By: Maya Kumar

1. 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

2. “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!

3. Where is Israel? • My awesome country Israel is on the western side of Asia, next to the Mediterranean Sea.

4. Land • 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! • 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). • 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).

5. 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.

6. 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.

8. 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.

9. 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.

10. 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.

11. 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.

12. 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 ofchraime.

13. 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).

14. 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-Furqanin 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.

15. 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.

16. 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.

17. 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

18. 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!