Download Israel - Methacton School District

Maya Kumar
Mrs. Munro
Geography-N5
4/20/12
Welcome to my country…
Middle East
By: Maya Kumar
Thanks to:
culturegrams.com
www.worldbookonline.com
 “Shalom”! That means hello in Hebrew.
 My name is Maya which means water.
 I am very excited to show you about my home Israel! I
know you will love it!
Where is Israel?
 My awesome country Israel is on the
western side of Asia, next to the
Mediterranean Sea.
Land
o Israel covers 8,792 square miles (about the size of New
Jersey)! I have never been to the USA, but I hear it is an
amazing place!
o The land here varies from fertile valleys and hills to
deserts and the Dead Sea (lowest point on earth at
1,339 feet below sea level).
o I live in the great city of Jerusalem, the capital of Israel
though it is not recognized as the capital of Israel by any
other country, (shown in the picture to the left).
Climate
 Israel is a great place to live also, because of the
fantastic climate.
 On the coastal plain, summers are hot and humid and
winters are mild.
 The hills of the interior have more comfortable summers,
but colder winters.
 Jerusalem's temperatures average around 85°F in the
summer and 50°F in the winter. Not to hot, not to cold,
and perfect for me!
 The picture below shows the coast.
People and Population
 Most families in Israel have about 6 children. I am the
oldest of 4.
 Israel has about 7.8 million people all together.
 I live in between the Gaza strip and the West Bank.
 There is a picture of people in a village below.
 The Map on the next slide shows where the Gaza strip
and the West Bank are. It also shows my home city
Jerusalem.
Religion
 The city of Jerusalem and surrounding areas have played
an important role in the development of several of
Israel’s major religions, including Judaism, Christianity,
and Islam.
 Jerusalem is holy to all three religions.
 Most people (about 70%) follow Judaism, which is what
my family and I follow.
 A man preaching Hebrew is shown below.
Language
 Time for language class!
 Hebrew is Israel's official language. Which is what my
family speaks. I am learning some Arabic though.
 Arabic has official status, is spoken by the Arab
minority, and is taught from the fifth grade on in school.
English, frequently used in commerce, is spoken by most
Israelis and is also taught from the fifth grade on.
 The Hebrew alphabet is shown below along with
numbers in Hebrew and Arabic.
Education
 The government of Israel provides both religious and
secular school systems, and people are free to choose
either.
 Citizens can also choose between schools taught in
Hebrew or Arabic. School is free and compulsory through
the 10th grade.
 Elementary school runs through sixth grade, junior high
through ninth, and high school through twelfth.
 The high school diploma is necessary for college
entrance and important for getting a job.
 Special private schools admit those who dropped out of
school but later decided to finish. Most schools and
universities hold classes six days a week.
Education (cont.)
 The high school diploma is necessary for college
entrance and important for getting a job.
 Special private schools admit those who dropped out of
school but later decided to finish. Most schools and
universities hold classes six days a week.
 All of my siblings and I attend a private school in
Jerusalem called, The Walworth Barbour American
International School in Israel. It is an American-teaching
school for kids in other countries. My parents believe
that we should know how to speak English fluently.
 Here is what a school looks like in Israel.
Food
 On average, Israelis eat three meals a day.
 Breakfast is light.
 The main meal traditionally is in the early afternoon
(except on Friday evening), and supper usually is light.
 A very famous dish in Israel is the chraime (slices of fish
cooked in a spicy tomato sauce). My favorite! My mom
makes it with our special ingredient!
 Here is a picture of chraime.
Famous People
 Many famous people grew up in my country including…
 Flavius Josephus (Joseph ben Matthias)- Josephus was a
priest in the Pharisee sect just after the time of Christ.
 Golda Meir (Golda Mabovitz)-She was a founder and
prime minister and she and several others signed the
declaration establishing the State of Israel.
 Itzhak Perlman-Perlman received his first lessons at the
Music Academy of Tel Aviv and was recognized as a
great prodigy. I love listening to his music!
 Ilan Ramon-Ramon was a colonel in the Israeli Air Force
who was trained as a fighter pilot as well as a computer
engineer. He had thousands of flight hours when he was
selected to begin training as an astronaut (his picture
shown above).
War in Israel
 Something scary that was going on in Israel was that
Israel was at war. This war, known as the The Gaza War
and also known as Operation Cast Lead, the Gaza
Massacre, or the Battle of al-Furqan in Gaza and by
Hamas was a three-week armed conflict that took place
in the Gaza Strip during the winter of 2008–2009, which
started on December 27, 2008. Israel's stated aim was
to stop rocket fire into Israel and arms import into the
Gaza strip.
 It was very scary because my family and I believed that
we should just divide up the land equally, but my
neighbors think that Israel should just have all the land.
 One day when my siblings and I were walking home
from school there were soldiers from different countries
in our neighborhood.
 Though there is still war going on in Israel, that was the
scariest one! The picture above shows a bomb that was
sadly set off in Israel.
 10. Most schools and universities hold classes six days a
week.
 9. Nearly all Israelis speak at least two languages.
 8. Schools in Israel have to have protective walls to keep
out snipers!
 7. The only times families usually eat all together is
Friday and Saturday evenings.
 6. The father traditionally is the head of the family, but
women have great influence in all decisions.
 5. By law, all Jews in the world have the right to
imigrate to Israel, as long as they can prove their Jewish
heritage or are recognized converts.
 4. There are no civil marriages in Israel. All weddings
must be performed by a religious authority.
 3. The most common gesture is to bring thumb and
fingertips together, palm facing up, and move the hand
up and down; this means “wait a minute” or “hold on.”
 2. Israel does not have a written constitution.
 1. Israel is the 100th smallest country in the world.
Quiz!!!
My favorite part!
Q- How do you say “hello” in Hebrew? (found on slide #2)
A- “Shalom”
Q- What is the capital of Israel (also where I live)! (found
on slide #4)
A- Jerusalem
Q- What is my favorite food? (found on slide #12)
A- chraime
Q- How many days to kids go to school in Israel?(found on
slide #11)
A- 6
 Thank you so much for listening to me about my
magnificent country Israel!
 I hope you enjoyed it and learned may new things about
my country!
 Come visit again!
 Hope to “L'hitraot” which means see you soon! Goodbye
and thanks again!