TEACHER’S GUIDE TEACHER’S GUIDE TEACHER’S GUIDE

• Have students research the major elements of a typical medieval • www.ceu.hu/medstud/manual/MMM/home.html monastery, including the chapter house, cloisters, refectory, scriptorium, “The Medieval Manuscript Manual” presents a great deal of information infirmary and fields and gardens. Using this information, students can about the creation of illustrated manuscripts during the Middle Ages. then design their own medieval monastery! Encourage students to draw Aspects of the actual materials and techniques of this art are described in a detailed floor plan for their monastery. (See www.officine.it/monte- detail, in conjunction with clear illustrations. cassino/tour_e/index.html for an example of a medieval monastery’s floor plan.) • Many different monastic orders were founded during the Middle Ages, Suggested Print Resources like the Cistercians, Cluniacs, Augustinians, Premonstratians and • Child, John, Nigel Kelly and Martyn Whittock. The Crusades. P.Bedrick, Carthusians. In small groups, students can research these monastic New York, NY; 1996. orders and find out what each order was known for, how strict it was, • Hinds, Kathryn. Life in the Middle Ages: The Church. Benchmark Books, where it was located and who founded it.Then students can find similar- New York, NY; 2000. ities and differences among these different groups. • Robertson, Bruce. Marguerite Makes a Book. J. Paul Getty Museum, Los • Encourage students to research famous medieval nuns like Hilda of Angeles, CA; 1999.This story describes Marguerite, a French girl from the Whitby, who established several monasteries that became great centers 1400s, who carries on her father’s profession of manuscript illumination. of learning, and Herrad of Landsberg, who was the head of a monastery • Sherrow,Victoria. Life in a Medieval Monastery. Lucent Books, San Diego, and created a medieval encyclopedia called The Garden of Delights. CA; 2001. • Music played an important role in the religious services of medieval • Temple, Frances. The Ramsay Scallop. Orchard Books, New York, NY; monks. Students can listen to chants and religious music from the 1994.This fictional account details the adventures of a young girl and boy THE MONK Middle Ages. (See classicalmus.hispeed.com/medieval.html for some in the 1300s who are prompted by the village priest to take a religious pil- examples.) grimage together. • Medieval monks ate a very simple diet of bread, eggs, cheese, fish and vegetables.Try a monastic style of cooking using recipes from a book his guide is a supplement designed for teachers like From a Monastery Kitchen by d’Avila-Latourrette (Gramercy Books, TEACHER’S GUIDE T to use when presenting programs in the video 2000). series Life in the Middle Ages. • As a class, research information about medieval monasteries in terms of Kristen Lovett Casel, M.S. where they were located, when they were built, and the design elements Curriculum Specialist, Before Viewing: Give students an introduction they contained. Using a large map of Europe, encourage students to map Schlessinger Media the location of each of the monasteries they researched. to the program by relaying aspects of the summary COMPLETE LIST OF TITLES to them. Select pre-viewing discussion questions Suggested Internet Resources • THE DOCTOR • THE MONK and vocabulary to provide a focus for students Periodically, Internet Resources are updated on our Web site at • A HISTORY OF THE MIDDLE AGES • THE NOBLE when they view the program. www.LibraryVideo.com • THE KNIGHT • THE SERF After Viewing: Review the program and vocabu- • www.officine.it/montecassino/main_e.htm • THE MERCHANT • SOCIAL STRUCTURE This Web site offers information about the Montecassino monastery, IN THE MIDDLE AGES lary, and use the follow-up questions and activities founded by St. Benedict in about 529. Students can learn about the to inspire continued discussion. Encourage students history of the monastery and details about St. Benedict’s life, in addition to taking a beautiful virtual visit of the monastery’s grounds. to research the topic further with the Internet and print resources provided. • www.leavesofgold.org/# Teacher’s Guides Included “Leaves of Gold” is sponsored by the Philadelphia Museum of Art, and and Available Online at: 800-843-3620 offers a beautiful collection of different types of medieval illuminated manuscripts for viewing. Students visiting this site can also make their CHLESSINGE

own illuminated manuscript online. MEDIA ® A DIVISION OF LIBRARY VIDEO COMPANY S ® R • emuseum.mankato.msus.edu/history/middleages/nun.html CHLESSINGE Minnesota State University sponsors this “Nun’s Realm” page, which fea- Copyright 2002 by Schlessinger Media, a division of Library Video Company MEDIA ® A DIVISION OF LIBRARY VIDEO COMPANY tures information about how the medieval Church worked, and how P.O. Box 580,Wynnewood, PA 19096 • 800-843-3620 S ® R monks and nuns lived during this time. Executive Producers, Andrew Schlessinger & Tracy Mitchell (Continued) Programs produced and directed by Tremendous! Entertainment, Inc. 5 All rights reserved. Program Summary novice — An adult member of a monastery who is in training to become a 11.What role did monks play in establishing schools? Medieval monks were religious men who often lived sequestered from monk, but has not yet taken final monastic vows.Adults are usually novices 12. How did people become nuns during the Middle Ages? society in self-contained monasteries.Although most monks in the Middle for about a year before taking their final vows and becoming a monk. 13.What responsibilities did medieval nuns have? Ages lived simple lives devoid of luxuries, there were benefits to living in friars — Religious men who devote themselves to a life of poverty and 14.Who were the Knights of the Temple, and what role did they play in monasteries during this time. Monks gained a sense of order, purpose and preaching. the Crusades? community in their lives, and they were often the most highly educated scriptorium — A special room in a medieval monastery where books were members of medieval society. Life in a monastery was often much safer than copied, or scribed, by monks. Follow-up Discussion life in the surrounding areas that were plagued with war, violence, confusion abbot — Ruler of a monastery. and hunger in many parts of Europe during the Middle Ages. Due to these • Have students discuss how the life of the medieval monk was different chant — Also known as plainsong, a simple religious song often sung by positive aspects of monastic life, wealthy and powerful members of the from that of the nun.What do these differences tell us about society in medieval monks. medieval nobility often wanted their children to become monks. Children the Middle Ages and its beliefs about women? learning to become monks were called oblates and were required to take cathedral schools — Medieval schools that often taught wealthy, noble • Discuss with students the potential conflicts of being both a knight, as a vows that dedicated them to a religious life. Medieval monks worked hard in children.These schools were usually held in cathedrals, or places of Christian member of the Templars, and a monk. Based upon what they know their monasteries, tending the fields, educating the oblates and copying and worship. about knights and monks, do students feel that one person could have illuminating manuscripts.Although many monks remained in monasteries nuns — Religious women who take vows of poverty and service. filled both roles effectively? their whole lives, some actually entered the Crusades in an order of knight- Crusades — A series of wars fought between Christians and Muslims during • Monks, although they often kept themselves separate from society, made hood called the Knights of the Temple, or Templars. the 11th to the 13th centuries in the hopes of taking possession of Jerusalem many contributions to the medieval world. Encourage students to and other places considered to be holy by the Christians. discuss these important duties performed by monks. Vocabulary Knights of the Temple — Also known as Knights Templar or Templars, • Brainstorm with students a list of motivating factors for becoming a this religious order of knighthood was established at the time of the Crusades monk — A religious man dedicated to a simple life devoid of luxuries. monk during the Middle Ages. Do students feel that these benefits out- in the Middle Ages. Medieval monks were devoted to study, prayer and manual labor, and were weighed the costs of being a monk? forbidden to possess personal property. Middle Ages — Also known as the medieval period, the time period that Pre-viewing Discussion Follow-up Activities stretched roughly from the 5th to the 15th century.The term was coined to • Medieval monasteries were the home to many religious people during the • Examine the Rule of St. Benedict in greater detail. (See www.fordham. describe the era in between the time of ancient Rome and the Renaissance. Middle Ages, like monks and nuns.These were places of quiet, solitude and edu/halsall/source/rul-benedict.html for a copy of the Rule.) Discuss monastery — Also known as an abbey, this residence is a place where com- prayer. Discuss with students what it might have been like to live in a with students why a rule like this one might help structure the lives of munities of monks vow to live their religious lives. Communities of nuns also monastery during this time. monks. Students can write their own “Rule” that provides guidelines for often live in monasteries, which are also called nunneries. • Monks often lived secluded from medieval society. Generate with students structuring their own lives. priest — A religious man appointed to represent the Church within a given a list of the pros and cons of being separated from the world. Can students • Monks developed their own form of sign language for communication parish. think of groups of people today who live in such a manner? during meals when they were prohibited to speak. Encourage students Church — The organization of believers in the Christian religion. • Christianity played a significant role during the Middle Ages, organizing to learn about other forms of sign language used today, like American parishes — Local Church communities, each with its own priest. society and promoting a spiritual life of medieval people. Encourage stu- Sign Language.Your class can even invite a sign language expert to visit dents to discuss the various roles that religion plays in today’s society. and to teach some basic skills of the language. Christianity — The religion derived from the life, teachings and death of Jesus Christ. • Medieval monks copied many books, and often decorated, or illumi- nated, these manuscripts with elaborate designs in gold, silver and bright St. Benedict — (c. 480–547) The writer of a monastic rule known as St. Focus Questions colors. Encourage students to research and examine manuscripts that Benedict’s (or Benedictine) Rule that described the balance of prayer, work 1.What is a monastery? were illuminated during the Middle Ages. (See wally.rit.edu/cary/manu- and study that many monks still follow today. 2.What are the differences between monks and priests? scripts/index.html and www2.art.utah.edu/Paging_Through/ for exam- matins — A religious service of morning prayers, often celebrated by monks 3.What kinds of families did most medieval monks come from? ples of illuminated medieval manuscripts.) Based upon this research, following St. Benedict’s Rule. 4.Why did nobles donate money to monasteries? students can create manuscripts of their own, using similar coloring and psalms — Religious songs or poems used during Christian religious ser- design to those of medieval artists. vices, often from the Book of Psalms in the Bible. 5.Who was St. Benedict, and why was he an important influence for medieval monks? • Students can learn more about the Knights Templar by reading the rules cassock — A shapeless garment worn by monks during the Middle Ages. that they lived by during the Middle Ages. (See orb.rhodes.edu/ Cassocks hung loosely on monks and were often made out of rough material. 6. Describe the type of clothing worn by monks. encyclop/religion/monastic/T_Rule.html for a translation of the original tonsure — The shaven crown of a monk’s head. 7. How did people become monks during the Middle Ages? Rule of the Templars.) Using this information, students can write an oblate — A child dedicated to a monastery by parents with the goal of even- 8.What were some of the rules of medieval monasteries? imaginary journal entry by a member of this religious order of knights that describes what his daily life was like, including information about tually becoming a monk. (Continued) 9.What responsibilities did medieval monks have? the type of clothing worn, activities participated in and food eaten 10. How did monks preserve texts of ancient literature? (Continued) during an average day. (Continued) 2 3 4