B”H

Dear middle school parents,

Today WBBM students were introduced to their course choices for the next quarter. Below you will find the course descriptions, as well as the form students had to fill out. Please, go over these courses with your child/ren and discuss their choices with them. We will finalize the course choices by Friday, next week.

Students’ final projects from this past quarter showed deep learning, creativity, depth of understanding, commitment and growth. We will share some of the work samples on a different post in this blog. You will be able to see your child’s work during our Parent Teacher conferences.

On behalf of the WBBM team, I thank you for the support you continue to provide and for the opportunity you have given us to teach and learn with your child.

B'Shalom,

Bat Sheva

Summary of Quarter Courses - November/December 2016

Story Behind Tefillot Dr Beliak -- Block A

What is the Biblical context behind some of the prayers we say every day? Does a prayer’s meaning change with time and context? Many of the words we say every day come from the Torah. We will look at VaYehi Binsoa HaAron, Birchat Cohanim, and Ma Tovu to learn what the context of those prayers are in the original stories in which they are first spoken. The final project will be an illustrated children’s book in which each person explains the origin of one prayer.

Jerusalem (Jewish History)-- HaMorah Ofra -- Block A

This year we celebrate 50 years since the unification of Jerusalem. In this course we will learn about Jerusalem’s history. We will start in the Tanach period and up to modern times. We will focus on turning points in Jerusalem’s history and important figures who have changed Jerusalem. We will also learn about why Jerusalem is a holy city to the three monotheistic religions and especially the role Jerusalem plays in the Jewish year. We will go on virtual tours in the city, use maps and movies to understand the city well (since we can’t take a tour ourselves physically). The final project will be to create a clip in Hebrew explaining the role of one part of Jerusalem in Jewish history or one important person. The project will be done in pairs.

השנה אנחנו חוגגים 50 שנה לאיחוד העיר ירושלים. בקורס נלמד על ירושלים לאורך הדורות, מתקופת התנ"ך ועד ימינו, דרך אירועים משמעותיים, אתרים חשובים ודמויות מרכזיות בתולדות העיר. נכיר את מאפייניה היחודיים של ירושלים, נלמד על קדושת העיר לשלוש הדתות המונותאיסטיות, על מקומה של ירושלים בלוח השנה היהודי ונחזק את הקשר שלנו לעיר הקודש.

מכיוון שאין לנו אפשרות לטייל בירושלים, נערוך סיורים וירטואליים באתרים השונים, נלמד באמצעות תמונות, מפות, מקורות וסרטים.

פרויקט הסיום יהיה להכין קליפ הסבר בעברית על אתר בירושלים או על דמות מרכזית שפעלה בירושלים. פרויקט הסיום יעשה בזוגות.

Halachot of Chanukah -- Rabbi Fox --Block B

We will study the laws, history, and meaning of Chanukah. The Chanukah story is not only an interesting one historically, but one that is also very relevant for today. We will analyze the laws in depth, through the reading of texts in the Gemara, the Shulchan Aruch, and comparing and contrasting sources. We will focus on the Chanukah candles, and also discuss other customs of the day and of the Tefillah.

Crime and Punishment-- HaMorah Bat Sheva/HaMorah Mimi -- Block B

This class will look at the correlation between the transgressions of Chava and Adam, and Cain and Havel in Sefer Beresheet (book of Genesis), and their "punishments". The class will take a very close look at the text, with support of traditional and modern commentaries. For their final project, students will interview school and community leaders about their understanding of these two passages and create a mini-documentary video about it. This class will be co-taught by HaMorah Bat Sheva and HaMorah Mimi.  

Parents and Children in Tanach-- Dr Beliak -- Block C

What is the responsibility and relationship of a parent to a child? What is the challenge of a child when learning from a parent? We will look at texts about parenting and childhood from several books of the Tanach. We will look at what makes someone a parent and the expectations from children. For the final project each person will choose one Biblical story and look at the motivations and actions of a parent/child team, analyzing the reasons for each person’s actions. You will write internal monologues for both characters.

Gemara Sanhedrin -- HaMorah Ofra -- Block C

Chapter 4 of Sanhedrin - We will learn about the court system in the time of the Mishna and Gemara. We will learn about the physical aspect of the court as well as the two different approaches the court could deal with in legal disputes: either through a monetary compensation (Dinei Mamonot) or capital punishment (Dinei Nefashot).

מסכת סנהדרין פרק רביעי - דיני ממונות.

נלמד על מערכת המשפט היהודית בתקופת המשנה והגמרא, ננסה להבין מהי מחלוקת, כיצד חכמים חולקים על חכמים מדורות קודמים להם.

הקורס יהיה בעברית.

Beit HaMikdash I and II-- HaMoreh Eliav -- Block C

This course will focus on the history of the two Batei Mikdash and the role of the Beit HaMikdash in the history of the Jewish people. What was the Beit HaMikdash? What is the relationship between the King of Israel and the Beit HaMikdash? Who is more important the king or the Cohen Gadol? This course will look at history, archeology, architecture and politics and will involve reading selections of Tanach, Mishna, History texts and Midrashim. We will also look at research about the time period. The final project will be a research project about the Batei Mikdash.

הקורס יעסוק בהיסטוריה של בתי המקדש ובמקום החשוב שלהם בעם ישראל. מה היה בבתי המקדש? מה הקשר בין המלך של עם ישראל לבית המקדש? מי היה יותר חשוב, המלך או הכהן הגדול?

נלמד בקורס היסטוריה, ארכיאולוגיה, ארכיטקטורה ופוליטיקה, ונשתמש במקורות מהתקופה ההיא - תנ"ך, משנה, ספרי היסטוריה ומדרשים.

בנוסף נשתמש במחקרים חדשים ובגילויים חדשים על התקופה.

הפרוייקט הסופי יהיה עבודה קצרה (באנגלית) עם שאלת חקר על בתי המקדש - עם עזרה והנחיה שלי.

הקורס יהיה רובו באנגלית אך נלמד גם מילים בעברית ונשלב טקסטים בעברית.

***

Name: ____________________` Advisor: ___________________

Choosing Beit Midrash Courses: 2nd Quarter 2016

1. You will take 3 JS courses (or two courses and an independent study project)
2. Please rank your course choices in each Block.
3. Please note the block letter next to each course.  Courses with the same letter are offered at the same time.

JS Courses

My Ranking	Course Name	Teacher	Block
	Story Behind Tefillot (Tanach)	Dr Beliak	A
	Jerusalem (Jewish History)	HaMorah Ofra	A
	Halachot of Chanukah	Rabbi Fox	B
	Crime and Punishment	HaMorah Bat Sheva	B
	Parents and Children in the Tanach	Dr Beliak	C
	Beit HaMikdash I and II	HaMoreh Eliav	C
	Gemara Sanhedrin (Ivrit)	HaMorah Ofra	C

7th and 8th graders must do an independent project this year.

Please indicate if you have a topic for an independent project:  no/yes

The topic is: ___________________________________________________I need / have a partner. (new partner: not from an earlier independent project)

Partner name _______________________________

Rank your first _________  and second choice ____________ block for the project.