Hello All!
I am so excited to teach your 6th grader this
year! It’s going to be a fabulous year. The 6th grade
curriculum focuses on Jewish values, actions, mitzot and rituals via the lens
of a series of biblical narratives. We read sections of text that focus
on the Biblical figures of: Moses, Abraham and Caleb. The primary purpose
is to see each of these figures as men of ACTION, and men who stood above the
rest. We interpret their relationship with God, with themselves and with the
Jewish people Interestingly enough, we look at their foibles as well. How
did they struggle? What mistakes did they make? What could they have done
better. Our purpose is to learn from Abraham, Moses and Caleb and to find
the characteristics and actions that are relevant to us today, so that we can
use their stories as guides for our own decisions and goals.
It is a good thing that our focus is on the ACTION of
Judaism, because – boy oh boy – do we have an action packed class. I LOVE
the energy! We are going to great things! My teaching philosophy
also falls nicely with our focus; I believe that we learn from DOING things,
and as much as possible I will incorporate activities and movement into our
lessons. I know that 6th grade kids need to get up and MOVE, and
move we do! Actually, brain research shows us that we learn best when we
connect new information to a movement. So, when your kiddo is practicing
her/her vocabulary, history facts, math theorems etc…, have them find some
movement to link it to. It works!
We begin each and every class with the same shtick.
Why? Because it is the most important thing that we do. I want the kids
to learn these concepts cold. Here’s how our routine looks:
1)
Joke of the Day – One of our great Sages said
that Torah study should always begin by laughing. Why? Ask your
child.
2)
Quotable Quote – generally I use a non-Jewish
quote and have the kids find the Jewish value in it. If you see the
section below on Jewish lenses, you’ll understand my point. BUT on Sunday
I had a quote from Michael Jordon. I asked the kids who he was and they
said “a baseball player.” I . Felt. Really. Old. It kind of hurt my
feelings. J
3)
Hillel’s Rule – “treat others the way you want
to be treated” The kids hold one leg up while doing it. Why? As your
child. Plus, it’s a great Ab workout
4)
Chazak! Chazak! V’nit Chazek! – “be strong, be
strong, be strengthened.” We say this when we finish each of the 5 books of
Torah. We do “the guns show” when we say it, and show off the
biceps. Or the lack of biceps in my case…
5)
Wrestling Pose – Judiasm is about struggling
with God, wrestling with God, being an active partner with God. WE don’t
fall on our knees; we don’t submit; we wrestle. So we get our best WWE
wrestling pose on
6)
Torah Strong:
A) Chumash
Hold: We hold Torahs over our head – Learning Torah makes us spiritually,
emotionally, physically, mentally stronger. To remember this we reenact Moses
holding the 10 commandments over his head. This must have taken immense
physical strength, and living and learning Torah makes us strong in every
possible way. It is also good for the shoulders J
B) Don’t
Miss the Mark: Aim for all 613 commandments. There is no word for Sin in
Hebrew, the closest translation is ‘don’t miss the mark.’ So we use a bow
and arrow pose to remember this.
C) Learn
From Your Mistakes: We put our hands behind our back to hold up our imaginary
ark filled with shards from the first 10 commandments. When Moses threw
down the 10 Commandments after he saw the Israelites with the Golden Calf,
those shards were put into the ark with the intact commandments. As the
Jews wandered the desert for 40 years, the sound of them clanking together
would have reminded the Jews of their mistake. I call this the “parent
nag” pose. I’m sure you all don’t nag, but I do!
D) Hit
it Out of the Ballpark: We pretend we are hitting a baseball. We aim for
righteousness – Aliyah! Means to rise up. In Judaism we are always trying
to rise up, spiritually, mentally, emotionally, physically.
E) Judaism
is a Marathon, not a sprint. We jumprope. We talk about out Judaism
is a lifelong learning commitment. We need to pace ourselves – have a
plan, move in incremental steps that are doable.
7)
Bracha over Torah Study: We thank God for making
us holy by commanding us to study Torah. This is a traditional bracha that ends
with “La’asok b’divrei Torah.”
8)
Learning Torah is Sweet: WE have a small piece
of Candy. Traditionally, when a young child began his (sadly, not her)
Torah study, he was given honey on a page of Aleph Bet to lick. The idea
was that Torah study was sweet and to have the child link the two.
Luckily, CSZ is an egalitarian shul, where all of our children have equal
opportunity. And I have ALL of our children have a sweet taste before studying
Torah. Honey is a bit messy, so we go for an M and M or a twizzler or whatever
nut free sweet is on sale at Meijer J
I’m always happy for donations to our “sweet pot”
9)
Team building Activity – Our Tribe is built on
cooperation. We always do a mini team building exercise to get motivated and
get working together
10)
Lesson of the Day – something brilliant, or
“almost brilliant,” or “I thought it was brilliant, but it failed.” I
try. Sometimes it flops. But I try
This past week we learned our Torah strong mantra by going outside
and actually acting out the moves with bows and arrows, balls and bats, jump
ropes etc.. Then we experienced an activity that taught us that we are
impressionable and we see our world via a set lens. I had one child tap
out “Happy Birthday” and then another tap out “The Star Spangled Banner”
Both have the exact same rhythm. The kids have to guess what the first
tune is (they usually get it) and then the second tune (which they promptly say
is Happy Birthday). The lesson is designed to show the kids that when we
have an idea in mind, we impose that idea on our world. I set them to the
task of seeing their world through a Jewish lens (we actually put cool Jewish
lensed glasses on .. ok, it was not cool if you are over the age of 4, but it got
the point across) and that I want them to look for the Jewish message in
everything in their world. Our kids live in a non-Jewish world. It is
essential that they are able to see our Jewish values in their world. I hope to
train them to be able to do that!
Finally, we played a team building game to learn about
listening to each other and following directions. In this game kids get a
sheet that gives them an instruction “When someone sings Happy Birthday, get up
and dance” So the kids have to watch and act at the appropriate time. We
then learned the 5 books of Torah in Hebrew and in English and what is in each
one via a Football game.
I am looking forward to a fantastic year of learning,
playing, laughing and growing with your child. Please do not hesitate to
call me with any questions, concerns or comments. I welcome all
suggestions and tips for making it a successful learning year with your child.
Finally, a little housekeeping:
1)
As per our student handbook, boys must wear
kippot in class. Please help me enforce this by having your child leave his/her
ball cap in the car. The boys must wear a kippah and the girls are welcome
to do so, if they want. We are trying to show the kids that this is a
sacred space and community, and by taking their hats off and putting a kippah
on, it helps create this feeling.
2)
Please encourage your child to use the bathroom
right before school starts. There is a steady stream (pun not intended)
of kids leaving Tefillah to go to the bathroom, and many of these kids were
hanging out in the lobby for 10 minutes prior to services. There is also
ample time between chugim, Hebrew and Judaica to go. Please encourage your
child to use this time properly to take care of business.
3)
No food or colored drink can come into the
classrooms. Please have your child bring a water bottle to class, if he/she is
thirsty.
4)
Please “like” us on our congregation Shaarey
Zedek Religious School Facebook page. We will post weekly pictures, and
you will get information on the school, youth and family programs, and general
synagogue news.
Have a great week,
Leah
