The final Portions in the Book of B’reishit tell the dramatic story of Joseph. The range of emotions expressed and the intensity of the action make these Portions ideally suited to classroom theatre. The following activity is designed to help students understand the feelings of Joseph’s brothers in the Portion, Vayeshev. (Students may work in […]
Archives for November 2010
Words of Wisdom – Vayeshev
Cue the orchestra! Curtain going up! This week’s Torah Portion, Vayeshev, has all the drama and action of a Broadway production. In fact, Vayeshev and the following two Torah Portions, Miketz and Vayigash were the basis for the Broadway musical “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dream Coat.” Andrew Lloyd Webber’s music and Tim Rice’s lyrics […]
Long Distance Runaround: Pondering the CyBar/CyBat Mitzvah
When I first read this past Sunday’s New York Time’s article on digital B’nai Mitzvah preparation, my first thought was that it was intriguing that this topic would be the lead story in, of all things, the Fashion and Style section. It then occurred to me that the topic’s visibility in the soft news section […]
A.V.I. – The Super Game
A.V.I. (Age-Value-Items) is an absolute must-have in your repertoire of learning games. A.V.I. can be played by 2 to 20 players (or more). It is suitable for ages 12 to adult. Once the materials are prepared, they may be used over and over. A.V.I. is a game of infinite possibilities. It can be used in […]
Creating Thanksgiving Memories
Thanksgiving was always my mother’s favorite holiday. It was near her birthday, she loved the family coming together, and gratitude was the lens through which she viewed her life. Even as she was dying, almost 13 years ago, she felt grateful. She felt thankful for all of the abundance she had experienced in her all […]
Words of Wisdom for Shabbat – Va-Yishlach
This week’s Torah Portion, Va-Yishlach continues the drama of Jacob’s life, twenty years after his bitter parting with his brother, Esau. Jacob is now anxiously planning for what he hopes will be a chance to reconcile with Esau. On his journey to meet Esau, Jacob wrestles one whom the Torah calls “ish” (man), but whom […]
Shalom Kitah Gimel Students and Families #8
Wednesday’s Kitah Gimel Hebrew class was packed with activities! After the Blessings for Torah Study and cookies, we began a series of exercises to practice, practice, practice using Hebrew vocabulary and sentence/question patterns. The words and patterns were those which needed review, according to students’ responses on last week’s Comprehensive Exercise. Students worked with picture […]
The Comprehensive Exercise: Positive Assessment
Last week, my Hebrew School students completed a “Comprehensive Exercise” on the first three chapters of our modern Hebrew textbook. “Comprehensive Exercise” – a rather ponderously vague phrase. Why not just say “test” or “exam”? Actually, I came up with “Comprehensive Exercise” in order to avoid using the words “test” or “exam.” Taking a test […]
Words of Wisdom for Shabbat – Va-Yetze
In this week’s Torah Portion, Va-Yetze, Jacob is on his way from Beersheba to Haran. He spends the night in a “place” and dreams of a ladder which reaches from the ground to heaven. Angels are going up and down on the ladder, and Jacob, in his dream, receives a message from God. In his […]
Shalom Kitah Gimel Students and Families #7
Today, in Kitah Gimel, students led the Blessings for Torah Study and cookies. In place of our usual attendance conversation, students completed a “Comprehensive Exercise.” This Comprehensive Exercise provided students with an opportunity to demonstrate their knowledge of the vocabulary and language elements presented in Chapters One, Two, and Three of our text, Shalom Ivrit. […]