Sinai 7th Grade: 2/1/2015

In our 2/1/15 class, we began reviewing The Enlightenment and Jewish Emancipation in Europe from sections of the textbooks Journey Through Jewish History, The History of the Jewish People and The Atlas of Great Jewish Communities.   This will be a first lesson to be continued next week.  We are focusing on the conditions, events, impact, and timeline.

We talked a little bit about identity, racism, and ways people describe people of different races and cultures.  We also discussed the concepts of ghettos, shtetls, and many more of the actual events. 

Due to the recent events in France, we discussed aspects of this article,  The History of Jews in France in 6 Key Moments:

http://time.com/3669544/history-jews-in-france/

1. The French Revolution
2. Napoleon and the Great Sanhedrin
3. The Dreyfus Affair
4. The Holocaust
5. Jewish Migration from North Africa
6. Jewish-Muslim Tensions

We discussed the fact that Jews have been leaving France the last few years,  due to a rise in European and Muslim anti-semitisim from the 3rd most populous Jewish country in the world, after the US and Israel.

11:30AM - 12PM:  Art

Leah continued the project with the students working on getting their designs on to their tallits.

12-12:30PM:  Music

Mark played a number of examples of Israeli popular and rock music for the students today.  They discussed the meaning of the songs, the music, and styles.  Older and contemporary, with different influences.   He told them that the music was easy to relate to, referencing what they've heard in American music.  Next week he will bring in Israeli music of African, Greek and Arab influences.

Sinai 7th Grade: 1/25/2015

Thanks to Loren Israel (Kayla's Dad), who taught the 7th grade class,  last week, as I was out of town for my Father's 89th birthday.

Here was the itinerary for that session on 1/25/15:

10-11AM:  Torah Aura with Loren!

Loren presented situations where the students engaged in discussions about context, principles, ethics, and best choices based upon the You Be The Judge materials.

You Be the Judge books pose real-life situations and their Jewish answers. These legal cases are perfect as part of family or Shabbat programs, as the trigger to fun class discussions, equally usable at the dinner table and in the classroom. Here are three chances to share values, discuss ethics, and take a first look into the Talmud, the codes, and the wisdom of the Jewish legal process.

Each of these cases is drawn from the headlines. Here are real or realistic ethical problems that are submitted to the test of Jewish law in order to find “the right solution.” This book contains more than fifty cases and the Jewish responses to each case.

http://www.torahaura.com/item_You_Be_the_Judge_Book_One.aspx

11-11:30AM:  Facts About Israel

    ▪    Reviewed the lists of facts with the students. 
    ▪    Asked them to comment on them. 
    ▪    Did they know about these facts?
    ▪    What did they think of them?
    ▪    Did it change their viewpoints or perceptions on Israel one way or another?

11:30AM - 12PM:  Timeline of Historical Events in Israel

    ▪    Reviewed highlights on the timeline with the students.

    ▪    Shared historical context.

    ▪    Asked for comments, questions, and information about these events.

12 - 12:30PM:  Music With Mark