Beyond the Family Tree: Jewish History and Diversity through Family Names and Languages

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Curriculum
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Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI)
History
Intergenerational Learning
Jewish Peoplehood
6 - 7
8 - 12

In this project-based curricular unit, students explore the diversity of Jews around the world, past and present, including their own family stories about names and languages. Through hands-on activities, primary sources, visual and performing arts engagement, family interviews, and online research, students will connect their family histories with the larger story of Jewish ancestral diversity, enabling them to see themselves as part of that mosaic. The unit culminates in a creative project and showcase. 

Target Age: 

  • Designed for grades 5-12 but ideal for middle grades (grades 5-8)

Details:

  • 9 Lessons, roughly 1 hour in length each
  • Lessons can be used modularly/mixed and matched

 

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Unit Objectives and Essential Questions

Through this unit, students will understand that:

  • At various points in history, Jews migrated to new countries due to economic opportunity, regime change, and oppression/persecution.
  • After migration, Jewish communities experienced tensions between assimilation and cultural retention.
  • Jewish communities in different regions are culturally distinct, and it is important to be aware of and include this diversity in Jewish communal activity.
  • Their family’s story is connected to a larger Jewish story.

This unit addresses essential questions, such as:

  • What led Jews to migrate to different parts of the world?
  • How did Jewish migration patterns impact Jewish culture, including languages and names?
  • To what extent did Jewish communities assimilate into the host cultures of the countries to which they moved?

  • How is my family’s story connected to larger stories of Jewish migration?

     

    This resource is a partnership between Jewish Language Project and JIMENA.

Details

Setting

  • Congregational Learning
  • Day Schools and Yeshivas

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