CHAPTER NINE

YOM YERUSHALAYIM – JERUSALEM DAY

1 BACKGROUND

Jerusalem Day, which falls on the 28th Iyar, celebrates the reunification of the two parts of Jerusalem, Israel’s capital. From the establishment of the State of Israel in 1948 until 1967, Jerusalem had been a divided city. In the Six Day War of 1967, Israel won control of the entire city and Jerusalem was reunited.

Though ruled in turn by the Assyrians, Persians, Romans, Arabs, Crusaders, Ottomans, and more recently the British, Jerusalem has always been the historical, spiritual and national center of the Jewish people since King David made it the capital of his kingdom some 3,000 years ago. Until 1860 Jerusalem was a walled city made up of four quarters - Jewish, Muslim, Armenian and Christian. At that time, the Jews, who by then comprised the majority of its population, began to establish new neighborhoods outside the walls, forming the nucleus of modern Jerusalem.

During three decades of British occupation (1918-48), the city slowly changed from a small provincial town of the Ottoman Empire into a flourishing modern metropolis.

On November 29, 1947 the United Nations divided the land of Israel into two states, one Jewish and one Arab, with Jerusalem under UN control. The British pulled out of Palestine on May 15, 1948, at which time the Arab armies declared war on the newly created Jewish State. The cease-fire, which ended Israel’s War of Independence, left Jerusalem a divided city. Jordan retained control of the eastern portion encompassing the Old City and the Western Wall, whereas Israel retained the western part. The border, being a result of the war, was 7 kilometers long from north to south splitting neighborhoods, and at times even homes. A concrete wall was erected on the Israeli side to guard against snipers.

Two days after the beginning of the Six Day War (June 8 or lyar 28 according to the Hebrew calendar) Israeli forces broke through the Lions’ Gate to the Old City. The two sections of Jerusalem were finally united. On June 28, the Government of Israel proclaimed the reunification of the two sections of the now united city of Jerusalem.

Since 1967 every Jerusalem Day sees thousands of people visiting Jerusalem. There is an annual march through the city. In schools, special activities are planned in honour of this special day.

It is important that you read the introduction in order to put the activities that follow in their correct framework.

2 LEXICAL ITEMS

capital, divided city, the Old City, united

Gates - Damascus, Dung, Flower, Golden, Lions, Jaffa, New, Zion,

Ideas for different levels

Grade 3: Gates. Brainstorm with the pupils and elicit the names of the gates of Jerusalem. Write them on the blackboard in upper case. Have pupils copy the names in lower case.

Grade 4: Gates of Jerusalem word search. With or without the word bank have the pupils find the names of the 8 gates. Have the pupils find the gates on a map as well.

Grade 5/6: In the places in Jerusalem word search have pupils find places in Jerusalem. This can be done with or without a word bank. Choose one and write a paragraph about it.

Activity Gates of Jerusalem Word Search.

In the word search below you have words going in all directions :

Find the names of the 8 gates of

Jerusalem.

THE GATES OF JERUSALEM

A S Z Y Y X A D U N G G

J Y N P B F F A A Y N X

M F K O L P F M F U O U

L Z R O I R A A D U L Z

N E W G P L J S Z I O N

N E D L O G E C N F J C

R K W Q C D X U A K D T

G O O V P O E S H C Q O

Did you find these gates?

Damascus, Dung, Flower, Golden, Lions, Jaffa, New, Zion,

Activity Places in Jerusalem

In the word search below you have words going in all directions :

There are 15 places in Jerusalem.

Places in Jerusalem

K J A F F A G A T E X I U P S L T M H

O I K S Z O N V T O S H I I A L E O P

R Q N N Z E Z A C R Y P U T X A K U E

F E X G S K G X A N N K I V G W R N B

S Q W S D A W E O D J P C W F N A T F

A R E O F A L M X R S Y D V E R M O T

Z T W F T M V J N O H U L D I E H F E

K D A A U S X I H V M Q K E N T A O S

V J J S Q W D H D Z E J H A K S D L S

Q J E N H N A I I H V I D P A E U I E

Z U Z E P S K V V M O J N I R W H V N

M F E O S D E C U A C T W K E H E E K

X Q A A E I X V Y F D Q E Y M M Y S W

G Z D J A N X J Z A K H E L V R H C I

J A X F A L F G Y M E O S W L M E W N

H E B R E W U N I V E R S I T Y N M D

L I O N S G A T E B T E R L G U A W M

Z K Z K M K S I R D S O K D N F H K I

H A R O N E M I F L D K H Q S P A L L

J B U O O Z L A C I L B I B D Y M I L

Find these places in the word search above and on a map.

Biblical Zoo, David’s Tower, Ein Karem, Jaffa Gate, Hadassah hospital, Hebrew University, Israel Museum, King David Hotel, Knesset, Lion’s Gate, Mahaneh Yehudah market, Menorah, Mount of Olives, Western Wall, Windmill.

3 SONGS

Jerusalem of Gold by Naomi Shemer

As clear as wine, the wind is flying

Among the dreamy pines

As evening light is slowly dying

And a lonely bell still chimes,

So many songs, so many stories

The stony hills recall...

Around her heart my city carries A lonely ancient wall.

Chorus: Yerushalaim all of gold

Yerushalaim, bronze and light

Within my heart I shall treasure

Your song and sight.

Alas, the drying wells and fountains,

Forgotten market-day

The sound of horn from Temple’s mountain

No longer calls to pray,

The rocky caves at night are haunted

By sounds of long ago

When we were going to the Jordan

By way of Jericho.

Repeat chorus

But when I come to count your praises

And sing Hallel to you

With pretty rhymes I dare not crown you

As other poets do,

Upon my lips is always burning

Your name, so dear, so old

If I forget Yerushalaim

Of bronze and light and gold...

Repeat chorus

Back to the wells and to the fountains

Within the ancient walls

The sound of horn from Temple’s mountain

Again so loudly calls,

From rocky caves, this very morning

A thousand suns will glow

As we shall go down to the Jordan

By way of Jericho.

Repeat chorus

4 ACTIVITIES

Title: Letter scramble.

Level: Grade 3.

Materials: Blackboard and chalk, flashcards of letters making up ”Jerusalem Day” [a a d e e j l m r s u y ] (Optional)

Aims:

-to practise letter formation.

-to reinforce alphabetical order.

-to review lexical items taught previously.

-to develop vocabulary related to the day.

Description:

Call out the following letters and have the pupils write them in their notebooks. [ a a d e e j l m r s u y ] . For each letter call it, then use it in a sentence and call it again - e.g. a, a is for apple, a; y, y is for yellow, y.

Write the letters (or use flashcards) on the blackboard and have pupils check their own work.

Elicit from the pupils that the letters are in alphabetical order.

Tell the pupils the letters are all mixed up and they have to fit into two words like this (write on blackboard)

__ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __.

Hint to the pupils that the letters make up a special day and see if they can guess. You can keep hinting (e.g. We will have special activities in school on this day. It is connected to the capital of Israel. The first letter is “J”.) until the pupils guess. Once Jerusalem Day is written on the blackboard brainstorm with the pupils for things connected to the holiday.

Title: Word game.

Level: Grade 4/5.

Materials: Worksheet. (See next page.)

Aims:

-to practise letter formation.

-to review lexical items taught previously.

Description: Call out the letters which spell Jerusalem and have the pupils write them on the worksheet you hand out.

Allow a set time to complete the different boxes.

Then let the pupils work in pairs and share their answers. The aim of this sharing is to complete any blank spaces, see that the word is spelt correctly and that it fits into the category given.

Finally, lead a class discussion in which a master worksheet is completed on the blackboard.

This is an example of a completed worksheet. You may have to help with certain categories. Categories can be changed to meet the needs of your class.

Animal	Food	Country or city	Name
J jaguar	jam	Japan	John
E elephant	egg	Egypt	Elana
R rhinoceros	rice	Russia	Ron
U umbrella – cockatoo,	upside down cake	Uruguay	Uzi
S snake	spaghetti	Singapore	Sam
A ant	avocado	Alaska	Anna
L lion	lemon	London	Linda
E eel	eggplant	Ethiopia	Eitan
M mouse	milk	Mexico	Miriam

Activity Word Game

Animal	Food	Country or city	Name
jaguar

Title: Picture match.

Level: Grade 4/5.

Materials: Pictures of famous sites/places in Jerusalem (you may be

able to obtain slides from the pedagogical centre in your area); flashcards

of the place names.

Aims:

-to develop English terminology for places in Jerusalem.

-to recognize and learn about different places in Jerusalem.

Description:

Show the pupils pictures of sites/places in Jerusalem and have them tell you the names of these places.

Call on volunteers to come forward, select a flashcard and put it next to the correct picture.

Review the lexical items by calling one of the places and have a pupil point to it and remove the flashcard.

Title: What am I?

Level: Grade 5.

Materials: Blackboard and chalk.

Aims:

-to revise/reinforce lexical items related to the holiday.

-to practise listening skills.

Description:

Write “What am I?” on the blackboard. Tell the pupils to listen carefully. You are going to read several sentences, but instead of using the “I” in the question you will clap your hands. As soon as they have guessed “What am I?” they are to write it in their notebooks and to continue listening quietly.

“Clap hands” celebrates my joining together.

On “Clap hands” I remember the 19 years we were not together.

On “Clap hands” thousands of people come to visit me.

On “Clap hands” people march through my streets.

Before “Clap hands” you talk about me in school.

What am I?

Check that they have guessed JERUSALEM DAY. Continue the lesson with a brain storming activity. Finish off with another Jerusalem Day activity or have them choose several words from the brainstorming session and write sentences.

Title: Dictation and organizing activity.

Level: Grade 5.

Materials: Worksheet (Walking to Jerusalem.), flashcards.

Aims:

-to practise taking dictation.

-to revise known lexical items.

-to practise categorization.

Description:

Have the students open their notebooks and take the following dictation. If necessary remind them of the rules of dictation (“I will read the passage once. I will dictate the sentences part by part. At the end I will reread the whole passage. There is to be no talking while we do this dictation.”)

Dictation passage:

In the Bible people walked to Jerusalem to celebrate three festivals – Succott, Passover and Shavuot. Here is a list of things they came with.

Correct the dictation with them, hand out the worksheet and have the pupils copy the dictation in the space under the title. Explain to them that when they have finished copying their dictation they will have to complete the worksheet by putting each word from the word bank in the correct column. Also tell them to add up to three items in each column/category.

Activity Walking to Jerusalem.

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________

Clothing

Food and drink

Other useful things

WORD BANK:

a book, a hat, a jacket, a pen, a raincoat, a sweater, a tent, an apple, bread, biscuits, knife, map, matches, meat, money, sandals, shoes, socks, sweets, vegetables, water

Title: Are you lost?

Level: Grade 5/6.

Materials:

A map of Israel, maps of Jerusalem, worksheet (Where are you?)

Aims:

-to practise direction terminology (north, south, east, west, right, centre, left, turn, straight, behind, next. )

Description:

Place a map of Israel on the blackboard and ask the class “What is the capital of Israel?” Write their answer JERUSALEM on the blackboard. Have pupils open their notebooks and write a sentence explaining where Jerusalem is. Take some of the answers and write on the blackboard. E.g. Jerusalem is in the centre of the country. Jerusalem is south-east of Tel Aviv. Jerusalem is north of Eilat.

Then have pupils copy and complete the following sentences. See box below. Depending on the level of the class you may want to provide a word bank.

Jerusalem is the ________ city of Israel.

Jerusalem is in the _________ of the country.

Haifa is _______ of Jerusalem.

Eilat is ________ of Jerusalem.

To drive to from Jerusalem to Tel Aviv I have to go both ________ and _______ .

Word bank: capital, centre, north, north, south, west

Correct the pupils’ work and then place a map of Jerusalem on the blackboard. Have volunteers come and point out where the following places are:

downtown, Mahaneh Yehudah, the President’s House, the Knesset, the zoo, the Old City, the central bus station.

Demonstrate how you would give directions between 2 places. E.g. How do I get from the central bus station to downtown? Go out of the bus station and turn left. Walk along Jaffa Road until you reach Ben Yehudah Street. This is downtown.

Hand out a map and worksheet to each pupil. (They may work in pairs)

Activity Where are you?

Find the following places on your map.

downtown, Mahaneh Yehudah, the President’s House, the Knesset, the Old City, the central bus station.

1. Give directions to get from the central bus station to a) downtown, b) Machaneh Yehudah or c) the Old City.

2. Find Gaza Street (Rehov Aza) on your map. Give directions of how to get from Gaza Street to a) the Knesset or b) the President’s House.

3. Look at the map of the Old City. Give directions to get from Jaffa Gate to the Western Wall.

Write your directions here:

Title: Jerusalem writing activity.

Level: Grade 6.

Materials: Blackboard and chalk, pen and paper.

Aims:

-to develop knowledge of lexical items related to Jerusalem Day.

-to practise writing skills.

Description:

Introduce the topic Jerusalem Day by playing hangman.

Lead a class discussion about Jerusalem Day (What is it? What do we do on this day? Why do we celebrate it? When is it?)

Together with the class develop a paragraph to summarize the discussion.

(Example of a paragraph : Jerusalem Day celebrates the reunification of Jerusalem. It is celebrated on the 28^th of Iyar. This was the day in the Six Day War when Israel recaptured the Old City. We have a special ceremony about Jerusalem on this day.)

Have the pupils list 5 neighbourhoods in Jerusalem and 5 places to visit in Jerusalem. Let the pupils choose either a neighbourhood or a place and write a description without mentioning the name. Volunteers can read out what they wrote and the class can try to guess. After editing and rewriting, these descriptions can be put on display and into the pupils’ portfolios. (This activity may require the pupils accessing information from the Internet or using the library.)

Title: Dictation activity.

Level: Grade 6.

Materials: A copy of the dictation (as a poster or overhead projector transparency.)

Aims:

-to practise taking dictation.

-to practise speaking skills by discussing Jerusalem Day.

Description:

Tell the pupils to open their notebooks and take the following dictation. If necessary remind them of the rules of dictation (“I will read the passage once. I will dictate the sentences part by part. At the end I will reread the whole passage. There is to be no talking while we do this dictation.”)

Passage for dictation:

I am located in the Judean Hills. I am the historical, spiritual and national centre of the Jewish people. King David made me the capital of his kingdom some 3,000 years ago. Today, I am the capital of Israel. I am the seat of government. Who am I?

Correction of dictation. There are several options depending on the level of the class. With a weaker class I tend to write the dictation with them, but keep a sentence behind them. You can have the pupils change papers and correct each others'. Put the answer on the blackboard and allow pupils to self-correct. Take up the dictation. On return it can be placed in the pupil’s portfolio. After correction answer the question from the dictation and lead a discussion about Jerusalem and Jerusalem Day.

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