The Jewish Educator’s Newsletter
#2 March 2002 / Nissan 5762
TABLE OF CONTENTS
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2ND VIRTUAL ZIONIST CONGRESS CONVENES
HELP SHAPE THE ZIONIST AGENDA ============================================
In advance of the upcoming 34th World Zionist Congress, The Pedagogic
Center is once again holding its Virtual Zionist Congress online. The
last Virtual Congress presented 2 draft resolutions which were voted on
at the Centennial (33rd) World Zionist Congress in Jerusalem in December
1997. Join the discussions at http://www.jewish-world.org.il/Forum/2VC.asp?language=english&pagelink=197
If you would like to moderate a discussion group, please write to mottif@jazo.org.il
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FEATURE
BY JERIL, I THINK SHE’S GOT IT!!
by Jason H. Epstein
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Have you ever found yourself stuck trying to find a video about the
Holocaust suitable for your sixth graders? Do you need more information
about famous Jewish sports heroes to pique the interest of your high schoolers?
Are you planning an educational trip to Israel but need help finding places
to visit and things to do? You’ll be happy to know that there is
now a solution for your Jewish educational needs.
The Pedagogic Center launched JERIL earlier last month and the website
is starting to take Jewish educators by storm. JERIL (Jewish Educational
Resources In Israel, if you really want to know) is billed as the comprehensive
online guide to Jewish Educational resources. In it you can search through
dozens of publishers, museums, kibbutzim and other providers of Jewish
educational resources.
The powerful database-driven website will allow you to search by material
type, language, age group, subject, location and name. Once you receive
your list of organizations, drill down to get complete information including
Name, Address, Phone, Contact Person, Description and URL. JERIL should
save you plenty of time since you can do all of your searching for educational
materials from one location.
Asking one of the developers here at the Pedagogic Center, he told us
that the website is being constantly updated with new organizations. He
went on to say that the original list was compiled in conjunction with
JESNA, but we contacted each and every organization you can find on our
website personally.
To check out JERIL for yourself go to: http://www.jewishagency-ed.org/jeril/
Jason H. Epstein is a freelance writer who also
does database work for the Pedagogic Center. He writes a monthly feature
on interesting new online educational resources. For more information
or to suggest a resource for review, please write to Jason at marpad1@jazo.org.il
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RESOURCE CENTER ROUNDUP
By Serah Beiser
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Remembrance Day for the Fallen will be especially poignant this year.
The Resource Center will help you locate relevant materials for ceremonies
you plan to arrange.
Available at cost:
* Text for Remembrance Day Ceremony (in English and Hebrew)
* Audiocassette with Ceremony (in Hebrew) and Siren;
* Beyond Pirelia, 48 minute long video-film about a soldier, who fell
in active service (subtitles in English, Spanish, Russian).
* Alex, Building a Life, Book and Activity Guide about a fallen soldier
(in English only)
* An exhibition (posters and ideas for activities, in Hebrew only).
* Music on CD for Remembrance Day
Videos (limited distribution)
* Tironut, chapter 3, video - dubbed in English, part of a television
series, 52 mins.
From the Israeli Foreign Ministry
* Ticking Bomb, about the terrorist attack on the Dolphin Discoteque in
Tel-Aviv, ZOOG, 5:20 mins
* Surviving Terrorism, about six Israelis whose lives were turned upside
down by terrorist attacks,13:50 mins.
For Holocaust Day materials, please contact The International School
for Holocaust Studies , Yad Vashem at education.sales@yadvashem.org.il
Serah Beiser runs the Resource Center at the Pedagogic Center
here. She puts together a monthly roundup of resource materials available
through the Resource Center. For information and orders, please write
to Serah at serahb@jazo.org.il
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SPECIAL THEMES :
FROM PESACH TO PESACH
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Throughout the past year, The Pedagogic Center has been researching
and cataloging web sites, organizing and updating our own resources and
preparing dynamic new presentations on Jewish holidays and themes of Jewish
Interest. Now can see the results of our work on our SPECIAL THEMES web
site. We will be updating this site regularly so visit often
http://www.jewishagency-ed.org/themes.html
If you have a website to recommend or an idea for a special theme site,
please write sidneys@jazo.org.il
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FEATURE LINKS :
TEACHING ISRAEL RESOURCES
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In response to the many requests we have received from you, we have
added TEACHING ISRAEL RESOURCES as a new feature to our links page. Learn
what’s available for educator-training programs, activities and curricula
on Judaism and Jewish identity. A comprehensive overview and review and
it‘s all available online.
http://www.jewishagency-ed.org/diaspora/links/teachingindex.html
If you would like to add a resource, please write chanih@jazo.org.il
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YESH LI ERETZ ACHERET :
PEDAGOGIC CENTER WEBSITE NOW FEATURES ARTICLES
FROM ISRAEL’S INDEPENDENT MAGAZINE
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Eretz Acheret, the thought-provoking, Hebrew-language magazine on that
has taken the Israeli cultural scene by storm, now offers a selection
of its articles online in The Pedagogic Center’s Hebrew-language
CULTURE web site. Discover why for yourself.
http://www.jajz-ed.org.il/ivrit/achert/index.html
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DaTaJEM GOES INTERACTIVE
A NEW LOOK AND A NEW FEATURE
THAT LETS YOU PUT IN YOUR TWO CENTS
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DataJEM, our online review of educational resources, now lets you share
your ideas and opinions and recommendations on education resources you’ve
used in your school or group. Add your reviews by clicking on the “Write
Your Own Comment” link at the bottom of each review. We will be adding
more features to help make DataJEM more interactive in the months ahead
so stay tuned.
http://www.jewishagency-ed.org/DataJEMASP/Visitor/IntroPage.asp
If you are interested in becoming a DatJEM reviewer, please write to
the DataJEM coordinator at sidneys@jazo.org.il
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BUILDING A JEWISH WORLD
OUR ONLINE COMMUNITY
ENTERS ITS NEW HOME (PAGE)
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‘Building a Jewish World’ has a whole new look and a whole
new outlook. Begun in 1997, ‘Building a Jewish World' is a learning
platform linking Jewish communities throughout the world. ‘Building
a Jewish World' also features optional learning modules that combine class
learning and individual work with a full range of community-building tools.
Visit our new home page at http://www.jewish-world.org.il/
If you or your class or group are interested in being part of our community,
fill out the online questionnaire or write us at marpad3@jazo.org.il
and we will be happy to help.
JULY & AUGUST: TEACHER-TRAINING SESSIONS FOR BUILDING A JEWISH
WORLD
If you plan to be in Israel at the end of July or at the upcoming CAJE
conference in San Antonio, TX in the beginning of August, be sure to sign
up for our special in-service training sessions for Building a Jewish
World. Contact us at mottif@jazo.org.il
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BEST OF THE WEB
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This month we highlight the best Pesach materials available on the web.
For our full list of resources, check out: http://www.jajz-ed.org.il/festivls/pesach/index.html
.
Explaining Chad Gadya. A lesson plan surrounding the popular Pesach
song: http://www.jajz-ed.org.il/festivls/pesach/chad_gadya.html
The Prague Haggadah. A fascinating and beautifully illustrated
Haggadah from Prague 1526: http://www.jajz-ed.org.il/news/prague.html
A Different Night. The Family Participation Haggadah. A unique
tool for getting the most out of your family’s Pesach Seder: http://www.jajz-ed.org.il/hartman/home.html
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TEACHER‘S LOUNGE
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The Teacher’s Lounge is a spot where teachers can share ideas,
thoughts and questions with other educators. Questions will be answered
to the best of our ability. If you have something to add to the Teacher’s
Lounge, please direct it to: marpad1@jazo.org.il
Q: What are the Minor Festivals? (M. Berkowitz, Montreal, CANADA)
There are two highly-profiled Minor Festivals:
Chanukah (Feast
of Lights), which lasts 8 days, in the winter month of Kislev, commemorating
the Maccabees' rededication of the Temple in Jerusalem and the restoration
of Jewish national life.
Purim (Feast of
Lots), a late winter-early spring festival in the middle of the month
of Adar (or Adar II in a leap year), celebrating Mordechai and Queen Esther's
saving of the Jewish people from total annihilation by Haman in the ancient
Persian Empire.
The following Minor Festivals are less prominent:
Tu B'Shvat, the
New Year for Trees (marking the fruit-growing season) falls in the month
preceding Purim, on the 15th of Shvat, at the end of the winter rains
in Jerusalem, when the almond trees blossom. It is a popular festival
today for tree-planting and also associated with the traditional "7
species" grown in the Land of Israel.
Another Minor Festival is Lag
Ba'Omer, the 33rd day of the Omer (barley offering) period between
the second day of Pesach and Shavuot, which is celebrated outdoors, with
bonfires and more serious stuff, too. It commemorates the only day in
that period when the Sage, Rabbi Akiva, did not lose disciples to the
Plague, and was a day spent learning Torah al fresco far from the eyes
of the authorities.
Tu B'Av, the 15th
Av, is a mid-summer festival marking the end of the wood-offerings in
the Temple, a day of community peace-making, and the day on which a lot
of matchmaking occurred - directly or indirectly. Not quite a Festival
of Love, but a special day of rejoicing and hope!
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FEEDBACK !
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Let us know what you think. Tell your friends to sign up. Ask us questions.
Tell us what you’d like to see next month. Send everything to: Marpad1@jazo.org.il
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