The Torah, in general, and learning, in particular, are very significant in all aspects of Jewish culture.
Introduction
Our Sages identified the holiday of Shavuot with Moses’ receiving the Torah on Mt. Sinai. Many customs related to Torah study on this holiday have grown from this idea, first and foremost, the idea of all-night learning on Shavuot (Tikkun leil Shavuot). We will examine the relationship between Torah study and Shavuot, the significance of receiving the Torah at Mt. Sinai and the content of the tablets of the covenant. We will also address the general importance of learning.
Desired Outcomes
Big Ideas
Essential Questions
- How is the Torah story my story?
- What can we learn from different generations?
- How do Jewish practices reflect Jewish values?
Knowledge
- The students will be familiar with the story of the events at Mt. Sinai.
- The students will be familiar with the general content of the Ten Commandments.
Skills
The students will be able to connect content learned from Torah stories with the values and ideas that we learn from those stories.
Assessment Evidence
What evidence will students provide to demonstrate that they:
Know the knowledge; Can do the skills; Can respond thoughtfully to the EQs and BIs
The teacher will determine a means for assessment before beginning to teach the curriculum module.
Learning Experiences
Resources
Teaching Tools
Possible Unit Plan
Possible unit opener:
Present the students with this work by the artist Barbara Fisher. Have the students write down or describe what they see in the picture, the feelings it arouses and what in the picture attracts their attention. Then, explain that this is a depiction of the events at Mt. Sinai.
Content study:
- Start off by studying The Giving of the Torah. With older students, you can use the resource At Mount Sinai. Address the unique nature and the visual and sound-related aspects of the event and how they relate to the event and to the importance of the Torah.
- What is the importance of learning for us? Study the resource The Torah is Better than any Merchandise and evaluate the value of accumulating knowledge and learning, in general, as compared to the accumulation of material possessions. With older students, you can delve deeper with the resource Torah Study, which examines different ways of acquiring and applying knowledge and which introduces the custom of staying up late to study Torah on Shavuot (tikkun leil Shavuot). You can use the What can we learn from the Torah? worksheet to reinforce the lessons learned. This worksheet demonstrates the ideas and values that we learn from our studying.
- With older students you can focus on The Ten Commandments and explore what makes them fundamental laws of Jewish culture.
Unit closing / assessment:
Evaluate how the learning helped the students to answer the Essential Questions for this unit. Ask the students to choose one thing that they wrote in the “What can we learn from the Torah?” worksheet and share it with the class. You can make a group slideshow or exhibition of drawings, to serve as a class treasury of the values and ideas they’ve acquired through learning.
