Week 5: The Declaration of the State of Israel
Objective
Meet with Theodor Herzl to learn about the modern Zionist movement and the Zionist ideal of “Im Tirtzu” – that if you will something, it is not only a dream.
Instructions
Convene participants!
Review what they learned last week.
Introduce the declaration of the state of Israel as the topic of the fifth week.
Ask participants if any of them think they can offer a sound definition for Zionism? Take answers. Remind participants that, “Zionism is the nationalist movement to create an independent homeland for the Jewish people in the land of Israel.”
Ask participants: “What do you know about Israel’s declaration of independence process, and how much do you think it had to do with the Holocaust and Eastern European anti-Semitism? What else do they think might have been at play?”
Continue discussing how and what they might want to teach their peers about Israel when they have either finished or almost finished their own learning within Isra-Ed.
Close your convening by referring participants to their packets, week 5 where they will learn how the state of Israel was born and become familiar with a 21st century take on someone named Theodor Herzl.