Ask your students:
What are the three main parts of a tree?
A tree is made up of three main parts: The root, the trunk, and the fruit.
How might people be similar to trees?
Any ideas generated from students are welcome.
Explain: Here’s what the Torah teaches us:
⇒ The Torah teaches us that a person is similar to a tree.
⇒ The root of a tree: corresponds to a Jew’s loyalty or faithfulness to G-d.
⇒ The trunk: corresponds to a Jew’s commitment to learning and living Jewishly.
⇒ The fruit: corresponds to a Jew’s actions of goodness and kindness to others.
Activity:
Divide into three groups.
- Have each group illustrate a part of a tree whether through acting, music, or visual representation. Include the application to the Torah teaching about that part of the tree to show an example of how this might be applied in life.
Exit Ticket Reflection:
What connection might there be between the Torah portion of the week and the holiday of Tu B’Shvat?
Reference
Maayan Chai, Volume 2, Shemos, Vaad L’Hafotzas Sichos, Brooklyn NY, 2007