What is Torah, Toolkits and Power Tools: Jewish Studies and Creative Design?
This class teaches Jewish Studies in combination with creativity, design and the visual arts. By doing so, students bring personal expression and depth to the material. They are challenged to delve deep, think analytically, and design creatively. Head, Heart and Hands combine for a final expression of their work.
An important aspect of the class is the incorporation Educational Toolkits* created by artist David Moss. A toolkit is an interactive program using unique artwork and activities where participants explore Jewish ideas, texts and values through the visual arts. A key element is that each toolkit has many possibilities for follow up creative activities.
These toolkits bring a simple, elegant and profound approach to learning and thinking. They are simple in the way that I think about Yoga - what looks simple is actually quite difficult to achieve.
I had seen the incredible power these toolkits had with my students: how it opened up a new way of learning, giving access to the material for everyone - including students who struggled with more traditional ways of learning. In addition to using the existing toolkits, I thought about the students themselves creating toolkits for others.
- Was it possible?
- What would students come up with, given the opportunity and the tools to create a toolkit of their own?
- What would interest them?
- What would the process look like?
- Could they create something of quality that could be used by others?
The first two years of the class had exactly that ambitious goal for the students: Choose a topic of interest, study it deeply using source texts, commentaries and modern materials and create a new Educational Toolkit that can be used by others. Two amazing toolkits were created and have been used in other classes both within The Weber School, and at other Jewish Day Schools.
Kavod Habriyot - a fully formed toolkit that is downloadable and ready for use. (Use email button later in this page to ask for access).
Portrait of a Leader - a fully formed idea with one element that can be downloaded and used. In addition there are several elements that are still a work in progress.
I found that though the model of creating a toolkit led the students through an amazing process with a publishable product, this model did not allow for as much text study, or personal expression as I would have liked. As a result, I changed the class design to that of personal portfolios. The class cycles through:
- advanced text study of Torah and commentaries with connections to present day texts, current events and the students’ lives
- use of educational Toolkits
- creative projects that are a physical representation of each student’s thought and ideas on the topic
*The Educational Toolkits are taught and used widely through The Teacher Institute for the Art and the Israeli based organization Kol HaOt. Both are run by David Moss, Elyssa Moss Rabinowitz and Rabbi Matt Berkowitz.
Team work and Hakarat Hatov - appreciation!
The interdisciplinary nature of this class is also reflected in its teachers. While I dreamed it up and led its development, the partnership with Rabbi Matt Berkowitz who led the deep text discussions, was crucial to its success. In addition, Alex McIntyre, my fellow teacher at The Weber School generously worked with me and my students in our STEAM lab - the Daniel Zalik Academy. Thanks also to the rest of our DZA staff who always say yes when we need help. In all of this, I had the backing and unwavering support of our Head of School, Rabbi Ed Harwitz.
This toolkit was developed in 2020-21 during the first year the class was offered. Dov Karlin, Liana Bernstein, Amelia Heller and Miriam Nadler worked in partnership to develop the kit from an original idea conceived by Dov Karlin in a previous class of mine.
The toolkit has been used in other classes at Weber, and at other schools in the US.
Toolkit Mission Statement
In this toolkit, participants have the opportunity to discuss and grapple with balancing personal interests and the good of the community through the lens of Kavod HaBriyot. Kavod HaBriyot is a Jewish concept that translates to "honor of God's creations". Participants will discuss a variety of texts as they apply this topic to their own lives, in hopes of inspiring reflection and influencing positive change.
The creative medium used is called Notan.
Notan is a Japanese term which means "light dark harmony". Artists use "notan studies" to explore different arrangements of light and dark elements in a painting, without having the distraction of other elements like color, texture and finer details.
lparmet@weberschool.org
Portrait of a Leader Toolkit
The following year, the next group of students taking this class developed the Portrait of a Leader toolkit based on their interest in the topic of Leadership.
The Portrait of a Leader toolkit uses texts, leaders' writings, quotes, images and headlines to lead participants to think about the leadership traits demonstrated by each leader. These traits were translated into colors and used to create a visual, color coded portrait of the leader. Possible follow up activities for participants are:
- To create a color coded self portrait of their own leadership skills
- Choose another Leader, research texts. quotes, and images and create a new toolkit element including a color coded portrait.
Here is a sample of one toolkit element.
Guiding Prompts and Questions
Read each quote/text one at a time. Look at images if any are included.
For each quote/text/image of what you read and see, what leadership traits do you think that person exhibits? Why?
After you look at the portrait on the other side and the legend of color coded leadership traits, consider:
What do the colors tell you about this leader? Do you agree? Disagree?
The Switch to Portfolios
Portfolios
In the 2022-23 school year, I switched to the portfolio model of this class. We delved into texts and discussions on many topics under the umbrella topic of Partnerships.
After the study of several sub topics, the students chose one partnership, one idea that resonated with them and designed and created a visual representation of their ideas.
Following are their creative portfolios along with their artist statements for each. In addition, I have included a detailed description of the process the students followed in order to create one of our main projects - the Shabbat cutting board.
Creation Puzzle Toolkit
Shabbat -- Time
David Moss’ “Recreating Creation Puzzle” is a ritual piece of art, which is made up of large colorful pieces. Using juxtaposition of contrasting colors and symbolic images, each day of the six days of creation is represented in a large, mirrored floor puzzle for the students to assemble. The seventh day of creation is left blank -- allowing students to create their own symbolic representation of Shabbat, based on their studies, feelings, and imagination.
Students in “Torah, Toolkits and Power Tools” studied source texts about the Creation and about Shabbat. Using commentaries and D’var torah texts they thought about time; how they use their time, how much they devote to doing things they are intrinsically good and talented at and how much time they devote to things that they find worthwhile, that satisfy them.
Bringing together the Torah, commentaries and writings, the Creation Puzzle, and their thinking and ideas about Shabbat and time, students designed and created a cutting board for Shabbat.
Once their design was complete, the students went on a field trip to buy the wood they had chosen for their design.
Students cut, sized and worked with their wood using a miter saw, jointer, table saw, and planer in order to create strips of squared, smooth wood that were ready to be glued.
Gluing is best done with friends!
Once the strips of wood were glued, students cleaned, trimmed and planed them again in order to achieve flat, clean boards. They then used the router to create a smooth finish to the edges of their board.
Sanding was done by hand and using a palm sander.
The incredible beauty and depth of the wood grain was then brought out using mineral oil, or varnish - both food safe so the cutting board could be used.
Very satisfying!
Each student chose a Biblical phrase that related to the idea behind their design. And finally, using the laser cutter, they completed their work by etching those words into their boards.
The completed Shabbat Cutting Boards are beautiful and their designs and artist statements reflect the ideas and thoughts of each student.
Gift of Life
The gift of life is taken for granted by the majority of people. I don’t take that for granted and wanted to represent that by showing how time is not always given to everyone but how we can all be brought together by one simple idea. With three children, and two parents, there’s always uncountable memories for all. Unfortunately, that can get cut short at any random time. Many deep connections come with siblings but there can be the sad fights over something so insignificant. This cutting board represents the difference and connection between parents and siblings.
Meredith
A Purple World
Family is everything especially when it comes to celebrating Shabbat and other holidays. For my cutting board I created a piece that incorporates both family and shabbat. My cutting board has three different wood types, one of which represents me alone. The other two types of wood are there to represent my grandparents and the rest of my household. The purple heart represents me alone because purple is my favorite color. The total of six smaller stripes represent the four of us in my family and my two grandparents because every Friday night we go over to their house to celebrate Shabbat. This is very special to me because my family has been going to their house to celebrate since my sister was born, and when I was a week old my parents started bringing me. Celebrating Shabbat at my grandparent’s is important to me because it is just the six of us and it is the only time I see my grandparents during the week. I feel the most connected to Judaism and God when I am with my family, especially my grandparents, who taught me to always be proud of being Jewish. My step-grandma used to make models of the parasha of the week and then my sister and I would explain the parasha to my family using the model. Then my grandpa would explain further what we had said and go in depth on how the story relates and can relate to our lives while being Jewish.
Grace
No other day ‘Light’ Shabbat
There are seven days in the week, six of those seven leading to Shabbat. On Monday, you work towards Tuesday, and on Tuesday, you work towards Wednesday, until you eventually find your way to Shabbat. Personally, Shabbat is the best day of the week for me. My work depicts the long wait to get to Shabbat. Each segment of wood was designed to get brighter toward the top of the board. I have chosen to make the top of the board the brightest for several reasons: I feel that brightness is often looked upon positively, and I feel as though Shabbat is a very positive day. Shabbat is completely incomparable to other days.
Jared
Light can only be seen in the presence of darkness. I try to be a light for those I care about. I’ve struggled to learn to recognize when I need to ask for someone else’s candle. With my art, I like to pull from my experiences–whether positive or negative. Art is where I learn to take, to make for me, for my joy, for myself. Light can only exist in the presence of darkness. So instead of wishing for a life of pure light, a life that would be blinding, I wish for a life in which I can look towards the light, choose to be a light for others, ask for somebody’s match, and light my Shabbat candles with joy.
Daniella
Paper Weaving
Students learned the art of paper weaving including the technique of creating windows and layers in their weave. They used this art form to express their ideas on a studied topic of choice.
Possibilities
My weaving project expresses how a missing piece can spark ideas. My idea was inspired by the story of Cain and Abel. In the Biblical text: “Cain said to his brother Abel … and when they were in the field” (Genesis 4:8). Commentaries say that in this text, there are words missing between the words “Abel… and”. I love the idea of mystery and how the gap allows for different ideas. I want to represent the idea of possibilities and how not everything can always be explained in just a few words. My weave expresses change over time and different possibilities.
Meredith
Through The Mountaintop
When Abram and Lot reached the land of Israel they had to figure out how to work out the division of land. Both Abram and Lot had their own shepherds and cattle. The issue this caused was that their shepherds argued about not having enough room to take care of their cattle. They had been given the opportunity for more land, but the issue was that one part of the land was better than the other part. Abram ultimately decided to let Lot choose which part of the land he wanted first. Abram did this because he wanted to prove that he values family relationships more than something that may value and benefit him.
A big part of this story is give and take and being the bigger person as demonstrated by Abram. In my weaving, I chose to bring the idea of give and take and the challenges you must face in order to be the bigger person. When thinking about how I was going to be able to incorporate what I took from the story of Abram and Lot, I instantly thought of a mountain. The mountain represents the challenges one must overcome to be the bigger person and be able to give up what you prefer. Woven into the mountain, are pink, blue, and white, to complement the sunset in the mountain background. In order to truly bring to life the steps it takes to overcome a challenge I cut out windows that have a staircase sense of shape, and so the mountain image is more visible.
Grace D. Mailman
The Bigger Picture
I have chosen to symbolize how big of an impact something so little can have, and how you cannot always see the bigger picture. The idea stemmed from the biblical story of Abram and Lot. Abram and Lot, uncle and nephew, were both given the opportunity to move to a new piece of land. This land was not big enough to support both families so the families had to separate to live on two different lots. However, one piece of land was noticeably nicer than the other. In the story, Abram offers Lot first choice of the land. Abram understands that, in the grand scheme of things, his relationship with Lot was more important than that specific piece of land. The two images that I have used are of many smaller rocks, and a picture of a few larger rocks. Each rock represents a conflict or argument between my brother and me. This project expresses the idea that it is difficult to see how something so little, like a small rock, can form something so large, like an entire beach formed of small rocks. This piece allows the viewer to see the bigger picture, which is why I have placed windows in the big rock. The windows have been placed there as a way to express the idea that, if one were to put in enough effort to simply look at the entire scene, these small conflicts can, indeed, have a very large impact.
Jared
Based on the conflict of Particular vs. Universal, we studied the Israeli Declaration of independence. Based on these discussions, I was reminded of my experience in Jewish communities. As the child of immigrants, I have one foot in the door of Russian immigrant Jewish culture and one foot in American Jewish culture. I don’t fit into either one and find myself in an odd space between the two. To represent this in my weaving, I took a photo of my menorah - Hanukkah was one of my favorite Jewish holidays growing up. I then edited this photo to create three different versions of the photo: one pink, one purple, and one blue. These three colors represent the community my parents come from (pink) the community I'm surrounded with (blue) and the space in-between I find myself in (purple). I weaved these images together to show, essentially, me and my Jewish culture.
Daniella
The Window
In the story of Abram and Lot the two men’s cattle herder’s had fought because they were crowded in their fields. Abram allowed Lot to choose one section of the land of Israel and Abram would stay on the other to allow their workers to spread out. Although this meant the men would be separated it resolved the overcrowding problem. This reminds me of the separation with my family who live in Arizona. Similarly to Abram and Lot it is for my Dad’s job and because my grandparents love their home. In both our stories the separation is necessary but the family can stay connected. My weaving consists of photos I took. One is a brick wall from Arizona that pairs with the black windows to showcase separation. The flower photo was taken in Atlanta which shows that as a family we can grow separately although the windows show we aren’t completely apart.
Ella
Candlesticks - ceramics and resin printing
"צֶדֶק צֶדֶק תִּרְדֹּף לְמַעַן תִּחְיֶה וְיָרַשְׁתָּ אֶת הָאָרֶץ אֲשֶׁר ה' אֱלֹהֶיךָ נֹתֵן לָךְ."
“Justice, justice shall you pursue, that you may live and inherit the land that your God יהוה is giving you.” (Deuteronomy 16:20)
I believe in G-d. I don't believe in an overall being that is all knowledgeable and omnipotent; I believe that G-d is in nature and a part of the natural world. Just as we have an obligation to Nature as Jews we have a responsibility to G-d: they are one and the same. In class, we discussed Leviticus 19 which discusses the relationships between people and people, people and nature, and people and G-d. For this candlestick, I wanted to represent this. To do this I thought of twisting vines or lines representing the complicated relationship between Mankind and God and the obligation that humans have to the world in which we live.
“When two people relate to each other authentically and humanly, God is the electricity that surges between them.” -Martin Buber
Daniella
Candlestick Artist Statement
Each candlestick represents a type of personality that Abraham shows in two biblical stories, Sodom and Gomorrah, and the Binding of Isaac. In the story of Sodom and Gomorrah, Abraham is defiant towards God, and in the Binding of Isaac, Abraham does not stand up to God when told by God to sacrifice his son. In Sodom and Gomorrah, Abraham challenges God’s ideas on whether communal punishment was ethical. In the Binding of Isaac, Abraham obeys God, even when Abraham is asked to sacrifice his own child. The square candlestick represents the defiant version of Abraham, whereas the circular candlestick represents the version of Abraham that obeys all of God’s commands. The reason for this is because, to me, sharp corners, or hard lines, represent defiance, whereas the soft turns and gentle curves on the other candlestick represent giving in and not questioning God. Additionally, the glazing on the candlesticks further represent the two sides of Abraham’s personality. The layered colors on both candlesticks reflect the layered personality of Abraham. The soft colors on the circular candlestick represent Abraham’s inability to defy God or stand up to him. The square candlestick is colored in sharp blue colors to show how, in Sodom and Gomorrah, Abraham sharply defies God.
Jared
Is God shy or narcissistic? In our discussions about partnerships with God, we brought up the idea that we view people in different ways depending on the circumstances. We connected the idea of God and people being shy and narcissistic. If you tend to be quiet, people will acknowledge you as shy. If you tend to be louder and more outgoing, people will view you as narcissistic and self centered. I wanted to represent this idea through my ideas of color and indentions. For my candlesticks I have used a gray to properly represent continuation in different ideas. In representing more shyness, I have used a dark green to show the shyness we can show and I have made an indentation to show the introverted parts of people. To represent more narcissistic characteristics, I have used light green with a ring that is popping out of the main candlestick to show the extroverted personality narcissism can bring.
Meredith
While collective punishment is simple and effective, good upstanding citizens are also punished. Based on the story of Sodom and Gomorrah I ask, “Where is the line between moral injustice punishing innocence and necessity to punish the group?” In the story Abraham asks God if the cities will be spared for their misdeeds for the sake of fifty good people. When God says “yes” Abraham ventures if 45 good people is acceptable, then 40, 30, 20, 10. As God answers “yes” each time it shows how arbitrary using a majority to determine the fate of everyone is. My candle uses a boat to portray the idea that all the people are punished together. The two candlesticks represent the people, the taller of which is a majority of morally unjust people, while the smaller is mostly good people. The glaze on the pottery has an interesting ability to turn into two different colors, brown and blue. That ability creates a cohesion between both candlestick while still featuring the two candlesticks as different. If there is collective responsibility for an action, then should the good be punished and the bad spared consequences or should everyone face ramifications?
Ella
“God led Adam around all the trees of the Garden of Eden. And God said to Adam: 'See My works, how good and praiseworthy they are?! And all that I have created, I made for you. [But,] be mindful then that you do not spoil and destroy My world - for if you spoil it, there is no one after you to repair it.'"
Midrash Kohelet Rabbah 7:13
בשעה שברא הקב"ה את אדם הראשון, נטלו והחזירו על כל אילני גן עדן, ואמר לו: ראה מעשי כמה נאים ומשובחין הן, וכל מה שבראתי, בשבילך בראתי, תן דעתך שלא תקלקל ותחריב את עולמי, שאם קלקלת אין מי שיתקן אחריך
My candlesticks reflect the idea that people and nature depend on each other and that if we, as people, don’t take care of the world around us, there won’t be a world for us at all. I wanted to be able to display this idea fully so one candlestick represents humans and the other represents nature. The candlestick that represents humans is a square shape with eyes on the front. The eyes reflect how it is our job as people to look after the world around us as well as to depict “See my works.” (Midrash Kohelet Rabbah 7:13) The candlestick created to represent nature is a simple, square candlestick glazed with greens and browns like a tree. Both candlesticks are connected with a bridge in order to fully bring together the idea of the connection between the two and how they depend on each other. This world is not a one-way street. In order to make sure the planet can provide us with what we need, we have to take care of it and watch over it.
Grace
Visiting Artist Shoshana Gugenheim Kedem
We had the pleasure of hosting the artist Shoshana Gugenheim Kedem in “Torah, Toolkits and Power Tools” .
“Shoshana Gugenheim Kedem שושנה גוגנהיים קדם is an American/Israeli interdisciplinary artist, Torah scribe, curator and chutzpanit. She reimagines rituals and sacred objects, primarily but not solely, Jewish ones, and reinserts them, with new forms, into familiar contexts. “
In 2020, Shoshana Gugenheim Keden, in collaboration with faculty and students in the Jewish Studies program and College of Visual and Performing Arts at the University of North Carolina Greensboro and the greater Greensboro Jewish public, created the Greensboro Contemporary Jewish Museum. Focusing on object as agent of faith or identity, the inaugural exhibition of the GCJM shines a light on everyday objects that facilitate contemporary Jewish identity in its varied forms. Contributors, Jewish residents of Greensboro, North Carolina, were prompted:
“Please share a personal object imbued with significance to you as a Jew.” (from the artist’s website)
Shoshana led our class through a text study about the significance of intentionality in thought and actions which led us to discussing the significance of objects. We then engaged in the process of creating a mini museum of our own. Each student chose an object imbued with significance to them as a Jew. Students then interviewed each other about the objects and wrote up the interview to create the statements you see alongside the objects they chose.
Enjoy our Mini Contemporary Jewish Museum.
Jared, 15
This dinner plate may look ordinary, but it is important to me as a Jew. My family and I use this plate, and others like this, when we eat together as a family. In Judaism, family is a very important concept. While the plate itself is not valuable to me, the memories surrounding it, and the use of it, are very valuable. To me, this plate represents family and having a family to spend time with. I am very grateful for my family because they are always there for me and my family pushes me to be a better and more well rounded person. The reason I chose this plate instead of anything else, like a picture, to represent my family is because, in my mind, a plate is more symbolic because it is not something that people usually use to symbolize family.
Daniella, 15
I grew up with an emphasis on the importance of giving Tzedakah and paying it forward to help others. I have this very special pair of sunglasses that were given to my mom many years ago. A very kind woman, who my mother is still friends with to this day, Batsheva, used to own these glasses. My mother expressed that she really loved the glasses, intending it mostly as a compliment. Batsheva took the glasses right off her head and put them on my mother’s. This past summer, my mother was in Israel and visited some family friends. The fifteen year old of the family, Avia, said that she absolutely loved the glasses, intending it as mostly a compliment. My mother took the glasses right off her head and put them right on Avia’s. With some luck and internet skills, we were able to find a copy of the glasses on Amazon. These are the glasses depicted in the photo. My mother’s willingness to give has given me an impression of what it means to be a mensch. I saw my parents donating and helping others from a very young age and it has given me a very good representation of how I should help others at any and every opportunity. To me, Judaism means Tzedakah, and these sunglasses represent that.
Meredith, 15
In my family, food is a conduit for togetherness and bonding. It’s an excuse to sit together and talk. Whether it’s for a meal or a car-ride snack, it’s something I really value – that bonding and intimacy that comes with sharing a meal. My family doesn’t always sit down for dinner together, with three kids and one parent it can be really difficult, but I really value the moments that we do.
Sharing a meal is inherently Jewish. Not only religiously (Pesach, Sukkot, Shabbat), but also culturally. There’s the positive stereotype of a Jewish mother force-feeding guests or making soup and warm foods for people who are sick. Food brings joy, peace, and bonding and I feel like the lunchbox represents that.
Grace, 15
When I was younger, my great-grandmother passed away, and she gave me a necklace with a heart on it. It’s been around more than 15 years, but I only received it 10 years ago. I’ve always felt a connection to my great-grandmother. While she was alive, me and my sister, Emma, would always go to her apartment to help her out, with whatever it may be. My great-grandmother would always dress up, and I feel that this is a trait that I also have. I’ve always believed that wherever you go, you should look your best, especially at synagogue. Because my great-grandmother believed in this too, I feel that, to some extent, I continue this belief to honor her. The necklace is a reminder to me of my strong connection with my great-grandma. It also reminds me that she’s always watching over me, and making sure that I make the right choices.
Ella, 15
This is my grandma’s doll house. She got it while she was living in Boston with her husband. She told me that he was the lead decorator and this was her place to express herself. The items inside are from all over the place and some are very special. In the very back is a photo of my great grandmother when she was very young taken on the Fourth of July. My family and I gave her pieces to put in there as well, for example the golem . I gave her the little heart coaster that I made that became a rug.
The doll house is special to me because when I think about how I celebrate Judaism we always celebrate the holidays at one of my grandmothers’ houses. When we celebrate at this grandma’s house, while the adults talked, as kids my sister and I would usually get bored with the conversation. We would take out the doll house and play together. It was always a special time for the two of us. We also decorate it for each of the holidays, both Jewish or not. It would become a Jewish doll house. It even has a Mezuzah! We have lots of little Judaica items like the stainless steel kiddush cup and plate, a menorah for Hanukkah and a Passover plate.
Credits:
Created with an image by curto - "red and blue spray paint on blue background"