Many of us are struggling with the question of how we address Israel and the Gaza conflict with our students this fall. We have collected many resources to help you feel comfortable addressing your students and parents questions.
Young generations are going to need to hear what the conflict is all about and why it is important to stand with Israel. In his recent blog 'When the Guns Fall Silent (Jerusalem Post)' Daniel Gordis visits an empty restaurant helping Gordis to see the everyday for Israelis. Students can see a deeper understanding of the conflict and create discussions about what this means for Israel's future.
To help students put the conflict into context, download this pdf "Testing Land for Peace," from chapter 12 of our book Israel Matters, which provides a fact-based look at the issues and history of the region.
This blog discusses ways to explain conflict to children, highlighting questions parents are facing in both Israel and Gaza. The Jewish Education Center of Cleveland created a template to help parents talk to their children about the conflict. You can provide this download to teachers, parents, and families.
Help families prepare to talk to their children with this parenting blog "Your Kids Are Ready to Talk About Israel. Are You?" from Kveller.
It may be helpful to see what adults in Israel have been doing to help children feel more secure. The video below depicts a song created to help children feel safer during 'code red' alarms, and an article from Israel21c describes initiatives to bring a sense of normalcy to daily life that includes stays in bomb shelters. The provided video of elephants protecting their young from the alarms helps to express security to young students.
The Jewish Education Project also came up with their own list of Israel Educational Resources here. This guide features a collection of resources for teaching and learning about Israel with children, teens, and adults.
Other lists and resources have been collected by the iCenter and Lookstein Center for Jewish Education.
Looking for more resources to help you talk to students and parents about Israel? Follow our Israel Pinterest board for collections of videos and resources, including Rachel Frankel's speech at the UN, Michael Oren's blog "In Defense of Israel," and Rabbi Menachem Creditor's blog "I'm Done Aplogizing for Israel."
