The Goodman Initiative - Israel Defense Forces (IDF)

Yom Kippur War Hero

Carl Schrag — Mon, 30 Apr 2012 22:40:40 +0000

This cabin-time activity offers an opportunity for campers, counselors, and Israeli staff to bond as they consider the very real challenges of war, and consider the ultimate sacrifices that people sometimes are called upon to make.

Curriculum Themes:

A People’s Hope

Materials Required:

Supplied Material (by Goodman Initiative)

Program Duration:

30 minutes

Physical Space:

Indoor Space

Number of Campers:

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

Age of Campers:

Core Learnings:

The Yom Kippur War shook the very foundations of Israel's sense of security

"War stories" happen to ordinary people who step up to meet extraordinary challenges

Explanation:

Step 1: Introduction

The facilitator begins by asking the campers to share what they think of when they think of the IDF. (Hopefully, answers will tend toward "strong" and other similar terms).

The IDF is all of those things, but it's also a Jewish army. What does that mean? Well, for one thing it means that the commanders try to send soldiers home for important Jewish holidays -- especially for Yom Kippur. Of course, if they think there's a danger they won't let them go on leave, but whenever possible they try to send soldiers home for the holidays.

Step 2: What Makes a Hero?

Next, ask the group what they think of when they think of the word "hero." (Hopefully, some answers will relate to military heroism and Israel).

There are all kinds of heroes, but the most remarkable heroes don't wake up in the morning determined to be a hero. They are normal people in abnormal situations -- and they respond in heroic ways. Some people use the word "hero" very freely, but today we are going to see the story of one man who earned that title on the battlefield.
Back in 1973, the commanders thought things were under control, so they sent most of the soldiers home for Yom Kippur. But the Egyptians and the Syrians (you can show the countries on a map) had teamed up to try to destroy Israel by surprising it on Yom Kippur. They knew that most Israeli soldiers would be at home or in synagogue, so they planned a surprise attack.
An Israeli tank commander named Avigdor Kahalani, who wasn't much older than me, was in charge of the tanks on the Golan Heights -- Israel's border with Syria. He was probably upset that he didn't get to go home, just like the rest of the soldiers who were stuck up there.

Engage the group in a discussion that addresses their questions and also creates a list of what makes a hero. An Israeli staff member can add a few thoughts about heroes he has known.

Step 3: Wrap-up

At the end of the discussion, the facilitator can judge if his campers are primed for a final discussion. If so, ask:

What is bravery?

Discussion may include:

What kind of actions define bravery?
What convinces someone to do something extraordinary?
Have you ever done something brave?

Variations:

As noted, this activity can take place during the day or before bedtime. If during the day, find a quiet place where campers will be able to see the screen and hear the narrative. The cabin may be the ideal location regardless of the time of day.

If the activity seems like too much for one sitting, or if you want to go into depth and encourage the campers to discuss the issues they encounter in depth, split it into two activities, to be completed on successive days.

Background Cards:

Curricular Subjects:

What Makes an Army Jewish?

Carl Schrag — Mon, 30 Apr 2012 16:05:13 +0000

This activity meshes "gadna"-style training with examination of the ethos of the IDF. It includes physical army "training," discussion of life in the army, and personal stories and anecdotes from your Israeli staff who have been through their own army experiences.

Curriculum Themes:

A People’s Hope

Program Duration:

Physical Space:

Number of Campers:

Age of Campers:

Core Learnings:

Every Israeli teenager prepares for army service after high school

The ethos of the IDF incorporates Jewish values and includes leading from the front and the sanctity of every soldier's life

The IDF is a people's army; at its founding it brought together all of the pre-State fighting forces

Explanation:

Step 1: Introducing the Activity

Campers gather on the sports field, where one or more Israeli staff members instruct them to stand in rows and jog in place while they wait for the activity to begin. As everyone is jogging in place, the shaliach begins to tell his or her army story. Shlichim can use this as a guide:

Today you're going to experience what Israeli high school kids go through as they prepare for their army service. In Israel, when you finish high school you don't go straight to college; first you serve in the Israel Defense Forces, the IDF. In Hebrew it's called Tzahal. Boys serve three years, and girls serve two years.

If you think you can graduate from high school and go straight into battle, you're wrong! When I was your age, all of my friends and I already were thinking about the army. What unit do we want to serve in? What we need to do to prepare for our service, what kind of position will let us make the biggest contribution to our homeland? Seriously, these are the priorities for so many Israeli kids.

And we knew that if we wanted the good positions in the army, we had to be in shape. Because when we were kids, we used to sit around and play as many video games as all of you probably do! And that's no way to prepare for the army. So we did a program called Gadna, where they helped us get ready for the army.

Today we're going to do a little bit of Gadna. I hope everyone can keep up!

Step 2: Physical Endurance

After this introduction, the shaliach or shlichim lead the group through a series of physical endurance exercises. These should be developed by the GE and the shlichim based on the camp's layout and facilities, but they can include running around the sports fields, crawling under bushes and shrubs in wooded areas, climbing the rock wall, sprinting up and down a hill, and more. This should be rigorous but not so difficult as to wipe out the campers.

Interspersed between the exercises, the shaliach or shlichim continue to share stories with the campers that illustrate key understandings about the IDF. Topics to address include:

The IDF was established by the first prime minister, David Ben-Gurion, just weeks after the establishment of the State of Israel on May 14, 1948.
Prior to independence, several "underground" fighting forces had worked, usually independent of each other, to protect the members of the pre-State Jewish community and to advance efforts for independence. These groups included the Haganah, Etzel, and Lehi. (See Variations for more information on these pre-State groups.) Ben-Gurion and others said that now that the Jewish state has been born, all fighting must come under the command of one united force, and that was the IDF.
The IDF's principles are rooted in Jewish values, including:
- Never leave anyone behind
- Even return for the dead, everyone deserves a burial
- Officers lead from the front, not guide from behind
- It is illegal to follow an immoral order:
  - There is no excuse as “I was just following orders”
  - Every soldier is responsible for his/her own actions
- The concept of “Purity of Arms”:
  - Weapons are to be used for defense and only when necessary
  - All measures are taken not to harm civilians
What is the responsibility of the officer to his/her soldiers?
Integration of the army and civilian society
- A people’s army with universal conscription
- Rather than go to college, everyone goes to the army
- 18-year-olds are faced with life and death decisions
- Parents are involved with their children’s army experience
- The reserves
  - Many adult men serve until 40-years-old
  - These adults watch how the younger soldiers act and are treated, leading to transparency in the army

Depending on the age of the campers, you can go into more or less detail. For younger campers, the gadna pre-military training activities will offer insight into what Israeli high school students must contend with, while for older campers the emphasis on the values of the IDF as a reflection of the values of Israel and the Jewish people will have greater weight.

With proper preparation by the GE, the shlichim who lead this activity can make it a huge success.

Step 3: Wrap-up

Either in a room or around a campfire, the staff members who have led the activity lead a wrap-up discussion that reviews key points covered during the Gadna training and stresses the personal nature of the storytelling that has transpired and links to the bigger messages about Israeli life, the role of the IDF, the values of the IDF, and how Israeli teens view their commitment to military service. His/her wrapup should acknowledge that this part of Israeli life is very different from typical American middle school and high school reality, but by trying to understand it campers can strengthen their understanding of, and connection to, Israel.

If this was an evening activity the program ends with nighttime announcements and campers head back to their cabins.

Variations:

This activity can be supplemented with additional information about the pre-State defense organizations Haganah, Etzel, and Lehi.

If this activity is planned as an evening program, the gadna training begins when it is still light outside. By the end of the training, campers can gather around a campfire where the Israeli staff members can teach some army slang and review the messages they conveyed throughout the program.

Background Cards:

Curricular Subjects:

Acharai: What Kind of Leader Am I?

Naomi Brown — Thu, 05 Apr 2012 16:18:58 +0000

This activity encourages campers to explore their own leadership qualities through a discussion about the Israeli army. By reading a story about a young commander in the IDF, campers will reflect on their own capabilities to be a leader at camp and in their communities by discovering similarities between their own leadership qualities and the commander's leadership qualities.

Curriculum Themes:

A People’s Hope

Materials Required:

Pieces of paper or cardboard for lava activity

Program Duration:

1 hour

Physical Space:

Outdoor Space

Number of Campers:

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

Age of Campers:

Core Learnings:

At the age of 18, Israelis enter the army -- men serve 3 years, women serve 2

Israeli 18-23-year-olds serve in the army and play important roles as leaders

In the Israeli Army, officers physically lead their troops into battles (Acharai - "follow me")

Israeli officers lead to serve as role models and out of a sense of responsibility for their troops

Explanation:

Stage 1: Crossing the Lava Pit

Split the campers into two or more groups of at least 5 people.
Give each group pieces of paper or cardboard totaling half the number of people in the group plus one. For example, a group of 5 should receive 3 pieces of paper.
Tell the campers: Your goal is to get your entire group across a “lava pit”. Your pieces of paper are your "rocks" and will help you reach the other side.
Rules of the game: You must be touching the “rocks” at all times. You may pick up a “rock” in your hand and send it backward in the line. If a “rock” is left untouched by either a hand or a foot, then it will be “swept away” by the “lava”. If someone is caught in the “lava”, then they are either blindfolded or told to go to the back of the line.
The first team to successfully cross the lava wins.
When the teams have completed the activity, gather everyone together into a circle to "debrief" the experience.

Debriefing Questions:
- What was this experience like? How did you accomplish this task?
- Did you all work together? Did anyone stand out as a leader?
- What qualities do you think make a good leader? It might be helpful to think about a specific example of a leader you have encountered or worked with.
- What actions do good leaders take? How do you know if someone is a good leader?
- How do people become good leaders? Is it something that is learned or something you're born with?

Stage 2: Connection with Israel

Ask the campers: Do you think that Israelis think of leadership in the same way that we do? Why or why not?
Make sure to have people support their opinion by using specific examples from times that they have interacted with Israelis or things that they already know about Israeli culture.

If someone mentions the army, then talk about differences between the Israeli army and the American army:

Ask the campers: Does anyone know anything about the American army -- its ranking system, and how generals, commanders, or other high-level officers function within the army?
- Explain that in the American army, the ratio of senior officers to combat troupes is 1:5 and in most situations, the senior officers command from afar while their infantry is on the ground.
- In the Israeli army, the ratio of senior officers to combat troops is 1:9, and in fact, soldiers in the Israeli army all abide by a particular expression: Acharai (after/follow me!).
Connect this back to the lava activity.
Ask the campers: Do you think this concept of acharai played out in your group activity? Why or why not? Why do you think this concept is important to the Israeli army?
Conclude by explaining to the campers that, unlike in most other armies, any Israeli commander must ALWAYS lead his soldiers, not only to be an example, but also because he is responsible for them.
Leave the campers to consider a big question: For whom are we responsible? As Jews? As Americans? As citizens of the world? As older campers? etc.

If they don't mention the army, transition immediately into the following:

Ask the campers: Does anyone know anything about the army in Israel -- how it is structured, who joins, how long people are in the army, etc.?
- Discuss how rather than going to college at the age of 18 like we do in America, everyone in Israel joins the army. Boys serve 3 years and girls serve 2 years.
Ask the campers: Has anyone heard of Har Herzl?
- Explain that Har Herzl is the military cemetery in Israel and that many of the ages of the people buried in the cemetery are 18-23. Emphasize the fact that they are very young and explain that these 18-23 year olds are viewed as leaders of Israel. [If you have been to Har Herzl, you should draw upon his/her own experience at the cemetery.]
[Insert the above lesson on Acharai here]

Stage 3: True story

Say to the campers: We are now going to read a short story of a 23-year-old commander in the IDF.
- Have campers take turns reading paragraphs of the story. (This is a story about a 23-year-old company commander who had an injured soldier trapped in a house held by a terrorist and had to figure out what to do).
After the story, ask the campers: How did the commander lead his soldiers?  What are some specific leadership qualities that the commander had? 
- Point out that the commander is only 23 years old, only a few years older than many of us and up until he joined the army at 18, he went to school, hung out with friends, and had similar life experiences.
Explain to the campers: we are going to spend a couple minutes in partners reflecting on our own leadership qualities. With your partner, consider: what leadership qualities do you think that you have that are similar to the commander?
- Give the campers some examples to start them off: 1. "Caring. The commander cared about both the injured soldier that was trapped and the rest of his soldiers in the operation. Similar to him, I am a caring person. I care about my family, my friends, my community, my campers etc. 2. Creativity: The commander had to be creative in order to get his injured soldier out of the house. Similar to him, I am creative because... "
- Give the campers 2-3 minutes to discuss these questions in partners.
Have campers share what they talked about to the entire group.

Wrap-Up:

Explain to the campers: Whether we are commanding a troop or leading an Israeli book club in our school or wearing our Israel t-shirts, or making the choice to come to camp, we are all leaders in our own way and it's important to embrace our individual strengths as leaders in our own communities.
End with a conversation about ways to use your leadership skills. Ask the campers:
- What are some specific ways in which you can use your unique strengths to be a leader at camp? In your own community at home? How can you use the leadership qualities that you have to be a strong voice for Israel at camp? In your own community at home?

Variations:

Variations in format:

Dilemma Situation:
- Read half of the story and present the situation as a dilemma that the campers will have to solve as a group.
- After naming all of the different factors in the dilemma (before reading the resolution), ask the campers:
  - What do you think the 23-year-old commander did in this situation?
  - What do you think you would have done?
Other options for the Opening Activity:
- Tarp or Blanket Activity: Ask each group to stand on a large tarp or blanket. The entire group must be on the tarp completely. Once everyone is settled, tell the group that they must flip the tarp over while standing on it, working together.
- Monster Activity: Ask each group to move as a monster from point A to B (one side of the field to the other). Each person must be connected to the monster, but they are only allowed half the number of hands and feet touching the ground. For example, an 8 person group is allowed 8 hands and 8 feet touching the ground.
- Engage other areas of camp/specialists:
  - The opening activity would be perfect to do in different areas in camp, whether it's the ropes course, the waterfront, the basketball court, etc.

Focus on Leadership Instead of Army:
- Opening activity. Gather everyone into a circle, each with a pen (or some other object). The leader raises his/her pen, stands up and begins walking silently to an outside spot where the activity is run. All will follow, some by raising their pens.
- Activity 2: Divide group into 4-6 people with 3-4 pieces of paper. These become “rocks” which must be used to cross a stream. All the participants must be standing only on the “rocks” and must plan a method to get everyone across.
- Activity 3: In groups of 3 people, have them use only the “rocks” to design something that represents their Israel. They can tear the card but that is all they have.
  - Debrief: Explain the rationale for each of the exercises, focusing on what was seen and what was learned. Special emphasis was placed on:
    - The qualities and conditions required to be followed
    - Leading by example
    - Teamwork, making room for people to step up
    - Instinct in terms of making the right decisions while thinking on one’s feet
- The Story from Start-Up Nation:
  - In introducing the army story included in the program outline, ask the participants to consider why such an account was included in the book Start up Nation.
  - Following the reading of the story, brief discussion relating to the qualities of leadership demonstrated and what leading by example means for them, and how might we see it in their roles at camp?

Background Cards:

Supporting Materials:

Start Up Nation Text.docx

Curricular Subjects:

Israel Defense Forces (IDF)

Attribution:

MZ Teen iConnect

Israel and the Fallen Soldier

Natalie Blitt — Tue, 03 Apr 2012 21:31:29 +0000

This session addresses the complicated sentiments that the Israeli people felt about Israeli soldiers who fought and died during the 1948 War of Independence and the 1973 Yom Kippur War.

Curriculum Themes:

Materials Required:

Copies of poems (see below)

Program Duration:

1 hour

Physical Space:

Number of Campers:

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

Age of Campers:

Core Learnings:

The heaviest price of Israel's wars and conflicts has been the loss of life.

The image of the Israeli soldier changes along with the events and wars occurring in Israel. After the War of Independence In 1948, the soldier is illustrated as a victor bringing independence to the state. After the Yom Kippur War in 1973, the soldier is no longer depicted as the hero because he has been defeated.

Explanation:

We will now look at two poems from two different time periods that deal with the topic of fallen soldiers.
Give out copies of A Silver Platter by Natan Alterman. Ask one camper to read the poem out loud. Ask the group for comments or lines that stand out to them. Ask:

What is the vision of the soldier in this poem?
When do you think it takes place?
Why do you think they call themselves the "silver platter?"
What do you make of the line: "Thus they will say and fall back in shadows And the rest will be told In the chronicles of Israel?"

When appropriate, you can fill in some of the background of the poem (after giving them a chance to respond to the questions):

Natan Alterman was a poet who was born in Warsaw and moved to Tel Aviv with his family in 1925, when he was 15 years old.
He wrote the poem during Israel's War of Independence in 1948.
For him, the "silver platter" refers to a comment popularized by Israeli President Chaim Weizmann and attributed to him on December 15, 1947, soon after the UN decision to partition Palestine: "The state will not be given to the Jewish people on a silver platter."

Ask the campers what they think of Alterman's version of Weizmann's statement. Are the Israeli soldiers the "silver platter" that are responsible for the state being created?
Explain that we will now be looking at a more contemporary vision of the Israeli soldier. This song was written by 18-year-old Reuven Politi who was killed during the Yom Kippur War a few weeks after he wrote the poem. He was a fighter in the Egoz reconnaissance platoon, which went out on an ambush mission in the Golan Heights that day. Reuven replaced a soldier friend of his who was delayed reaching his platoon.
Have one camper read the poem. Ask the group the following questions:

How is the image of the soldier different in this poem?
Why do you think the soldier here keeps talking directly to his parents?
What are the lines that especially speak to you?
What does the difference between the two poems say about the difference between how Israeli soldiers are seen in 1948 vs. in 1973?

If necessary, fill in the campers' understanding of what Israel was like during the Yom Kippur War in 1973.
Bring the group back together and do a quick debrief. Ask the group if there were things that surprised them about other people's thinking or their own.

Background Cards:

Supporting Materials:

Israel Fallen Soldier poems.pdf

Curricular Subjects:

Attribution:

MZ Teen iConnect

The Great Debate

Carl Schrag — Thu, 01 Mar 2012 14:46:25 +0000

Campers learn about some of the key challenges facing Israel today, begin to develop or sharpen their opinions, and engage in discussion and debate as they grapple with the realities of multiple perspectives on burning issues.

Curriculum Themes:

Materials Required:

Arts & Crafts Material

Program Duration:

90 minutes

Physical Space:

Indoor Space

Number of Campers:

A Division/Age Group (30 – 50 campers)

Age of Campers:

Oldest Campers (16+)

Explanation:

Stage 1: Introduction

You can introduce The Great Debate by peppering campers with a series of questions about Israel, or asking them to shout out what they think are the key issues facing Israel. After a brief discussion, the GE can shift gears and provide an overview of how the activity is run.
Alternately, you might want to work with a few Israeli and American staff members to prepare a short dramatic presentation designed to demonstrate the role these questions play in daily life in Israel. This skit might entail a few friends meeting in someone's living room on a Friday night to argue about politics, or some similar scenario, to encourage campers to engage in dialogue and debate, and to ask questions.
Questions that can help launch this activity:
- What should the borders of Israel look like in a final-status agreement with the Palestinians?
- Should Arab citizens of Israel enjoy full rights equal to those of Israeli Jews?
- Since Israel is a Jewish state, should the Orthodox Rabbinate keep its role in setting religious policy for all Israeli Jews?

Stage 2: Understanding the Debate

After the introduction of the program, the GE stands alongside a large placard with a variety of symbols and images representing the issues described below. (This can include bumper stickers, reprinted slogans, etc. Bumper sticker images can be selected from here: http://www.jr.co.il/pictures/israel/bstickers/index.html but choose them with care to ensure a mix that reflects the issues that are being discussed). S/He will refer to the images as s/he provides an overview of dilemmas and challenges faced by the State of Israel.
GE: You all have learned about the history of the State of Israel. I don’t want you to think you’ve learned all there is to learn, but I also don’t want you to think that the past is the only thing that matters. There are burning issues on the Israeli agenda, and you have enough knowledge and understanding to begin to wrestle with them.
You could think of daily life in Israel as one Great Debate. Today we’re going to talk about some of those debates that preoccupy Israelis. I’ve got my own opinions on them, but my opinions won’t be the focus right now. I don’t want to tell you what to think; I want you each to think for yourselves. I’ll give the overview, and then each of you will have to decide what’s right, or what you would do if it was up to you to set Israeli policy.
You may choose to introduce the approach by doing a “dry run” of a couple of issues that are hot topics in the U.S. – perhaps the voting age or the drinking age and a question about U.S. involvement in Afghanistan. Next, introduce the issues on the agenda for today (feel free to add, swap, or delete from the following list):
- The threat posed by Iran
- Territorial compromise
- Religion and state
- Who is a Jew
- Citizenship and rights
- Security/civil liberties
- Army and society
- Israel-Diaspora relations

This introduction will not delve into positions on each issue, but will simply set up the dilemmas or questions.

Stage 3: Staking Out the Positions

Staff members, led by the GE and one or more shlichim (with careful preparation, campers can also make some of these presentations), will then make a brief (2-3 minute) presentation presenting each issue in greater depth. At the conclusion of each presentation, the presenter will posit three statements, and ask campers to choose the one that they agree with most. Cards with the statements will be distributed.
Statements for each dilemma will have a different color and/or shape. By the end of the presentations, each camper will have eight cards representing the positions they chose for each of the dilemmas.
If it seems appropriate, you might ask the campers to share any reflections on the activity to this point. Questions could include:
- Were you surprised by your views on any of these issues?
- Which issue seems most important to you?
- How might you view these issues differently if you lived in Israel?

Stage 4: Finding Points of Agreement

The facilitator notes that everyone has staked out positions on a wide variety of issues, and each camper is unlikely to find many people who agree with them on every issue. This is a lot like Israeli politics, where different parties come together to form a coalition even if they do not agree on every issue.
Instruct the group to take 10 minutes to sort themselves into groups where there is the greatest common ground. Campers can achieve this by looking for similar arrays of cards and by querying each other. Once there are 6-8 groups, a staff person joins each group and leads a discussion about the issues. Since each group will include people with varying views on some of the issues, the staff person will moderate discussion and debate on the points of disagreement.
After 15 minutes, the entire group will reconvene, and the facilitator will solicit varying views on some or all of the dilemmas.
Additionally, if time permits, the culminating discussion can focus on the process of seeking common ground, compromising on multiple issues, etc.

Stage 5: Wrap-up

Questions the facilitator might pose to the entire group during the wrap-up discussion include:
- What surprised you most about the discussions you've just had?
- Did you find many people who agreed with you on every issue? How do you explain this?
- Which issues seem to be the most important?
- Do you see any comparison to the relative importance of issues in American society? Why do some issues matter more to us than others?
- Were you aware of all of these dilemmas? Which ones were new to you?
- Who wants to share a particularly interesting idea about how to tackle one of these issues?
- Ideally, campers will discuss the complexity of the issues, the insights they gained by thinking and discussing tough topics, and their own sense of connection to some of the "front-burner issues" that concern Israelis. You might probe a bit why Israeli issues matter to them in the first place, and a few campers might talk about their own connections to Israel.
Finally, consider asking an Israeli staff member to share his or her perspective on the issues. Caution: Prepare the Israeli staff to approach this from the perspective of an observer of Israeli society, rather than sharing their own views on the issues. (If an Israeli espouses a clear perspective on these issues, campers whose views differ may feel marginalized, and campers without strong views might be inclined to fall into step with "the expert").
Campers will leave this activity with deeper awareness, and nuanced views, of key dilemmas facing Israel. Hopefully they will have greater confidence in their own grasp of the issues and how they approach them, but at the same time it is important for them to understand there are many differing views on each of these issues. Dialogue and openness to different ideas - as well as a willingness to advocate for what you believe in - should be enhanced.

Supporting Materials:

Great Debate Briefing Materials.docx

Great Debate - Position Statements.docx