Curriculum: Beginning of Sefer Bamidbar - 6th grade Context: Grade Level: Sixth grade-co-ed classes Setting and Schedule: The class meets daily for 40 minute sessions in a classroom setting. Educational Setting: Modern Orthodox, progressive co-educational Elementary School Content Area: Chumash Student Composition: Sarah Auerbach Netta Jansenson Strengths: Students are able to read through a group of pesukim accurately and can translate key words that they are familiar with. They are able to understand spoken Hebrew and can speak in Hebrew with some grammatical errors. They are able to read Rashi script with minor mistakes. Weaknesses: Students are not able to translate a full set of pesukim and need to expand their Hebrew vocabulary. In addition students are not able to translate the commentary of Rashi or other mefarshim without guidance. Curriculum Development Team: Principal, assistant principal, all grade chumash teachers, one senior sixth grade teacher. One of the grade teachers will be made the leader of the team, to be called Curriculum Advisor. Time and Place of Meetings: The team will meet weekly in the library in order to review the material that has been covered and to discuss both formative and summative assessments that will be given. In addition there will be monthly meetings to provide feedback about the curriculum and discuss broader issues that may arise with the material. The theory guiding this curriculum: This curriculum is built through an Understanding By Design theory of development. We plan to cover the first half of sefer Bamidbar and we will cover the perakim by topic. This will then create a more thematic approach to the sefer. After, a goal was established for each unit. Once a goal was determined, the big ideas for each unit were described. Next, benchmarks and assessments were created in order to assess if the students reached the prescribed goals for each unit. Outside Resources: These include curriculum, Chumash Bamidbar, Smartboard, classroom and independent practice worksheets, and vocabulary sheets.
Needs Assessment: Current State of Curriculum: There is currently no curriculum in place for the sixth grade and they only cover about half of sefer Bamidbar. The goal is to cover the entire sefer Bamidbar in sixth grade so then more material can then be covered in the formative years of seventh and eighth grade. Challenges: So far there hasn t been a formal curriculum to provide the proper guidelines and benchmarks that will keep every teacher and class on the same path. We will have to work on closing gaps and reuniting the grade and team as a whole. Pre-assessment must take place in the beginning of the year. Another challenge is that not all students have the same Hebrew level which is required for studying Chumash. Hebrew is a second language for most students. The lessons must therefore allow for differentiation in the class. In addition, some teachers will require more guidance and help adjusting to the new curriculum. Finally, time management could become a challenge. The weekly meetings must be planned before the school year begins and be scheduled into the personal schedule of each member of the team. Even with organization, it could still be difficult to have a weekly meeting since there are many distractions and special programs that take place in a school setting. Opportunities: Since we will be collaborating on the curriculum in sixth grade, this will hopefully lead to the same movement in seventh and eighth grade as well. Once we manage to keep the middle school as one unit we can hopefully the move down towards the lower grades and create one continuous process that will improve learning, teaching and personal growth. In addition, collaboration among the teachers and staff will improve teaching methods. It can also help to create a positive work atmosphere, where each individual feels part of a bigger picture and works to accomplish the same goals. Also, the curriculum building setting will hopefully create an atmosphere for teachers to learn from each other. Senior teachers will have the opportunity to share experiences and suggestions with beginners, while novices will have the chance to share new and innovative ideas with the veteran teachers.
Vision: Vision Statement: The Tanach is the book of all books and it represents the heritage of our people. Our responsibility as educators is to open the gates of knowledge, and make every effort to make a connection between our students and the Torah and help them establish lives guided by its wisdom, with a love and passion for learning. We should strive to lead our students to the understanding of the words of Hashem, connecting them through the stories of our ancestors as well as strengthening their Jewish identity, and affiliation with Jewish tradition of Torah learning. We should impress upon our students the importance of identifying with and feeling the relevance of this connection to the land and people of Eretz Israel. Knowledge and Skills Valued: We strive to have students gain a love of learning and an appreciation for the text and story. We hope students will improve both their reading and translating skills. They will be able to independently read through pesukim and understand the main idea of the text. In addition, we hope for students to be able to understand the story through the text and to know the storyline. Students will be able to read Rashi fluently and understand his commentary learnt on the material, as well as additional mefarshim. They will also be able to analyze and apply critical thinking to the material. Month Standardsbig ideas Benchmarks students will be able to... Assessmentsstudents will Unit and Topics September - October -The events that lead up to the story of sefer Bamidbar -chiastic structure -give examples of events in sefer Shemot that lead Bnei Yisrael to the Midbar -break down the sefer in chiastic structure - Create a timeline for sefer Shemot - list the chiastic structure of sefer Bamidbar Unit One: Introduction to Sefer Bamidbar - identify the hardships that one could face by living in the desert
-the first census -the camp -shevet Levi וידבר -Rashi: במדבר סיני באחד לחודש אך את -Rashi: מטה לוי לא תפקד details of the first census three times Rashi mentions that Hashem counts Bnei Yisrael and why -answer questions based on the details of the mifkad -create a chart of the times Hashem counted Bnei Yisrael with an explanation for each Unit Two: Perakim 1-6: The Order of the Machane of Bnei Yisrael in the Midbar question and answer Rashi provides on Shevet Levi and their connection to the census -create a הסבר for Rashi s questions and two answers -outline the camp of Bnei Yisrael -draw a map of the machane of Bnei Yisrael jobs שבט לוי of -list the jobs of שבט לוי -explain why they were chosen to do these jobs of the משכן -write an explanation of why they were chosen for this job November- December -Chanukat Hamishkan -gifts of the Nesiim -Menorah -identify Moshe s work in establishing the Mishkan -explain why Moshe was given credit for -answer questions on what Moshe did to the mishkan and keilim -record themselves reading and explaining Rashi s explanation of why Unit Three: Perakim 7-8: Dedication of the Mishkan
כלות -Rashi: (the idea of משה and מוסר נפש זכות giving -Ramban: ויקריבו נשיאי ישראל וגו' ויביאו 'את קרבנם לפני ה בהעלותך -Rashi building the Mishkan communal gift of the Nesiim and what was given to each family of shevet Levi -identify what types of items were brought in the individual gifts of the Nesiim -recognize the problem within the text of why each gift was written out individually and then summarized at the end Moshe was given credit for building the mishkan -create a chart of the communal gift the Nesiim gave and who it was given to -list each question and answer of the Ramban -draw a picture of the menorah including all of the relevant details (writing out each aspect they learned about) -write a הסבר of Rashi s explanation of why the menorah was comforting for Aharon details of the Menorah-what was it made out of, how many candles were there, who lit it each day January- February Traveling in the Midbar -Pesach and Pesach Sheni -consider the difficulty in the text that the date in פרק א comes פרק ט after -record a reading and explanation of Rashi s question and answer on the Unit Four: Perakim 9-10: Preparations for
-Three Simanei Hanesiya -Conversation of Moshe and Chovav -Traveling of the nation בחדש -Rashi הראשון למה נגרע -Rashi עשה לך -Rashi אל ארצי -Rashi אל מולדתי -explain the אין concept of מוקדם ומאוחר and בתורה answer the question they raised before -list the halachot of Pesach that they previously know from sefer Shmot -explain the storyline of the people who come to Moshe to discuss Pesach Sheni -list differences between Pesach Rishon and Pesach Sheni order of the perakim -create a brochure about Pesach listing the Halachot and differences between Pesach Rishon and Pesach Sheni, including a historical section describing how Pesach Sheni evolved -create a Facebook page for Moshe based on the comments of Rashi למה נגרע in describing his relationship with Hashem -list the different simanim that Bnei Yisrael had in the midbar -explain the details of the חצוצרות -consider why the text would write לך עשה and explain Rashi s response -draw a picture with the details of the and record חצוצרות and explanation of all of the details -write a הסבר for
-outline the travels of Bnei Yisrael (where they went, where everyone traveled) Rashi s explanation לך of the word -draw a map of Bnei Yisrael as they traveled -tell over the conversation between Moshe and Chovav -consider what may have happened at the conclusion of the conversation since there is no ending mentioned -draw a comic of the conversation between Moshe and Yitro, including a hypothesis of what may have happened at the end -identify what Moshe said when Bnei Yisrael camped and traveled -explain the purpose of the backwards nuns in the text -create a chart of what Moshe said when Bnei Yisrael camped and traveled March -complaints of the nation -Can one argue with Hashem? -explain the story מתאוננים of the -identify what Bnei Yisrael -answer questions מתאוננים about the and punishment they received Unit Five: Perek 11: Complaints of Bnei Yisrael in the Midbar
-arguments of Moshe to Hashem -Reaction of Hashem and his actions complained about afterwards -consider why the Torah would then discuss the מן details of the -write a summary of the next complaints of Bnei Yisrael and the additional pesukim discussing the מן (including why they are placed here) אלדד - story of ומידד -Ungratefulness leads to a sin. ויהי העם -Rashi כמתאוננים כמתאוננים -Rashi אשר נאכל -Rashi במצרים חנם כלאם -Rashi - identify the arguments of Moshe and response of Hashem to each argument Moshe makes details of the punishment Hashem gives to Bnei Yisrael -list when Hashem calls העם Bnei Yisrael עמי vs. -explain what the were מתאוננים complaining about according to Rashi -explain what Bnei Yisrael meant when they said they had free food in according מצרים to Rashi -create a chart of the arguments and responses of Hashem and Moshe -draw a picture of the punishment Bnei Yisrael received -create a chart of the times Hashem calls Bnei Yisrael עמי vs. העם -write a הסבר for the answer of Rashi on the complaints of the מתאוננים -record a reading and explanation for אשר נאכל Rashi of במצרים חנם -make a video telling over the אלדד ומידד story of
-summarize the אלדד story of ומידד -describe the characteristics of Moshe and Yehoshua that we learn from the story -create an Instagram account for Moshe and Yehoshua, including one picture that would highlight characteristics we learned about them from this story -explain the question and answer of Rashi כלאם April-May - Gossip meant for good is still gossip -Sin of Miriam (and Aharon) והאיש משה ענו - -Respect of the nation -Tell the difference between gossip and lashon hara - According to the pesukim and mefarshim will be able to determine what was Miriams sin. -Write an essay/ post on a class blog: about the harm in gossiping and speaking Lashon Hara will include the definitions of the two and examples. Unit Six: Perek 12: The Sin of Miriam - Lashon Hara הוצאת דיבה and libel. סמיכות פרשיות The Torah puts some relating topics next to one another. - Doing the right thing, standing -explain what was the purpose of sending the meraglim, Explain the sin of the spies according to comparisons in the pesukim. will explain 3 opinions of Chachamim - Complete a worksheet with parallels between the meraglims mission and their report. Unit Seven: Perakim 13-15: Parshat Shlach-The Story of the Meraglim
up for what s right. -The sending of the meraglim to spy out the land -what they saw in Israel and how they described it to Bnei Yisrael -Reaction of Bnei Yisrael, Yehoshua, Calev, Moshe and Aharon -Hashem punishes the meraglim and the nation מידה כנגד מידה - -Maapilim s sin -The reprecussions of the sin of the meraglim and the rest of the nation -Matnot Kehuna - Mitzvot of challah and tzizit why did the meraglim lie. Summarize the reaction of 3 groups and tell what each did. -Explain what is מידה כנגד מידה and identify 3 examples in the pesukim for: מידה כנגד מידה Fill in a table with the reactions and actions of each group: Mosha and Aharon, Benei Yisrael, Calev and Yehoshua Will create a short cartoon with a story explaining what is. מידה כנגד מידה - Explain what מתנות כהונה are and whom are they given too and why. - Give at least three examples מתנות כהונה for - List the steps of observing the Mitzvah of Challah. Choose one of from a מתנות כהונה given list and create a powerpoint presentation explaining what, when. and how the מתנות mitzvah of observed. is כהונה Match segments of the pasuk to the
- Describe the mitzvah of Tzizit according to the pasuk. parts of tzizit in a picture. Implement/Revise: Based on results of assessments, both formative and summative, the curriculum team will be able to determine if students are meeting the goals of the curriculum. In addition, a mid-year and end of year assessment will be given, which will be cumulative. The team will then be able to assess how much of the material students are retaining even after a formal assessment after finishing a specific unit. These results will help make decisions about the future of the curriculum. Teachers will be asked to hold a feedback session with students after both the mid-year and end of year assessment. During this time students will be asked to fill out an anonymous Googleform, which will ask them specific feedback questions about the curriculum. This is a crucial component for possible future revision of the curriculum since this will provide the team with a realistic look at students attitude towards the curriculum. Finally, during the monthly meetings dedicated for feedback, teachers will discuss whether they feel the curriculum is working and meeting the objectives and goals for the material. This will help decide whether the curriculum needs to be revised from a teacher perspective.