TEFILLAH UNIT Grade 7 - PowerPoint Presentation

TEFILLAH UNITGrade 7 By Hayah Rafie and ☺ rah Goykadosh

Learning Goals:TLW gain an appreciation and love of Tefillah. TLW know the literal and deeper understandings of the following tefillot: Birchot HaShachar Shema Amidah Aleinu TLW develop a commitment to Tefillah.

Project-Based Learning! The students are posed with the following problem: A group of 5 th graders were really counting on winning a class trip to Adventureland in the school raffle. They davened every day for this, but did not see the results of their tefillot (i.e. they did not win). They are upset and unmotivated about Tefillah, and feel that it is useless to daven anymore! What can you do to motivate them keep davening every day?

Once students are motivated to solve the issue at hand, the teacher will provide practical steps: 1. Gather into groups of 3 based on your choice of Tefillah. Review the translation of this Tefillah. 2. From 10 relevant meforshim provided, pick 2 that contain a message that will be meaningful to the 5 th graders. 3. Create one of the following: - Video - Song - Painting with Story

(Product Options) A Video should depict a scenario that brings out the motivating message of this Tefillah and Tefillah in general. (Interweave the messages of the meforshim.) A Song (including a real soundtrack, which can be acquired online or from various sources if not originally composed) should include the motivating message of your Tefillah and Tefillah in general. (Interweave the messages of the meforshim.) A Painting with A Story should illustrate the message of your Tefillah and meforshim. Presented in School-wide “Tefillah Motivation” Program. Students will also observe and track 5 th graders’ progress in portraying strength/perseverance, and reward them for successes.

Mental Representations Mental Models : Their mental models of the spiritual world will become more alive as well, containing physical representations that will be developed through metaphors and class discussions on spirituality and prayer. Schemas: Our goal is to promote the enrichment of this schema to “closeness with Hashem.” This course will develop the students’ schemas of who Hashem is, and the idea behind each Tefillah explored. Case Based Reasoning: We will discuss individuals who underwent difficulties and challenges, and in their times of distress, they prayed with power that generated effects.

Learning is Uneven7 Seigler and Crowley: Knowledge exists in the mind in parts and pieces. Students may have entered the classroom at the start of the course with various unlinked pieces of information such as the following: G-d is loving, G-d is tough at times, prayer is an important part of a Jew’s life, prayer has done miracles in the past, one can pray for anything. We will administer pre-assessments at the start of the course to determine the readiness, interests, and learning profile of each student. We will also gain by this means, insight into what bits and pieces of information our students know about Tefillah. Based on this, we will ensure that the organization and flow of the lesson plans build upon each other and tie together to a larger picture. However, we will keep in mind that learning is uneven, and the student will learn a great deal from her personal experiences and interactions in her life with praying to Hashem. Learning is not a fast process, and our students will very likely not use new information immediately. However, our PBL provides students with an opportunity to use the info in a different way, and thus, eventually internalize it.

Transfer The issue of Transfer in the field of education is a hot one!) How will we be sure that our students will transfer the content they have learned to the various arenas of their lives? How can we ensure that which was learned in the classroom will be taken out of the classroom, which is essentially what it was intended for? Our students will learn to apply and transfer lessons due to their enriched schemas of G-d, concepts of Tefillah, and spirituality. The teacher will question students frequently throughout class discussions, questions that will challenge students to apply, analyze, and synthesize. Our project-based learning will empower our students to motivate others to transfer the lessons of Tefillah outside the classroom. In this way, they themselves will naturally be subjects of transfer. 8

Learning as a Social Experience Vygotsky: learning as a social experience Social interaction and teamwork is a foundation to our Project-Based Learning. Students are engaged when given the opportunity to explore, discuss, and create with their peers. Critical thinking in a group setting is conducive to true learning and long-term retention as well. The teacher will scaffold the learning process, and the students will master content material in the zone of proximal development; they will learn something that may have been too challenging, but is now possible due to the social nature of the project. Moreover, class discussions and textual study of the prayers will involve the social nature of learning. Frontal lessons will be executed heavily by student participation. Textual study will often take place “chavruta-style.” Students will learn that Tefillah skills is essential for being a good Jew. Tefillah connects them to the entire Jewish community. Knowing the how/why of praying is not just crucial for the shul experience, but for life as a true Jew. 9

MotivationAccording to Dweck, motivation is an integral part of the learning process. It is unlikely that unmotivated students will learn effectively, if they will learn anything at all. One way to foster student motivation is to provide choice. In our unit, students have the freedom to choose a Tefillah, meforshim that they find most appealing/meaningful, and manner of presentation (choice in content and product). A connection with their Father Above will be presented as something very relevant to them, and thus intrinsically motivating. 10