Journeys%20through%20judaism handbook

Temple Isaiah is committed to providing

engaging and profound educational

opportunities for our lifelong learners.

Te m p l e I s a i a h ’ s Religious School (TIRS) will be a center for innovative,

experiential, and student-centered

learning. A meaningful and enduring

partnership between TIRS and our

families will lay the foundation for a rich

tradition of lifelong Jewish learning.

Through our wide array of relevant

and substantive learning opportunities,

both inside and outside our synagogue’s

walls, TIRS will foster and fortify

Jewish Identity, Jewish life, and Jewish

relationships at Temple Isaiah and

throughout the Jewish Community.

GPSA ROAD MAP THROUGH RELIGIOUS SCHOOL

Our mission is to support your family’s development of a sense of menschlichkeit (humanity) towards the world and a love and appreciation for Judaism and all of the lessons it may hold. Over time, we have learned that more than any textbook, our greatest resource for deepening Jewish learning within our students is YOU.

To ensure our partnership with you as your child’s Jewish educators, we have provided you with JOURNEYS THROUGH JUDAISM: A ROAD MAP THROUGH RELIGIOUS SCHOOL.

This handbook will show you how each grade in Religious School provides a foundation for the next grade, and will give you the tools to ask your child about his or her learning and how it applies to his or her world.

IsraelGod History

TorahLiturgicalHebrew

Ethics

Holidays

Culture

?HOW TO READ THE ROAD MAP

For each grade of Religious School, we have

provided you with a road map, a structure

for how our administration and teachers will

approach your child’s curriculum through

three different lenses:

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1“Bein adam l’atzmo”How a person relates to him/herself

“Bein adam l’chavero”How a person relates to his/her community

“Bein adam l’Makom”How a person relates to God

For each lens we have listed a few essential questions that will serve as building blocks for a lifetime of Jewish experiences, conversations, and relationships. They are not meant to be easily answerable and our hope is that together, you and your child will engage in meaningful discussions about these questions and come up with many possible answers.

EXAMPLE OF AN ESSENTIAL QUESTIONHow can I make Temple Isaiah feel like my home?

We recognize that, before you engage your child in these discussions, you may start to explore and answer each essential question for yourself. Should YOU have questions, we encourage you to come visit Temple Isaiah’s clergy and staff. We would love to have these conversations with you!

QUESTIONSFOLLOW THE GUIDED PATH

HOW TO USE THE ROAD MAP

Over the course of the year, the Temple Isaiah Religious School community will be implementing and evaluating the road map in the following ways:

TEACHERS will use the road map and the curriculum to create engaging and relevant lessons each week.

ADMINISTRATORS will use the road map and the curriculum of each grade to ensure that all goals are being met in the classroom.

PARENTS will use the road map to ask children about the learning they are doing in their classrooms.

JOURNEYS THROUGH JUDAISM: A ROAD MAP THROUGH RELIGIOUS SCHOOL is dynamic in nature. We are constantly reflecting on our program to grow, change, and improve our school. We encourage and welcome your feedback as part of this process.

Rabbi Aimee GeraceDirector of

Educational [email protected]

Carla KopfDirector of

Religious [email protected]

Stephanie SchwartzAssistant Director of

Educational [email protected]

QuestionsActions&

WHERE TO FINDYOUR ROAD MAP

TSBY Tiyul: Shabbat B’yachad

KINDERGARTEN Jewish Ritual Objects in the Home and the Synagogue

FIRST GRADE The Synagogue as a Home and Israel as a Homeland

SECOND GRADE Values in the Torah

THIRD GRADE Experience Jewish Holidays

FOURTH GRADE Ethics in the Torah

FIFTH GRADE Jewish Life-Cycle Events

SIXTH GRADE Jewish Values, Jewish Heroes

SEVENTH GRADE The Obligation of Tzedakah

EIGHTH GRADE Who Am I?

NINTH GRADE Philanthropy Board

TENTH GRADE Confirmation: Leadership and Responsibility

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CONTENTS

ROAD MAP FOR TSBYTiyul: Shabbat B’yachad

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1 “Bein adam l’atzmo” - Self

“Bein adam l’chavero” - Community

“Bein adam l’Makom” - God

Question: • What does it mean to celebrate Jewish life-cycle events, Shabbat, and holidays

with my community?

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TSBY is an innovative approach to Jewish education that engages our students in experiential learning and our adults in intellectually stimulating discussion. TSBY meets 2-3 times a month on Saturdays.

What To Expect:

• Our sessions begin with a celebration of Shabbat or Havdalah• Following services the group divides for student-centered and adult-centered learning• The group reconvenes after class, to share a meal• Students are taught by teachers who use a range of instructional methods to engage our

children in Jewish Education• Adults are taught by our clergy and education team who challenge participants to think

about big Jewish questions and generate answers that are relevant and meaningful for 21st century Reform Jews

• TSBY’s curriculum changes from year to year, allowing students and parents to learn while becoming a part of a tightly-knit community

Question:• How does learning in TSBY allow me to look at Judaism and incorporate it into

my everyday life? • How does celebrating Shabbat with my TSBY community shape my at-home

Shabbat experience?

Question: • How do the conversations we have in TSBY, as well as our shared, public

celebrations of Shabbat and holidays, influence my relationship with God?

*Due to the dynamic nature of the TSBY curriculum, the ACTIONS will vary from grade to grade and year to year. Please talk to a member of our Education Team for more information.

ROAD MAP FOR KINDERGARTENJewish Ritual Objects in the Home and the Synagogue

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1 “Bein adam l’atzmo” - SelfQuestion:

• What ritual objects do I have in my home? • How does my family use these ritual objects?

Action:• Sharing Jewish objects from home that have special meaning to students• Describing objects that make our homes different/Jewish and how these

objects are used in our homes• Creating a Museum of Jewishness with ritual objects



Question:• How does the Temple Isaiah community celebrate holidays? • What are ways that I act in kindness toward my family and at Temple Isaiah? • Where do other Jews live outside of my community?

Action: • Learning Jewish holiday basics• Beginning to celebrate the holidays with the Temple Isaiah community• Applying prayer as a way to connect with community• Understanding the obligation of tzedakah in terms of money and actions• Performing and sharing acts of g’milut chasadim (loving kindness) and

learning this value through the book King Solomon and the Bee• Recognizing Israel as a place where other Jews live, the language, the culture,

and the relationship between the Israel of today and the Israel in the Torah

Question:• What role does God play in creating the world?

Action: • Attending tefillah prayer services for the first time• Understanding that prayer is a marked time to talk to God and a way to

communicate awe and thanks• Recognizing feelings while praying, especially while reciting the Shema • Learning the creation story and Noah’s ark

• Shehecheyanu - a prayer to celebrate special occasions• Shabbat blessings• Learning the Shema • Begin learning the Passover four questions• Begin learning the Hebrew alphabet

HEBREW:

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ROAD MAP FOR FIRST GRADEThe Synagogue as a Home and Israel as a Homeland

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• How can I make Temple Isaiah feel like my home? • How can I make my home feel like Temple Isaiah?

Action:• Becoming familiar with ritual objects and participating in services, engaging in

Temple Isaiah’s minhagim (traditions)• Making candlestick holders for Shabbat, decorating a Kiddush cup, making a

challah cover, hanukiah, seder plate or matzah cover.



Question:• How does Israel feel like my homeland?• Who makes Israel their home now?

Action:• Celebrating Yom Ha’atzmaut (Israel’s Independence Day)• Learning about Israel as both an ancient and modern country by exploring

Israel’s culture

Question:• What role does God play in the synagogue? • Where can I find God?

Action:• Examining the differences between communal and private prayer• Learning about people being created B’tzelem Elohim (in the image of God)• Orienting students to the blessing structure• Making a book/mobile of the seven days of creation• Analyzing the meaning of Shehecheyanu (a prayer to celebrate special

occasions) and learning when it is recited• Summarizing the story of the 10 Commandments

• Continue learning the Hebrew alphabet• Hebrew words used in the classroom • Shabbat blessings • Hanukkah blessings• The Passover four questions

HEBREW:

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ROAD MAP FOR SECOND GRADEValues in the Torah

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• How do the Jewish values of honoring one’s parents, welcoming guests, and honesty play out in my everyday life?

Action:• Defining a value by bringing in examples of Jewish values enacted in the home• Connecting the values to the Torah stories of Adam and Eve, Abraham and

Sarah, Jacob and Rebecca, Lot, and Laban



Question:• How are the relationships in the Torah stories like and unlike the relationships

I have in my life?

Action:• Examining relationships with family members and friends• Comparing personal relationships illustrated in Torah stories as found in the

books of Genesis, Numbers, and Deuteronomy

Question:• How is God in the Torah similar to or different from the God with whom I have

a relationship?

Action:• Engaging in role playing to explore the Torah stories of the characters

mentioned above• Discussing God’s role in stories and relating it to the role God plays in our

lives today• Continuing to learn the basic prayers as a way to communicate with God

• Naming Hebrew letters and recognizing them by sound• Sounding out Hebrew vowels• Havdalah blessings• Shabbat and holiday blessings

HEBREW:

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ROAD MAP FOR THIRD GRADEExperience Jewish Holidays

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• How does my family celebrate the Jewish holidays?

Action:• Chanting blessings for Shabbat, Hanukkah candles, Shehecheyanu, and the

Passover four questions in Hebrew• Investigating family rituals at home



Question:• How does my community celebrate the Jewish holidays?

Action:• Experiencing the High Holy Days, Sukkot, Simchat Torah, Hanukkah, Tu B’Shevat,

Purim, Passover, and Shabbat with Temple Isaiah• Tasting the foods of the holidays: challah, apples and honey, jelly donuts,

dried fruits, and matzah• Creating a connection with the community by learning and practicing Hebrew

Question: • How do I connect to God when I celebrate the Jewish holidays?

Action: • Understanding that holiday prayers and blessings are ways of speaking to God• Learning that Hebrew, as the common language of the Jews, can help

students feel a connection to Jews around the world

• Recognizing by sight and sound all of the Hebrew letters and vowels• Decoding simple Hebrew words• Closer examination of tefillah prayer services• Holiday blessings including Sukkot and Tu B’Shevat

HEBREW:

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ROAD MAP FOR FOURTH GRADEEthics in the Torah

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• How are the stories of the Torah and their lessons relevant to me?

Action: • Using bibliodrama, art, games, and different writing experiences to better

understand and relate to the stories of Cain and Abel, Abraham and Sarah, Isaac and Ishmael, Jacob’s early life, Jacob’s wrestling the angel, Joseph the Dreamer, Moses and the Burning Bush, Moses in the Desert, the Laws of the Holiness Code, sending the spies into Israel, Balaam and Balak, and Moses’ death



Question:• What can the Jewish values from the Torah stories teach me about ethics and

what can I bring to my community?

Action: • Examining the biblical adage “Am I my brother’s keeper?”• Judging Rebecca and Jacob’s actions towards his brother and father in

stealing Esau’s birthright and blessing, and exploring the issues of favoritism and treatment of siblings

• Analyzing the ethics of a leader; identifying how we apply the Holiness Code in society today and comprehending the value of telling the truth

Question:• What is the connection between God and ethics?

Action: • Understanding God’s role in the creation of ethics and pikuach nefesh (saving a life)• Identifying the origins of tzedakah• Analyzing the difference between when something is lashon hara (gossip)

and when you have to share things in order to help someone

• Blessing Pattern: Baruch atah Adonai...• Decoding words from the tefillah prayer services• Hebrew Through Movement

HEBREW: IN DEPTH

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ROAD MAP FOR FIFTH GRADEJewish Life-Cycle Events

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• How does my family commemorate Jewish life-cycle events?• Why are Jewish life-cycle events significant to me and my family?

Action: • Role playing Jewish life-cycle events such as a baby naming, wedding, funeral• Exploring students’ family traditions• Discovering the origins of the students’ Hebrew names



Question:• Why is it important to celebrate Jewish life-cycle events as a community?

Action: • Creating ritual objects such as a wimple, ketubah, and tallit• Listening to and sharing anecdotes about life-cycle events and learning about

different traditions• Exploring the rituals associated with life-cycle events at Temple Isaiah and in

Reform Judaism, such as reading from the Torah at a Bar/Bat Mitzvah• Understanding how celebrating with community is intergenerational

Question:• What role does God play in Jewish life-cycle events?

Action: • Exploring the Torah stories surrounding some of the Jewish life-cycle events,

like Abraham’s circumcision in Genesis or the roots of Confirmation and conversion in the Book of Ruth

• Understanding that saying prayers and performing rituals during life-cycle events brings holiness into people’s lives

• Proficiency in tefillah prayer services• Barchu • Ma’ariv and Yotzer• Shema and V’ahavta • Mi Chamocha

HEBREW: IN DEPTH

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ROAD MAP FOR SIXTH GRADEJewish Values, Jewish Heroes

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• How do Jewish values apply to my everyday life?

Action: • Discussing and applying values in the students’ daily lives, especially

secular activities• Sharing examples of acts of tzedakah as a class and individually



Question: • How does enacting Jewish values make me part of the community? • Why is it important to enact these Jewish values in order to be part of the

community?

Action: • Learning narratives of famous Jewish heroes and how they have embodied

Jewish values• Learning how the actions of certain people represent Jewish values and how

these values are specifically Jewish and not universal• Attending the Jewish World Watch Walk

Question:• How does emphasis on “Godliness” and those qualities which are “Godlike” or

“Divine” fit in with the way I think about God? • How does Israel being a land of many faiths complicate it?

Action: • Analyzing values and how these values relate to God: tikkun olam (repairing

the world), shmirat haguf (guarding the body), rodef shalom (pursuing peace), kol yisrael aravim zeh bah zeh (all of Israel being responsible for one another), tzedek tzedek tirdof (pursuing justice), tzedakah (righteous giving), and t’shuvah (repentance)

• Proficiency in tefillah prayer services• Avot• G’vurot

• Torah blessings• Haftarah blessings

HEBREW: IN DEPTH

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ROAD MAP FOR SEVENTH GRADEThe Obligation of Tzedakah

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• What Jewish values lead me to engage in the act of tzedakah?

Action: • Discussing stigmas and assumptions about money• Creating plans for students’ families to engage in tzedakah• Choosing an LA organization to assist for the school year as a mitzvah project• Participating with organizations beyond a financial contribution• Understanding the value of being part of a kehillah kedoshah (a holy community)



Question: • How does engaging in tzedakah connect me to my ancestors and to my present-

day community?

Action: • Role playing the impact of tzedakah on the giver, receiver, and the community• Discussing factors that make tzedakah unique to Judaism• Interpreting and analyzing what our Jewish texts say about tzedakah• Comparing and contrasting Maimonides’ Ladder of Tzedakah with Maslow’s

Hierarchy of Needs

Question: • How does the obligation to perform tzedakah create a connection with God?

Action: • Reflecting as a class on the holiness of engaging in tzedakah• Discussing the origins of the moral imperative to do acts of tzedakah

MOVING TRADITIONS:Rosh Hodesh: It’s a Girl Thing! Shevet Achim: The Brotherhood

Students will participate once a month in programs designated to create meaningful teen experiences by encouraging self-discovery, promoting self-confidence, and strengthening connections with the Jewish community.

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ROAD MAP FOR EIGHTH GRADEWho am I?

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1“Bein adam l’atzmo” - SelfQuestion:

• How does discovering my Jewish identity help me figure out my place within my family and the larger community?

Action: • Sharing personal narratives• Looking at video and text examples of struggles with identity• Questioning ourselves about factors that contribute to who we are• Looking at identity of communities we feel a part of to understand our roles

within them• Looking at how our identities inform how we treat people around us



Question: How does discovering my Jewish identity affect my relationships with other people, the past, the present, and the future?

Action: • Examining choices of people who came before and seeing what comes next• Discussing how individuals like ourselves make choices every day that affect history• Internalizing how the choices we make have great power

Question: • How does discovering my Jewish identity affect my personal theology?

Action:• Articulating a personal theology or meaning of Judaism

DIASPORA-ISRAEL PARTNERSHIP PROGRAM:

A group of our 8th graders will visit Tel Aviv in December and we will host our partner students from Tel Aviv in April or May.

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ROAD MAP FOR NINTH GRADEPhilanthropy Board

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• How does pursuing justice affect me and my Jewish identity?• How do the events in my community affect me?

Action: • Acting on my responsibility to repair the world• Identifying the problems that are present in the world • Choosing the issues that affect me and require my attention



Question: • What are the different ways to pursue justice in our world?

Action: • Relating Jewish texts to our actions• Maimonides’ Levels of Tzedakah• Researching and interviewing LA non-profit organizations• Comparing and contrasting giving time and giving money• Debating as a class where to donate the philanthropy board’s money

Question: • What is holy about pursuing justice?

Action:• Understanding that all people are created B’tzelem Elohim (in God’s image)• Engaging in text study to discover roots of tikkun olam (Repairing the World)

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PAST RECIPIENTS OF NINTH GRADE GRANTS:

2014-2015 (Total Grants $3,500)Topic: Teen Issues

• American Jewish World Service• Jewish Family Service of Los Angeles• Jewish World Watch• Ocean Park Community Center’s Sojourn Services

2013-2014 (Total Grants $4,500)Topic: Abuse

• American Jewish World Service• Saban Community Clinic• The Trevor Project• United Friends of the Children

2012-2013 (Total Grants $4,750)Topic: Health Care

• The Trevor Project• Jewish World Watch• Planned Parenthood• Wounded Warrior Project

2011-2012 (Total Grants $3,000)Topic: Equality

• Jewish Big Brother Big Sister of Los Angeles• Mar Vista Family Center• Rabbis for Human Rights – North America• Upward Bound House

IsraelGod History

TorahLiturgicalHebrew

Ethics

Holidays

Culture

ROAD MAP FOR TENTH GRADEConfirmation: Leadership and Responsibility

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• How do my actions affect my community?

Action: • Discussing different aspects of Jewish and American identity, how the two fit

together, and when they diverge



Question: • What is my role within my community?

Action: • Learning about significant ways to give time and other resources to

our community • Understanding the country’s lobbying process and attending the Religious

Action Center’s “L’Taken Social Justice Seminar” to lobby Congress• Acting as a leader within the Temple Isaiah community through social action

and leading tefillah prayer services

Question: • How does God play a role in my life? • Will/Can God play a role in the future?

Action: • Exploring different avenues of spirituality within prayer and other ways of

communicating with God

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Journeys%20through%20judaism handbook