The Goodman Initiative - 30 minutes

Linking Our Individual Moments Together

Aliza Goodman — Thu, 24 Sep 2015 19:40:36 +0000

This activity helps participants delve deeper into components that make up their Jewish identity and make connections with others on a deeper and more personal level. This could be a good evening program on a night that the group is indoors (they need markers, butcher paper, and a flat surface), early in the program to build relationships, or when you want them to explore issues of identity.

Curriculum Themes:

Materials Required:

Program Duration:

Physical Space:

Indoor Space

Number of Campers:

Age of Campers:

Core Learnings:

Each of us is connected in a multitude of ways to each other

Our Israel stories can be used to connect others to their own Israel stories

Explanation:

INSTRUCTIONS:
1.   Place on a table (or on the floor) a large piece of butcher paper.
2.   Give each participant a different colored marker and ask him or her to find a space on the butcher paper.
3.   Instruct them to each draw a circle and write their name in the middle of the circle. Then draw 4 circles around their name –- small enough that they don’t touch (each other or those of another person) but big enough that they can write a word or short phrase in the circle and people will be able to read it.

PROMPTS AND CONNECTIONS:
1.   Then tell them to listen carefully to the following prompts. With each prompt, they are instructed to come up with a word or short phrase that sums up the essence of the prompt and write that word or phrase in a circle.
a.   Who are you named after or what is the meaning of your name?
b.   What is your favorite place at home or what is your favorite place in Israel?
c.   What is a meaningful Jewish moment that you’ve had in your life?
d.   What is a value (or guiding principle or characteristic) that resonates with you (that you care about)?
e.   What connects you to Israel?
2.   Once participants are finished writing their words, ask them to “zoom out” and take a walk around the table to see what other people wrote. Instruct them to pay attention to the words that others have written and try to find connections between themselves (their words) and the words of others.
3.   When they find a connection -– they are to draw a line from their word to the word that connects it -– and along the line, write another word or phrase that describes the connection. Give them ample time for this part (20 minutes). Option: You can use post-it notes rather than writing on the lines.

DEBRIEF:
1.   Find someone who you have connected with and share a story from your circles.
2.   Find someone who you have not connected with and share a story from your circles.
3.   Come back into a circle and ask someone to share a connection that they found. Make sure to get to the Israel story.
4.   You can really take this debrief in a variety of ways.
a.   What surprised you about the connections you made through this activity?
b.   How can our own personal stories help us as educators?
c.   This exercise helps us find a trigger into making connections and finding meaningful stories. Stories are a great way to make connections with and for other people.

CASINO NIGHT: Content Card Blackjack

JAR — Wed, 03 Dec 2014 16:10:48 +0000

Just like blackjack in the casino, but you learn about Israel at the same time!

Curriculum Themes:

A Land & Its People

Materials Required:

Program Duration:

30 minutes

Physical Space:

Indoor Space

Number of Campers:

A Bunk/Cabin/Chug (10-20 campers)

Age of Campers:

Core Learnings:

About the places, people, and innovations of Israel

Israeli money -- the shekel denominations and what they look like (who's on them? what's on them?)

Explanation:

Up to six players and one dealer. The dealer gives each player one card face up and the dealer then gets one card down. The players each then get another card face up, and then the dealer does also (this time face up for the dealer). There is a round where the players try to hit/stay to get as close to 36 as possible without going over. Then the dealer tries to do the same (dealer must hit on 27). ALSO each #11 card (Sharansky, Haifa, Drip Irrigation, Entebbe) can be a 1 or an 11. The betting is accomplished using shekels that are distributed at the beginning of the game and it is a minimum of 10 shekels for each hand/bet.

Variations:

You could limit the cards in the deck so you could play just with the 14 lowest cards in each suit, giving you a true 21 blackjack game.

Supporting Materials:

Curricular Subjects:

Current Events

Human Bingo, Israel-Style

Natalie Blitt — Tue, 11 Nov 2014 20:53:46 +0000

Human bingo is all the rage as a way of getting to know the people in a group. But wouldn't it be more fun to meet and get to know famous people? Use the content cards to introduce your campers and staff to the people, places, and events in Israeli history in a fun and interactive way.

Curriculum Themes:

Dreams & Realities

Materials Required:

copies of content cards

Program Duration:

Physical Space:

Open Space

Number of Campers:

Age of Campers:

Core Learnings:

While it depends on the cards you choose, this is a content rich activity

Explanation:

Human bingo is a game designed to have participants learn things about the other people in the room. In this version, campers and/or staff will be given a card and take on that identity for this game. You can have them create nametags or a piece of costume first, if you have the time. There's no need to keep the identity secret.

In advance, you should prepare bingo cards with clues. Use the following website to generate randomized bingo cards, using your clues: http://www.print-bingo.com/.

Depending on the number of people who are playing, you can give more than one person the same card. You can use the list we provided that includes clues that refer to every content card, or you can choose to make ones that only refer to a certain section, like people or places. Feel free to add more people, places or event "cards" than what are available. You can do this by collecting a few facts and maybe a picture, and handing them out in lieu of an actual content card.

1. Give each camper/staff an Israeli bingo card
2. Have each camper approach other campers in the room and
• Introduce themselves (even if they are an event or place) and tell the other person one fact/tip about them.
• Ask if the camper they are talking to fits the description found on one of the squares of their BINGO card. If they do, get that person to sign their name in the square with their identity.
3. Continue talking to people and asking them if they fit the descriptions on their card.
4. When someone completes the full card they shout 'bingo' and are declared the winner.

Clues are provided in the word document attached. We've also generated sample bingo charts based on all the clues (excluding the easy ones), with 14 clues listed per column (in the bingo card generator).

Variations:

You can use clues that are specific to one card, or to make things easier/faster, you can use more generic clues. Suggestions for each are included.

You can use clues that are generic to people, events, and places. For instance, connected to 1948 could be a number of people and events and sites.

The important part to writing clues is to think of what you want your camper/staff to know about the information that is listed on the content card. Don't use random and obscure facts, but also don't make the clues too easy (unless you are playing this game with younger campers).

Feel free to have campers create a list of facts they've learned on the back of the bingo sheet.

Background Cards:

Supporting Materials:

print-bingo-com.pdf

Clues for Israeli Human Bingo.docx

Our Camp's Israel Garden: A Guide to Creating and Programming

JAR — Mon, 10 Nov 2014 18:52:20 +0000

Learn the skills of gardening and the history of Israeli innovation as we create an Israel garden in camp -- full of Israeli fruits, veggies, and herbs that we will harvest and eat together!

Curriculum Themes:

Materials Required:

Program Duration:

Physical Space:

Outdoor Space

Number of Campers:

Age of Campers:

Core Learnings:

How to garden

History of drip irrigation in Israel

What kinds of food grows in Israel

Explanation:

At the beginning of the summer, choose a plot of land to place your garden. The land should have direct sunlight for at least 6 hours each day, and it should be near a water source.

Once you've selected the land, campers can help create the garden. They will need to hoe the dirt, plant guard rails of wood around the garden (laying them down in troughs dug in the ground is an easy way to do this). The point of planting guard rails is to keep the garden dirt firm and in the garden, allowing the garden to be 'boxed in'.

You then need to dig troughs as lines for planting seeds. Determine which items will need to grow where, and how many seeds you want for each item you're planting.

Once planted and watered, there are many interesting ways to integrate Israel into the experience:

Learning about Israeli innovation.
- Start with drip irrigation, one of Israel's claims to fame. You can set up your own drip irrigation system (a long hose with holes in it) or have your campers brainstorm the problem that led to its creation.
- Once you're on the topic of Israeli innovation, learn more about creations that Israel is (and isn't) well known for. Like the cherry tomato strain Israel invented that ripens slowly and stays on the vine, allowing for it to be sold on cluster like grapes, and making shipping easier. (Other examples can be found here: http://www.israel21c.org/technology/israels-top-45-greatest-inventions-o...).
- Have campers look at areas that need innovation in their garden or around camp. How can they use the examples of Israeli innovation to fix their problems? For instance, if the garden is too small for many people to work in it at once, what could they do to maximize the efforts of the whole group? Or if the garden isn't ready to be tended and a group is coming, what could they do with the other campers to help them feel connected to the Israeli garden?
The garden is a great opportunity for campers to learn Hebrew vocabulary. Create Hebrew and English (and transliterated) signage for every kind of plant in the garden. You can even create a poster for a wall near the garden letting everyone see a 'map' of the garden and what is growing where (in Hebrew and English). Also, you can post an enlarged version of the Resource Cards related to Israeli agriculture (Kibbutz, Drip Irrigation) and while you're planting the garden, you can orient the campers to the important role of agriculture in Israel's history.
Talk about argiculture and the landscape of Israel. Part of Ben Gurion's dream was to see the desert bloom. Why did he care about using the desert? Why did Israel spend so much effort in making agriculture work even in the desert? (Hint: The Negev Desert is 60% of the land in Israel).
You can also bring in a lesson about the kibbutz here, discussing with campers the history of the kibbutz movements and its role in agriculture.
You can also learn about the remarkable work of desalination in Israel. Given that much of the water around the desert has high saline content (the Mediterranean Sea), Israel found ways to use the salted water for irrigation of certain crops.

The garden can become the foundation for a wide array of programming (some examples below):

a cabin activity to prune/plant/harvest
a full age group activity to create the garden
an activity to create signage
a cooking class using the harvested foods/herbs
an Israeli meal where campers describe each item using the Hebrew name

Background Cards:

Supporting Images:

Attribution:

Camp Avoda

My Facebook Kotel

JAR — Tue, 04 Nov 2014 17:09:13 +0000

Social Media provides a platform for personal expression and building community, and Israel can be a key component in both of these endeavors. This program offers fun ways to integrate Israel into campers' social media reality.

Curriculum Themes:

A Land & Its People

Materials Required:

Program Duration:

Physical Space:

Number of Campers:

Age of Campers:

Core Learnings:

How to express your opinions appropriately about current events in Israel

Slang and lingo used by Israelis on social media

Israel's history of pioneering advances in technology has played a central role in the global explosion of social media

Explanation:

Our campers are natives to social media technology and it is an integral part of their lives at home. Israel, on the other hand, may seem foreign to them -- certainly as a content piece related to social media. This program aims to bridge that gap and help campers understand the power of social media in helping them keep informed, share their views, and engage in lively respectful discussion about difficult topics.

Opening Game: give each camper a piece of paper and ask them to write a list of words that describe what other people think of them when looking at their Facebook walls. Next, ask them to pick the one word from the list that makes them most uncomfortable, and write it on a label/sticker/nametag that they will affix to their forehead. Now, use a "cocktail party"-style activity in which the group must circulate and interact. Instruct campers to walk the way the word on their label would walk and interact based on the way the word on their label dictates. In essence, campers are asked to become their label for the duration of the exercise.

Debrief: Facilitate a conversation about this opening exercise seeking to encourage campers to begin to think about how their Facbook wall -- much like the labels they were wearing at the cocktail party -- define them and shape how people interact with them. Ask questions such as:

What was your experience?
In what ways does your Facebook wall define you?

After campers have reflected on the experience they just completed, introduce Israel into the conversation: tell the group that they are gong to create a Facebook wall for Israel. Unlike the notes they may have placed in the Western Wall, if they have visited Israel, the messages on this wall are going to be public, just like so many social media posts.

Formulate a list with the group: what are situations that might prompt you to post about Israel? Possible aswers might include:

I saw an Israeli movie
I visited Israel, or want to visit Israel
I heard about an Israeli invention
Something about Israel was on the news
It's an Israeli holiday, or the anniversary of something important in Israeli history

Create an actual Facebook wall for Israel using markers and butcher paper.

Give everyone a chance to think about their own relatinoship to Israel. Encourage them to come up with five ideas of things they might post -- and then to pursue the idea they think is least likely to be repeated by others. Campers can write their posts directly on the Facebook wall, or they can write on slips of paper and then tape them to the wall. As people post their own contributions to the wall, they should be encouraged to comment on other people's messages. You can create small "like" stickers and let campers affix them to any posts or comments that they particularly like.

Variations:

After the conclusion of the activity, hang the paper wall in a public place at camp -- perhaps in the dining hall -- and encourage everyone to add comments and "likes" of their own, This wall can become a physical replica of the virtual world in which campers so frequently express themselves during the year; at camp, it takes on a physical presence, and it focuses primarily on Israel and the camp community's relationship to Israel.

Background Cards:

Supporting Images:

Curricular Subjects:

Attribution:

BB Camp

Someone's in the Kitchen with Golda!

JAR — Fri, 09 May 2014 16:05:59 +0000

Participants will create a presentation of Israel that highlights all 5 senses of the human body.

Curriculum Themes:

Materials Required:

video cameras

Program Duration:

30 minutes

Physical Space:

Open Space

Number of Campers:

Age of Campers:

Core Learnings:

Israel cannot be 'digested' merely as something you hear about, look at pictures of, or watch on tv. It is a multi-dimensional place, with sights, sounds, smells, tastes, and texture, both literally and metaphorically.

Explanation:

Split campers up into groups (with one staff member for each group).

Each group will be given 10 minutes to create a segment of a cooking show. The dish they are cooking is: Israel.

To be clear, this is not a cooking show for an Israeli dish but rather what if the STATE OF ISRAEL was the dish? What would the ingredients be? What would it taste like? Smell like? Feel like in your hands? In your mouth?

Your cooking show must include:

A list of ingredients
Steps for preparing the dish
An anecdote about someone in your group’s personal experience with or in Israel
At least one Hebrew word (not including the word “Shalom”)
A creative title for the show
A special guest chef
Every member of the group must participate in some way in the presentation of the cooking show (be creative with this one – there are no rules to how this is achieved)

After 10 minutes, all groups will be gathered for a quick check in, followed by the next set of instructions:

Using a video-camera or ipad, please film your cooking show. You can spread out to go to a quiet place to film, but you must return to the group in 10 minutes with a finished filmed cooking show segment. Then everyone gathers to watch!

At the end, you can serve Israeli snacks to the campers if you want!

CASINO NIGHT: Content Card Bingo

JAR — Tue, 28 Jan 2014 20:53:09 +0000

Come play bingo using the cards of the Goodman deck. It's more than just regular bingo, it's also Israel trivia!

Curriculum Themes:

A Land & Its People

Materials Required:

Background Cards

Program Duration:

30 minutes

Physical Space:

Indoor Space

Number of Campers:

Age of Campers:

Explanation:

The game starts when all the players receive bingo sheets. A bingo sheet is a card/page with a 5x10 grid. 5 columns on the card correspond to 5 letters of the name of Israel in Hebrew "י-ש-ר-א-ל".

24 numbers per each card are random. Each column comes from a different set of cards (save for columns 4 and 5 which both come from People). The center of the card is Star of David that completes a diagonal, horizontal, or vertical line.

When the game begins, the caller selects cards from the Goodman Deck at random and calls them out by biographical information, followed by the name. As soon as the caller describes the picked card, and the players identify which name goes with which number, all the players mark it on their tickets. The winner is determined when one or several of the players complete the winning bingo pattern. The pattern can vary, depending on how hard you want to make the game. It can be vertical, horizontal or diagonal, or a full house (when all the numbers are to be covered).

Variations:

You can make the game harder by not announcing the name of the card, only the biographical facts for the event, person, place, etc.

Supporting Materials:

Bingo Board Template (filled).docx

Bingo Board Template (empty).docx

HOLYLAND SQUARES!

JAR — Sun, 08 Dec 2013 20:40:31 +0000

This is a game based on “Hollywood Squares” that serves as fun Israel trivia with low stakes and many opportunities for learning AND silliness.

Curriculum Themes:

A Land & Its People

Materials Required:

Program Duration:

Physical Space:

Indoor Space

Number of Campers:

Age of Campers:

Core Learnings:

This is broad - everything

Explanation:

The facilitator will select 9 people to sit in the “squares” like a tic-tac-toe box. The best way to achieve this is to have three sit on the floor, three sit behind them in chairs, and three sit behind them on a table (so it’s layered). In each square seat, the person will find a Content Card of a different Israeli personality through Modern Israeli History. While the people in the chairs familiarize themselves with their content card, the facilitator will jump into game-show host mode. The ‘host’ will ask for two volunteer contestants who want to play Holyland Squares. The two contestants will come up and stand to one side of the ‘celebrity panel’ (the squares). The host will ask each contestant their name and a little bit about themselves (have they ever been to Israel? What’s their favorite thing about Israel? etc.). The host will then interview each of the celebrities briefly to find out who they all are.

The way the game works is this:

Each celebrity will be given a piece of paper/poster with an X on one side and an O on the other.
A flip of a coin will decide which contestant goes first.
The first contestant will get to select a square and that celebrity will be asked a question about Israel by the host.
The celebrity can answer the question truthfully or falsely. The contestant has to decide if the answer is true or false. If the contestant is right about the celebrity’s answer, the contestant gets the square and the celebrity turns their paper/poster to the letter (x/o) of the contestant.
If the contestant is wrong about the answer of the celebrity, no X/O is held up and the next contestant gets a turn.
The winner must win the game of tic-tac-toe

Background Cards:

Supporting Materials:

Israel Questions for Holyland Squares.docx

True False Questions about Israel.docx

Movin' On Up!

JAR — Tue, 03 Dec 2013 15:09:17 +0000

The campers will experience a modified 'Aliyah' to Israel either as immigrants or existing citizens, where they will get to engage in dialogue and learn about Aliyah from a personal place.

Curriculum Themes:

Materials Required:

Program Duration:

Physical Space:

Open Space

Number of Campers:

Age of Campers:

Core Learnings:

The process of Aliyah

The role customs and traditions play in social interaction

The diversity of Israel's population

Explanation:

The participants will spend the first five minutes of the session doing a series of warm-up activities to get comfortable in the room. After the warm-up, one facilitator will remove half the group and take them outside the room.

The group outside the room will be given two sheets of paper. The first is an empty registration/application form for making Aliyah to Israel. The goal is to get the participants to create, quickly, an identity of a person they imagine might be making Aliyah (including information such as number of children, profession, age, etc.). The participants in this group will then be given a second piece of paper, empty, for them to write an answer to the following question: “Why are you making Aliyah?”

The group inside the room will spend the first few minutes collectively deciding on specific weird customs (such as pointing at a person when they begin speaking). Once those customs are agreed upon and memorized, the group will discuss the different kinds of people who exist as Israeli citizens in 2013. Each person in the group will assume one of those identities and spend a few minutes writing down an answer to the following question: “What does it mean to be Israeli?”

The outside group will be invited back into the room for a cocktail party during which they can schmooze and meet the people in the inside group. This will be framed as new olim meeting current Israeli citizens to ask them one question: “What does it mean to be Israeli?” The Israelis can ask the olim “Why are you making Aliyah?”

Following the cocktail party, the entire group will sit on the floor in a circle and the facilitator will guide a group discussion about Israel, during which the customs will emerge. After a few minutes of this, the facilitator will end the exercise and begin a debrief of the entire program.

Variations:

The group discussion should NOT be a debrief on the session itself. So, you can change up the subject matter of the group discussion so as to facilitate the customs being brought to the fore without stymying any debrief or talkback on the session itself (and on the Aliyah portion of the session, in particular).

Supporting Materials:

Aliyah Form for Movin on Up.pdf

Curricular Subjects:

Current Social Issues

The Israel IS REAL Game Show

Rachel Levin — Tue, 08 Jan 2013 17:06:34 +0000

Campers will become participants in “Israel IS REAL,” an interactive game show that is designed to help them explore both commonly held and personal preconceived notions about Israel, and challenge them to determine the truths and fallacies of life in Israel.

Curriculum Themes:

Materials Required:

Program Duration:

Age of Campers:

Core Learnings:

Israel is a modern, technologically advanced, and pluralistic country

In order to connect with “the real” Israel, we must distinguish between our preconceived notions of the country and the reality of the country

Explanation:

Part 1: The Introduction

You can introduce the activity, or have a special Israeli guest star (Theodore Herzl, Golda Meir, or Ben-Gurion) make an appearance. Alternatively, you can have your shaliach act as Emcee.
Explain that the game will take place in two rounds, the first of which is "Two Truths and a Lie"
- Campers have to figure out which of the three statements is a lie in 13 categories of questions.
- When called upon, the team must hold up a card (Alef, Bet, or Gimmel) corresponding to the statement that is false
- Teams get points for correct answers
Second round is Scattergories
- Each team will make a list of any facts they know in each category (see below).
- Teams will share the facts in Scattergories style. Each team will name a fact they know about Israel and get points if it's not shared by another team. If it is shared, then everyone crosses it off their list and the next team names another fact.
- Points are given for all facts that are not shared by another team.

Part 2: Two Truths and a Lie

1. Size

A. Most Israelis live in the desert
B. At it's narrowest point, you can cross Israel in less than 10 miles
C. In recent years, about 3,000 people from North America made aliyah (move to Israel) each year

Answer: A. Even though the desert makes up a large portion of Israel, most Israelis actually live in the areas that are not considered desert.

2. Culture

A. Israel publishes more books per capita than any country in the world
B. The hit TV show Homeland is based on an Israeli show
C. While Israel boasts a diverse range of music styles, rap has not yet made its way to Israel

Answer: C. Israel's music scene is very diverse and takes influence from all of the different immigrant groups as well as outside music styles. Rap is actually a popular style in Israel and there are many Israeli artists who rap such as Subliminal, Muki, Hadag Nachash.

3. Entertainment

A. There are no shopping malls in any of Israel’s cities…only outdoor markets
B. Rafting, snow skiing, and sailing are common vacation activities for Israelis and tourists
C. Israel has its own version of “American Idol,” "The Voice," "Project Runway," "Next Top Model," and "Big Brother."

Answer: A. Shopping malls can be be found in most major cities in Israel: Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, Haifa, Be'er Sheva, and even smaller towns like Kiryat Shemona .

4. Technology

A. Instant messaging, the flash drive, and a camera that you can swallow for medical testing were invented by Israelis in Israel.
B. The extreme heat in Israel has limited the speed of Internet access.
C. Microsoft, Google, Intel, and Apple, all have research centers in Israel.

Answer: B. Israel has fast internet accessibility just like in the U.S.A. (and in fact there is even a plan to make the whole city of Tel Aviv one big WiFi hotspot!)

5. Safety and Security

A. For safety reasons, bags and purses are commonly checked at the entrance to many Israeli malls, restaurants, movie theaters, etc.
B. Israelis and tourists fill the streets of Israel’s cities and towns, restaurants and businesses regularly
C. More people die from terror acts than in car accidents in Israel each year

Answer: C. While there have been many tragedies from terrorism in previous years, actually car accidents are a much more common cause of death in Israel.

6. Politics

A. Only Jews are allowed to serve in the Israeli Knesset (parliament).
B. Israel was the third country to elect a female Prime Minister after Ceylon and India.
C. The Declaration of the establishment of the State of Israel was made in Tel Aviv but Jerusalem is the capital of Israel.

Answer: A. Israeli Arabs do serve in the Knesset and there are even Arab political parties. There are also parties with mixed Israeli Jewish and Israeli Arab members serving.

7. Religious Nature of Society

A. Most Jews in Israel are very religious, wearing black hats and black suits.
B. In Israel, most people wish one another a Shabbat Shalom on Friday, even if they are not religious.
C. The Reform and Conservative movements are small but slowly establishing themselves in Israel.

Answer: A. The ultra-orthodox Haredim, while physically noticeable, are not the majority of Jews in Israel. Israeli Jews all ranges of Jewish.

8. The Jewish Connection to Israel

A. The Biblical country of Israel included much of Jordan and even Damascus, Syria.
B. Prior to World War II, there had never been more than 1,000 Jews in the land of Israel since the time of the Bible.
C. Construction in Israel frequently is delayed due to the discovery of ancient Jewish artifacts.

Answer: B. Jews have been living in Israel continuously since the time of the Bible. Beginning in the late 1800's through World War II the Zionist movement helped thousands of Jews who had been living in different Jewish communities around the world make Aliyah and move to the Land of Israel to help found the state.

9. Sports

A. The Maccabi Tel Aviv Basketball Team has won five European league championships.
B. Even though much of Israel is desert, Israeli athletes have earned Olympic medals for canoeing and sailing.
C. Because of security concerns, Israelis do not attend sporting events at large stadiums.

Answer: C. Israeli athletes compete in top competitions around the world (and are highly respected) in spite of the fact that there are security concerns.

10. Space and Science

A. Albert Einstein was asked to be the first President of Israel.
B. Israel has never sent an astronaut to space.
C. Four Israelis have won Nobel Prizes in science.

Answer: B. Israeli astronaut Ilan Ramon was aboard the Space Shuttle Columbia on its ill-fated 2003 mission. The shuttle exploded on re-entry to the earth's atmosphere, killing all seven astronauts.

11. The State of Israel

A. Israel's current supreme court includes one Israeli Arab.
B. Road signs in Israel are required to be written in Hebrew, Arabic and English.
C. Israel's government used to be a democracy but is now a one-party system.

Answer: C. Israel's current government is actually made up of more than a dozen political parties.

12. The IDF

A. Israelis are required to serve in the military at age 18.
B. The IDF is only made up of Jewish Israeli soldiers.
C. Immigrants to Israel are also required to serve in Israel's military.

Answer: B. In the IDF, Bedouins, Druze, and other minority groups serve in the IDF just like Jewish Israelis.

13. Life in Israel

A. School in Israel often ends by 1:00 p.m.
B. Israeli kids are obsessed with baseball, just like in America.
C. Schools close in Israel for Jewish holidays.

Answer: B. In Israel, soccer is the most popular sport, followed by basketball

Part 3: Scattergories

Have the Israelis on your staff act as judges for this round. Or bring back your Israeli celebrity emcee and judges.
Categories: (you may decide to only use some of these, or to use a different set of categories from the ones used during Two Truths and a Lie)
- Size
- Culture
- Entertainment
- Technology
- Safety and Security
- Politics
- Religious Nature of Society
- The Jewish Connection to Israel
- Sports
- Space and Science
- The State of Israel
- The IDF
- Life in Israel

Stage 3: Wrap-Up

Wrap-up with a discussion. Possible questions:
- We mentioned a lot of facts today. Tell us one that surprised you. Why?
- Did any of the incorrect facts surprise you? If so, why?
- What incorrect preconceived notions about Israel do you think kids/teens of your age might have?
- What could you say to them to help them see it differently?
- Whether you have been to Israel or not, why might you want to go visit there?
- If you have been to Israel, what impressions can you share?

Supporting Materials:

The Israel IS REAL Game Show.pdf