<HTML>I have been teaching eighth grade girls in an orthodox day school for
eight years. Tefilla is one of the most challenging parts of my day. It
is difficult to make it a meaningful experience for my class, and that
does not vary even though the children do. One of the best pieces of
advice is simply to model good behavior. Our students should see us daven
properly and maybe some of our behavior will be emulated by our students.
This year, I am attempting something different. Each day, before tefilla,
I either tell a story, learn a halakhah connected to tefilla, and I hope
to add "explain the tefilla" once a week. I have some students who are
preparing the material and presenting to the class. It is a 2-3 minute
presentation before tefilla starts. I am trying a schedule of halakhah 2
days a week, stories 2 days a week and a tefilla synopsis one day a week.
Finding meaningful stories is a challenge. I do not want the pat story of
"....they davened and everyone lived happily ever after.", but rather
stories of chesed or facing challenge. I will try to keep posting if I
feel this program has any effect, positive or negative. In general we
must ask the question of do we help our students form a relationship with
G-d? Do we rely on texts to help them see His ways and thereby form a
relationship with G-d? Do we know adults who have a relationship with G-d
(outside from when they are experiencing pain and suffering?)
B'ydidut
Yocheved Lindenbaum
yayman@msn.com</HTML>
