Curriculum

Pre-K: Intro to YLP <<<<on each grade this heading is linked to a more robust outline of the curriculum covered
By the end of the year, our Pre-K students will understand the basics of High Holidays and what being at Sunday school is all about. We learn about our synagogue, communities, the fundamentals of Mitzvot, and how to exist and learn together. This is meant to serve as the foundation for their life-long Jewish education. 

The year is split into four units: 
1) Routines, High Holidays (Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur), & Synagogues 
2) Community & Chanukah (+science) 
3) Mitzvot & Love as Mitzvot (+Tu B’shvat) 
4) Tri-Faith, Shabbat, & High Holidays (Passover and Purim)

Kindergarten: Colors 
To begin the year, Kindergarten students will receive their own Torahs and have a Consecration Ceremony on Simchat Torah. 
By the end of Kindergarten, students will know and understand the story of Creation, the symbols and meaning of Shabbat, the meaning of a promise through Noah’s Ark, the importance of how we treat others through the story of Joseph and his coat, and will also learn about the symbols and ritual objects used in the Torah and the construction of a Mishkan, or Sanctuary. Throughout all of these stories, the kindergarteners will learn the names of the colors in Hebrew and how they play a role. 

The year is split into four units: 
1) Colors of Creation 
2) Rainbow is a symbol of G-d’s promise 
3) Treating others with respect
4) Understanding that we can take G-d with us wherever we go through the Ritual symbols in the Torah and the building of the Mishkan (sanctuary)

1st Grade: Animals
By the end of the year, 1st grade students will learn to understand how their choices affect others. They will learn the importance of making decisions based on kindness, compassion, and empathy. The students will make connections between the animal world and the human world and learn what we can do to repair the world, Tikkun Olam. 

The year is split into four units: 
1) Fly
2) Swim
3) Crawl
4) Walk

2nd Grade: People
By the end of the year, 2nd grade students will be familiar with and understand their personal Jewish background and story, be able to identify what it means to be part of community and what their role is in a community, make connections to what it is like to be Jewish in Omaha and around the world, and they will also understand the Jewish value of hospitality and how that connects to each of them individually. 

The year is split into four units: 
1) Family
2) Jews of Omaha
3) Jews of the World
4) Neighbors

3rd Grade: Nature
By the end of the year, 3rd grade students will understand that we as Jews need to live up to our promise to take care of G-d's creations and each other. They will understand the Jewish value of Tikkun Olam, and they will understand and make connections to G-d's creations of fire, water, and the Earth itself, and how these things connect to our Jewish identities. 

The year is split into four units: 
1 & 2) Creation & Fire
3) Tikkun Olam & My Jewish Identity
4) Water, Planting, & Consequence

4th Grade: Bodies
By the end of the year, 4th graders will have gained a sense of self by looking inward on the qualities they contribute to the community. They will have a great sense of self image and know they can contribute to a greater cause. These students will have learned about the Jewish values of kindness and acceptance as well as traditions and prayers. Each unit begins with a focus on the students’ personal beliefs and actions with reflection discussion, leading into a conversation of how the student can bring their good out to the world. 

The year is split into four units: 
1) Stomach
2) Ears & Mouth
3) Eyes & Mind
4) Hands & Feet

5th Grade: Time
By the end of the year, 5th graders will know and understand the traditions and rituals involved with Jewish life cycle events. The students will follow our class mascot, Whiz the goblin, through his life cycle events which are birth, B-Mitzvah, marriage, and death so they can see how one can incorporate Judaism into the big events that take place in life. 

The year is split into four units: 
1) Birth & Beginnings
2) B-Mitzvah Significance & Tikkun Olam
3) Jewish Wedding Traditions & the Community
4) Death Rituals & Renewal

6th Grade: G-d
By the end of the year, 6th graders will be familiar with the books of Genesis and Exodus: Jewish lore and its key players. They will also understand the major Jewish holidays and the way we celebrate them/what it means to them/ This will prepare them for Jewish adulthood and set the groundwork for B-Mitzvah Torah study. 

The year is split into three units: 
1) High Holidays
2) Bereshit/Genesis
3) Shemot/Exodus. 

7th Grade: Mahloket Matters
By the end of 7th grade, students will be able to approach a disagreement with an understanding of how morals play a role in our decision making. They will analyze disagreements within Jewish texts and their own lives to gain an understanding of how personal experiences are directly reflected in how we prioritize our morals. They will learn the skills to be able to approach a difficult conversation with humility and compassion, understanding that a person can have very different morals than ourselves and still can be a very good person. 

The year is split into three units: 
1) Understanding Mahloket
2) Showing Up
3) Constructive Conversations.