Navi Class Goes Montessori: Ch. 3

Here are the activities from which students can choose:

clicking on photos enlarges them

READING – My guided-reading worksheets. Mine are very open-ended, e.g. “you are Shaul in pasuk 16; what would you reply?” and “What is your favorite moment in this perek?” I don’t try to hit all the main points of a perek, only to highlight some fascinating details that students might miss if they read distractedly.

RABBI ALTERMAN’S QUESTIONS – are online here. They provide an excellent alternative to my sheets because they do hit all the main points of a perek, in a very straightforward who-what-when-where fashion.

Some of the girls have a really strong preference for one set of sheets or the other.

TRANSLATING – copy a pasuk out in Hebrew. List the shorashim and give the definition of each. Highlight each word punctuated with a zakef-katon, esnachta, or sof-pasuk. Finally, translate the pasuk into full English sentences. They have to do two of these per four-day week. Some of the girls with more advanced skills have been choosing to do extra.

USE A MEFORASH MEFAREISH (thanks Matt)– what it sounds like. Identify the mefareish’s question, summarize the answer, explain how it affects your life. They can use an English or a Hebrew mefareish – they get a lot of Rashi, etc. work in their other kodesh classes.

MIDDOS – identify a midda at work in this perek, and what we can learn from the person’s example or what he could have done differently, and where this lesson manifests in your life. Optional: grab a partner and act out a skit showing correct behavior infused with this midda.

MI AMAR EL MI – also from Rabbi Alterman; the sheet is a list of Hebrew verses; identify who said what to whom.

PEREK-SPECIFIC EXERCISES – e.g. take a ruler and measure the distance given in this perek in cubits to see just how much space they were working in; or sit down and patiently untangle all the place names using a map – that sort of thing.

 

SCAVENGER HUNT – this time I listed, not funny little things like my Yishaya scavenger hunt from last year, but social situations and middos. Find them anywhere in the sefer.

I listed so many that I split them into two separate activities.

SCAVENGER HUNT BLANKS – you write the scavenger hunt for everyone else to use.

ASK THE NAVI – the name is somewhat tongue-in-cheek; this isn’t a goral haGra. Think of a question in your life. Read some of the sefer. What do you think is a Torah answer to your question? Did you see anything in the Navi that makes you think this?

GRAPHIC NOVEL – yes, that is Totoro on the envelope. Retell the perek as a graphic novel. Inside this envelope are a lot of blanks with pre-drawn speech bubbles for those who want them.

REWRITE FOR CHILDREN – retell the perek as a children’s story or as a play script. Extra-credit, rehearse and perform it for a younger grade.

OUTLINE – by parshiyos, not perakim.

GRAPHIC ORGANIZERS – lots of blanks to assist in making sense of the story or its ideas, cause & effect, etc.

TONE OF VOICE – choose a pasuk that includes someone speaking to someone else. Consider the character of both and the relationship between them. Practice aloud – with a partner if you like – until you hit upon a tone of voice that sounds feasible for this pasuk.

HOT POTATO – write a question about the Navi and pass it around the room; everyone has to write an answer.

GUIDED DISCUSSION – prepare and lead one for the class.

RECITATION – memorize and present a pasuk.

TEACH THE CLASS – what it sounds like. In the envelope are worksheets with the components of a lesson plan that they can use if they like.

DEBATE – prepare an argument and make your case. Extra-credit, get someone else to take the other side.

PRESENTATION – whatever you want it to be; just clear with the teacher first.

JEOPARDY, TABOO – for now the activity is to make these games, not to play them. This may change as the year goes on.

MAPPING – lots of maps in this envelope for reference. Make a map of Eretz Yisrael, listing certain basic elements and the places mentioned in this perek. After Pesach I want to put out a tub of play-dough for use here; some of the maps are topographical (also, a lot of the action in this sefer takes places on the Hill of Such-and-such; the topography is important).

PERSON – this is a pretty academic research project: choose a character and research him or her using certain resources.

PICTIONARY – what it sounds like.

MOOD RING – color-code each pasuk of this perek according to how you would have felt had you been there at the time.

ASKING QUESTIONS – just list questions you have about the perek.

WRITING FICTION – identify three themes or lessons of the perek and re-work them into a work of fiction.

PRODUCTION CONCEPT – how would you stage this perek? What color lighting, costumes, background music…?

SONG LYRICS – encapsulate the perek in song lyrics.

WRITE A THESIS – classic five-paragraph thesis paper. I’ll be surprised if anyone chooses this, but I wanted to make it available.