<HTML>I think the real question here is not whether we should begin teaching
skills or begin teaching sugyot and analysis - but how can we make the
teaching of skills more interesting - and a slightly different question -
how can we combine it with analysis - even on a sixth grade level. Too
often teachers ignore skills in favor of more "exciting" endeavors in
gemara - or they just focus on drilling students. The sixth grader is not
going to want to find key words and focus on translations and structure any
more than the tenth grader is. Mainstream Orthodox elementary schools turn
tons of kids off by focusing on rote learning, drilling, and translation -
kids are not encouraged to think enough. While I do think elementary
schools need to focus more on building skills - this needs to be made
challenging and exciting, and combined with analysis.
Lisa Schlaff
Grad Student Rabbinic literature NYU and Drisha</HTML>
