| Dear Friends and Colleagues, After five years of captivity, Gilad Shalit is being prepared to leave Gaza, first to meet with a representative of the government of Israel at an undisclosed location, and tomorrow, to be returned to his family and his life. This story touches many issues related to Israel, its relationships with its neighbors, and our own relationships with Israel and with its people. Many are rejoicing over Gilad's imminent walk to freedom. Many others are angered over the high cost involved in the prisoner swap. This historic moment represents a learning opportunity for our students. We are distributing some resources that may be helpful as you explore the Shalit case with your students. - Our Gilad Shalit curriculum
BJE prepared a curriculum about Gilad Shalit. This includes background about Gilad, about his abduction, the children's story he wrote when he was a child (When the Shark and the Fish First Met), and lesson plans related to the Shalit case, to co-existence, and to the concept of pidyon shvuyim (redemption of the captives). Some of the difficult issues related to prisoner swaps (currently being debated in Israel) are addressed in the lesson plans.
- A set of links to articles about the Shalit case now that may be useful for class discussion:
- We are pleased to report that the Consulate of Israel has expressed willingness to visit your school to provide more information about the Shalit case that may be helpful and educational for your students.
If you would like to host the Consul General or another representative of the Consulate for this educational purpose, please contact Stacy Schwartz at BJE: 415-751-6983, ext. 124. Tomorrow morning, we will consolidate our educational materials related to Gilad Shalit on the web which will be available here at our website: http://www.bjesf.org/giladshalit. Of course, as events continue to unfold in Israel, feel free to contact our Israel education team at BJE, including: Ilan Vitemberg, Israel Education Director Michal Morris Kamil, BASIS Director Moadim l'simchah,  David Waksberg |
