Originating from Cape Town, South Africa, Tali Puterman now lives in Boston and works as the Social Justice Educator and Community Organizer at Temple Israel of Boston. Tali received her MA in Educational Studies from Tufts University and her BA from Brandeis University. Reacting to her own experiences of miseducation growing up White in post-Apartheid South Africa attending an Orthodox Jewish day school, Tali challenges students to question and confront injustices and see themselves as Jewish leaders of change.

Learn about Lilith’s long and varied history, and consider how her story reflects changing perspectives on powerful women.

Learn about the disturbing story of Yiftach’s Daughter (“Bat Yiftach” in Hebrew), and consider how it reflects the importance of balancing religious beliefs with the reality of the world we live in.

Learn about this fascinating story from Genesis, which is not often discussed. Explore how Tamar takes action to provide herself with what she needs, once she realizes that no one else is going to give it to her.

Investigate the concept of “home” by reading the story of Rywka Lipszyc, a young diarist in the Lodz ghetto. Through analysis of this newly-discovered text as well as in-person meetings with survivors, students will gain greater understanding of Holocaust history in relation to concepts such as ghetto, religious life, and resistance; compare and contrast the identities and roles of women historically and today; develop skills in historical analysis via examination of Holocaust primary sources; and think critically about their own world through studying a period of historical injustice.

Learn how Hannah attempted to change her life by calling on God for help, and consider the power of asking for what you need or want in your own life.

Allyson Mattanah had long wanted to be a teacher, but describes being “derailed several times” from pursuing her true passion to educate kids. While working as a registered nurse, Mattanah obtained a certificate to teach elementary education but was daunted by the challenges that teachers face in their classrooms.

Rabbi Reuven Travis is a religious studies and American history teacher at Yeshiva Atlanta. He attended JWA’s 2012 Institute for Educators and returned passionate about including women’s voices in his day school classroom. Travis shunned his previous textbook, feeling that it “made mention of women only in the sidebars.” Instead, he brings in sources and videos and adds mini sketches about women who lived during different periods in American history.

Rabbi Michael Rothbaum serves as rabbi/educator at Beth Chaim Congregation in Danville, CA, and lives with his partner, Yiddish singer Anthony

Michelle Boyle was born and raised in Michigan. She attended the University of Michigan for both undergraduate and graduate school with Honors in Women's Studies, Sociology, and English. She is the sixth-grade Humanities teacher and Middle School Advisor at Boston's pluralistic Jewish Community Day School (JCDS) in Watertown, MA, and is the proud parent of a second grader at JCDS. Before coming to JCDS, Michelle taught English and writing in urban high-school settings for ten years.

Examine different ways that American Jewish women historically—and we today—fulfill the obligation of tzedakah (charity) and gemilut chesed (acts of loving kindness).

Explore Hurricane Katrina as an example of how Jews respond to catastrophe. Gail Chalew, a Jewish reporter from New Orleans, tells the story of Haley Fields, a thirteen year old girl from Los Angeles, who came up with her own unique way of helping those in need.

Discover how recipes can tell stories about Jewish history and its ever-changing rich cultural diversity.

Interrogate the notion of midrash using "The Coming of Lilith" by theologian Judith Plaskow as an example of how contemporary Jewish feminists have created their own midrashim—retellings of biblical stories—to incorporate women's viewpoints into the traditional texts of Judaism.

Read the 1890 Yom Kippur sermon by Ray Frank, the first Jewish woman to preach formally from a pulpit, and consider what unites and divides the Jewish people both historically and today.

Using the provocative image of "Tefillin Barbie"—created in 2006 by soferet (ritual scribe) Jen Taylor Friedman—examine the relationship between gender, body image, and ritual garb.

After the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire in 1911, labor rights activist Rose Schneiderman made a famous speech which provided the basis for investigating our communal and individual responsibilities for the well being of others in our midst.

Learn about Jewish immigration and the development of the Jewish community in America through a 1790s letter, originally written in Yiddish by Rebecca Samuel to her parents in Hamburg, Germany, describing her life in Petersburg, Virginia.

Learn how Ruth changed her life by making a series of bold choices, and examine how taking risks, small or large, might lead to positive transformations in your own life.

Examine modern labor justice issues to allow students to consider their own stance on events like the 2013 collapse of a clothing factory in Bangladesh or the reports of poor working conditions in Chinese factories that produce iPhones and iPads.

In this lesson, students have the opportunity to explore different definitions of the word “hero.” They discuss why (and if) heroes are important and do research about individuals they consider to be heroes. Lastly, students are asked to think about which of their own actions could be considered heroic and how they serve as role models for friends, peers, and family members.

In this activity, students will explore their personal values and develop a deeper understanding of how values inform their identities and actions. This activity makes a great compliment to a service learning project, or an introduction to tikkun olam and other actions that are informed by Jewish values.

Consider the economic and social forces that shaped Jewish immigrants' everyday lives and meet real-life workers and factory owners.

Examine the rich tradition of Jewish radical politics and its repression in the McCarthy era, focusing on the history of Jewish radicalism in the entertainment industry and the Hollywood blacklists of the 1940s and 1950s.