Tartak Learning Center Programs Our regular resource drives provide an opportunity for you to donate and collect materials. The Tartak Learning Center staff solicits materials from students. We peruse our collection and we look for resources on the internet. We make photocopies and distribute them at tables over two days in the main lobby of the HUC-JIR Los Angeles building. We retain the originals, so they are always available after the event. We've begun to compile lists of the materials we found online, and those from the past two academic years are below.

Our Lunch & Learn sessions are occasions for students in all HUC programs to gather on a Tuesday at lunchtime with a faculty member, or with the Tartak Learning Center staff, to wrestle with the challenges and opportunities of teaching various topics. Selected materials distributed at previous sessions, or those compiled to summarize the discussions, are provided below as PDF files.

Lunch & Learn Programs 2007-2008
  • February 2008: "Spring Greening" with Richard Siegel, Interim Director of the School of Jewish Communal Service.
    Resource Handout (PDF)
    This handout lists websites addressing the global climate crisis.

  • December 2007: "Standing at Sinai with Autism." Tali Hyman and her sister Mia Hyman will guide our exploration of the journey of one boy with Autism, "Aaron," who became Bar Mitzvah, and what a whole community did in order to make it happen.
    Resource Handout (PDF)
    This is the "social story" that was created for Aaron. Social stories are narratives that prepare kids with Autism for each detail of what to expect during social moments and events weeks and months in advance. This "social story" also became the Siddur Aaron used on the day he became Bar Mitzvah, and took his place at Sinai, with Autism.

  • October 2007: "The gabbai wants to know who's leyning the maftir aliyah and who's hagba and g'lila." Is this an English sentence? A look at Jewish English with Dr. Sarah Bunin Benor, Assistant Professor of Contemporary Jewish Studies.
    Resource Handout (PDF)
    Jewish English Bibliography (PDF)

2006-2007
  • February 2007: "Bringing LGBT Educational Resources out of the closet and into your toolbox" with Dr. Joel Kushner, Director of HUC's Institute for Judaism and Sexual Orientation
    Resource Handout (PDF)
    This handout lists some of the materials available in the
    Jeff Herman Virtual Resource Center.

  • January 2007: "Teaching Bible to Adults" with Professor Bea Lawrence
    Resource Handout (PDF)
    This handout lists printed and online resources for teaching Bible to Adults, including student-written curricular materials available through this website.
2005-2006
  • March 2006: "Shel Zahav or HaMatzav: Teaching Israel" with Dr. Adam Rubin
    Resource Handout (PDF)
        This handout lists some internet resources for teaching about Israel.

  • January 2006: "Ethics of The Good Death" with Dr. Rachel Adler
    Resource Handout (PDF)
        This handout is a bibliography of materials in the Tartak Learning Center
        for teaching about death.


  • November 2005: "Where Do I Find Rabbinic Texts on..." with Dr. Dvora Weisberg
    Resource Handout (PDF)
        This handout uses the suggested methodology to find texts using
        two sample subjects: weddings and environmentalism.
2004-2005

February 2005: Jewish Values
View Tartak's Annotated List of Teaching Materials on Jewish Values
View Program Notes - Teaching Jewish Values: Challenges & Recommendations

2003-2004

September 2003: God
Discussion Notes (PDF): Notes from Post-its and Notes from Questions

December 2003: Hebrew
Discussion Notes (PDF) Conundrums and Questions in Teaching Hebrew and Scenarios and Answers

March 17: The Arts
Discussion Notes (PDF): Notes
Resource Handouts (PDF): Resources and Bibliodrama

Online Holiday Materials Distributed At Past Resource Drives (PDF) (Note: Most of these PDF files provide lists of links to external sites. These links are subject to change without our knowledge. Please notify us at tartak@huc.edu if you run into a broken link.)

© 2008 Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion