Photos: Students playing Jewish Shoots and Ladders trivia game. Comedian Jonathan Gershberg presenting on satire and social justice.
Our Kitah Het (8th grade) class is learning about Israel with LINK, a dynamic, innovative online curriculum that the students use to learn while interacting with their classroom peers and online resources.
The goal of LINK is to introduce our students to the Israel not typically taught through traditional curricula; the Israel that excels at the things that matter most to the youth of today. The philosophy of the curriculum developers is that if your student forms a connection to Israel through one of his/her core values; that connection will stick – regardless of the narratives s/he will be exposed to in the future.
The six lessons in the unit cover the following:
JEWISH CONTINUITY IN THE LAND OF ISRAEL – Your student met Margalit at the beginning of January, the last descendant of the Zinati Family whose ancestry and family history in the Land of Israel can be traced back 3,000 years!
ISRAEL BY THE NUMBERS – Geographic realities of Israel, its place in the world, and why people “choose” Israel.
DIVERSITY – Real stories of integration and diversity in Israel and the everyday lives of the people that live there, beyond the headlines.
HUMANITARIAN AID – A showcase of Israel’s humanitarian efforts both within Israel and abroad.
INNOVATION AND TECHNOLOGY – How the technology developed in Israel improves lives all around the world.
ISRAEL AND YOU – An opportunity for students to explore their personal connection to Israel.
While much of the students’ learning will take place in the classroom through interactive activities, videos, group projects and games, we cannot emphasize enough the role that you as parents play in strengthening and reinforcing their learning, especially as the questions raised by the curriculum are intertwined with issues of identity and values. To that end, we ask you to encourage your student to share what s/he is learning. Also to pay attention to Israel in the news, talk about current events as a family.
Please contact me if you have any questions about LINK. I look forward to partnering with you to nurture your student’s journey as they discover their own personal connection to Israel.
Ask your 8th grader to login and show you what they are doing - let me know what you think.
B’shalom,
Kara