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Home , Bo (parashah)

Welcome to Spark, the Tribe Parasha activity sheet that will help you bring to life in a varied and exciting way. I’d like these activities to enthuse the children and show them how the given almost 3500 ago is still as relevant and as exciting in our lives today.

Thank you for offering to run a Children’s Service, for all the hard work you put into it and for making a real difference to so many young people. The US is very proud of the numerous Children’s Services that are run every week across the UK and this would not happen without you.

Spark gives you an overview of the weekly Parasha, songs, an activity, discussion questions or D’var Torah linked to the Parasha or important event that week. Every Children’s Service will be different, in terms of how many participants there are, their age range, its length and the varying abilities of the children. Please read through the document and find the activities that will best suit the needs of your group. It is advisable to read it before in case there is some preparation that may be needed in advance.

I am sure the children at your shul will benefit from Spark. Please be in touch if you have any queries, feedback or if we can be of any help. Thank you again for the work you do in enabling so many young to access their heritage and traditions in such an exciting way.

All it takes is a small spark of interest, to ignite a flame of passion for Judaism.

With kindest regards,

Rabbi Nicky (Goldmeier) Spark Editor and Education Consultant

Bo – ‘The Parasha in a Nutshell’:

This week’s Parasha () is ‘Bo’ which literally means ‘come’ but is translated in the context of the verse, ‘Go to ’ and at the very start of the Parasha (Weekly Torah Portion) the Torah tells us that God said to Moshe (), ‘Go to Pharaoh for I have hardened his heart and the hearts of his servants…’. As Moshe (Moses) stood in front of Pharaoh he warned him that a plague of locusts would destroy Egypt’s crops.

The next , Moshe (Moses) extended his rod and a plague of locusts swarmed over Egypt. Pharaoh admitted his error and begged Moshe (Moses) and Aharon () for the plague to stop.

Moshe (Moses) then brought the plague of darkness over Egypt, for 6 days. Pharaoh could not cope with the chaos the darkness created and he told the that they could leave, but not take their and cattle with them.

God informed Moshe (Moses) that the redemption was near and on the 10th of the of Nissan, each household was to set aside a lamb as a Korban Pesach (a Paschal offering), which was to be eaten on the evening of 14th Nissan. The Paschal lamb was to be consumed in haste and the participants were to be prepared to start a journey. In the future, the night of the 14th Nissan would be observed as Pesach, a permanent reminder of the deliverance from Egypt.

At midnight exactly, God killed every Egyptian firstborn, both man and animal. Pharaoh told the Israelites to leave his land in haste. The dough which they had prepared did not have a chance to rise.

The Parasha (Weekly Torah Portion) concludes with God commanding the Israelites to redeem their firstborn male children in all future generations and to wear as a reminder of their salvation from the Egyptian slavery.

Parasha Overview – In a Little More Detail

 After Moshe (Moses) warned Pharaoh that on the following day a plague of locusts would destroy Egypt’s crops, Pharaoh’s servants urged him to let the Israelite men leave Egypt. However, Moshe (Moses) and Aharon (Aaron) insisted that the women, children and flocks of the Israelites also be allowed to leave. As a result of this request, they were driven from Pharaoh’s palace.  The next day, Moshe (Moses) extended his rod and an east wind carried a huge swarm of locusts into Egypt, which completely destroyed all the vegetation.  Once witnessing this utter devastation, Pharaoh admitted his error and asked Moshe (Moses) and Aharon (Aaron) to pray for the removal of this plague. But once the plague was gone, Pharaoh resorted to his stubborn ways.  Moshe then brought the next plague of darkness on the Egyptians and this plague lasted for 6 days. The Torah tells us that for the first 3 days of this plague, the Egyptians were unable to ‘rise from his place’.  The plague of darkness was so nightmarish, that Pharaoh told Moshe (Moses) that every single person amongst the Israelites could leave Egypt, but only the Sheep and cattle should be left behind, as surety that the Israelites would return. Of course, Moshe (Moses) rejected this ‘offer’ from Pharaoh and at that point, Moshe (Moses) was told to never appear again in the royal palace. So, Moshe (Moses) replied that there would be one last devastating plague; one that would cost all firstborn Egyptians their lives!  God informed Moshe (Moses) that the redemption was near and that from this point in time, the Jewish would begin with Nissan, the month of from Egypt.  On the 10th day of the month of Nissan each head of household was to set aside an unblemished male lamb to be kept until the evening of the 14th day, when it was to be eaten as a Korban (Offering). This was known as the Paschal Lamb.  The Israelites were commanded to put some of the blood on the doorpost and lintel of the door to the house, as a sign that the inhabitants were Israelites. That night, the meat of the sacrifice was to be eaten with unleavened bread and bitter herbs. Any of the lamb leftover was to be burnt.  That night would be the one when God would smite all the Egyptian firstborn but would spare all those houses sprinkled with the lamb’s blood on the door.  In the future, this festival would be observed as Pesach (), a permanent reminder of the delivery from Egypt. Only unleavened bread was to be eaten for 7 days during the festival of Pesach (Passover) and the Paschal lamb was to be offered once the Israelites had settled in the land of Canaan.

 The terrible 10th plague was then brought upon the Egyptian firstborn and Pharaoh asked the Israelites to leave. The Israelites left with such haste that there was no time for their dough to rise. (As a result, Jewish people have eaten Matzah on Pesach – Passover ever since the exodus from Egypt).  There were 600,000 men who began the journey out of Egypt, as well as their wives and their children. They also carried a large supply of and , which the Egyptians had given them.  The Jewish people were commanded to bring a Paschal lamb every year on the 14th Nissan.  At the end of the Parasha (Weekly Torah Portion) the Jewish people are commanded to redeem their firstborn male child in all future generations and to wear Tefillin, ‘…for a sign on your hand and for a memorial between your eyes’, to remind them that they had been freed from the tyranny of the Egyptian slavery.

Children’s Service: Tot’s – Year 3

In this week’s Parasha, the Israelites leave Egypt with haste. They didn’t even have time to bake their bread properly and therefore left Egypt with Matzah-type bread.

‘When I left Egypt, I took’ Memory Game

Tell the children that they should imagine they were living at the time of the exodus from Egypt. They are so excited to be leaving, but they have to leave very, very quickly, so they must try and remember as many things to take with them as possible.

The children should be sitting in a circle. Start by saying, ‘when I left Egypt, I took my favourite toy’. Then, as you go around the circle, the children must try to remember what has been said by the children before them and then say their own new item that they are taking with them on the journey out of Egypt. So, ‘when I left Egypt, I took my favourite toy and a pencil case’. Then the next child says, ‘when I left Egypt, I took my favourite toy, a pencil case and a fan for keeping cool’. And so on…

Story Time

This story teaches the children about trust between friends. In this week’s Parasha (Weekly Torah Portion) the Israelites had to have such a strong trust in God, that by following all His instructions, they would be saved from Pharaoh and taken out of Egypt.

Mr Penguin, Mrs Deer and Mr Fox were great friends. One day, Mr Penguin and Mrs Deer found a load of fruit and decided to keep it a secret. As they were walking, they met Mr Fox, who seeing them so happy, asked them why. They told him they couldn't say, because it was a secret, but Mr Fox asked them to trust him, so they told him about the fruit they had just found.

When they arrived at the village, Mr Fox forgot about his promise, and told everyone about the fruit. When Mr Penguin and Mrs Deer returned to the place where they had found the fruit, the animals of the village had already been there and eaten it all! They were so upset!

That same day, Mr Penguin and Mrs Deer found another place full of food and the same thing happened again with Mr Fox. They were very upset. The next day they decided to tell Mr Fox that they had found a lake so full of fish that no effort was needed to catch them. But they hadn’t really found a lake like this at all. But Mr Fox again told everyone in the village about this.

However the next day, Fox came by, looking very sad. After telling all the animals about the lake full of fish, everyone, including even the polar bears, had gone there. But, not finding any fish at all, they felt they had been tricked, and had told off Mr Fox for tricking them.

Mr Fox learned such an important lesson from this; that keeping people's trust is very important, and that to get it in the first place you have to earn it with loyalty and by always keeping your word. Mr Penguin, Mr Fox and Mrs Deer ended up being the best of friends and really and truly trusted each other.

Activity – ‘Match the Picture to the Event’

This is an activity which will encourage the children to remember some of the information in this week’s Parasha (Weekly Torah Portion). Use the synopsis at the top of the Spark, to remind the children of all the events in the Parasha (Weekly Torah Portion). Then, have the children sitting in pairs in a circle and show each pair a picture card (these are at the end of the Spark). Each child must work out which event the picture is referring to.

1. The plague of Locusts 2. The plague of Darkness 3. The plague of the killing of the Firstborn 4. Nissan was to be the first month of the Jewish year 5. On 10th Nissan, each household was to take a lamb 6. On 14th Nissan, eat the Pesach (Passover) lamb 7. The lamb was to be eaten with Matzah and bitter herbs 8. The Israelites had to leave Egypt so quickly that there was no time for their dough to rise 9. When they left Egypt, the Israelites took with them a large amount of gold and silver 10. Jewish men and boys over the age of Barmitzvah are commanded to wear Tefillin.

QUIZ – Right or Wrong?

This quiz is a little different and allows all the children to answer every question at the same time.

At the end of the Spark you will find a card with the letter ‘R’ for ‘Right’ and a card with the letter ‘W’ for ‘Wrong’.

Prepare enough ‘Right’ and ‘Wrong’ cards for each child and when each statement is read out, if the children think it is incorrect they hold up the ‘W’ card and if they think the statement is correct they hold up the ‘R’ card.

The statements;

 The 10th plague was Darkness.

 The Israelites had plenty of time for the dough to rise and they turned out to be like proper Challah.

 The head of the Jewish is Nissan.

 The plague of Darkness lasted for 6 days.

 At the end of the Parasha (Weekly Torah Portion), the Israelites are commanded to wear a Kippah around their head.

 Pesach begins every year on the evening of the 15th Nissan.

 The plagues did not affect the Israelites.

 After the plague of Darkness, Moshe (Moses) was told never to appear in the palace again.

 We are commanded not to pass on the story of the ‘Going out of Egypt’ to our children.

 The special book we use at the Pesach (Passover) Seder is called a .

What do Dan and Dina Teach us this Week?

In this week’s Tribe at the back of the Daf Hashavua, you’ll find another important lesson that we can learn from the Parasha (weekly Torah Portion). You can ask the children to work together in pairs or in groups using a copy of the Tribe Scribe. The children should discuss the message they think the Scribe is giving us. Then, you could use these questions as discussion triggers. What is the connection between Dina’s necklace and the Pesach (Passover) Seder? Why is it important to have every link in the chain of the necklace? Why is it important to have every link in the chain of the Jewish story? Who do you think were the first people to start the links of the Jewish story? Who are the most recent links in the chain of the Jewish story?

Tribe Scribe can be downloaded each week here https://www.tribeuk.com/content/tribe-scribe

Tefillah Treasures

בָּ רּוְך האַתָּ הי אֱֹלקֵ ינּו מֶֶֽ לֶך הָּ עֹולָּם .....ְ

ףזֹוקֵ כְ פּופִ ים

‘Blessed are You Hashem our God, King of the universe, Who straightens the bent.’

In this blessing which is said every morning, we thank God for enabling us to straighten our

back.

Think of all the great things you can do because you are able to use your spine. There are a number of ways in which you can serve God and help other people, because God has given you the ability to stretch, sit and stand up straight as you wake up. Unfortunately, there are

people who are unable to use their back. We can also use our backs to help them.

How do you use your back to do what God wants you to do?

Song The link has been included for you to listen to before Shabbat and if you so wish, to teach the children this song.

Va’era Song

https://www.chabad.org/kids/article_cdo/aid/549224/jewish/Bo.htm

The tenth Makah, was fulfilled

Each first born Mitzri was killed,

Over the Jews, Hashem (God) passed

It was time to go at last

Moshe (Moses) told the people to prepare

Yetziat Mitzrayim (the going out of Egypt), was near

There was no time to bake bread

They put dough on their backs instead

To remind us we were saved

Chag HaPesach, Hashem (God) gave

In Mitzrayim (Egypt) slaves were we

Then Bnei Yisrael (Children of Israel) were set free