Teaching Chumash | Fall 2015

Uri Kestenbaum
Chumash Goals:
1. That the students should have and retain a general knowledge of the
overarching themes and halachos covered in the Chumash curriculum.
2. That the students should be able to read and translate a large portion of the
material covered.
3. That the students should understand how Rashi serves as a companion and
support to aid the learner expand his knowledge of the pessukim.
4. That the student should be able to link the content that was learned to the
specific words of the possuk.
5. That the student should find relevance from the content learned to his own
personal life.
6. That the student should see how the basic possuk is a springboard to rich
discussions that are dealt with in the various meforshim.
The goals that I have set are for an 8th grade boys class, who, presumably has
spent many years learning Chumash already. I believe that, at the very least, the
student should walk away with a basic idea of the content that was covered! Next, I
wish for the student to have a comfortability with the text of the pessukim- so that
one day he may be able to independently study Chumash. I wish for the student to
be able to look at a possuk and try to figure out what might be problematic about a
phrase: in other words, to anticipate why Rashi is putting his pen to the paper, and
how this helps us. Next, I think that it`s important for students to see how the words
of the possuk represent the Halacha that was taught. Th student should feel that
that the Torah talks to his own life and he should be given a chance to
demonstrate a personal example. Lastly, by starting the conversations of the
Ramban, Ohr Hachayim and others, the student can see how the pessukim are not a
`boring` ordeal, but the beginning of lively discussions. This can serve the student
well in the future as an impetus to, one day, himself look into those meforshim.