Orot Israel College Gears Up For the Education Ministry’s New Tanach Curriculum

by Rabbanit Nomi Shachor,
Tanach Department Head, Elkana Campus

During the month of Tamuz, Orot Israel College hosted a three-day conference on teaching Sefer Breishit to seventh graders. Designed to prepare the participants for the launch of the Education Ministry’s new Tanach curriculum, over one hundred teachers from across the country took part in the well-received conference at the Elkana campus.

Recently, the Ministry of Education released a new Tanach curriculum emphasizes the pshat, or simple meaning, of the text and the importance of studying Sefer Breishit in its entirety. Yet, at the same time, educators must ensure that their students are exposed to Sefer Breishit’s profound messages and ideas. In particular, educators hope that their students will come to understand the significance of the events that led up to Am Yisrael’s birth and establishment.

With these competing goals in mind, the conference’s organizers invited a wide array of distinguished rabbis as well as experienced Tanach teachers to address the participants. Some of the speakers – such as Rav Yitzchak Ben Shachar shlit”a, Rav Professor Neria Guttel, Rav Uriel Touitou, Rav Menachem Shachor, and Rabbanit Nomi Shachor – delved into many of Sefer Breishit’s central themes: the Avot, Brit Bein HaBetarim, cheit v’onesh, nisayon, and so on. Other lecturers – such as Rabbanit Dr. Yael Tzohar, Dr. Rivka Raviv, Dr. Ayal Davidson, Mrs. Tafat Halperin, Mrs. Hadassah Stoffel, and Mrs. Hila Nachteiler – focused on essential tools for teaching Sefer Breishit. Examples included a program for teaching bekiut (i.e. a pedagogic approach which leads to a broad, surface knowledge of the text), a timeline, assorted maps of Eretz Yisrael, relevant stories, and much more. Each participant received a CD containing these tools, lecture source sheets, and the presentations.

In her talk, Mrs. Miri Schlissel, director of Tanach studies at the Education Ministry’s Religious Education Department, noted that Sefer Breishit is an ideal way to begin junior high school. In addition, she showed how studying bekiut is well-suited for the early adolescent temperament. The conference proved to be a great success, as evidenced by the feedback forms and the dozens of thank you notes we received: “I enjoyed it and gained a lot.” “Yishar ko’ach on the welcome initiative. It was enlightening and beneficial.” “Thank you for the valuable and interesting conference and the gracious accommodations.”