The Jewish Way of Life resource is designed for teaching and learning in religious education (RE) and ways in which it meets prevailing needs in the subject are indicated on the Agreed Syllabuses and The National Framework [link] page.
The Jewish Way of Life resource not only uses ICT (information and communications technology) as a tool for learning about Jews and Judaism as part of the RE curriculum but also enables pupils to acquire and strengthen skills and aptitudes such as:
- accessing, selecting and interpreting information
- reviewing and modifying their work to improve its quality
- testing reliability and accuracy
- hypothesising and empathising
- presenting information and ideas effectively
- developing manual dexterity through exacting manoeuvres (such as lighting the Hanukiyah in the ‘Time’ component of the ‘What we do unit’)
- being creative and taking risks
- gaining confidence and independence
Elements of the knowledge, understanding and skills that the Jewish Way of Life resource promotes also serve other curriculum areas. Some of these are indicated below, by subject:
- expressing ideas and feelings through art such as the ‘Welcoming newcomers’ activity (in the ‘Jewish actions and values’ component of the ‘What we believe’ unit)
- creating computer assisted graphics in the activities to produce greetings cards (in the ‘Time’ component of the ‘What we do’ unit) and a bookmark (in the ‘Prayer’ component of the ‘What we believe’ unit)
- developing visual acuity and powers of observation (for example, in the ‘David’s home’ activity in the ‘Space’ component of the ‘What we do’ unit)
- becoming aware of artefacts as artistic creation (especially in the ‘Space’ and ‘Time’ components of the ‘What we do’ unit)
- experimenting with alternative designs in the ‘Dressing up for Purim’ activity (in the ‘Time’ component of the ‘What we do’ unit)
- exploring values
- making informed decisions
- ranking and prioritising
- formulating statements of beliefs and values and articulating personal commitments
- appreciating cultural diversity and interfaith dialogue
- becoming aware of opportunities for ethical action
- making a replica artefact (in the ‘Space’ component of the ‘What we do’ unit)
- cooking (including one cold-cooking activity) using recipes (in the ‘Time’ component of the ‘What we do’ unit)
- appreciating the concept of ‘build’ in the ‘Build a sukkah’ activity (in the ‘Time’ component of the ‘What we do’ unit)
- receiving support for reading by means of exact transcripts of the speeches made by Sarah and David on video and audio
- benefiting from the range of support and challenge provided through varied language registers across the texts provided
- using writing frames, word fields, cloze and other forms of scaffolding, as well as engaging in open-ended writing tasks that stimulate empathy and personal reflection
- appreciating the importance of literacy through an awareness of its role in the Jewish tradition (especially through the material on the prayer book in the ‘Prayer’ and ‘Torah’ components of the ‘What we believe’ unit, as well as Shabbat and a number of festivals in the ‘Time’ component of the ‘What we do’ unit)
- interpreting and manipulating maps (in the ‘Who we are’ and ‘What we believe’ units)
- understanding Jewish demography (in the ‘Who we are’ unit)
- gaining knowledge of natural and built environments (through the ‘Synagogues around the world’ activity in the ‘Who we are’ unit and the ‘Israel’ component of the ‘What we believe’ unit)
- enhancing ecological awareness through the material on water conservation and tree-planting (in the ‘Jewish actions and values’ component of the ‘What we believe’ unit)
- appreciating the preciousness of natural resources (as in the ‘Food’ component of the ‘What we do’ unit)
- understanding the importance of the Jewish approach to collective memory through learning about festivals derived from historical events (in the ‘Time’ component of the ‘What we do’ unit)
- appreciating the value of oral history (in the ‘Our families’ component of the ‘Who we are’ unit)
- learning about the history of Jews in Britain (in the ‘Who we are’ unit)
- strengthening awareness of narrative and chronology through the activity to sequence material (such as the Esther story in the ‘Time’ component of the ‘What we do’ unit)
- interrogating the chronology of historical material through the ‘X marks the spot!’ activity (in the ‘Torah’ component of the ‘What we believe’ unit)
- being aware of the impact of human settlement on the environment in the ‘Land of layers’ archaeological presentation (in the ‘Israel’ component of the ‘What we believe’ unit)
- managing linear and cyclical representations of time in the ‘Cycle of festivals’ presentation (in the ‘Time’ component of the ‘What we do’ unit)
- strengthening computational skills and presenting numerical information, such as in ‘The case of the running tap: the A—Z experiment’ (in the ‘Jewish actions and values’ component of the ‘What we believe’ unit) and in the ‘Sorting out the time’ (Shabbat) activity (in the ‘Time’ component of the ‘What we do’ unit)
- handling money virtually and engaging in a simulated on-line banking exercise called ‘My charity account’ (in the ‘Jewish actions and values’ component of the ‘What we believe’ unit)
- developing accuracy in measuring and weighing through using the recipes (in the ‘Time’ component of the ‘What we do’ unit)
- being exposed to a language other than their own and intensifying awareness of linguistic diversity (Hebrew terms are transliterated and there are some instances of Hebrew script in visuals.)
- developing translation skills through handling the transliterated glossary of Hebrew terms (The glossary on this site can be made available to pupils.)
- developing appreciation for a range of musical forms (particularly songs in the ‘What we believe’ and ‘What we do’ units)
- selecting music to convey mood (in the activity to create a slide show in the ‘Israel’ component of the ‘What we believe’ unit)
- understanding musical symbolism through learning about the nature and meaning of the notes of the shofar (in the ‘Time’ component of the ‘What we do’ unit)
- experiencing the playing of a simulated shofar (in the ‘Time’ component of the ‘What we do’ unit)
- appreciating the significance of dance and ritual movement in some aspects of worship (especially in the ‘Time’ component of the ‘What we do’ unit)
- demonstrating the use of fair test, other scientific principles and reporting procedures through engagement (in the ‘The case of the running tap: the A—Z experiment’ in the ‘Jewish actions and values’ section of the ‘What we believe unit’)
- managing time and evaluating the use of it through undertaking ‘The Matzah Challenge’ (in the ‘Time’ component of the ‘What we do’ unit)
- handling alternative categories of substances (in the ‘Food’ component of the ‘What we do’ unit)