Israel: Zionism & Aliyah
A 5-Session Unit for 6th Grade Sunday School
For years Am Shalom has dedicated the 4th grade year to learning about Israel. In our curricular overview, 4th grade reads as follows:
Israel: People, Places, Ideas - Learners embark on a geographical and historical study of the land, people, and state of Israel. The second half of the year is a look at Israel through the lens of STEAM.
It is a wonderful year (and a lot of fun for our learners) but it is the classic “falafel & hummus” theory of Israel education; it is all happy and idyllic with very little nuance or complexity. Plus, it was the only formal educational offering we had made available from 3rd grade on.
I have since been tasked with developing an Israel curriculum that builds upon the 4th grade happy and idyllic introduction to this place called Israel. Therefore, I am developing a 5-session unit for 6th grade; a 7-session unit for early high school; and a 3-session unit for late high school. Each grade is meant to add another layer of complexity to our learners' understanding of the modern State of Israel so that, when they graduate from our program, they will be better able to enter into nuanced conversations about Israel today.
There are a couple of reasons why 6th grade is a particularly important grade to focus on for our next rung on the ladder of Israel education. First of all, 6th grade is still within the required years of schooling (high school is not); therefore, notwithstanding attendance issues, every student who goes through our program, will participate in this unit. Second of all, our curricular theory around 6th grade is: Turning Points in Jewish History. Just as learners are confronting major turning points in their own life (puberty, starting junior high, bar/bat mitzvah) and wrestling with self determination, a unit on Zionism and the founding of the State of Israel meets them where they are developmentally.
The 6th grade Israel unit covers two primary themes: (1) why did the Modern State of Israel come into being and (2) who are Israelis/why have people made aliyah. Addressing the first theme, why did the state come into being, our learners are introduced to Herzl and Zionism as well as how might the Holocaust factor into creating the State of Israel. They are asked to imagine how the state might fulfill “The Hope” of Hatikvah. Plus, they spend an entire session considering the implications of declaring independence and what the Declaration of Independence says about the State of Israel. The second theme, who are Israelis and why have people made aliyah, introduces our learners to the diversity within the Israeli population. Looking at each wave of aliyah, the learners unpack the demographics of each group, as well as the push and pull factors at play at different points in the last 140+ years since the First Aliyah. These themes and their particulars allow the learners to conceive of an Israel that isn’t merely a pretty place with yummy food; rather Israel becomes a home to real people who have had real trials and tribulations. Most importantly, however, at a time when learners are facing a very real internal struggle around independence and self governance, they are aptly prepared to consider the possibility that their community could face the same struggle.
Our 4th grade curriculum gives us an ideal theory of Israel; which is perfect for 4th graders who don’t have an intimate connection to the modern state. By 6th grade, however, we have to start introducing the realness of Israel and of Israelis. If we are successful with this unit, our learners will be better able to articulate the philosophy behind Zionism and its relevance in Jewish history and they will also be better able to consider Israel as a real place, not merely an ideal, filled with people who are real and have real backstories.
Ideally, our students would choose to continue past 7th grade to learn with us through high school graduation. If they were to continue, they would join the early high school class on Reconciling the Ideal & Real Israel and the late high school class on Colliding Dreams: How Does the Reality of Zionism Meet the Ideal - based on the documentary Colliding Dreams. These later classes propel our learners into nuanced conversations that challenge a simple narrative of us & them. These conversations are hollow, however, without the background we could be teaching in 6th grade.
Ultimately, my goal is that our learners will be able to argue about Israel with nuance without ever suggesting that Israel does not have the right to exist. Learners learn, all too quickly, that there are very negative views on Israel and on Jews who support Israel. For our Israel education to be successful, we must be able to prepare our learners for these truths by encouraging them to engage in the nuances and in the complexities of modern day Israel. Nevertheless, truly successful Israel education is predicated on the absolute truth that the Jewish people have a right to self determination and, therefore, Israel has a right to exist. Our 6th grade unit on Israel will help our learners understand this truth so that they can better take in the complexities and nuances of the arguments without feeling like they have nothing to stand on.
Bibliography
Primary Sources:
Aliyah Photos - from a variety of sources using the following Google search: https://www.google.com/search?q=early+israeli+Aliyah+Photos&sca_esv=bc04eb62f54fe237&rlz=1C1CHBF_enUS919US919&udm=2&biw=1707&bih=898&ei=9G0RaOzdC6DtptQP7peIWA&ved=0ahUKEwjsp42gv_6MAxWgtokEHe4LAgsQ4dUDCBE&uact=5&oq=early+israeli+Aliyah+Photos&gs_lp=EgNpbWciG2Vhcmx5IGlzcmFlbGkgQWxpeWFoIFBob3Rvc0ibG1DCB1jtF3ABeACQAQCYAVagAaIDqgEBNrgBA8gBAPgBAZgCAKACAJgDAIgGAZIHAKAHjgKyBwC4BwA&sclient=img#imgrc=olqKOKY_mwUUWM&imgdii=dn0jPoJj40I1YM
Cohen, Maya & Roes, Tom. “100 people from 0 to 100 years counting in Hebrew.” YouTube, uploaded by Tom Roes, April 22, 2015, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7WwQL6hr02A
Gil-Shuster, Corey. “Israeli immigrants: Why did you move to Israel?” YouTube, uploaded by The Ask Project, Mar 7, 2020, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uLALwPzJclw
Imber, Naftali Herz, and Shmuel Cohen. "Hatikvah." Israeli National Anthem, 1878.
Make Aliyah posters - from a variety of sources using the following Google search: https://www.google.com/search?sca_esv=bc04eb62f54fe237&rlz=1C1CHBF_enUS919US919&q=aliyah+to+israel+posters&udm=2&fbs=ABzOT_CWdhQLP1FcmU5B0fn3xuWpA-dk4wpBWOGsoR7DG5zJBsxayPSIAqObp_AgjkUGqensJR8Rz2PphQzhi4JPzwOL41jAKImdqfcm5f6z1FIS-IgTGlRGj70JJPKHKqb7lEweUD5_M9SJIPxl3cLPys5X5jxTs3QVyTIeWmIFSHJSxfAR9Zv968kWNWzemDZiP0fS9f2TALb4_2ezgp-7EhOL6MiLfA&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwiZ_J3_v_6MAxVAhIkEHYi_AKAQtKgLegQIFRAB&biw=1707&bih=898&dpr=1.5
People's Council (1948). "Declaration of Establishment of the State of Israel." Tel Aviv, May 14, 1948.
“Shevet Achim Ve Achayot Taglit- Birthright Israel.” YouTube, uploaded by Taglit-Birthright Israel, June 30, 2019, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gHAd2D_0u5k
“סליחה על השאלה ילדים עולים ENGLISH SUBTITLES.” YouTube, uploaded by dalinear, Apr 10, 2021, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KXa_KtGmBHA
“Welcome to Israel - Let's Learn Some Hebrew!” The National Library of Israel, 1950’s, https://education-en.nli.org.il/lessons/welcome-to-israel-now-lets-learn-some-hebrew#sources
Secondary Sources:
“Episode 6: The Return to the Land of Israel.” YouTube, uploaded by The Jewish Story - In Animation, Sep 10, 2021, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5CApOZEkTFc
“How the State of Israel was Born.” YouTube, uploaded by The Jewish Story - In Animation, April 28, 2015, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7E-P4FG7Utc
“The David Ben Gurion Digital Escape Room”, IsraelLINK, https://go.israellink.org/BenGurionEscapeRoom
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