Reform Judaism for Teachers module - Touro Synagogue

of each of these periods written in sequential order. (An example has been provided for
your reference as an attachment. You may want to copy and distribute this.)
1. Explain to the participants that they will have an opportunity to create a
character that might have lived in one of these time periods and they will
introduce that character to the class.
2. Divide the class into three groups and assign each group one of the time periods
(the Rabbinic period, the Haskalah, the Holocaust). Distribute the Monologue
Preparation Sheets to the appropriate groups and provide copies of The Atlas of
Great Jewish Communities (or other appropriate resource materials) so the
participants can do their research.
3. Give the groups enough time to read the materials and create a monologue for a
fictional character that might have lived during that time period. Tell the groups
to be sure to include answers to the questions that have been provided.
4. Have the groups select someone to play the character and ask the groups to
present to the class.
(If you think your participants will be uncomfortable doing the role play, have them
report on their research instead.)
Reform Judaism Text Study – 1999 CCAR Statement of Principles (15‐20 minutes)
In this learning activity, participants will examine the basic tenets of Reform
Judaism today and, where possible, will relate the ideas in this document to their brief
study of the three periods in Jewish history that are the focus of this lesson.
1. Keep the groups together or reassign the participants into three new groups.
2. Distribute a copy of the 1999 CCAR Statement of Principles that can be found in
the appendix. Assign each group one of the topics: God, Torah, or Israel and ask
the groups to read their section carefully and to answer the following questions.
(Write the questions on the board or flip chart so the participants can refer to
them as they work.)
• What did you learn about the Reform Movement from reading this
statement?
Union for Reform Judaism-Department of Lifelong Jewish Learning
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