Sixth Grade


Hatikvah Project





Rabbi Rosenfeld Visits sixth grade Class
















Hello Parents!

We are well into the school year, the new year, and our studies of Jewish history.

Our history studies begin at the turn of the century in Eastern Europe - our Jewish community was once again in a time of transition, caught in the turning tides of European nationalism and unrest.

We are watching Fiddler on the Roof and have introduced the concepts of Diaspora, Antisemitism and Pogroms. We will soon move into the wave of Jewish immigration from Eastern Europe to the West - most notably, the United States. To a lesser extent, we will also track the rise of Zionism and immigration from Europe to Palestine.

I urge you, as a family, to look through family archives and pull images of your family that might shed personal light on this ongoing story. Where were your family and friends at the turn of the century? Any family traditions or documentation you can share would be a huge boon to the family.

I am also trying to figure out snacks. If you don't mind "adopting" a snack day, in which you might bring snacks to the class on a Sunday for 17 students — 'twould b great. Following are the dates of our classes — list your child's name by the day you think you might bring something in.

Thank you!

October 14
October 21
October 28

November 4
November 11
November 18 (Mitzvah Mall and Global Day)

December 2
December 9
December 16

January 13
January 20
January 27

February 3
February 10
February 24 (Purim Carnival)

March 3
March 24

April 7
April 14
April 21
April 28

May 5

Dovya Friedman
505-702-2554







Dovya Friedman


5773 School Year Above
5772 School Year Below


Lesson Plan April 22 The Holocaust - the monstrous cost of intolerance and indifference Prejudice and moral indifference allowed Hitler to carry out his plans again the European Jews. Jews organized underground operations and joined the Allies Powers’ armed forces to resist the Nazi onslaught. Putting their own lives at risk, courageous non-Jews saved the lives of thousands of Jews. • How did Hitler carry out his plan to eliminate the Jews of Europe? • How did Jews in Europe and abroad respond? • How did Hitler’s “final solution” change world Jewry forever? • What are lessons we can learn from the Holocaust? Holocaust means “complete destruction involving extensive loss of life, especially through fire.” Hebrew: Shoah. World War II: • Why did the Soviet Union join forces with Great Britain and the U.S.? • Why did the US enter WWII? • What did the Nazis do to the Jews in German-held Europe? • What did the German army do to the Jews as it stormed the Soviet Union? • Jews in Europe - what did they think, do? Palestine: the Jewish Brigade Group was the only military unit to service in WWII as an indie Jewish militia. How would that play a role in the future? (Israeli independence). Dreams of Escape - even the US and Canada wouldn’t take in the Jews. How does today’s world react to nations in need? The final solution: The March of the Living is a teen event during which Jewish teens from around the world travel to Auschwitz and Birkenau, two of the camps, on Yom Hashoah. Then they travel to Israel where they celebrate Yom HaAtzmaut (Israel Independence day). Is this an important trip? Why? Many families were killed in their entirety with nobody left to pray for them. The War against the Jews: In which countries did the Nazis set up concentration camps (Germany and Austria). Where did they build extermination camps (Poland)? What cities had Ghettos (Krakow, Lodz, Lublin, Lvov, Minsk, and Warsaw)? In which countries did large-scale massacres of Jews take place (Czechoslovakia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, and U.S.S.R)? The Warsaw Ghetto Uprising and Other Resistance: Yad Mordecai, a kibbutz in Israel, is named after the leader of the Warsaw Uprising, Mordecai Anielewicz, who organized communal programs while still a teen. He formed the Jewish Fighting Organization and was killed three weeks after the uprising. List issues and causes that you believe people should speak up about. Have you ever participated in a public demonstration or rally? What was it like?

Date Mar 4, 2012
The British Mandate
Lesson In what ways were the Zionist settlers freer than they had been in Russia and Eastern Europe
How might that freedom have affected their identities as Jews?
What were the causes of growing tensions between Jews and Arabs in British-ruled Palestine?
What impact might the changing identity of the Jews in Palestine have had on the Jews of the Diaspora?

Time of great growth for the Zionists of Palestine.
A new image of the Jew as a courageous and powerful pioneer and soldier emerging.
Seed of conflict sown between Jews and Arabs.

Each student gets a sheet of paper and divides it into two columns. Jews in Russia (pg. and Jews in Palestine. With images as a guide they need to write down adjectives and phrases that describe the Jews in the images.
Compare the two, and discuss how the image of the Jew changed from victimized and physically passive to powerful and courageous.

Discuss:
British deception
Violence and the formation of the Jewish Militia.
Discuss the difference in the Zionist search for peace and the need of Tel Hai members to fight to remain in their settlements.
Read about All-Jewish Fighting Forces.
Teach kids to sing: Artza Alinu - discuss the spirit of the Halutzim - the pioneers.
Kibbutzim = Hebrew language, labor, self defense and social justice.
The Growth of Urban Jewish Centers
Famous Figure: Henrietta Szold.
The Fourth Aliyah from 1924 to 1928 brought 80,000 Jews to Palestine
1929 Riots as Arabs feared the growing Jewish population. Britain began thinking the Balfour declaration was a mistake. But with the rise of Hitler, between 1933 and 1936 another 165,000 European immigrants arrived. By 1936 Jews made up a 1/3 of the Palestinian population, leading to another Arab revolt.
The Partition Plan
The White Paper: Palestine was to become and independent state allied with the British Empire and Jewish immigration was to be limited to 75,000 a year. Land sales to Jews were also to be limited. The Zionists were outraged.
Ben Gurion: We shall fight the war as if there were no White Paper and we shall fight the White Paper as if there were no war.”

Activities Ein Breira (there was no choice) ‘ what situations in your own life might cause you to think that, and force you to take action. Are there circumstances in which they feel they must put their Jewish values in action?

Then and Now: Israel’s Armed Forces ethical code. Are they held to higher ethical standard than other soldiers? What are the three most important characteristics for a Jewish soldier?
Materials

Reminders
Key words Mandates
Haganah
Old City
New City
Third Aliyah
Halutzim
Kibbutzim
Technion
Hebrew University
Fourth Aliyah
Partition Plan
White Paper
Irgun

Take Home


Date January 8, January 15, 2012
World War I - Reaching out across the Diaspora
Lesson: How did WWI help Diaspora Jews integrated into broader societies
What impact did the war have on the spirit and progress of the Zionist movement
How did American Jews help Jews in other countries rebuild their lives after the war?
Do American Jews continue to feel responsibility to help other Jews?
Increased poverty and antisemitism in Europe and Russia after WWI, found Jews of different backgrounds joined together to help Jews throughout the diaspora; Zionism gained ground in the US, and the center of Jewish life shifted to the U.S.
1914 - 1918: more than 1.5 million Jewish soldiers 177,000 Jewish soldiers died; 4 million Jews in the path of armies. - How did WWI changed the lives of Jews over the world?
Caught in the Fighting: Etz hayim hi lamahazikim bah - what feelings do Jews have from opposing armies, when they have to fight each other? What helped to create better relations between Christians and Jews.
All Jewish Fighting Forces: Many Jews in Palestine were Russian nationals, they maintained their Russian citizenship to avoid being drafted by the Turks, but volunteered to fight alongside the British to drive the Turks out of Palestine.
With so many European Communities destroyed, the American Jewish community stepped up to leadership. “The Joint” - three American Jewish organizations unite as the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee
War’s aftermath: Why were innocent Jews killed - anti-communists, Bolsheviks; how did anti-semitism become stronger in post war Germany?(All Jews were considered revolutionaries; Jews were thought to have not fought in the war leading to Germany’s defeat and wekened position).
A national home for the Jewish People? Why was this an increasing topic of conversation?
Famous Figure: Chaim Weizmann
The Balfour Decleration: How could Weizmann pitch the British government to support he establishment of a national home for the Jewish people in Palestine (the British can win Jewish alied support, Jews can help the British overtake the Turks).
How does giving to charities and helping others benefit both the recipient and the giver?
Activities Photo of soldiers in front of Western Wall: why did they take their photo there? What might they have felt? Write a journal entry from the oint of view of one of the men or their family members.
Western Union Cablegram from Jacob Schiff calling for help for the Jews of Palestine. Why did he give to both Jewish and secular organizations. How can he be an inspiration to us today?
Groups: Write speech for Brandeis to deliver in support of Zionism
Materials: Chapter 4: World War 1






Date
Nov 6, 2011
Jewish Nationalism and Zionism
Lesson
Start with examining what it feels like to be a guest in someone’s home. Read Chapter 3, understand: Nationalism, antisemitism, Jews turn to Zionism. Where should the Jewish state be? What are the diverse views surrounding the state today? How did the idea for creating a modern Jewish state develop? How did success or failure of Jewish emancipation contribute to the support of Zionism? How does the existence of the modern State of Israel influence our Jewish identity today?
Divide the class into groups. Give each group four index cards. on each card describe: 
what do you enjoy about being a guest in someone else’s home. 
what are the responsibilities of being a guest
what do you enjoy about being in your own home
what are the responsibilities of being in your own home.

Share the list and talk about Jews who feel like guests in other countries; what did they do to establish a land they could call home?

Read pages 20 - 22 (through the dream of Jewish Nationalism)
What was the Jewish experience like in Palestine in mid 1880’s.

Page 22 - The dream of Jewish Nationalism: “Jews are everywhere as guests, nowhere as home.”
The first Aliyah: questions/answers 
Theodor Herzl - would you have supported the Zionist movement?

Pg 23: What is the difference between a State for the Jews and a Jewish State?

Pg 25: Uganda plan: are you for or against?
 The second Aliyah: questions/answers
Activities
Card answers
Read and illustrate HaTikva
Materials
Print outs of HaTikva
Index Cards
Reminders
Key words
Diaspora
Nationalism
Zionism
Emancipation
Antismemitism
Am Yisrael
Aiyah


Date
Oct 16, 2011
The Great Migration (txtbk pages 10-19)
Lesson
Start w/review of Chapter 1, esp. socialism, Palestine, the Bund (The Jewish Labor movement in Russia), and the waves of Jewish emigration and immigration.
The majority of the 2 million Jews who immigrated to the U.S. adapted AND maintained their Jewish identity.
Jewish values of social justice and community found the new immigrants standing up for EVERYONE’s rights.
Today we are still faced with teh challenge of maintaining our Jewish identities as we support social justice.
Look at image on page 10-11 of immigrant family. How did they get there? What are they wearing?  Look at the large room at Ellis Island. Write a sense poem about being in the room (Fill in the blanks for: I see... I smell... I hear... I taste... I touch...). Read a few aloud, and collect.

Have class read page 14 about Jews and the social movement.  How does Judaism teach us that we have a responsibility to help people? What might we do to help today? Do students chose any modern companies bases on working conditions?

Read pages 17 - 18 and figure out similarities and differences between Yiddish and Ladino.  Which three areas had the highest rate of immigration to the US? How many Jews moved here between 1900 and 1914 (1,725,000). 

In what ways does living in our community enrich your Jewish identity?  In what ways does it challenge your ability to maintain Jewish values? What opportunities are there for observing holidays, 
Activities
Picture of your family at turn of the century.
Journal entry in notebook: What were the biggest influences on your family at the turn of the century?
Materials
Reminders
Key words
Ellis Island 
Tenement Houses
Sweatshops 
Labor Movement 
Ashkenazic Jew
Sephardic Jew
Yiddish
Ladino


Shalom Parents -

I hope this email finds you and your families doing well. Our classroom has had a wonderful year so far, and I'm terribly excited about the ways it is sure to just get better. Thank you for letting me spend my Sundays with your children.

I'm emailing today in two regards: Class work vs. Home work, and Snacks. I ask that, in both matters, you feel free to respond with any questions or suggestions.

We'll start with the easy topic: Snacks.

Our growing yeladim are hungry. I'd like to bring healthy snacks to the class and would greatly appreciate your help. If each family were to donate 10 dollars, I can be sure to bring something tasty to our Sunday classes throughout the year. Let me know if your child has any food allergies or sensitivities and we can work around them. 

Moving on to the more difficult topic: Class work / Home work

I appreciate the effort your entire family makes to incorporate Hebrew School into your weekly routine. The last thing I want to do is add more work to what you need to juggle and negotiate each week. However, we are focusing on Jewish history, from the turn of the century to modern day and, as I've explained in class and in the letters I sent home, our exploration of this portion of history is being done through a familial investigation into your family's own history.  The only way that will work is if you and your child talk about what we cover in class each week and if you facilitate your child's looking for answers from family members who can fill in the blanks regarding your family's history. I've also been asking that the talmidim read a few pages from our text book at home (I've been sending photocopied pages home at the end of each class). This way we can discuss what we've learned, and how our families tie into it, over the course of our time together. 

In class we review what we've learned at home. There 

Each week your child should be asking you questions about your family history. Perhaps there is a Great Uncle or Great Great Grandmother whose personal story illustrates our weekly topic. Last week we discussed the choices Eastern European Jewish families had to make at the turn of the century. I asked the children: Where was your family? Were they in Russia? Poland? Germany? Had your family already immigrated to the U.S.? Where to? Did they speak Yiddish? What did they do for their living? Why did they chose to leave? There are many many questions -- and answers -- and all the answers are good.

Without this feedback our class won't work. If you have family pictures, or stories you can share, please do. We are documenting answers and - hopefully - should have a timeline of Jewish history that, per child, tracks your own family's story. 


In many ways our differences are what bind us, and we see this play out in our classroom, in our family and in our community. Our focus in the classroom is on Jewish history, but that is one thread of a greater story that involves and impacts us all. If a child's family cannot trace an identifiably Jewish relative through the events of the late 19th century to modern day, we have a wonderful opportunity to see how events that impacted the Jewish nation impacted others - but sometimes with different consequences! All of our families experienced the same upheavals and transitions: nationalism, social movements, world wars, economic depressions and windfalls - there's so much to share! Bring in any family story that is reflective of the times (and, truly, every story is!) and let's learn about how "Kol Israel Areveim Ze la Ze" (All of Israel are responsible for one another.)
I cannot do this without your support and participation. I thank you in advance for your assistance.

Thank you, 

Morah Dovya
702-2554


Date
Sep 25, 2011
Social Justice and a new identity
Lesson
The Great Migration
2 million Russian and European Jews immigrated to the US, adapting AND maintaining their Jewish identity.
Jewish values of social justice and community inspired the new immigrants to fight for better lives for all Americans.
Today we continue to maintain our Jewish identity while working w/others to support social justice for all people.
Imagine you have to leave  your home: how do you feel about leaving it all behind. If you could only take three things with you, what would they be? Why? What would you want to know about a country before you moved there? Why were so many attracted to the US?

Role play: tell your parents why you’re leaving Russia. (pg. 11)
What pushed people out of Russia, pulled them to US (pg. 12)
In early 1900’s rabbis warned Jews that moving to America would give them economic gain but lose their spirituality. How might this play out today?

Making a new home: imagine working in a sweatshop, living in a tenement, being processed at Ellis Island - write a journal entry. 

Draw a picture depicting what you learned about your family at the turn of the century. Describe what happened and how it affects your family to this day. 
Activities
Picture of your family at turn of the century.
Journal entry
Materials
Fiddler on the Roof - intro and explanation of why they’re leaving. 
Reminders
Key words
Ellis Island 
Tenement Houses
Sweatshops 
Labor Movement 
Sephardic Jews
Take Home
Pages 10 through 15
Continue reading your pages.
Think/discuss: How was your family’s life in the US impacted by the Jewish value of social justice? How does that continue to impact your family’s life today?


The Following Blog Post was discussed in class:

Apple bids adieu to 'Jew or not Jew?' iPhone app in France

By Jessica Ravitz and Saskya Vandoorne, CNN
“Jew or not Jew?”: That is just part of the question.
An iPhone app bearing this name has been yanked from Apple’s App Store in France amid threats of a lawsuit and demands for its removal.
The app, still available elsewhere, pulls together a database of thousands of famous Jews – including movie stars, musicians, Nobel Prize winners and more – and offers insights into their backgrounds. Jewish mother? Jewish father? A convert? For $1.99 in the United States, app owners can know.
In an iTunes store description, it says: “Hey, did you know that Bob Dylan is Jewish? Of course I did! But was Marilyn Monroe really Jewish? And what about Harrison Ford? How many times have we had this conversation without being able to know for sure? You can now find the answer.”
The intention was all in fun, app creator Johann Lévy told Le Parisien. The 35-year-old research and development engineer, who is British, French and Jewish, said he doesn’t understand the outcry.
“I’m not a spokesman for all Jews, but, being Jewish myself, I know that in our community we ask ourselves often if this or that celebrity is Jewish or not,” he told the French newspaper. “For me, there’s nothing pejorative in saying publicly that this person or that person is Jewish. Instead, it’s something to be proud of.”
But no matter Lévy’s personal background or motivation, compiling details about peoples’ identities without their consent is against the law in France. And that was all Apple needed to know to swipe “Jew or not Jew?” from France’s App Store shelf.
France’s secular nature and adamant separation between state and religion is something that’s “very difficult for American people to understand,” said Richard Prasquier, president of CRIF, an umbrella organization for French Jewish institutions.
If an individual shares with someone his or her religion, that’s fine, he said. But if that person’s faith is recorded in a public file, that crosses a legal line.
“What is public is public, and religion is private,” Prasquier said, and by its very virtue this app makes people’s religion public. “In France, it is absolutely impossible for a president to give any kind of religious speech. Swearing on the Bible would be absolutely inappropriate.”
Another concern is how to determine who, in fact, is a Jew.
“The issue of Judaism and ‘who is Jewish’ and ‘who is not’ is particularly complex. Nobody has the authority to decide on the Jewishness of others,” Marc Eisenberg, president of Alliance Israelite Universelle, said in written statement. “The fact that (the app) was created by someone who is of Jewish faith does not excuse a thing.”
Part of the French Jewish community’s discomfort is rooted in the country’s history, suggested Rabbi Michel Serfaty of Paris.
“This census of Jews resembles France’s time under Vichy,” he said, referring to the government established during World War II, which collaborated with Nazi occupiers to identify and deport Jews to death camps.
Le Parisien prodded app creator Lévy along these lines.
“The idea of selling information on Jews never appeared shocking to you?” the paper asked.
“Anti-Semites don’t need my app to determine who is Jewish,” he answered. “As for the question of a file – it recalls the Second World War, but that was 65 years ago! … This information was already public record.”
For app shoppers elsewhere, they can continue this Jew or not Jew exploration. They can peer into award-winning actress Jennifer Connelly’s life and learn that she was born to a Jewish mother. They can explore stats, facts and the most viewed Jews. They can click a “Random Jew” button to discover celebrities they never knew were in the club.
Indeed, in the United States, where the First Amendment reigns, it doesn't look like this app is going anywhere.
The whole business, while slightly odd and “somewhat distasteful” to him, just isn’t something the Anti-Defamation League will complain about, said Ken Jacobson, the agency’s deputy national director.
“Maybe it reflects my age,” Jacobson, who’s been with the ADL for 40 years, said with a laugh. Reality TV, the obsession with online social networking – it’s just a different world.
“Everyone is sharing their whole lives with everyone else,” he said. “That’s not the way things used to be.”
CNN’s Alanne Orjoux contributed to this report.
Yom Rishon
Date
Sep 18, 2011
Sometimes one event can change our life forever...
Lesson
Eastern European Jewry, 1881-1914
How did the pogroms of 1881 and 1882 change the lives of Russian Jews?
How did Jews respond to the violence and economic hardship?
How did choices made by the Russian and East European Jews of this period shape the Jewish World of today?
Role play members of a family debating if they should move to Israel or remain in Russia.
Photo: memorial in Jaffa: diff groups of immigrants settle in Jaffa - what are Ashkanazic Jews?
Language: Hebrew, Yiddish, Ladino: which Yiddish words do you know?
What does the integration of Yiddish into English say about acceptance?
Map: Where did Jews immigrate in the lated 1800s and early 1900s?
Painting: After the Pogrom  - what are the people thinking, feeling? Does it change how you understood European Jewry when we first started the class?
Then and now: create three groups: folks who stay in Russia, folks who return to Israel, folks who move to the U.S. How does each group’s choice impact the future of the Jewish people?

Brainstorm: what can you ask your parents grandparents or other family members to shed light on this period of time? Did yr family live in Eastern Europe or Russia in the late 1800’s early 1900’s? Did they stay, leave? Their occupations? How did their choice impact us?
Activities
Picture of what you found out regarding your family at the turn of the century OR 
Your version of After the Pogrom.
Materials
Fiddler on the Roof - show as intro and again after completion of chapter)
Papers
Markers
Colors
Reminders
Family Ed Day
Key words
Ashkenazic Jew
Sephardic Jew
Yiddish
Ladino
Take Home
Pages 10 through 15
When your family moved to the US, where did they immigrate to and settle? 
What can you learn about their decision: was it hard or easy? What did they leave behind? What did they think they were going to find? 
What did they do professionally?



Date
Aug 28, 2011
Sometimes one event can change our life forever...
Lesson
Eastern European Jewry, 1881-1914
How did the pogroms of 1881 and 1882 change the lives of Russian Jews?
How did Jews respond to the violence and economic hardship?
How did choices made by the Russian and East European Jews of this period shape the Jewish World of today?
Name a person or event that influenced you to make a change in your life.
How can one event change our lives forever - for better or for worse?
What was the turning point for the Russian Jews?
Describe the mood and feelings portrayed in the painting “After the Pogrom”
What does it mean to “Be a Jew inside your home and a person in the street?” (Mendelssohn)
Does it apply to our lives today - why, why not, and how?
Media analysis/Protocols of Zion - do you believe everything you hear/read in the media? Do you question if information is true? What are the dangers of accepting something as fact simply because it appears in the media?
What are the differences between laws imposed on the Jews in the time of Antiochus (169 BCE) to those imposed on Russian Jewry in 1881? What options were available (choices to be made) in each time?
Map review: what changed? (immigration)
Watch short portion of Fiddler on the Roof (the wedding scene culminating in the pogrom: tradition/culture under attack)
Activities
Picture of your family, today.
Materials
Fiddler on the Roof
Papers
Markers
Colors
Reminders
Remind everyone of Family Ed Day following week.
Key words
Pogrom
Diaspora
Values
Freedom
Identity
Take Home
Pages 6, 7, 8 and 9
Where was your family at the turn of the century? Do you have any pictures or stories from those times? What is the connection between the events/people you discovered and you?




Shalom!


It’s a great Kavod to work with your children this year. Todah.

My name is Dovya Friedman, and I will be your child’s teacher on Sundays at Congregation Albert. This is my second year teaching at Congregation Albert, and I look forward to it!

This year we will study Jewish history, from the birth of Zionism to our time. We will look at the major events and personalities that shaped the lives of our forebears, and explore the diverse ways in which the Jewish people have adapted and continue to adapt to changing times and circumstances.

To reinforce the classroom learning experience, and to help your child take ownership of our studies, I will be asking that students speak with their family about their personal family history. Whether this surfaces as stories, traditions, or the definition of values, your participation with help affirm the importance of our work in school and the materials we’re covering in class.

My hope is that this will pave the way to exploration and discovery, both amongst family members (near and far!) and in the classroom.

With this in place, I am looking forward to a year full of engaging, meaningful dialogue and an enrichment of our appreciation of Jewish life and tradition.

Feel free to contact me directly via email to discuss your child’s experience in the classroom throughout the year.

B’vracha -

Morah Dovya
dovya@comcast.net

Date
Aug 21, 2011


Lesson
Why Be Jewish in the Age of Emancipation?
Write down: what do you want to accomplish this year? put it in an envelope and seal it. We’ll open it at year’s end.

What are things that unite all Jews, no matter where they live?
“emancipation” - political freedom that enabled Jews to become full-fledged citizens of their countries with all the rights of other citizens.
We will learn about the impact emancipation had on us, as a people, and the communities we come from;
We will consider the experiences and decisions of the generations that came before us.
What will you want to contribute to the ongoing story of the Jewish people?
Activities
Self Portrait
Name in Hebrew
What will you want to contribute?
Materials
Copies of pages iv, v, vi and 1 
Papers
Markers
Colors


Reminders
distribute notebooks; name on notebook; letter home to parents
Key words
Emancipation


Take Home
Where is your family from?
Pages 2, 3, 4, 5



Welcome to the 5772 School Year!!!

Shalom, and Brukhim ha'Baiim L'Kitah Vav!

My name is Dovya Friedman and I'll be teaching Kitah Vav  - prayer Hebrew on Wednesdays, Jewish History on Sundays and as much spoken Hebrew as the Talmidim want! Our class is sure to be a place of discovery and joy as we look to the past to assume roles of leadership today!

I grew up in Israel, and have lived in Albuquerque - where I'm raising my own family - since 1994. When not teaching at Congregation Albert you'll find me consulting on branding, advertising and communication.