Jewish+Values


 * Jewish Values **

How Does Your Light Shine?
Just how humble are you? Are you humble without being falsely modest? (Taken from "Living Jewish Values: Be Your Best Self," Behrman House, 2012)
 * 1) Warm Sunshine - When you accomplish something, you're the first to say "thank you" to someone who helped you along the way. You've got a great team attitude.
 * 2) Steady Candle Flame - You have a peaceful inner glow - one of self-satisfaction. You love to share your success with others, but don't feel the need for a lot of attention.
 * 3) Flashing Neon - When you do something well, you enjoy a little praise and attention. Jewish tradition says there is nothing wrong with being motivated by honor, as long as that's not the main goal.

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 * From the ICenter - **

//Aizeh hu gibor? Ha'oseh soneh ohavo.// Who is a true hero? The one who turns an enemy into a friend. (Avot d'rabbi Natan, chapter 23) //Aizeh hu gibor? Ha'kovesh et yitzro.// Who is a hero? One who conquers his or her impulses (Pirke Avot 4:1) __Discussion Questions:__
 * P****rogram Idea #1: Ayze hu gibor: Who is a Hero?**
 * What is the application of these texts for the Olympic games?
 * Can one truly turn an enemy into a friend? Have you ever had this experience?

How do the quotes above apply to Olympic athletes? What impulses do you think an athlete has to overcome in order to be an Olympian? During the interviews, ISRAEL21c asked the Israeli Olympians who their heroes are. Here a couple of their answers: “I don’t have a sports hero. Well maybe just one, Ben Ainslie, the sailor. I’m kind of a groupie but I hate to admit it. [My heroes are] probably my parents and my grandma—people from my family members who educated me and gave me some values and made me the person I am today.”- Vered Buskila “I don’t actually have a hero. I don’t have someone who’s a hero. I’m taking, you know, I can’t say examples…there are a lot of people and I’m just reading about them and they’re thinking right. They’re not drowning in their own misery or handicap and just keep on with your life in a good way.”- Nati Gruber
 * Program Idea #2: Through the eyes of Israeli Olympians: Who is a hero?**

__Discussion Questions:__ __Hebrew words:__ In Hebrew, hero is //gibor//, heroine is //giborah//. Heroes are //giborim//, heroines are //giborot//. __Activity Ideas:__
 * What does it mean to have/be a hero?
 * Who are the people you admire? Do you consider them heroes?
 * What qualities does a hero possess?
 * 1) Create a holiday for you hero.
 * 2) Debate whether sports figures are heroes.
 * 3) Create a hand-written “wordle” using qualities of a hero. Bigger words are the more significant qualities and the smaller words are the less significant qualities.


 * Program Idea #3: Shahar Zubari - Learning to Windsurf** “My father, first of all, he was the one who taught me how to windsurf. And I think this windsurfing sport it’s really special because from one side you are in the sea quiet, peaceful. But from the other end, the sea can be really rough and full of adrenaline and action. So I think I like these two worlds. From one side really quiet but from the other end, can be really rough and risky.”- Shahar Tzuberi

__Discussion Questions:__ __Activity Ideas:__ (Examples: Learning to play guitar, shoot a basketball, draw, read Hebrew, make pottery, make a friendship bracelet, use the video camera, play a game, or learn a new cheer.)
 * What are your talents or hobbies?
 * Why do you enjoy them?
 * Who taught you the activities you are good at or you enjoy doing?
 * What can you teach others?
 * 1) Students or campers pair up and teach someone else one of their talents (even to one of the teachers or counselors).
 * 2) Students or campers sign up to learn a talent from others.


 * Program #4: V****alues Tree** Introduction: Vered Buskila, sailing in the women's two-person dinghy 470 at the London Games, is actually a lawyer by profession. Her love for sailing brought her back to the Olympics this year, putting her career on hold. She knows that she has other options for her life besides sailing, but winning a medal for Israel would mean the world to her. It would also prove to herself that she made the right choice competing this year. Making big decisions can often be very difficult, but everybody prioritizes their lives in some way or another.

__Discussion Questions:__ What are your main interests/commitments? How do you prioritize them in your daily life? What are you most committed to? __Activity:__
 * 1) Create small slips of paper with different words/statements. This may include: Family, friends, siblings, Judaism, education, sports, camp, religious school, youth group, Torah, television, video games, reading, Israel, exercise, food, music, volunteering, friendship, love, carpe diem, etc. Leave some blank so that the participants can fill them in with their own words.
 * 2) Ask the participants to make a tree using the slips of paper. Ask, what forms the foundation of your life? What are your roots and how do you prioritize from the bottom to the top?
 * 3) After they are finished, ask: What was challenging about this activity? What was easy to prioritize?
 * 4) Provide time for participants to share their trees and explain the things that are most important to them.

__Scavenger Hunt:__ __Discussion Questions:__
 * Program Idea #5: Kibbutz Galuyot: Ingathering of the Diaspora**
 * 1) Prepare copies of the Israeli Olympian biographies (as many copies as there will be groups participating in teams for the scavenger hunt).
 * 2) Divide the Olympians according to sport and bring their biography description to the camp or school location that most relates to the sport. [] (i.e. sailing & swimming: the pool or lake, sharp-shooting: archery field, running: sports field, tennis: tennis court or basketball court).
 * 3) Split the participants into teams. Ask them to collect the biographies of every Olympian using a list of the Olympians and their sports as a clue. Staff can prepare ahead of time to take on the role of various Israeli Olympic athletes at each station using the bibliography and ISRAEL21c video content.
 * 4) Using a map of the world or a drawing of the map, ask the students or campers to place the biographies of the Olympian on their birthplace and attach a string from their birthplace to London.
 * What parts of the world are the Israeli Olympians from originally?
 * What is significant about the fact that Olympians come together from different countries and continents to represent Israel during the Olympic games?
 * For those who were not born in Israel, why do you think they chose to compete for Israel rather than another country?