Lesson video

Hello, there.

My name is Mr. Robertson.

It's fantastic to see you today.

I'm here to teach an RE lesson because I love RE and I know you will too.

Today's lesson is all about belonging to an Orthodox synagogue.

We're going to be learning about a Jewish place of worship, finding out what's inside, and why it might be special to Jewish people.

Come on, let's enjoy this lesson today.

By the end of this lesson, you will be able to describe how Jews might belong to an Orthodox synagogue.

We have four keywords today.

I'm going to say it first and then I'd like you to say it back to me.

Do you think we can do that? Brilliant.

So our first word is synagogue.

Excellent.

Our next word is Shabbat.

Brilliant.

Our third word is kippah.

Amazing.

And our final word is tallit.

Fantastic, everybody.

So what do these words mean? Well, a synagogue is a place of worship for Jews.

Shabbat is a weekly day of rest and prayer for Jews.

Kippah is a skullcap worn by Orthodox Jewish males, and a tallit is a Jewish prayer shawl worn during different services and celebrations.

In this lesson, we're going to be asking two important questions.

Our first question is this, what happens in an Orthodox synagogue? Before we get into this lesson, we're going to hear something really important from Andeep.

Andeep's going to explain why we learn about different people in religious education.

He says, "We can better understand people's worldviews by listening to them and asking questions about what is important to them.

We can look at photographs to help us understand more about how different people live their lives." So in this lesson, we're going to be looking at some photographs and meeting some Jewish people to find out more about how you can belong to a synagogue and be part of a Jewish community.

Let's meet Rafi.

Hello, Rafi.

Rafi has a Jewish worldview.

He is an Orthodox Jew.

Rafi lives in London and he attends his synagogue every week.

We can see a photograph of Rafi's synagogue here.

What a beautiful building, Rafi.

I really love the stars that go around it.

Really looking forward to finding out what it's like.

Rafi explains why he loves going to his Orthodox synagogue.

Rafi says, "My synagogue is a special place where I pray and learn with my community.

I love going to synagogue because I feel close to my friends and family, and I know it's a place where I belong." So for Rafi, synagogue is a place where he goes with his friends and his family to pray and learn with his community.

Let's think about what Rafi's just told us.

I've got a true or false question for you here.

A synagogue is a place where Jews may go to pray, learn, and celebrate together.

Is that true or false? Think about what Rafi just said.

Pause the video, whisper to the person next to you.

Did you say it was true? You're right because a synagogue is a place for the Jewish community to come together, learn about traditions and support each other.

Brilliant if you got that right.

Rafi explains why he prays at his synagogue.

We attend services at the synagogue so we can pray together as a community.

We believe that praying together is even more powerful than praying on our own at home.

That's really interesting, isn't it? So being Jewish is about being together in a community and it's really important to do that at the synagogue.

Rafi explains a bit more about his synagogue.

He says, "Every Saturday morning, I go to the synagogue with my family for a special service to celebrate Shabbat.

Shabbat is a special day for Jews.

It's a day to rest from work and spend time praying and relaxing with our families." Thank you, Rafi.

So Shabbat is on a Saturday and that's the day that Rafi and his family go to synagogue.

Rafi is gonna tell us a little bit more about what happens in his synagogue on Shabbat.

On Shabbat, the Torah scrolls are taken out of their special cupboard called an ark.

We listen to the Torah being read out loud." We can see a photograph of a Torah ark there with the Torah scrolls inside it.

The Torah is an important and sacred book for Jews.

Every week in the synagogue, Rafi listens to the Torah being read out loud.

Now let's answer this question.

How often do Jews celebrate Shabbat? A, every week, B, once a month, C, once a year.

Let's think about what Rafi just told us.

Pause the video, whisper to the person next to you.

Did you say A, every week? Brilliant.

You're right.

Jews celebrate Shabbat every week.

The Torah rolls have beautifully decorated covers.

We can see them there, can't we? And look, there's a crown on them as well, isn't there? And a metal, beautiful shield.

Rafi says, "When the Torah scrolls are taken outta the ark, they're carried around the synagogue so everyone can see them.

This is the most exciting part of the Shabbat service." Oh, that looks beautiful, those Torah scrolls.

I can imagine why everyone would want to look at them 'cause they're so beautifully put together.

We can see another photograph of a synagogue here.

Rafi says, "After the synagogue service, we usually have some delicious food to celebrate Shabbat.

We say a prayer of blessing over the wine." So what a beautiful synagogue that is there.

We can see people there as well, can't we? Praying.

Rafi also goes to his synagogue during the week.

Oh, that's interesting.

So he doesn't just go and Shabbat then.

Rafi says, "Many Jewish children go to the synagogue after school during the week.

At my Jewish school, we learn about Jewish traditions and hear special stories from the Torah." So Rafi also goes not just for service, but he goes after school as well.

Let's just think about what we've been hearing there.

What might Jews do at the synagogue? A, attend a sports club to play games together, B, attend a school to learn about the Torah, and C, attend services to pray together.

I think two of those answers are right.

What two do you think they are? Pause the video and whisper to the person next to you.

Excellent.

It's B, attend a school to learn about Torah because that's what Rafi said he did, wasn't it? And C, attend services to pray together.

Well done if you've got those right.

So let's think about all our learnings so far about what happens in a synagogue.

Jacob has been wondering what happens in a synagogue.

Andeep tells him that Jews go to synagogue to pray.

Yes, I think you are right, Andeep.

I wonder if we can think of two other examples of what happens in a synagogue.

Can we think of everything we've learned so far from Rafi? You might want to use a sentence starter and say something like, "In the synagogue, Jews go to pray." Oh, we know that, don't we? But can you think of any other things that Jews might do when they go to synagogue? Okay, I'd like you to pause the video now and have a go thinking about these things.

And if you want to look back at the slides to see if any photographs could help you, please do that.

What did you come up with? Well, you might have thought of, Jews celebrate Shabbat every week by going to the synagogue.

You might have said, in the synagogue, the Torah scrolls.

Do you remember those beautiful scrolls with the crown and the covers are carried around? And you might have said that some Jewish children go to a special school to learn about Jewish traditions and stories from the Torah.

I wonder if you had any other ideas from anything we've heard.

Brilliant work and learning so far.

In the second part of this lesson, we're going to be asking this question, how do Jews show they belong to their community? Now Jews can show they belong to their community in many different ways.

Rafi says, "It's important for Jews to show we belong to our Jewish community.

Sometimes we wear special clothes to show we're Jewish." What can we see here? Look, we can see the back of Rafi's head.

Can you see he's wearing a special cap? It's called a kippah.

Rafi says, "Jewish men and boys in my synagogue wear a special cap called a kippah to show we belong to the Jewish community." You could see it in the drawing of Rafi as well, on his head, can't you? And we could see it on the back.

What a beautiful design.

I really love the star shape there.

Can you see that as well? Here is Rafi's kippah.

He says, "I wear my kippah to show respect to God and to remind me I'm always under God's care, especially when I'm in the synagogue." So that's why Rafi wears a kippah to show respect and also to remind him that God cares for him.

What is a kippah? Is it A, a cap worn by Jewish men and boys, B, a type of prayer book, C, a special coat worn by Jewish men? Hmm.

Let's think about what Rafi's just been telling us.

Pause the video and talk to the person next to you.

What did you think it was? Was it A? Yes, it was a cap worn by Jewish men and boys.

Brilliant if you got that right.

We can see another special piece of clothing there.

Hmm.

I wonder what that is.

What do you notice in the photograph? What can you see? Rafi says, "This is a tallit, a prayer shawl.

At my synagogue, the men wear a tallit when they pray." Yes, we can see the shawl, and that Jewish man has put it around his head and his shoulders, hasn't he? Rafi goes on to say, "I think the tallit helps the men to feel close to God and their community.

I'm looking forward to wearing my tallit when I'm older." So at the moment, Rafi doesn't wear a tallit, but when he gets older, he will as well.

And that'll help him to feel close to God and part of the Jewish community.

Let's just check our understanding.

All Jews wear a tallit.

Is that true or false? Let's think about what we've just been learning.

What do you think? Pause the video and have a think.

What did you think? It's false, isn't it? Yes.

Why is it false? Well, at Rafi's Orthodox synagogue, Jewish men and older boys wear a tallit.

Rafi doesn't wear one yet and Jewish and women don't wear one either, so it's not all Jews wear a tallit.

Brilliant if you got that right.

Look at the picture.

What can you see here? Well, I can see a photograph of Rafi.

I can see he's wearing his kippah and he looks like he's got something in front of him and he's holding something as well.

Rafi says, "I'm learning to read the Torah, the Jewish holy book.

It's written in a language called Hebrew.

When I'm 13, I will have a special celebration called a bar mitzvah.

On that day, I will read out loud from the Torah scroll in the synagogue." So Rafi's learning for a special celebration when he's 13 and he's learning to read from the Torah, which is the Jewish sacred book.

After my bar mitzvah, I'll be able to wear a talent for prayer like the other men.

This will help me to show I belong in my Jewish community.

So I see we've learned a bit more now.

So Rafi will be able to wear a tallit when he's 13 and he has his bar mitzvah.

What will Rafi do in the synagogue on his bar mitzvah? A, read the Torah out loud to everyone, B, welcome people to the synagogue, C, eat special Jewish food.

Excellent.

It's A, isn't it? He'll read the Torah out loud to everyone.

Brilliant if you got that right.

We're going to come to our final practice task now.

Andeep wants to explain how Jewish people show they belong in their community and their synagogue.

I wonder if you can think of three ways Jews might show they belong to their synagogue community.

Think about what Rafi said he did and would do in his synagogue.

Can you think of anything he might wear or other people in his synagogue might wear? Can you think of something he might do when he's older? You might want to start with a sentence like Jews show they belong by.

Or maybe you could draw a picture of something that you've seen.

Pauses the video now and I really look forward to seeing what you come up with.

Well, you've been working hard, haven't you? Did you manage to think of three ways that Jews show they belong to their synagogue community? You might have said Jews show they belong by going to the synagogue to pray.

Learning to read the Torah.

Wearing special clothes like a kippah and tallit.

The kippah is the special cap and the tallit is a shawl that Jewish men and older Jewish boys wear.

Did you have any other ideas? Brilliant if you've managed to remember some of those really tricky words and you've managed to remember big things like the importance of going to the synagogue to pray and the importance of the Torah.

Thank you very much for being in this lesson.

Let's look at what we've learned today.

We've learned that the synagogue is a special place for the Jewish community where people gather to pray, celebrate, and support each other.

We've learned that special events happen in the synagogue.

Shabbat happens every week and other important moments such as bar mitzvah are celebrated.

And we've learned that Jews might show they belong to their community in different ways, like attending services and wearing special clothes like a kippah or tallit.

You've learned lots today.

I hope you've enjoyed it.

I hope I'll see you in another lesson soon.

Thank you.

Bye.