Jewish People: Moses Maimonides
- SKU 25709
- UPC
Grades: 4-6 Though its usage may well be broader, this material was specifically designed to be used in fourth to sixth grade as a personality centered introduction to Jewish history. We know that many schools struggle with a problem of (a) knowing that research suggests that sequential history cannot really be studied until seventh or eighth grade, but (b) also knowing that if history is not taught in the fourth to the sixth-grade slot, many students will never have an opportunity to study it.
Therefore, what we have created is a series of “biographies” that tell individual stories in the context of background, that can be mastered during this period. Each of these units is designed to:
- Tell the story of a significant, influential, Jew
- Set that story in a specific historical period
- Expose students to the use of primary source material/texts
- Use the conflicts in our subject’s life for a source of values
- Provide tools for a review of key concepts
The individual biographies can be considered “quilting squares” and can be assembled in any fashion that the teacher or curriculum designer desires. They can be clustered within a historical period, gathered by theme, or sequenced o demonstrate a historical flow.
Maimonides was born in 1138 in Córdoba, Spain, during what some scholars consider to be the end of the Golden Age of Jewish life in Spain, after the first centuries of Moorish rule. Maimonides studied Torah under his father Maimon, who had in turn studied under Rabbi Joseph ibn Migash. The Almohades conquered Córdoba in 1148 and threatened the Jewish community with the choice of conversion to Islam, death or exile. Maimonides’ family, along with most other Jews, chose exile.
*When you purchase this lesson you will be provided with a link to download the lesson. Make as many copies of this lesson as you need for your school and only your school. Materials that are downloaded are not returnable. The teachers' guide is not included.
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Jewish People: Moses Maimonides