Updates from the Classroom: April 17 recap and 4/18 lesson plans

I have so many ideas I'd love to write about but 1. I don't have time, 2. it would be a waste of other peoples time. So here is a short post of what I may be doing tomorrow in school.

A. Tefillah time - After brachos, we do an activity to make few words in tefilla come alive. We just began ברוך שאמר.


Today: I asked the class today to try to move a pencil by looking at it. Then, the class said, "Move!" but the pencil didn't move.  how amazing it is that Hashem said and the world came from nothing into something.
Tomorrow: I will ask the class to think of a time when a few words  created or destroyed something

B. Chumash:


Today we did Post Perek Play - a game on shorashim. I showed a שרש and one student from each team  ran up to the board and wrote down its translation. The team of whoever wrote it first got the point. We also did  a Pre Perek Prep for פרק ל The kids had the word lists for the upcoming perek and had to fill out the basic words first, get them checked and then could use their reference lists Vayeitzei Shorashim List  Vayeitzei Noun Word List to fill out all the hard words. Lowest score on level 1 words 27/30! I have to review prefixes though - Students didn't know the difference between בְּ and בַּ

 Tomorrow: פרק ל פסוקים א-ג. (I'll be lucky to complete the  first two pesukim before being deluged with questions.). These pesukim are VERY interesting.  I need to do the heavy lifting of teaching the translation before the students actually understand the pesukim. Otherwise, they will be too excited to learn to translate the pesukim independently.

1.  Give out blank lined paper to each student for notes and questions. 
2.  pre teach  the shorashim  , שרשים   קנא, בנה, מנע, מות, הבה  and בטן ברכיים by acting out these words (gross motor skills) 
3.  Have students look for challenging words in the pesukim.  
4.  Write all words asked on the board with translations. 
5.  Ask the students to try to read the pasuk independently or with a partner and tell their partner what they think ishappening. Have them write any questions on the paper. 
6. answer questions in 5 minute increments using timer to keep on track. Intersperse rest of lesson with skill work and questions
7. Call on volunteers to read. Have  students continue to jot down thoughts on notes. 
8. teacher read pesukim 
9. class read pesukim 
10. Fill in the linear translation as a review and to incorporate fine motor skills into lesson.

Questions to explore based on classes interest:

1. How could Rochel be jealous? 
2. When can jealousy be good or bad?
3.  How do Chazal look at this jealousy?
4.  Why did Rochel say she would die?
5.  Why did Yaakov get angry? 
6. Why did he answer her this way? 
7. How do Chazal view this anger? 
8. Why did Rochel give Yaakov Bilhah as a wife?

C. Ivrit: I learned from the second grade secular studies teacher, Ms. Leo, who is getting a masters in literacy, how important it is to journal. The students use all their skills talking, writing, listening and speaking when a journaling lesson is done correctly.  The students get a 5 minute pre lesson on grammar or vocabulary. We practice the skill by having conversations. Then they must  incorporate the lesson into their 15 minutes of journal writing. There is a prompt to start them off but the rest is up to their creativity.

Today, I had the class in their editor-in-chief mode. I gave out some sentences the students had written yesterday to correct. We were working on writing first person sentences in past tense - עבר, אני. We start our עברית עבר lessons by taking a shoresh, conjugating it in past tense while clapping the syllables. The rhythm helps the students self correct their own work.

Tomorrow, we will be writing using second person past tense. Here is the picture prompt. There is a full page of lines to finish the story for the more advanced students.

D. Limudei Kodesh. 
Yesterday, we had a great cooperative learning lesson on the Omer using the Jigsaw method. The class was split into groups of three. They read the story as a group with each student taking one paragraph. Then, they illustrated the comics based on the story. They answered one section of the questions. Then they joined with students from other groups to complete the answers to the other questions.  Omer Story



Today we learned about R' Akiva.  I wrote a story about Rochel and R' Akiva in hebrew based on a similar story found on chinuch.org. I typed up the story and added some details. The students all know that  R' Akivas students die so it is meaningless to them. Hopefully, becoming attached to R' Akiva as a man who worked so hard to become a teacher will make the story fresh.We read a bit of the story and discussed it in hebrew using basic question prompts.

Tomorrow Continue with the part of the story where R' Akiva leaves to learn Torah, his return, his leaving again.

Rabbi Akiva Story


End of Day: Write Homework in Yoman. RT (Read & Translate) פרק ל: א-ג R (Read only) ד-י. Written homework TBD tomorrow.


On tap for Thursday: Tefillah, Chumash, Gadol of the week biography . . . I'm thinking about writing about the Vilna Gaon and the Baal Shem Tov next week. We pretty much did the early 20th century in the different cultures, It's time to rewind to pre American Revolution times.  Plus, some Pirkei Avos. Hopefully some Ivrit journaling if there is time.

Friday: Tefillah, Chumash & Parsha time