Lesson five - Israelites in the desert (pages 10-11)

Text from the book

The Bible tells how the Israelites escaped from Egypt. They believed God was their guide and protector. Who guides and protects you?

Learning objectives

To enable pupils to develop an awareness that:

• journeys can be both physical and imaginary;
  
• life is a journey;
  
• we have to make choices in life which effect what happens to us.

Background

The Israelites fled from Egypt, after centuries of slavery, under the leadership of Moses. The Egyptians had finally let them go after suffering ten dreadful plagues, but where were they to go, who would protect them? The Bible story says God provided a ‘pillar of cloud by day’ and a ‘pillar of fire by night’ for the Israelites to follow. For forty years, they needed protection from starvation, thirst and assault. None who started out reached the Promised Land, so when they reached Canaan, it was a new start, a new beginning.

Ways of using the picture

• What great journeys do people undertake – to the South or North Pole, sailing around the world? What protection do they need and how do they find the way?
• Forty years is a long journey for these refugess. What problems would they have? How would families cope?
• Imagine living life as a nomad, constantly on the move. Would life change?

Bible reference

Exodus 13.21-22

Key words

• Guidance
• Life
• Direction
• Choices
• Change
• Weariness
• Anxiety
• Hope
• Trust
• Hunger
• Nostalgia

Activity

You will need

A long roll of paper
Pens
Long rulers

Pupils could draw a time line to show the journey of their life so far. Use words or pictures to indicate important moments in their lives, such as moving house, the birth of siblings, or starting school.

Discuss who was responsible for making the decisions that led to these events. Did the pupils have influence in the decisions, or did they rely on someone else? How did they feel about this?

Extend the line to show what might happen in the future. How will pupils make choices about their future? Who might they rely on to guide them? How might they know what is the right decision to make?

What are their hopes and fears and how do they expect to deal with them? Who will help them on their life’s journey?

Pupils could make a whole-class life line around the classroom, right into the future. Then they could discuss the importance of their own contribution.

Assessment opportunities

Pupils would:

• demonstrate an ability to think ahead;
• be able to identify key moments in their lives;
• be able to demonstrate an empathy with the refugees/Israelites in the long, long journey.

Learning outcomes

Pupils will:

• be able to express how their life has moved on from birth;
  
• be able to recognise the influence others have had on their life;
  
• be aware that there are many possibilities in their lives for the future.

Extension work

Using pictures of refugees create a collage of modern day people on the move. Surround it with words expressing how they might be feeling, and who might be guiding and protecting them. Create a shape poem in the form of a long line of words winding back into the distance.

Write an adventure story together using some of the words, where the outcome depends on the choices made at various stages. Have at least two different outcomes for each decision.

Web site links

Maps of the Exodus are available at http://www.ebibleteacher.com/imagehtml/otmaps.html . The latter gives a colour map of the traditional route of the Israelites from Egypt.

http://www.time.com/time/photoessays/salt/2.html
A set of beautiful photographs of a herdsman living in the Sahara.

© Alan Brown and Alison Seaman, 2002

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