How to teach- Part I

Schalom!

This week I've been thinking a lot about teaching. Specifically, I've been thinking about what makes a good lesson and a good teacher. There was way too much for one post, so I decided to make it a series.

The first skill that I think a good teacher needs is how to take care of reading. If there's one sure-fire way to get your class all farblonjid, it's reading a long boring passage. For anybody who hasn't figured it out yet, let me tell you a secret: any long reading is boring. It doesn't matter if it was interesting when you first read it. If it takes more than a minute to read, less than half the class will be listening by the end. That's just the way it is. There are ways to make it better though.

1) Read less- The simple truth is that reading whole chapters out loud is not a great way to learn, and much of what we read in class could be taught another way. If you can think of a way to teach it without making it a farshlepteh krenk, you should probably do it.

2) Explain more- Before reading a verse (or a quote), explain who is talking, whom they are talking to, and any important things that are happening. This also helps you to accomplish number 1. If you explain the context, you don't have to read the 3 verses before the one you are interested in just to explain what is going on.

3) Let them read- It is usually better to let the class members do the reading, not you. The class is already hearing your fonfering for an hour, so you might as well give them some variety. Another benefit is that you can let shy people who don't feel comfortable sharing their own ideas participate in a less threatening way.

4) If you have to break any of these rules, especially the first one, you will have to do something extra to keep it interesting. I have found it helpful when I am reading a long passage to give the class something to listen for instead of waiting till it is over to explain why it was important.

"While we are reading these verses, pay special attention to the way the Savior shows his love for..."

Basically you ask your question before you read the passage, then ask it again after. Knowing up-front why you are listening to something makes listening a lot easier.

Well, that's it for this week. Till next time, zay gezunt and a glick ahf dir with the reading!

Herschel

Who's your daddy?

Schalom!

Today, I want to do a bit of kvetching. And, as my dear mother always said, "A kvetch a day keeps the dumkops at bay." Or something to that effect.

It hurts my poor ears to hear people misusing "thee" and "thy" and the other scriptural pronouns. Now, I may not know much for zombies, but when it comes to bible talk... I'm the Bal Toyreh. So, without any more fuss, let's talk grammar.

Thou- Thou is used as the SUBJECT of a sentence. That means that you use it any time you would say "I" or "he," not "me" or "him."

Thee- Thee is used as the OBJECT of a sentence. That means that it is not the thing doing the verb, but the thing being verbed. If you can replace it with "him" or "us" or "me," you are probably using it right.

Thy- Thy is used as a possessive. It means "your."

Now, the general misuse of these is not the real subject of my kvetch. What I really want to kvetch about is a specific misuse of 'thy.' When we pray, we often end in the name of "thy son, Jesus Christ." This makes perfect sense. When we pray, we are addressing God the Father, whose Son is Jesus Christ. What bothers me is when people end their talks like this. In a talk, we address the congregation, not God. Ending a talk in the name of "thy son" means that you, the speaker, think that Jesus is my son. For anybody who is confused on this subject, let me just tell you: I am not Jesus' father. Please do not address me as such.

Well, everybody, that's all I have to say today. Till next time, zay gezunt!

Herschel

There will be blood

We got notified this morning of a movie which portrays Mormons as flesh-eating zombies. Let me tell you, when I read about this, I got mad-- mad that I didn't think of this first, mad that I didn't get invited to participate.

Our dear friend Betty Toms also got mad, but for a different reason. She's mad because this portrays Mormons in a negative way. But let's compare this to a problem faced by our brothers and sisters, the Jews. There actually are stories that Jewish people drink the blood of babies as part of their religious rituals. And even though these stories are ridiculous lies, tens of millions have (1) believed them and (2) acted on them, violently. So if someone made a movie which resurrected this old lie, I would be upset, even though I am not Jewish, because people could really get hurt.

I grew up in the Bible Belt, and I'm familiar with the special breed of unthinking anti-Mormon bigot you can find in those parts. And I do sometimes get tired of hearing anti-Mormon slurs. For instance, I get a little upset at books and movies which associate Mormonism with polygamy. Mormons renounced polygamy 120 years ago, so it's a lie to say that we're still polygamists. And it's a lie that some people will believe. But it's not a lie that will inspire any violent action. So although I get a little irritated about Big Love, and other such nonsense, I would never waste my time protesting it.

Now, a movie portraying Mormons as flesh-eating zombies is even less worthy of my condemnation, or even my attention. Of course, Mormons aren't really zombies. But no one is going to be fooled by this movie into thinking they are. (PS - If someone watches this trailer and wonders if Mormons really are undead monsters, they probably have difficulty tying their own shoes.)

The people who made this movie didn't pick Mormons for their monsters because Mormons are threatening. On the contrary, Mormons are boring, which makes it funny. Watch the trailer. It's a campy, over-the-top, silly B-movie made by a bunch of college kids. It's only forty minutes long. It walks the line between laughably bad and just plain bad. These guys want to be Sam Raimi-- they're aiming for thrills, and laughs.

Krusty the Clown taught us that a pie in the face is only funny if "the sap's got dignity." You make fun of someone because it causes them discomfort. If they laugh along, there's no fun in it. Fortunately for the makers of The Book of Zombie, Mormons are humorless squares, perfect targets for ridicule. So, congratulations on proving the Gentiles right.

--MOISHE