8th Grade

8th Grade Jewish History
Students will survey Jewish History from the period of the Renaissance to Modern Times. Activities include discussions of first Jewish settlers in the New World. Jewish presence in the Revolutionary War, Civil War, at the forefront of commerce. Discuss some causes of WWII and overview of Holocaust.

“Understanding Jewish History 2”
Sol Scharfstein

Ivrit – Hebrew Language

• The overarching goal of the study of Hebrew as a second language is for the students (whose mother tongue is English) to utilize the language in the following four communication forms: writing, reading,
• Listening and speaking to and with other students of the same age who are Hebrew speakers.
  
• Improve reading skills using a variety of texts from Hebrew workbooks and worksheets
  
• “Havanat Hanikra” – reading comprehension, understanding the chosen texts
  
• Identifying and recognizing a variety of texts (short story, newspaper article, interviews, etc.)
  
• Building vocabulary
  
• Speaking and listening in Hebrew (Q and A, descriptions, expressing an opinion, etc.)
  
• Writing in Hebrew with no spelling errors
  
• Learn grammar and usage in a natural way by reading texts
  
• Have a knowledge of Jewish holidays, the Jewish culture and the Land of Israel
  
• Love and enjoyment – to have the students love the Hebrew language and all that is connected to the Jewish world.

Materials Used
Chaverim B’Ivrit 7, 8, 9
Breishit “Gilyonot” pamphlets
photocopied worksheets
“Ivrit Shlav Gimel”
Chaverim B’Ivrit Level 10

Middle School

Ivrit
Goals: to provide the tools for the students to advance in Hebrew in the following domains: reading, writing, comprehension, speaking

Materials
Sequential workbooks “Chaverim B’Ivrit”, published by URJ. We completed books 1, 2. We learned – “Yeshli”, “Ain Li”, “Kamut” (possessives, numbers), masculine/feminine, singular/plural, pronouns. The book includes Hebrew stories, Q and A, grammar, vocabulary, handwriting.

The books “Chaverim B’Ivrit” are attractive and also include word games. One negative—the series jumps from one topic to the next without giving the students enough practice.

Chagim – Holidays
We utilized a book on holidays that is published by URJ in conjunction with Chaverim B’Ivrit. The level of the Hebrew was advanced. I supplemented with teacher-made worksheets on holidays in Hebrew. We used the holiday book for practice in reading, writing, and translating. The students were asked to write in complete sentences.

Tefillah, Halacha, Tehillim (Prayer, Jewish Law, Psalms)
Daily – students pray from the siddur. Many of the prayers have melodies which the students know. The melodies are aids for remembering the prayers. At the end of the morning service, Shacharit, we recite a chapter of Psalms and learn a “halacha” of the day. This custom is done in many synagogues and its performance at JDS connects the JDS students with the larger community.

Grades 7,8 Chumash
Materials – B’Midbar (Numbers)
Skills – finding the Perek, Pasuk and Rashi commentary – students write a summary of each topic and answer questions.

As an aid we used a workbook that teaches Rashi script and reading Rashi. Goal – to become fluent in reading Biblical text as well as understanding the connection between the topics in the text and modern times.

Tzionut (Zionism)
Once each week the middle school students have a lesson on Israel. This lesson includes modern history of Israel and current events. The purpose of the Tzionut lesson is to connect the students with the land of Israel, the people of Israel, and the culture of Israel. This lesson includes learning about the variety of Olim – new immigrants to Israel (Ethiopians, Russians, Yemenites, Bukharans, French, American, etc.). The lessons are active and instill an element of fun. At the end of the year we review the Jewish calendar, all of the holidays with emphasis on those particular to Israel (Yom Hazikaron, Yom Haatzmaut, Yom Yerushalayim).`
Survey Questions:

What are the top skill and knowledge goals you have for your students at the end of the year?
Please list the goals for each subject area and grade that you teach.

• Proficiency in decoding Hebrew language fluently
  
• Ability to recognize a Hebrew word (conjugated or not) and to translate key Hebrew words
  
• Ability to recognize what is a prefix or suffix of the word, peel it away, and translate the shoresh (root word) which remains
  
• Ability to translate a simple sentence from The Torah and a progressively more difficult sentence in the upper grades
  
• Knowledge of laws and customs of Jewish holidays spiraling up from 4th grade to a more detailed knowledge in 8th grade
  
• Basic time line of Jewish history; i.e., Purim happened before Chanukah, Chanukah before Spanish Inquisition, etc.
  
• Written Torah is to be learned with Oral Torah
  
• Integrate knowledge of Torah with study of secular history and tie in Torah study of Jews in Egypt with different time periods of Egyptian history being studied in secular studies

What curricular materials and resources do you currently use?
(for each subject area and grade that you teach)

• Chumash w/Rashi Bereshit for 4th
  
• Shamot for 5th and 6th
  
• Bonayich Program for Oral Torah studies in 5th and 6th
  
• Handouts for Holidays