G milut Chasadim Lesson 4

Transcription

1 G milut Chasadim Lesson 4 Repentance: Is Saying Sorry Enough? INTRODUCTION The purpose of this lesson is to introduce students to the important and empowering message of t shuvah, repentance. To be a g milut chasadim hero can mean many things, but first and foremost it requires that we be the kind of people who are cognizant of the impact our behavior has on others and who are willing to make necessary changes and corrections, when need be. Rabbi Michael Strassfeld explains the process of t shuvah in the following manner: The first step is to see what we have done wrong. The second step is to regret our mistakes, which is why t shuvah is often translated as repentance. Third, we resolve to change by not repeating our mistakes. 1 For young students, this is a challenging but promising concept, because it acknowledges our lack of perfection as humans and provides a model for self-improvement that ultimately brings us closer to our best possible selves, and to God. Helping our students understand that everyone makes mistakes, just as they do, and that everyone has the opportunity to mature and grow and to become even better people over time can contribute positively to their personal self-image and minimize unnecessary feelings of guilt. The hardest part, according to Rabbi Strassfeld, is forgiving ourselves for our weaknesses. 2 In this lesson, the students will consider scenarios in which mistakes were made, and they will have an opportunity to decide how they might be corrected. You may also want to refer to Lesson 1 of the Avodah strand, Rosh HaShanah and Yom Kippur, which touches upon the topic of mistakes (see especially Tapuach: The Sorry Apple Game on page 129). ENDURING UNDERSTANDINGS We have a responsibility to perform personal acts of g milut chasdim in order to make the world a better and holier place. I am a part of the ongoing story of the Jewish people when I perform acts of g milut chasadim. ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS 1. Why do we perform acts of g milut chasadim? 2. What difference do we make when we do g milut chasadim? 1 Michael Strassfeld, A Book of Life: Embracing Judaism as a Spiritual Practice (New York: Schocken Books, 2002), p Ibid., p

2 242 G milut Chasadim Lesson 4 CHAI: Learning for Jewish Life 3. How do my actions affect the people around me? 4. What is an act of g milut chasadim, and how can I do it? 5. What can I learn about g milut chasadim from the story of the Jewish people? 6. How does performing acts of g milut chasadim make me a part of the ongoing story of the Jewish people? QUESTIONS TO BE ADDRESSED 1. What is t shuvah, repentance? 2. Why is t shuvah an important part of being a g milut chasadim hero? 3. How can I do t shuvah? EVIDENCE OF UNDERSTANDING 1. Using the Steps to T shuvah, students will identify mistakes that people are making by not behaving nicely and will figure out what improvements could be made. 2. Students will analyze several situations in the T shuvah Scenarios and will offer their solutions for how the situations could be improved through acts of g milut chasadim. LESSON OVERVIEW Set Induction (5 10 minutes) The Steps to T shuvah (10 15 minutes) T shuvah Scenarios (15 minutes) Conclusion: Saying Sorry with Music (10 minutes) MATERIALS NEEDED CHAI Level 1 CD, track 24, We Are Sorry for These Things T shuvah scenarios (page 245), cut into separate sheets and placed in a container READING RESOURCES FOR TEACHERS Manushkin, Fran. Sophie and the Shofar: A New Year s Story. New York: UAHC Press, Strassfeld, Michael. A Book of Life: Embracing Judaism as a Spiritual Practice. New York: Schocken Books, 2002.

3 CHAI: Learning for Jewish Life Repentance: Is Saying Sorry Enough? 243 LESSON VOCABULARY v cuj T t shuvah To ask for forgiveness and sincerely try to do better. SET INDUCTION (5 10 MINUTES) 1. Sing or play the class welcome song. LESSON PLAN 2. Review with students the acts of g milut chasadim that they last studied. If you asked students to complete the At-Home Activity from their booklets, invite students to share their answers and pages now. 3. Write the word change on the board, and ask the students if they know what it means (possible answers: money/coins, something becoming one thing from another, something new and different, etc.). 4. Ask the students if they ever knew someone whose appearance had changed. Ask them what changed (possible answers: someone s hairstyle or hair color, someone got older, someone gained/lost weight, etc.). 5. Finally, ask the students if they ever knew anyone whose behavior had changed for the better (possible answers: a sibling is less annoying, a friend is more patient, etc.). 6. Explain to the students that in Judaism we learn that it is always possible for people to try to be better and that we can work to become better people. We call this t shuvah. When we do this, we are like g milut chasadim heroes because we are trying to be kinder and better to others in our world. LEARNING ACTIVITIES The Steps to T shuvah (10 15 minutes) 1. Explain to students that they are now going to learn about the three steps to t shuvah, to change. Hand out the student booklets and read page 1 as a class. 2. Ask the students to turn to page 2 in their student booklets, The Steps to T shuvah. 3. Ask students to look at the first row of pictures. Ask for volunteers to guess what is going on in the first row of pictures. (If necessary, help the students with prompts or with the right answers.) 4. Ask the students what the people in the pictures in the first row could do differently that would make things better. 5. Tell the students to look at the last row of pictures, and bring their attention to the fact that these pictures show corrective actions. Engage the class in conversation about the answers they generated (about corrective action) and the pictures that are presented as models. Allow the students to express themselves freely on this point. 6. Write the following three steps to t shuvah on the board: a. SEE (what we have done wrong)

4 244 G milut Chasadim Lesson 4 CHAI: Learning for Jewish Life b. FEEL SORRY (for our mistakes) c. CHANGE (our actions) 7. Show the students that in the first row of pictures, someone acts incorrectly. In the second row, that person feels sorry for how he or she acted. In the last row, that person is acting differently. These are the three steps of t shuvah. T shuvah Scenarios (15 minutes) 1. Tell the students that the class will now play a game in which everyone will have a turn. 2. Ask a pair of students to come to the front of the room to pick one of the scenarios out of the container in which you have placed them. Read the scenarios slowly and clearly to the students. 3. Ask the pair of students the questions that follow the scenarios in italics. 4. After the two students have had a chance to answer the questions, invite other students in the class to share any answers they may have thought of. In giving their answers, tell the students to remember the three steps in the process of t shuvah: (1) we see that we did something wrong; (2) we feel sorry for what we did that was wrong; (3) we change by fixing our mistake and promising to not make that mistake again. 5. Repeat the process until all the scenarios have been selected (or until you no longer have time). CONCLUSION: SAYING SORRY WITH MUSIC (10 MINUTES) 1. Tell the students that you will be playing a song about t shuvah and that they should listen carefully. Ask them to listen for the kinds of behavior for which Jews apologize and try to change. 2. Play track 24 on the CHAI CD, We are Sorry for These Things. 3. After the song has played, ask the students to share some of the thoughts presented in the song. 4. Remind the students that Judaism teaches us that although no one is perfect, we each have a chance to pay attention to our behavior, to apologize when we have done something wrong, and to work to do better next time. When we follow these steps to t shuvah, we are g milut chasadim heroes! 5. Sing or play the class good-bye song. 6. Tell the student to take their booklets home. If you would like, ask students to complete the At-Home Activity and bring it to your next class session.

5 CHAI: Learning for Jewish Life The T shuvah Scenarios Susie didn t have a snack in her backpack, but she noticed that her friend Jenny had two snacks. Susie took one of Jenny s snacks without telling her, and Jenny thought Mark did it. Jenny was angry at Mark. What did Susie do wrong? What would you do to fix the mistake if you were Susie? When it was his turn to feed the dog, Michael didn t feel like doing it, so he didn t. When his mother came home from work and asked him if he had fed the dog, Michael pretended he was sick and said he couldn t do it. Michael s mom was tired, but she fed the dog because Michael didn t. Do you think that what Michael did was fair? Was anyone hurt by what Michael did? If you were Michael, what would you do now to fix the problem? David noticed that one of his friends at school was making fun of Sarah, a new girl who had just moved to their town and who wore glasses. David made fun of her, too. On Sunday, David found that Sarah was seated next to him in his religious school class. When she saw David, she started to cry and asked the teacher to move her. Miriam s little brother found one of her favorite storybooks and he wrote all over it with crayons. Miriam was so angry that she took one of his toys and broke it. Do you think Miriam was wrong for breaking her brother s toy? What would you do if you were Miriam? Joanne and Rachel were playing with a soccer ball during recess. Jonathan asked if he could join them, and Joanne told him no and to go away. Michael began to cry and ran away. Do you think what Joanne did was fair? If you were Joanne, could you think of a different way to answer Jonathan? Optional your own scenario here. Why do you think Sarah cried when she saw David? What would you do if you were David? Copyright 2007 URJ Press

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