NACOEJ CURRICULUM ETHIOPIAN JEWS ARE PART OF THE WORLDWIDE JEWISH COMMUNITY OPTION: PRE-LESSON FOCUS: STUDENT JOURNALS AND KNOWLEDGE CHARTS

Transcription

1 NACOEJ CURRICULUM ETHIOPIAN JEWS ARE PART OF THE WORLDWIDE JEWISH COMMUNITY OPTION: PRE-LESSON FOCUS: STUDENT JOURNALS AND KNOWLEDGE CHARTS I. SUGGESTED INITIAL PREPARATION FOR TEACHERS AND STUDENTS TO PROCESS LEARNINGS AND TO ACT UPON THAT KNOWLEDGE. A. The teacher: 1. reads the NACOEJ curriculum s introductory pages 2. collects the materials noted for each lesson (DVD, pictures, etcetera) 3. prior to each lesson, instructs students to carefully read the appropriate informational material and to review the vocabulary for the next lesson B. Students will need a composition book for their Journal, Journey toward Tzedakah. The journal entries should be made for each lesson on: 1. Journey toward Tzedakah: My Journal s three columns for notes on: a. Facts and Information about Ethiopian Jewry b. Thoughts and feelings I have had c. Actions I have taken 2 Knowledge Chart: three columns for each lesson s notes on: a. What I Know b. What I Want to Know c. What I Learned

2 II. IN-CLASS PRE-LESSON FOCUS: A. The teacher, at the start of each lesson will instruct students to make notes during class and prior to the next one (My Journal: Journey toward Tzedakah.) B. Students will make notes on two journal pages for each lesson: 1. Journey toward Tzedakah: on facts and information, thoughts, feelings and actions 2. Knowledge Chart: What I know, what I want to know, What I learned C. The teacher will, at the start of each lesson and at the end of a lesson or series of lessons: 1. ask one or two different students each week, to share their notes with the class 2. write students responses on a large Knowledge Chart which will be used at the end of the lesson or series of lessons to summarize the students involvements with their learning

3 NACOEJ CURRICULUM ETHIOPIAN JEWS ARE PART OF THE WORLDWIDE JEWISH COMMUNITY TOPIC 1: THE PLIGHT OF THE ETHIOPIAN JEWS I. AIMS: Students will: A. learn that there are black Jews who, since the Diaspora, 2,500 years ago, have lived in Ethiopia. The Jewish community in Ethiopia calls itself the Beta Israel (the House of Israel). B. learn that other Ethiopians call Ethiopian Jews Falashas and that they have been discriminated against and treated as outcasts in their own country, where they struggle to survive. C. learn that Ethiopian Jews, like other Jews over the centuries, suffer from anti-semitism, and yearn to make aliyah to return to their Jewish homeland. D. learn about, discuss and understand that Beta Israel is part of the worldwide Jewish community because of its Jewish origins and its commitment to and observance of Jewish traditions. E. decide how they can help Ethiopian Jews. II. MATERIALS: A. Maps of Modern Africa, Ethiopia and the Middle East B. Photographs of Jews from five different countries Photographers: Cece Wasserman, Two Cuban Women, 2000 Liat Klarfield, Ethiopian Boy, 2003 Lillian Baharestani, Iranian Man, 2005 Richard Sheftman, Trinidadian Woman, 2005 Zion Ozeri, Yemenite Bride, 1984 C. Video/DVD: Left Behind, The Forgotten Jews of Ethiopia (12-minutes), NACOEJ D. NACOEJ program flyers: E. Vocabulary 3

4 III. MATERIALS FOR OPTIONAL ACTIVITIES: A. Suggested tzedakah projects: Create a NACOEJ Connection in Your Classroom Sharon Halper, Spring Valley, NY B. List of Jewish Values C. Journal/Chart/Pre-lesson Focus: My Journal: Journey Toward Tzedakah Knowledge Chart (Teacher) Knowledge Chart (Student) Should the teacher choose to have students use the Journal and a Knowledge Chart, briefly instruct students on how to use them. NOTE: A vocabulary list is provided for students use. They should review it prior to the lesson. 4

5 IV. MOTIVATION: (5 minutes) A. Here are five pictures from different countries: B. Do you think any of these people are Jewish? Why? C. What countries do you think these people come from? (Two Cuban women, an Ethiopian boy, an Iranian man, a Trinidadian woman, a Yemenite bride) They are all Jewish. Attach names of countries to the correct pictures. D. How many of you have Jewish parents or grandparents who come from another country? Which countries? E. What did you just learn about the diversity of the Jewish community? V. PROCEDURE: (40 minutes) A. Indicate that students will learn about an ancient Jewish community in Ethiopia that has struggled to survive against starvation and anti-semitism. These Jews, after 2,500 years, yearn to make aliyah--to return to Israel, their Jewish homeland. (Skip the following activity if it has already been done in a previous lesson.) B. Using maps of Africa and Ethiopia, briefly help students locate: 1. Ethiopia, 2. Addis Ababa (the capital city of Ethiopia) 3. Gondar (the region where Ethiopian Jews settled) 4. The Arabian Peninsula 5. Israel 6. Determine the approximate distance from Ethiopia to Israel (about 1,600 miles) C. Inform students that Gondar is the region where Ethiopian Jews have lived for centuries. NOTE: About 110,000 Ethiopian Israelis are now in Israel. There are, even now, about 10,000 Ethiopian Jews in Gondar waiting to emigrate to Israel. D. Show only the picture of the Ethiopian Jewish boy. E. How can you tell that he is Jewish? (Point to the rim of his yarmulka/kipah) Show 12-minute video, Left Behind. (Advise students to pay close attention to how these Jews live, so they will be prepared to discuss what they have seen and learned. They may make notes in their Journals and on their Knowledge Charts should the teacher choose to use them.) F. Discussion 5

6 1. List the things you learned today about Ethiopian Jews. 2. How do you feel about what you saw and learned? 3. Why should other Jews care about the survival of the Ethiopian Jews? 4. What actions will you take to show your love and concern for Ethiopian Jews? (Should teacher choose to discuss Jewish values that are relevant to this lesson, see List of Jewish Values.) VI. CONCLUDING ACTIVITIES: The teacher and students will decide upon an activity which will help Ethiopian Jews: A. WRITE an article for the school newsletter about Ethiopian Jews and ways in which we can help them. B. ORGANIZE a class tzedakah project. (See Create a NACOEJ Connection in your Classroom) C. DISTRIBUTE NACOEJ Program pamphlets and help choose other ways to help Ethiopian Jews. D. ENLIST parents or others in a drive to raise money for Ethiopian Jews. 6

7 VII. OPTIONAL ACTIVITIES FOR CLASSWORK/HOMEWORK A. List of Jewish Values: Teacher and students may suggest appropriate Jewish values for the lesson. SUGGESTIONS: 1. All Jews are interrelated with one another. (Kol Yisrael Areyvim Zeh Bazeh [Lazeh] ) 2. love your neighbor as yourself. ( Ve Ahavata Lereyecha Kamocha. ) B. Journal/Chart/Pre-lesson Focus C. A STUDENT WRITING ASSIGNMENT: 1. a story 2. a poem 3. a report VIII. CURRICULUM PROJECT FEEDBACK FORM: TOPIC 1: The Plight of the Ethiopian Jews (See Feedback Forms.) Please forward the completed forms to: curriculum@nacoej.org 7

8 IX. VOCABULARY: TOPIC 1: THE PLIGHT OF THE ETHIOPIAN JEWS Beta Israel: Diaspora: Falashas: the name the Ethiopian Jews call their community, which means the House of Israel the dispersion of the Jews outside of Israel from the sixth century BCE, when they were exiled to Babylonia, until the present time strangers, aliens, landless outsiders; a derogatory name used by non-jewish Ethiopians referring to the Jewish Beta Israel community Falash Mura: Jews whose ancestors, parents or themselves converted to Christianity usually under duress who have now returned to their Jewish faith; a subset of Jews left behind after the Israeli rescue mission, Operation Solomon, in 1991 Gondar: emigrate: immigrate: injera: NACOEJ: Operation Moses: the region in northern Ethiopia where Jews have lived for centuries to leave one country or region to settle in another to come into a country or region, especially to settle there an Ethiopian pancake-like bread made from a grain called tef the North American Conference on Ethiopian Jewry, whose mission is to help Ethiopians survive in Ethiopia and be absorbed in Israel. It advocates their immigration to Israel, sponsors education programs to aid their adjustment to life in Israel, and helps preserve their unique culture the first airlift rescue operation, by Israelis, with American help, for the exodus of Ethiopian Jews to Israel in 1984/85 Operation Solomon: the second airlift rescue by Israelis, with American help, of over 14,000 Ethiopian Jews, the Falash Mura, in 36 hours in May 1991 tef: tribe of Dan: a nutritious Ethiopian grain used to make injera one of the twelve tribes of Israel (known as the lost tribe of Dan) 8

9 MY JOURNAL: JOURNEY TOWARD TZEDAKAH Teachers may plan that students will use the Journal style outlined below in a composition notebook (1 per student) to offer them the opportunity to create and plan their responses to the lessons. In addition to filling in the 3 columns once each week (1 page per week), students may elect to add pictures and other materials such as poems and illustrations on the topic) on the left-hand side of each page. At the beginning and end of each lesson, the teacher can ask 1 or 2 students to share and by the end of the series of lessons, students will have a great deal to share. A follow-up day might be planned to share what has been learned with the next group of students who will study these topics. Students can also use the information and journals as a resource for their Tzedakah. Facts and Information about Ethiopian Jewry (Students notes from the lesson ) Thoughts and feelings I have had : (Students ideas and responses ) Actions I have taken: (Example: I talked this over with my parents ) 9

10 MY JOURNAL: JOURNEY TOWARD TZEDAKAH TOPIC: Facts and Information about Ethiopian Jewry (Students notes from the lesson...) Thoughts and feelings I have had: (Students ideas and responses...) Actions I have taken: (Example: I talked this over with my parents and...) 10

11 Knowledge Chart TOPIC: Know: Want to know: Learned: 11

12 PHOTOGRAPHS Figure 1: Cuba (Cece Wasserman, 2000) 12

13 Figure 2: Ethiopia (Liat Klarfeld, 2003) 13

14 Figure 3: Iran (Lillian Baharestani, 2005) 14

15 Figure 4: Philippines (Eadie Shanker, 2003) 15

16 Figure 5: United States (Richard Sheftman, 2005) 16

17 Figure 6: Yemen (Zion Ozeri, 1984) 17

18 NACOEJ CURRICULUM PROJECT FEEDBACK: TOPIC 1 THE PLIGHT OF ETHIOPIAN JEWS Please print and fill in this form using the back or additional sheets when necessary. Mail responses to NACOEJ, 132 Nassau St., NY, NY 10038, or to: curriculum@nacoej.org Date: School Name: School Address Teacher: Grade Level of Class: Street: City: State: Zip code: Phone: 1. Did you find the lesson easy to follow? Yes No Were the instructions clear? Yes No In what ways could the lesson be improved? 2. Was the lesson appropriate for the grade level of your class? Yes No If not, how did you modify it to make it more so? 3. Were students able to accomplish the lesson s aims? Yes No How did you determine this? (Give concrete examples, if possible.) If the aims were not met, what lesson changes might lead to greater success? 4. Did students use the Journal and Knowledge Chart for this lesson? Yes No Please comment on the effectiveness of the Journal and Knowledge Charts as educational aids. 5. Were students able to connect the lesson s Jewish values with their tzedakah action? Yes No Please explain. 6. Additional Comments Please be sure to attach revisions that made the lesson appropriate for your use. Thank you for your feedback. 18

19 19