Pope's Death

Pope John Paul's death brings into focus the fact that over half the people living have known no other Pope. Combining this with the facts that he was from Communist Poland and caused shock throughout Poland and the Soviet Union could be the basis for a great history lesson plan. So many students do not remember the stunned broadcasters announcing his election and the carefully worded statements from the Communist bloc countries nor do they understand the reason for these careful statements. I think this could be a very dyamic history lesson combining the fall of Communism with a study of his papacy.