Identity

__IDENTITY__
MIDDLE SCHOOL This mini-unit, developed by the Educational Directors Network of Cleveland in partnership with the JECC, holds a mirror up to our preteens, helping them reflect on the choices that they wish to be making as young adults and as young Jews. It has been designed with classroom learning (three lessons minimally, six maximally) and a retreat which is scheduled after the third session. For some students the retreat is the unit's end, and for others, it is penultimate. The Enduring Understanding for "Count Me In" is from the text found in Ecclesiastes Rabbah - "Every person has three names: one his or her father and mother give, one others call him or her, and one s/he earns for him or herself." The learning builds to the affirmation, "count me in" (hineini in Hebrew!) ... I will be counted as a Jew and as a mensch.
 * **__Count Me In!! __** REVISED 2013




 * __Jewish Identity Buffet __** ||
 * In her study of Jewish identity, “Corrections and Journeys” (2000), sociologist Dr. BethamieHorowitz offers a salad bar metaphor to illustrate how Jews today relate to Judaism. In this activity participants choose “food items” (labeled with Jewish identity descriptors) that match their own current attachment to Judaism. Through personal reflection and small group discussion, “diners” gain a clearer picture of their current Jewish connections. Through analysis of their “food choices” players develop a more-rounded picture of identity issues and an understanding of the philosophical differences between the four major Jewish denominations in North America (Orthodox, Conservative, Reform, Reconstructionist). ||
 * [[file:curriculumjecc/ID.1 - Jewish Identity Buffet.pdf|ID.1 - Jewish Identity Buffet.pdf]] ||