Course Description: Chumash Bamidbar Part 2

Course Name: Chumash Bamidbar Part 2
Teacher: Rabbi Reuven Spolter
Text Studied: Sefer Bamidbar, Chapters 12-20
For Grades: 5-8
General Course Description:
Sefer Bamidbar chronicles the counting of the Jewish people, as they make the slow transition from a nation of slaves to an army capable of conquering the Holy Land.

This course covers:

• The punishment of the rabble-rousers
• Miriam’s lashon hara and punishment
• The meraglim, their sin and the punishment of the Jewish peole
• The mitzvah of tzitzit
• Korach’s uprising and punishment
• The well of Miriam and her death
• Moshe hits the rock

The student will learn the following during this text-based course:

• How to read and translate the text of the Torah
• How to divide up pesukim in order to better understand the chumash
• How to recognize and decode verbs in the chumash and identify shorashim (roots)
• Understanding selected comments of Rashi, Midrash and selected mefarshim
• How to identify key words (milah manchah) that repeat in the text and understand their importance

The student will learn the following Judaic knowledge: 

• What caused the nation to believe the spies’ wicked report?
• What are the forces that lead to challenging of leadership?
• Lashon hara: About Moshe, about the Land of Israel: Why do we do it, and what’s so terrible about it?
• Why did Hashem prevent Moshe from entering Eretz Yisrael?

Number of lessons: 20
Sample Lesson: To view a sample lesson click here

Course Description: Chumash Bamidbar Part 1

Course Name: Chumash Bamidbar Part 1
Teacher: Rabbi Reuven Spolter
Text Studied: Sefer Bamidbar, Chapters 1-11
For Grades: 5-8

Number of lessons: 20
General Course Description:
Sefer Bamidbar chronicles the counting of the Jewish people, as they make the slow transition from a nation of slaves to an army capable of conquering the Holy Land.

This course covers:

• The counting of the Jewish people
• The structure of the camp in the Midbar
• The Levi’im, their camp, counting and swapping for the first-born
• The Nazir
• Birkat Kohanim
• The Gifts of the Nesi’im
• Travels in the desert
• Moshe and Chovav
• Signs of trouble – the complainers and the Asafsuf

The student will learn the following during this text-based course:

• How to read and translate the text of the Torah
• How to divide up pesukim in order to better understand the chumash
• How to recognize and decode verbs in the chumash and identify shorashim (roots)
• Understanding selected comments of Rashi, Midrash and selected mefarshim
• How to identify key words (milah manchah) that repeat in the text and understand their importance

The student will learn the following Judaic knowledge: 

• What was the purpose of dividing the Jewish people into camps?
• How long should it have taken the Jewish people to reach the Land of Israel?
• Why would a person become a Nazir? What are the drawbacks?
• What caused the Jewish people to question Moshe’s leadership?

Sample Lesson: To view a sample lesson click here

Course Description: Chumash Shemot Part 1

Course Name: Chumash Shemot
Teacher: Rabbi Reuven Spolter
Text Studied: Sefer Shemot, Chapters 1-9
For Grades: 5-8
General Course Description:
Sefer Shemot is the story of the birth of the Jewish nation. The Jewish people transform from a tiny family to a huge nation, and suffer through centuries of slavery before Hashem chooses Moshe to free them from Par’oh and the Egyptians.

This course covers the enslavement of the Jewish people in Egypt, the birth of Moshe, his flight to Midyan, and his encounter with Hashem at the burning bush. It also covers Moshe’s return to Egypt, the initial failure to free the people, and the first series of the Ten Plagues.

We will learn the structure of the first half of the Sefer

The student will learn the following skills during this course: 

• How to read and translate the text of the Torah
• How to divide up pesukim in order to better understand the chumash
• How to recognize and decode verbs in the chumash and identify shorashim (roots)
• Understanding selected comments of Rashi, Midrash and selected mefarshim
• How to identify key words (milah manchah) that repeat in the text and understand their importance

The student will learn the following Judaic knowledge: 

• The early history of the Jewish people as described in the Torah
• Why was Moshe chosen as the leader of the Bnei Yisrael? What were some of his important qualities?
• What was the purpose of Yetziat Mitzrayim? Why did Hashem free the Jewish people?
• The struggle between Moshe and Par’oh

Number of lessons: 20
Sample Lesson: To view a sample lesson click here

Course Description: The Road to King: Navi Shmuel 1

Course Name: The Road to Kingship
Teacher: Mrs. Ariella Nadel
Text Studied: Sefer Shmuel Aleph, Chapters 1-15
For Grades: 5-8
Number of lessons: 20
General Course Description:
In this course, students will learn the chapters of Shmuel Alef from the birth of the prophet Shmuel through the rise of David as future king . We will learn about the process through which the tribes of Israel became a unified nation under a single king.

Our studies will be centered around the main characters of our Sefer: Shmuel, Shaul and David and how their actions impacted the character of our nation. 

Students will learn about the criterion guiding the inclusion of a story in TaNakh, Nevuah SheHutzrecha L’Dorot (a story with an eternal message). They will learn how to reflect on each story we learn through the lens of those words -reflecting on how the lessons imparted by these stories were both relevant to the time of Navi and their lives today.    

Students will grow more comfortable reading text in the original Hebrew,  and navigating through the pesukim and chapters of TaNakh.

Students will learn the following skills during this course: 

• Text reading and comprehension
• A comfort navigating through the pesukim and Chapters of TaNakh. 
• Identification of key shorashim and their translations
• Quoting from the text to support themes and opinions

Students will learn the following Judaic knowledge: 

• They will become familiar with some of the most famous stories and characters in TaNakh.
• They will have an opportunity to discuss some of the fundamental concepts of Judaism: such as prayer, sacrifice, holiness, prophecy, the nature of miracles and the character of a Jewish king.
• They will learn to  make the connection between modern day Israel and the stories and characters present in our Sefer.

Students will learn come to understand: 

• The eternal relevance of the stories of TaNakh and how its stories and heroes have guided us throughout our history.

Sample Lesson: You can progress through the lesson to get a sense of how we present and organize Kitah materials. To access the sample lesson click here.

Course Description: Mishnah Sukkah

Course Name: MIshnah Sukkah
Teacher: Rabbi Reuven Spolter
Text Studied: Mishnah Sukkah, Chapters 1-3
For Grades: 5-8
General Course Description:
Mishnah Sukkah is one of the first tractates taught to children beginning their study of Torah She’beal Peh. It introduces students to basic concepts fundamental to Mishnah study, including the notion of arguments, applying halachic logic, and understanding rabbinic terminology. It’s also an area of halachah that kids are familiar with, making the study more approachable and fun.
In this course, we’ll cover the first two chapters of Masechet Sukkah, which cover the laws of the construction of the Sukkah, and many other aspects connected to the fulfilment of the commandment to “dwell” in the Sukkah over Sukkot.

The student will learn the following skills during this course: 

• How to read and translate the Mishnah texts
• The connection between the verses in the Torah and how the rabbis in the Mishnah interpreted them
• The application of the rules in the Mishnah in the real world
• How to chart an argument in the Mishnah
• Basic fundamental Mishnah terminology and vocabulary
• Basic commentary of Rav Ovadia of Bartenura on the Mishnah

The student will learn the following Judaic knowledge: 

• The basic halachic requirements of a Sukkah
• What are the halachic qualities of kosher Schach? How much schach does a Sukkah need?
• How many walls must a Sukkah have? How high must they be?
• Can one eat outside the Sukkah?
• Must a person sleep in the Sukkah?
• Can you put a Sukkah on a truck? What about a boat?

Number of lessons: 18
Sample Lesson: You can progress through the lesson to get a sense of how we present and organize Kitah materials. To access the sample lesson click here.

Course Description: Gemara Baba Metzia – Eilu Metziot

Course Name: Baba Metzia – Perek Eilu Metziot
Teacher: Rabbi Reuven Spolter
Text Studied: Gemara Baba Metzia
Chapter 2, Pages 21a – 22b
For Grades: 7-9
General Course Description:
The second chapter of Baba Metzia is a foundational text for the beginning Gemara student. The chapter deals specifically with issues of ownership, property and “lost and found” – topics relevant to students in their daily lives. Students begin to think in a legal framework: Why is your bicycle “yours”? What does it mean to own something? When is it considered lost, so that someone who finds it can keep it? These questions introduce the student not only to the topic of the Gemara, but also to the way that the Gemara teaches us to think about ideas, issues and concepts.

The student will learn the following skills during this course: 

• How to read and translate the Mishnah and Gemara texts
• How to identify different source texts that appear in the Gemara
• The difference between Tanaim and Amoraim, and how they interact in the Gemara
• The flow and logic of a Gemara text
• How to chart the flow of questions and answers in a Gemara text
• Basic fundamental Talmud terminology and vocabulary

The student will learn the following Judaic knowledge: 

• The Mitzvah of Hashavat Aveidah – returning lost items
• Aspects of ownership in Jewish legal thought
• What is yiush and when does it happen?
• The famous argument about yiush shelo mida’at – and the extensive sugya that deals with the debate between Abaye and Rava
• What is a siman and how does it work?
• The debate about a temporary siman

The student will understand:

• How to relate to their own property
• How to care for the property of others
• The importance of returning lost items to their original owners

Number of lessons: 20
Sample Lesson: You can progress through the lesson to get a sense of how we present and organize Kitah materials. To access the sample lesson click here.