Workshops
Bring Toronto’s Jewish history to life with hands-on, archives-based learning. Students analyze real photographs, documents, and artifacts to practice critical thinking and connect the past to their own lives
What students will learn
Our workshops use authentic primary sources as a starting point for inquiry, helping students to:
Build knowledge
Connect clues from photos, letters, and maps to bigger ideas.
Think critically through multiple perspectives
Learn to evaluate sources, recognize bias, and explore how different perspectives shape our understanding of the past.
See themselves in history
Understand that their actions and stories matter and that they can make a difference.
Methods of Delivery
Workshops are delivered in engaging, age-appropriate formats that may take place in the classroom or online, using interactive activities, visuals, and primary sources to support active learning and curiosity.
In-person at your school
Facilitator-led session with print materials and guided activities.
Virtual (live)
Interactive, screen-shared sources and breakout activities.
Goal
Suggested approach
Workshop structure
- Brief intro: what makes a source “primary” vs. “secondary,” with quick examples students can spot.
- ontariojewisharchives.org
- Small-group source investigations (photographs, journals, letters, newspaper clippings, maps).
- Whole-class discussion to compare interpretations and link evidence to big questions.
- Reflection prompt students can complete or take back to class.
Skill development
Skills you can assess during or after the workshop:
- Inquiry & evidence use (ask questions, gather, organize, and interpret information).
- Perspective-taking & bias detection.
- Communication (explain ideas with evidence; visual literacy).
- Civics & community (how local stories build collective memory).
Audience
- Grades: 3–8 (we adapt investigations to the grade).
- Subjects: Social Studies, History, Language Arts, Art/Media Literacy.
- Class size: Up to one class per session (ask about multiple sessions/day).
Booking & fees
- Contact us to request dates and format; we’ll confirm details and tailor content to your grade(s).
- Priced per class; subsidized options may be available through partners (ask us).
- Accessibility: We can provide large-print source packs and quiet-friendly activity variants. Please feel free to contact us and let us know your needs.
