Help! need FUN bat mitzvah classes ideas

Silver Member Joined: Feb 14 2010 Posts: 558

hi everyone
I need your help/odeas/suggestions, PLEASE!!!!

our community rav asked me to prepare a girl for her bat mitzvah (I usually DONT teach that age group).
she comes from a traditional but not observant backround and is really in the middle of puberty and quite difficult to deal with (she is even taller than me, haha, todays kids are tall).
now I agreed, cos there is noone else who could do it. her bat mitzvah is in april, pretty soon, and im due in march, which doest not leave us much time.
also, when I met her and her parents, the only thing that they really emphasized was that classes have to be FUN!!!!! (whatever that means)

ok, I thought of teaching her about our matriarchs, something about the parsha (of her bat mitzvah), how special it is to be H's daughter etc... writing a speach with her, baking challah...but I doubt that she will find that this type of stuff is fun.
first lesson is already tomorrow and I have NO CLUE what to teach...any ideas, suggestions???

ladies, any input is helpful and welcome!!!!

thank you!!!

Moderator Joined: Jun 05 2011 Posts: 3378

Are you going to teach this girl alone? Can you invite 2-4 of her friends who will also be turning 12 soon? Baking challah with a few friends will be more fun for her than baking challah just with her teacher.

Also, ask her what interests her, and see if you can incorporate someof her interests into the ideas that you already thought of.
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Executive Member Joined: Jan 03 2011 Posts: 416

I like the idea of having her invite her friends over to bake challah together.

Maybe she likes to sing, and you can teach her a Jewish song that she can present at her Bat Mitzvah party?

It's such a tough request, to "have fun" with one girl who is a total pre-teen.

Maybe bring something like yarn to make friendship bracelets while you learn about Jewish women in history.

Or learn about a different woman in Jewish history each week, and pick a midah to learn from her and do an activity related to that.

Ie. Sara - Go and do a chessed, prepare a meal for a needy person. Rivka - discuss prayer and write prayers that can be sent to israel and put into the kotel. Rachel - She was a good sister: do an activity and have the girl invite a younger girl who could use some extra attention and she can be the 'big sister' doing an activity with her.

just brainstorming for you...

Silver Member Joined: Feb 14 2010 Posts: 558

her freinds are not jewish or reform.
I asked her what she would like to do, but she doesnt know. she basically doesnt seem very happy about the fact, that we will have lessons. if it was up to her she wold just shop with friends or surf the net.

I thought of watching a few scenes of 'jewish scenes' (for example ushpesin etc.) and discuss what we see. then I would do an activity with her related to responsibility.

she is into sports and behaves like a 18 year old.

thanx for your brainstorming, every idea is helpful!!!

You may want to have a rough "lesson plan" and also agree with both the girl and her parents what you want to achieve. There're variety of things you can cover. She maybe rather clueless, so I would present her options and see which one interest her.

Are you expected to help her write speech or drasha?

Is she creative/artistic? Would she want to make something to commemorate the occasions, challah cover, decorate candlesticks, kiddush cups (you may find pottery studio where you do decorating and they fire items in the kiln), shabbat table cloth, family or jewish themed quilt.

Something about family history/family heritage?
Poetry on one espisode from chumash or about biblical heroine?
Is her bat mitzva close to any holiday or rosh chodesh?
Choose a tzedaka and make a project?

DH teaches bar mitzva boys (many from traditional/nonfrum families), the first thing he does is to have a session on what it means to be a bar mitzvah. You can also do different rites of passege in different culture, discuss what it means to be an adult. What kind of role model she wants to have.

Can the mother also join? I'm always fond of mother and daughter learning programme.

Platinum Member Joined: Apr 12 2010 Posts: 5799

There are many ways that you can tie arts/cooking/fun activities into learning.

Plan out the main points you want to teach her about turning 12 so challah, candles (2 lady mitzvas), shabbos, etc.

Challah can include one or two lessons. Making challa - hafrashas challa. Make a challa cover (embroidery, cross stich) - lechem mishna, washing before eating bread etc.

Shabbos/candles - light switch covers, make-your-own-candle, decorate candlesticks etc.

But most importantly is to decide what points you want to cover. Once you have that you can choose what fun things to cover them with!

Another idea is yom tov - take her and her friends to a supermarket with two baskets in one she has to collect 10 chametz things in the other she has to collect 10 pesachdik things.

Good luck!
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Have you checked the Aish and Chabad websites for ideas?