Media Menu for April 16, 2011

Here are home viewing suggestions for the week, selected from online advanced TV program listings and aligned with the state and national K-12 academic standards available online. Please consult local listings also, since actual broadcast times may vary. The Websites cited in the “Log on“ box below the TV listing provide further details about the show’s topic and may contain links to video clips from the show or a complete streaming video version of the show.

Saturday, April 16, 2011,
8-9 p.m. E/P
National Geographic Channel
World History
Elementary, Middle and High School

“Great Expeditions: China’s Valley Of The Kings” (pyramids weren’t only in Egypt and Mexico)

China's second imperial dynasty, the Han, constructed a awesome city of the dead - a series of spectacular tombs, many of which still exist today. They built the tombs large enough to command respect and establish their right to rule, but were challenged to do so without bankrupting the national treasury and oppressing thousands of workers. This documentary journeys back to this ancient world to see how the Han expanded the mega-tomb concept.
Log on http://channel.nationalgeographic.com/series/great-expeditions/5025/Overview?source=email_channel#tab-Overview#ixzz1JG4dQ9nN

Saturday, April 16, 2011,
9 -10 p.m. ET, 6-7 p.m. PT
National Geographic Channel
U.S. History
Elementary, Middle and High School

“The Real George Washington " (more sneaky than you think)

This is a documentary about recently discovered ruins of George Washington's childhood home which provide insight into the father of our country. Despite claiming to never tell a lie, he was involved in espionage during the Revolution.
Log on http://channel.nationalgeographic.com/series/explorer/3618/Overview#ixzz1ImrDxCZX

Sunday, April 17, 2011,
9-9:30 p.m. E/P
Nickelodeon Channel
U.S. History
Elementary, Middle and High School

“Nick News with Linda Ellerbee, “Freedom to Believe…or Not” (kids and religion)

Airing on Palm Sunday and the day before Passover this news program’s topic is kids and religion. The First Amendment to the Constitution was intended to prevent there ever being one official American religion. Most Americans are Christian, however, and according to a Pew Research Center poll, 67 % of Americans believe this is a Christian nation. Officially. In this program kids from across the country share their views on this divisive topic. The special also features commentary from Pat Robertson, founder of the Christian Broadcast Network and host of The 700 Club, and Barry Lynn, the executive director of Americans United for Separation of Church and State. “For some kids, the freedom to believe has become truly personal,” said Ellerbee. “There are kids caught in a crossfire of belief in communities where to be different is to be scary. There are kids who are atheists, who endure discrimination and sometimes persecution, although they have the right not to believe in a god. And there are kids who say that it’s not about what you believe, but the rights of other people to believe what they believe.” Salim, a 14-year-old Muslim living in Murfreesboro, Tenn. is one of three Muslims in his school. The mosque he and his family attend would like to expand, but there has been opposition and it has turned violent. Salim feels the people who oppose the mosque oppose his religion, and, therefore, his rights as a citizen. In Auburn, Ala., Duncan, 14, is an atheist looking to start a free-thinking group at school. While Duncan doesn’t want anything more than the school’s Christian groups have, he and his friends can’t find a single teacher willing to sponsor their group.While people have gone to war over religion since the beginning of time, at Interfaith Action, Inc., a group of 80 diverse teens from Sharon, Mass., are going to “peace” over religion. The group describes itself an organization that works to bring together people of different faiths and religions. Among the members are Jews, Christians, Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists and Atheists. Says one of the kids, “We take negative discussions about religion and make them positive.”
Log on http://news.nick.com/04/2011/08/what-do-you-believe/


Monday, April 18, 2011,
9-10:30 p.m. E/P
PBS
Science and U.S. History
Elementary, Middle and High School

“AMERICAN MASTERS: John Muir in the New World” (he started environmentalism)

Nearly a century after his death, John Muir is remembered and revered as the father of the environmental movement and the founder of the Sierra Club. It was this Scottish American who believed that it was our responsibility as citizens to protect our natural surroundings. And, by example and by passion, he taught us how to care for our wilderness treasures. Through his tireless advocacy and his writings, he almost single-handedly preserved the Yosemite Valley of California and was the force behind the creation of the National Park Service. Filmed throughout the majestic landscapes in which Muir traveled, this documentary places our nation’s most important wilderness assets in a cultural and social context. Muir’s story could not be a timelier reminder of America’s unique and, ultimately, threatened eco-systems. TV-G
Log on http://www.pbs.org/wnet/americanmasters/episodes/john-muir-in-the-new-world/about-the-film/1789/

Tuesday, April,19, 2011,
8-9 p.m. E/P
PBS
World History
Middle and High School

“Black In Latin America: Haiti & the Dominican Republic: An Island Divided” (black power south of the border)

This is the initial episode in a documentary miniseries in which Harvard scholar Henry Louis Gates Jr. uncovers the African roots in six Latin-American countries. In this Part, “Haiti & the Dominican Republic: An Island Divided”, Gates explores how race has been socially constructed in a society whose people reflect centuries of inter-marriage and how the country’s troubled history with Haiti informs notions about racial classification. In Haiti, Gates tells the story of the birth of the first-ever black republic and finds out how the slaves’ hard-fought liberation over Napoleon Bonaparte’s French Empire became a double-edged sword. Subsequent episodes air weekly in this timeslot. TV-PG
Log on http://www.pbs.org/wnet/americanmasters/episodes/john-muir-in-the-new-world/about-the-film/1789/

Wednesday, April 20, 2011,
10 -11p.m. ET/PT
National Geographic Channel
World History
High School

“Inside the Muslim Brotherhood” (threat, or part of the solution)

In January and February 2011, millions of Egyptians took to the streets to overthrow the oppressive government of President Hosni Mubarak. The catalyst to this revolution, which enabled large numbers of protesters to organize themselves, was social networking sites on the internet such as Facebook. While many observers described the revolution as a secular movement of disaffected middle class youth, this documentary discusses the role of Egypt’s largest opposition group and reveals what the future may hold as the country finally emerges from Mubarak’s regime. In interviews, leading figures within the 83-year-old Islamist group reveal how it kept popular support and stayed organized despite being officially banned for the last 60 years. We’ll see how the Muslim Brotherhood is struggling to reconcile its goal of creating an Islamic state with the hunger for democratic rights at the center of the revolution. “There was a national state of emergency which made it difficult for young Egyptians to meet. So they resorted to working underground or socializing online by using Facebook, Twitter or Yahoo,” said Sherif Abdel-Rahman, a 20-year member of the organization. He claims that 70 percent of the registered members of the Facebook page that helped ignite the protests were members of the Muslim Brotherhood. This program also delves into the history of the world’s largest Islamic organization. Both a religious and a political group advocating the teachings of the Quran, the secretive organization went underground in the 1950s, and for most of its history, its Egyptian members have faced routine arrest and torture. But even underground, they have maintained a close relationship with the Egyptian populace through humanitarian efforts and other endeavors .Elections are due later this year, and already the Muslim Brotherhood are the front-runners. Will they achieve their long-term ambition to turn Egypt into an Islamic state? See how the Muslim Brotherhood maintains daily contact with the voters in addition to their humanitarian efforts, which help them to win hearts and minds.
Log on http://channel.nationalgeographic.com/episode/inside-the-muslim-brotherhood-6541/Overview

Wednesday, April 20, 2011,
10:00-11:00 p.m. E/P
PBS
Science and Geography
Elementary, Middle and High School

“SAVING THE BAY” (examples of how to clean up the water near your town)

San Francisco Bay is the largest estuary on the Pacific Coast of both North and South America, but it is also the most invaded aquatic ecosystem in North America. Narrated by Robert Redford, the award-winning documentary explores how the Bay was almost lost to landfill schemes ranging from the daring to the deranged, and celebrates the more recent restoration and expansion of this once threatened treasure. Narrated by Robert Redford, the program consists of four one-hour episodes focusing on the geological, cultural, and developmental history of San Francisco Bay and the larger northern California watershed, from the Sierra Nevada mountains to the Farallon Islands in the Pacific Ocean. The series explores the Bay’s evolution, how it was almost lost to development, and plans for the future, including wetland restoration, increased public access, and balancing the often competing needs of a fragile ecosystem that is the centerpiece of a major urban area. The program also tells the story of three women who rallied an entire region to save San Francisco Bay from becoming little more than a river, an inspirational example of how ordinary citizens can have an impact on protecting and enhancing our natural environment. This first hour introduces the first inhabitants along the Bay’s shores and continues through European exploration and settlement, including Spanish, Russian and American influences . Airdate: 4/20/2011 The second hour follows San Francisco’s “rapid monstrous maturity” into a major metropolis following the California Gold Rush. Airdate: 4/27/2011. The third hour of the series begins with The Great Earthquake and Fire of 1906, the rise of California’s water re-distribution projects and the Bay's transformation into the world's greatest shipbuilding center by the close of World War II. Airdate: 5/4/2011. In the final episode, the very survival of the Bay is threatened by the postwar boom and the issue becomes how best to balance the competing demands of a major urban center set amidst an environmentally significant landscape. Airdate: 5/11/2011. TV-PG
Log on http://pressroom.pbs.org/Search.aspx?title=SAVING THE BAY&type=episode&sort=alpha

Thursday, April 21, 2011,
10-11 p.m. E/P
CNBC Channel
Science and Economics
Middle and High School

“FUEL” ( how it’s OK to use less gas and oil)

Josh Tickell’s multi-award winning film may be known by some as the "little energy documentary," but in truth, it’s a powerful portrait of America’s overwhelming addiction to, and reliance on, oil. He decided to make a film, focusing both on the knowledge and insight he discovered, but also giving hope that solutions are within reach. Just a ‘regular guy,’ he spent 11 years making his movie, showing himself – and others – that an individual can indeed make a difference.
Log on http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1294164/


Friday, April 22, 2011,
all day Earth Day
Outdoor and Indoor Activity - Locations Nationwide
Science and Economics
Elementary, Middle and High School

“Earth Day 365: Going Beyond Earth Day ” (get outside and get green)

This April 22 more than 1 billion people around the world will be participating in Earth Day events. But after Earth Day is done, what can we take away from it? Will it be one day of mobilization and then back to the norm? We just can't afford that. Resolve to make this Earth Day actionable with tips from the websites shown below. Forty years ago, Earth Day was conceived as an annual event to inspire awareness and appreciation of the environment. Since then, we have come to realize that Earth Day should, indeed, be every day. That's the reason for the round-up of info below - is rounding up activities near you and across the country and covering the biggest celebrations—today and through the weekend.
Log on http://planetgreen.discovery.com/feature/earth-day/ and http://planetgreen.discovery.com/feature/earth-day/earth-day-treehugger.html

Saturday April 23, 2011,
4-5 p.m. E/P
History Channel
Science and World History
Middle and High School

“The Real Face of Jesus?” (about the Shroud Of Turin)

This science documentary, airing the evening before Easter Sunday, examines the Shroud of Turin, recently put on public display for the first time in 10 years. New data reveals more than just a flat image embedded in the ancient cloth, but an astonishing, three-dimensional, sculpture-like figure. Using the principles of physics, cutting-edge digital technology, and revolutionary CGI processes the program brings that image to life, unveiling the most accurate representation ever seen of what many believe to be Jesus Christ. TV-PG .
Log on http://www.history.com/shows/the-real-face-of-jesus/articles/the-technology