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The First Jews in America |
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Exhibit Panel Correlation: "The Beginnings of a Community" Ohio Standards Correlation: People in Societies Standard: Grade 8, Point 1 |
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Download this lesson plan in PDF format. | |
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| INTRODUCTION
The American Jewish community began as a small band of approximately two dozen refugees fleeing Brazil in 1654. They arrived in New Amsterdam, which later became New York City, and faced discrimination, most notably from New Amsterdam governor Peter Stuyvesant, in their attempts to establish their businesses in trading and commerce. Jews later spread to other communities where the ports were good and the opportunities to trade were excellent, such as Newport, Rhode Island, Charleston, South Carolina, and Savannah, Georgia. In each of these merchant centers, Jews founded synagogues that certainly heralded their intentions of remaining as citizens in the colonies. To this end, Jews participated in small numbers in American efforts to break from Great Britain and otherwise demonstrated their beliefs that the American promises of freedom and liberty applied to them as well. This hope that American ideals would match American reality led several leading Jewish leaders to correspond with the founding fathers to exact from them their position on the place of Jews in the United States. The answers to those queries provide the basis of this lesson. Themes Learning Objectives Exhibit: To allow students to work with primary source documents and analyze them in groups or alone, depending on the teacher's preference. The questions posed to students are intended to guide them through the exhibit and encourage critical answers of the sources. The questions for the exhibit and the extension exercises could be used for both grade levels. Post-Exhibit: To help kids make sense of what they have just seen by putting it into another format. 2. The Editorial (8th grade): This is an opinion piece in which students will use the historical information they have been given to take a position on the question: Should the United States government be religiously tolerant? They are to support their assertions with historical evidence, but it is not really an analytical piece. 3. The Research Paper (10th grade): This assignment uses a Supreme Court website to investigate other areas in US history where the issue of separation of church and state or religious toleration has been addressed before the Court. This is a good opportunity for students to make current connections to the history they have already studied, as well as the history they have learned in the exhibit. |
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PRE-EXHIBIT ACTIVITIES 10th grade: A scenario activity 8th grade: A brainstorming activity -The First Amendment, United States Constitution Some debriefing questions In considering these questions, view these websites to help you in your response: http://www.digitalhistory.uh.edu/database/article_display.cfm?HHID=33 5. George Washington lived by the lessons taught in Rules of Civility and Decent Behavior, which he read when he was a boy of 16. Read through some of these lessons on the website below, and try to find connections between the lessons in the book and the position he took with Jews in America: http://www.history.org/Almanack/life/manners/rules2.cfm |
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EXHIBIT ACTIVITIES Note: Due to the low lighting required to preserve some of the documents in the exhibit, students may have a difficult time reading the documents. It is recommended that teachers print, copy, and make available to students a clearer version of the letters below. Website links are therefore included. The Moses Seixas Letter: Questions for both grade levels 1. In what ways does Seixas find a connection between his religious faith and George Washington? To what degree is that an effective tool to connect to the reader? The George Washington Letter: Questions for both grade levels 1. Some historians have argued that this quote, "All possess alike liberty of conscience and immunities of citizenship," is the most important in the letter. |
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POST-EXHIBIT ACTIVITIES Option 1 Jewish Virtual Library-"Judaic Treasures of the Library of Congress: The Author of the Declaration of Independence and the Architect of the Constitution" Note: The letters sent to the Presidents were penned by Jewish leaders throughout the country, mostly on the occasions of a dedication of a synagogue. Adams' Letter to Mordecai M. Noah: Thomas Jefferson's Letter to Mordecai M. Noah James Madison's Letter to Dr. Jacob de la Motta SUMMARY QUESTIONS Option #2 Question: Should the United States government be religiously tolerant? Directions: In groups of three, research the primary and secondary sources related to your character. Come up with at least two arguments for your position to the question of the day. Your character may not have ever made known explicitly what his views on this question were, but your job is to infer to the best of your ability what he might have thought based on his other writings. Your teacher will be your moderator. Goal: Using primary and secondary sources for research, please construct the argument your character would have made in 1791. Yes, some of these characters are dead, but that never stopped anyone from voicing their opinions before!! These websites are intended to help you begin your research. YES NO Roger Williams: George Washingon: Thomas Jefferson:
Jonathan Edwards John Winthrop Peter Stuyvesant Option #3 Essay Question: Questions to Consider When Writing This Piece: This website might be helpful to you in your research: |
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