnalyzeEvaluateCreateDecision-MakingSelf-Management
Generate Complete Lesson→· · ·
Activity 03
Gallery Walk: Source Analysis
Post 8-10 document excerpts around room, covering ISIS propaganda, UN reports, and eyewitness accounts. Small groups visit stations, annotate impacts on stability, then report key insights to class.
Evaluate the effectiveness of international efforts to counter extremist groups.
Facilitation TipFor the Gallery Walk, number each source and require students to annotate with sticky notes, forcing close reading of both text and visuals.
What to look forOn an index card, have students write one sentence explaining how ISIS challenged traditional notions of sovereignty and one sentence evaluating the success of a specific international counter-terrorism strategy discussed in class.
UnderstandApplyAnalyzeCreateRelationship SkillsSocial Awareness
Generate Complete Lesson→· · ·
Activity 04
Simulation Game: Coalition Negotiation
Assign roles as nations in Global Coalition. In small groups, negotiate responses to ISIS advances using scenario cards. Debrief on sovereignty challenges and real outcomes.
Analyze the ideological and geopolitical factors that contributed to the rise of ISIS.
Facilitation TipIn Simulation: Coalition Negotiation, provide role cards with conflicting interests to ensure productive conflict and negotiation rather than friendly agreement.
What to look forPose the question: 'How does the use of social media by groups like ISIS fundamentally alter the nature of warfare and state control compared to previous conflicts?' Facilitate a class discussion, encouraging students to cite specific examples of propaganda and recruitment.
ApplyAnalyzeEvaluateCreateSocial AwarenessDecision-Making
Generate Complete Lesson→A few notes on teaching this unit
Teach this topic by balancing geopolitical context with human stories. Avoid framing ISIS purely as a religious phenomenon; instead, use timeline activities to show how groups emerge from state collapse and regional rivalries. Research suggests students grasp complexity better when they compare ISIS to other non-state actors like Hezbollah or the Taliban, highlighting continuities in warfare rather than seeing ISIS as a unique aberration.
Students should leave able to trace how power vacuums, ideology, and geopolitics intertwined to shape ISIS’s expansion and assess the limits of counter-strategies. Evidence of this understanding appears in their research notes, debate arguments, and source annotations.
Watch Out for These Misconceptions
During Jigsaw Research: Rise Factors, students might claim ISIS rose solely from religious fanaticism.
During Jigsaw Research, assign each group a different cause (oil funding, sectarianism, foreign fighters) and require them to map how these factors interacted, forcing students to recognize multiple drivers in their final presentations.
During Timeline activities with peers, students may argue that non-state actors like ISIS represent a new threat to sovereignty.
During Timeline activities, have students plot Al-Qaeda and other groups alongside ISIS to show historical precedents, using their timelines to argue that warfare forms evolve rather than appear abruptly.
During Debate simulations, students might assert that international efforts completely defeated ISIS.
During Debate Carousel, require students to cite evidence about territorial loss versus ongoing affiliate activity, ensuring their arguments address both successes and persistent challenges in counter-terrorism.
Methods used in this brief