Torah text study begins in fourth grade with B’reisheet-Genesis. This is when students encounter biblical Hebrew and the actual narrative of the Torah for the first time. There are many skills involved in learning Torah. There is the basic task of learning to read the text fluently; there is the challenge to comprehend the meaning of the text; and there is the opportunity to think about the ideas embedded in the text and determine what personal meaning they might have.

Although some of the stories of Genesis are familiar, grappling with the literary style and the layered meaning of the Torah is a new experience. Students recognize different patterns of language, such as unexpected repetition of words, rhetorical questions, a ‘narrator’s comment’ in the midst of a story, and apparent omissions in the text, where something seems to be missing. Each of these unique language patterns invites students to ask questions and to formulate possible explanations. At times, they turn to classic Torah commentators such as Rashi, and learn that he asked the very same question hundreds of years ago! When exploring the text, students are also invited to “make a Midrash out of me!” In these assignments, they create their own interpretations and either write or present them to the class.

In our teaching of Torah, we have adopted two of the standards established by the Jewish Theological Seminary for the teaching of Tanakh-Bible in Jewish Day Schools:

• Students will view the Tanakh as the formative narrative of the Jewish People – past, present, and future.

• Students will understand, through the study of Tanakh and its interpretations, the role of mitzvot in the shaping of the ethical character and religious practices of the individual and the Jewish People.

These standards serve as a framework within which students can organize their study of Torah.