Curriculum Guides 1982-1994
Located at Tartak Learning Center HUC-JIR 3077 University Ave. Los Angeles, CA 90007
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Subject | Title | Goal of Curriculum Guide | Grade Level | Setting | Date | Author |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Art | A Course in Jewish Folkart | To study pieces of folkart as a vehicle for teaching Jewish concepts in our civilization and literature | 9-12 | High School | 1982 | Roth, Shana & Silver, Cheri Ellowitz |
Bible | Prophets and Prophecy | To study the classical prophets in their historical context and define their significance today. | 8 | Religious School | 1988 | Malofsky, Lyn |
Bible | Mishley, My World, and Myself: A Curriculum for the Study of Proverbs for Young Teenagers | To present Mishley as an accessible book that offers timeless insights into contemporary issues. | 8 | Religious School | 1991 | Nosan-Blank (Cohen), Sheryl |
Bible | Rashi on Genesis: His Interpretations and Their Role in the 20th Century | To be familiar with key stories from Genesis, to understand the concepts of peshat and drash, and to connect to prior generations of Jews. | 6-7 | Religious School | 1994 | Romalis, Jenny |
Bible | Listening to the Voices of the Women in the Bible | To explore the experiences of women in the bible as a reflection of their time. | 9-12 | High School | 1986 | Silverstone, Lesley |
Bible | The World of Torah | To develop a personal connection with Torah | 6-8 | Religious School, Camp, Youth Group | 1984 | Steinbock, Steven |
Bible | Cherish the Torah: An Introduction to the Sefer Torah | To explore the Torah’s symbolism, preparation, protection, celebration, and legacy in eight lessons | 1 | Religious School | 1992 | Tamara Lawson (Schuster) |
Comparative Judaism | Three Paths to One God: Reform , Conservative, and Orthodox Ideology for High School | To explore the ideologies of the three dominant movements in Judaism today by studying mitzvot. | 9-12 | High School | 1986 | Fein, Elliot |
Comparative Judaism | Unity Within Diversity: Jewish Religious Pluralism in America | To explore the three dominant movements in America. To foster a sense of pluralism. | 8-9 | High School | 1984 | Walsh, Jane West |
Family Education | Jewish Lights: Signs and Symbols: A Curriculum for First Graders and their Families | To recognize light as a Jewish sign and symbol. To be familiar with and develop skills using ritual items involving light. | Adult | Adult Parents with Children in First Grade | 1986 | Goldberg (Cole), Melanie |
Family Education | Re-Empowering the Jewish Family | To enable parents to develop the knowledge and skills necessary to create a Jewish home life. | Adult | Adult Parents with Young Children | 1992 | Niederman, Deborah |
History | Being Jewish in America: The Tensions and Struggles of the Eastern European Immigrants | To study the third wave of immigration to the United States (1880-1920) specifically, the factors which led Jews to leave Eastern Europe and the life they found in America. | 6-8 | Religious School | 1990 | Backer (Burt), Dina |
History | A Look at Our Past: The Tannaitic Period | To study the concepts of retention and adaptation after the destruction of the second Temple/rabbinic Judaism and relate these ideas to our times. | 8 | Religious School | 1986 | Barzilai (Lieberman), Lisa |
History | One People: A Junior High Curriculum on Immigration and Integration | To study the Jewish immigrant experience. | 6-8 | Camp | 1983 | Kosmal, Nili |
History | Jewish History Under the Romans: An Era of Interaction and Adjustment | To expose students to the history of the era and the Jewish interaction with outside culture. | 5-7 | Religious School | 1984 | Mooso, Carolyn |
History | Critical Events and Commonplaces: A Ten Lesson Course in Jewish History | To study three historical events through the lens of God, torah, land of Israel, and people Israel. | 9-12 | High School | 1987 | Stern, David |
History | The Creation of a Community: A Case Study, Los Angeles | To examine the history of Los Angeles as an example of how Jewish community forms. | 8-9 | Religious School/High School | 1994 | Winer, Laura Novak |
Holiday | Ritual: How Ritual Re-enacts Covenant. | To examine rituals as an expression of covenant | 4-7 | Religious School | 1988 | Dotan, Lisabeth Seldin |
Holiday | The Sanctification of Jewish Time | To explore how Jews mark time, what makes time holy, and the nature of the specific holidays. | 5-8 | Religious School | 1988 | Lipschultz (Barrington), Joanne |
Holidays | The Harvest Festivals: A Prism for Understanding Our Relationship to the Land of Israel | To examine the Jewish perspectives on the land of Israel throughout history by studying the three harvest festivals. | 9-12 | High School | 1988 | Lipman, Steve |
Holocaust | Through Their Eyes, Through Our Eyes, and Someday Through Our Children’s Eyes | To understand and identify with the Jewish experience of the Holocaust. To study the historical background and the various personal and communal responses. | 8-10 | Religious School/High School | 1990 | Michelson, Holly |
Holocaust | The Study of Values Through Holocaust Literature | To study the values within the range of human responses during the Holocaust. | 9-12 | High School | 1984 | Schneider (Epstein), Kyla |
Identity | Understanding the Concept of Am Yisrael | To develop a spiritual, emotional, and intellectual understanding of Jewish peoplehood through a study of text. | 9-12 | High School | 1988 | Kasten, Nancy |
Identity | Film and the Jewish Self | To examine the ways a film can affect the individual and the group’s self-image | High School to Adult | High School and Adult | 1984 | Serotta, Isaac |
Israel | Can the State of Israel Co-Exist with the Land of Israel? | To address the interplay between the Land of Israel (a religious, value-laden, ethical concept) and the State of Israel (the modern, sovereign state with specific political realities) | 11-12 and Adult | High School and Adult | 1991 | Abramson, Joel |
Israel | In Relationship with Israel | To study the Jewish people’s relationship with the land of Israel. | 9-12 | High School | 1986 | Fein, Eve Melman |
Israel | I’m Not Jewish, I’m Israeli | To study secular Israeli Jewish identity and the role of Judaism in Israel. | 9-12 | High School for Secular Israelis | 1990 | Goldman, Joel |
Israel | One Can Make a Difference: A Curriculum for Teaching Israel | To see Israel as an integral part of Jewish life by exploring the relationship between Jews and Israel. | 6-8 | Religious School | 1984 | Schwartz (Robinson), Wendy |
Israel | If I Forget Thee, O Jerusalem: The Centrality of Jerusalem in Jewish Life | To develop a personal and Jewish communal understanding and connection to Jerusalem. | 9-12 | High School Pre-Trip | 1984 | Tishkoff, Larry |
Israel | When Visions Collide: A Perspective on Religious Tensions in Israel | To explore the roots of the rift between the Orthodox and secular in Israel. To struggle with what Israel should look like and the role of liberal Judaism in Israel. | 9-12 | High School Pre-Trip | 1987 | Wolfe, Gregory |
Israel | The Jewishness of the Zionist Pioneers | To examine the lives of the early Zionist pioneers and view them as examples of Jewish commitment to Israel. | 9-12 | High School for Secular Israelis | 1992 | Yoffe, Meir |
Israel/ Identity | Who Are We? Who Are They? The Israeli Jewish Experience | To encourage a connection to Israel through an analysis and comparison of North American and Israeli modes of Jewish identification. | 10 | High School Pre-Trip | 1991 | Wise, Ira |
Law/Values | Halakha and Jewish Values | To explore the problem of balancing Jewish law and the Reform concept of individual choice. | 9-12 | High School | 1986 | Elkins, Marilyn |
Life Cycle | A Jewish Approach to Death and Dying | To study issues relating to death in a Jewish context focused on three areas: psychology, morality, and religious issues. | Adult | Adult | 1990 | Davids (Averbuch), Mindy |
Life Cycle | Exploring the Jewish Life Cycle Through the Prism of Covenant | To examine the role of covenant in life cycle rituals and daily life. | 5 | Religious School | 1988 | Vanek, Julie |
Literature | Stories of the Past that Lead to Our Future | To study Jewish folk tales as a medium to for Jewish identification. | 5-6 | Religious School | 1992 | Gavish, Hamutal |
Midrash/Bible/Art | Art, Midrash, and the Bible | To study the struggles of biblical characters and how these struggles were interpreted by artists and writers. | 9-12 | High School | 1986 | Ettinger, Eileen |
Mitzvot/Values | Tzedek | To explore the importance of tzedek (righteousness) in Jewish tradition. | 9-12 | High School | 1992 | Cohen, Cheryl Seidman |
Mitzvot/Values | Test Your Words Before You Utter Them: Developing a Code of Personal Jewish Ethics | To examine Jewish text and stories involving ethics. To develop a sense of personal ethics. | 6-8 | Religious School | 1988 | Cohen, Jordan |
Mitzvot/Reform Judaism | Reform Judaism and Mitzvot | To explore and experiment with mitzvoth. | 9-12 | High School | 1984 | Fox-Greene, Marcia |
Mitzvot/Values | Human Sexuality: A Jewish Response | To explore Jewish texts on sex, birth control, abortion, homosexuality, gender, and love in order to play a role in decision making. | 9-12 | High School | 1984 | Sagarin (Baumblatt), Lori |
Mitzvot/Values | Mah La’ashot: Making Decisions Jewishly | To study Jewish values and use them when making decisions. | 7-8 | Religious School | 1983 | Spitzer, Julie |
Mitzvot/ Values | The Sanctity of Life in Modern Dilemmas | To examine the Jewish notion of the sanctity of life. Topics covered include: life cycle events and medical ethics. | 9-12 | High School | 1991 | Farkas, Terri Ostach |
Passover/World Religions | The Passover Seder and the Eucharist | To explore core events of Judaism and Christianity as a path to interfaith understanding. | 9-12 | High School Interfaith Dialogue | 1986 | Oppenheim, Chani |
Prayer | The Story of Jewish Liturgy: Jewish Values Through Prayer | To explore the siddur focused on values found in the structure, content, and context of Jewish liturgy. | 7 | Religious School | 1986 | Cohn, Debra |
Prayer | B’rakhot | To examine b’rakhot as the human verbal acknowledgement of noticing our world. To view occurrences as encounters with God. | 7-10 | Religious School/ High School | 1986 | Crane (Roshal), Margit |
Prayer | Another Prayer Curriculum | To be able to read prayers, be familiar with prayer vocabulary, and understand the order of the service. | 5-7 | Religious School | 1984 | Greenspan, Ellen |
Prayer | Prayer | To create spiritual prayer. To link spiritual experiences to prayer. | 9-12 | High School/ Camp | 1988 | Roucher, Roslyn |
Prayer | Aspects of Prayer | To study the different aspects of prayer, such as communication with God, oneself, and others. | 8 | Religious School | 1990 | Sidlofsky, Paul |
Prayer | Da’at Halev: A Prayer Curriculum | To ground the student in both the “bima skills” and the understanding of siddur Hebrew. To develop skills such as translation, shoresh recognition and comprehension. | 5-6 | Religious School | 1991 | Weiss, Karen Winkler |
Rabbinic Texts | Midrash and Meaning | To engage students with torah and midrash allowing them to form a relationship to Jewish text. | 9-12 | High School | 1987 | Kraus, Jonathan |
Reform Judaism | Searching for Reform Jewish Identity Through a Study of the Platforms of American Reform Judaism | To grapple with dominant issues of Reform Judaism by analyzing three Reform platforms. | 9-12 | High School/ Camp | 1991 | Kipnes, Paul |
Special Education | M’soret and Me: A Curriculum for Special Needs Children on Jewish Symbols and Rituals Used in Camp | To understand and embrace Jewish symbols and rituals used at camp. (Can be adapted for all students and other settings) | 1-5 | Camp | 1982 | Dickman, Marci |
Spirituality | Spirituality: The Jewish Way | To explore spirituality in and out of the classroom. Designed with eight in class sessions followed by a five day wilderness backpacking trip. | 6-7 | Religious School and Wilderness Experience | 1990 | Biers-Ariel, Matt |
Spirituality | The Holy Relationship: A 10th Grade Confirmation Class Curriculum | To explore the concept of kedusha as a holy relationship and encourage students to have kedusha in all their relationships. | 10 | High School | 1982 | Klein, Debra & Sobel, Karen |
Spirituality | The Mystic Perspective | To introduce Jewish mystic tradition, specifically its perspective on community and the importance of spirituality and study of Jewish texts. | 11 and up | High School-Adult | 1984 | Lutz, Barry |
Synagogue/Art | Jewish Symbols in Synagogue Art-Enhancing Their Meaning | To examine Jewish symbols such as the Star of David and the Lion of Judah as they relate to the concepts of God, Torah, and Israel. | 6-7 | Religious School | 1992 | Hjulberg, Carol |
Theology | Who am I to God? | To explore different perceptions of God in Jewish tradition. | 9-12 | High School | 1992 | Aaron, Jonathan |
Theology | The Development of the Concept of Messiah: A text-Based Study | To trace the evolution of the traditional concept of Messiah from biblical through modern texts. | 9 | High School | 1991 | Abramson, Lori Levy |
Theology | Covenant: A Model for Responsibility and Relationships. | To explore the Biblical and modern concept of covenant as a Jewish responsibility | 7 | Religious School | 1986 | Bloomstone, Deena |
Theology | Quest for God | To stimulate students to develop their own responses to the classical God questions with which philosophers grappled. | 9-12 | High School | 1988 | Gerstle, Brad |
Theology | Jewish Approaches to Evil | To examine the concept of evil utilizing stories from Jewish tradition. Three units include: the nature of evil, theodicy, and human responses to evil. | 8 | Religious School | 1991 | Goldstein, Lisa |
Theology/Spirituality | Redemption: A Curriculum for High School Students | To explore Jewish yearnings for redemption and formulate their own visions of a redeemed world. | 9-12 | High School | 1984 | Reich, Cynthia |
Values/Bible | Values We Learn from Abraham | To explore the Jewish values demonstrated by Abraham in Genesis. | 9-10 | High School | 1985 | Greenbaum, Bruce |
Women | Toward a New Understanding of God, Torah, and Israel: The Feminist Challenge to Judaism | To explore questions of Jewish feminism now that equal access has been established for liberal Jews. | Adult | Adult | 1992 | Stineman, Scott |
World Jewry | Sephardic Jewry: A Curriculum for 7th Grade | To learn Sephardic history, customs, and traditions. | 7 | Religious School | 1984 | Katz (Mishkin), Madelyn |