Israel at War Lesson Plans
SEE ALL LESSON PLANS

TEHILLIM Lesson Plan for Grades 3-5 ON Chapter 121/ פרק קכא

Introduction

Begin with some general background information about the Book of Tehillim: 

The Book of Tehillim (Psalms) is part of the Tanakh and is a book of poetry that is traditionally ascribed to David Hamelech. Jews have always turned to the words of Tehillim in difficult times. Though we can always offer our own tefillot to ‘ה, sometimes it is hard to find the right words. There are many chapters of Tehillim that are appropriate for different situations. In this lesson plan, we will learn about one of the more recited and familiar chapters of Tehillim, Chapter 121/ פרק קכא.

Materials needed:

  • Paper
  • Colored pencils or markers
  • Printed Tehillim pages here (1 for each student or student group)

Lesson Sequence:

  1. Ask students where they turn to when they need help. Have them brainstorm a list. They can do this individually or in pairs. If they have not added God/Hashem or Prayer, ask them if they would want to add it to their list. 
  2. Ask students what types of things they might ask God to help them with. Have them choose one item from this list and draw a picture. 
  3. Instructions: Read through this chapter of Tehillim in English and Hebrew. Choose a few images (eg. mountains, sun/moon, etc.) and illustrate your page around the border. 
  4. Create your own tefillah/prayer! What do YOU want to ask God for in this moment? What images and ideas would you include? Students can write a tefillah and illustrate, or draw a few pictures that will help them connect to tefillah/recitation of Tehillim.