Overview
Pop some popcorn and get ready to explore the dynamic story of Jewish Americans with your students. This video lesson is an interactive journey paired with a viewing guide to uncover the layers of Jewish American identity, including the community’s history, culture, challenges, triumphs, and contributions to American society.
Students will be thinking about: What unites this diverse community? How does their story connect to the broader American narrative? Click play and let them discover the answers to these important questions.
Essential Questions
- How are Jewish Americans an ethnic group?
- What visible and invisible components make up each person’s unique identity?
- How do the multiple components that make up identity help us understand the diversity of Jewish Americans?
- What are key positive and negative experiences of Jewish Americans both historically and today?
Learning Objectives
Students will be able to:
- Understand what makes Jewish Americans an ethnic group
- Identify at least three ways in which Jews are diverse
- Understand challenging and empowering historical and contemporary experiences of Jewish Americans in the United States
- Explain the concept of Jewish identity and how it can be expressed in various ways
- Learn about the contributions of Jewish Americans to American society.
- Develop empathy and perspective-taking skills
Materials:
- Pre-Instruction Student Self-Assessment (you will be instructed to make a copy)
- ICS Video: Jewish Americans
- ICS Video and Discussion Guide (Teacher and Student versions)
- Formative Assessment Example
- Post-Instruction Student Self-Assessment (you will be instructed to make a copy)
