Lesson Objective:
Know and Understand the Story of Isaac and Rebecca
Think about the qualities of a good person
Lesson Outcome:
By the end of the lesson, the children will have learnt about the story of Isaac and Rebecca and thought about the good qualities of a person.
Resources:
The Story of Isaac and Rebecca
Mitzvah Goreret Mitzvah
Rebecca Template
Isaac and Rebecca Colouring Pictures
Introduction
- Brainstorm – Abraham and Sarah – Children to recall what they remember about Abraham and Sarah. Can the children remember any stories or any of their descendants? Introduce the character of Isaac.
Main Teaching
- The Story of Isaac and Rebecca – Read The Story of Isaac and Rebecca. Discuss how both Isaac and Rebecca must have felt before they married. What do the children think about arranged marriages and someone else choosing the bride or groom for them?
- Good Qualities of a Person – Having read the story, children to discuss what makes a good person and the qualities that the servant (via Abraham) looked for in a wife for Isaac. Why was Rebecca chosen? What qualities did she have? Ask the children what qualities they look for in a friend.
Activity
- Option 1: Drama– Children to act out the story of Isaac and Rebecca using any costumes or props that they might have available to them. Children may wish to script the scene first or improvise whilst the story is being read.
- Option 2: Kindness Diary – Children to make a diary which contains a page for every day of the coming week. Children to decorate front and back of diary and during the week it will be filled out and brought back to reflect upon. Try to fill in the first page together so that children understand what they are being asked to do. Children may wish to draw pictures of write a story about an act of kindness that they have performed.
- Option 3: Mitzvah Goreret Mitzvah Discussion – Sing and discuss the song Mitzvah Goreret Mitzvah. Talk about how one good or kind thing can affect the whole world potentially. Give the example of Rebecca being kind to the messenger – he then didn’t have to search for the wife which was good for him. And a wife for Isaac was found.
- Option 4: Write a Story – In small groups, children to write and perform a short story similar to the story of Isaac and Rebecca. The story should portray the same message, however be more modern and relevant to today.
Things it must include:
– Initial situation (lonely person)
– The part where the good person acts or is noticed
– The reaction or affect of this good person
– The message this shows
- Option 5: Characteristics of Rebecca – On the template of Rebecca, children to write/draw pictures of the qualities Rebecca had (kind, generous, willing, selfless etc). The person can be coloured and labelled with her name.
- Option 6: Colouring Pages – Children to colour in Isaac and Rebecca Colouring Pictures
Plenary
- Characteristics – What characteristics might the children share with Rebecca?
- Sing / Link to Hebrew – Mitzvah Goreret Mitzvah
- Show work produced – Children to present their work to the rest of the class/parents