חומש

Taught by Miss Ginsberg

“…אבל ראוי לך להתחיל בעת חזק שכלך והכרתך לעין בספר תורת האלקים וספרי נביאיו
כמי שלא למד מהם אות” (חובות הלבבות)

“..It is proper for you to, as your mind and awareness matures, begin to delve into the Torah of Hashem and the books of His Neviim, as one who has never learned a single letter..”

(Duties of the Heart)

The girls have learned ספר שמות many times in elementary school. As high school students however, they will revisit the events in ספר שמות with a fresh eye,  discovering more of its depth and meaning.

The רמבן  in the beginning of  ספר שמות  describes the  ספר as one of  גלות  and גאולה. Superficially,  גאולה  is physical redemption, yet the redemption from  מצריםoccurs in פרק יב – 28 פרקים  before the end of the ספר!

רמבןredefines גאולה as the point when בני ישראל  become the place for Hashem’s שכינה to dwell, through the ultimateredemption: the הקמת המשכן.

Goal

Our goal this year is to understand the process that בני ישראל go through, from שעבוד מצרים and building up to  הקמת המשכן. We will also be discussing many other themes within the ספר such as:

  • The role of כלל ישראל
  • אמונה
  • נושא בעול עם חברו
  • בזכות נשים צדקניות נגאלו..

With this in mind, some sections will be learned more in depth and others will be taught in a בקיאות style.

Emphasis will be placed on making connections between different ענינים in the ספר and noting how they build on each other. Thus, the learning is a process of discovery where students slowly develop and deepen their understanding  of חומשthroughout the year.

Skills

Among the skills we will focus on are:

  • Developing thinking skills by having to read פסוקים or a מפורש and ask questions. (For example: Is thisמפורש  saying something that we expected? Does it contradict any other source? Are there grammatical difficulties? Is there a פסוק that doesn’t seem to fit the main topic?)
  • Becoming familiar with and learn to read various מפרשי תנ”ך, sometimes working in pairs or groups to understand a source.
  • Learning to compare or contrast several מפרשים  on the same פסוק
  • Representing  learning by creating charts, graphic organizers etc. based on what they have learned
  • Summarizing/extracting a main idea from the פרק

Homework /Tests

  1. חזרה (review)
    • Nightly oral review of previous day’s lesson to reinforce material taught in class (daily oral quiz, occasional written quiz)
    • Occasional written homework to reinforce understanding and expand  knowledge
  2. הכנה (preparation)
    • 1 -2 times a week, girls will be assigned new material to prepare at home
    • To familiarize them with material beforehand, for deeper development in class
    • To create interest
  3. To develop their skills
  4. Occasional קריאה  quizzes to develop accuracy in reading and translating
  5. Creative  student projects after one or two פרקים;
  6. One exam at the end of each semester.
  7. Extra credit questions/preparation sheets

Your daughters’ success and well being is of utmost importance. Please feel free to call me at (347) 760-3711 with any concerns or questions.

I am looking forward to a wonderful and productive year!