Pesach And Leadership

Goal: The chanichim should think about the importance of leadership and

different leadership styles, and should work together to understand their own

leadership styles and how to grow as leaders individually and together as a

group. Then they can reflect on the different leadership styles of Moshe as he led the Jews out of Egypt.

2 small garbage cans with rims, some tennis balls or other

small balls, a lot of ropes (6-7) cut in different lengths, and one very long

rope.

Theme: Leadership

Materials Needed: 2 small garbage cans with rims, some tennis balls or other

small balls, a lot of ropes (6-7) cut in different lengths, and one very long

rope.

Perfect for 6-12 chanichim.

Goal: The chanichim should think about the importance of leadership and

different leadership styles, and should work together to understand their own

leadership styles and how to grow as leaders individually and together as a

group. Then they can reflect on the different leadership styles of Moshe as he led the Jews out of Egypt.

Game: Set up the room. Put the two small garbage cans in the middle of a

circle formed by the longest rope. Leave the other ropes outside the circle.

As the chanichim enter the room, tell them that they have entered a toxic

waste spill area. The area encircled by the rope is the pool of toxic waste

itself. Any body part that enters the pool or the air-space above it will

automatically lose the ability to function. Their task as a team is to, using

only the ropes outside the circle, lift one of the garbage cans and place it

inside the other. Periodically, from the fumes, the facilitator can tell a

chanich/a who is being an active verbal leader that they have lost the

ability to speak, etc, and can also return the powers of speech and the use

of body parts as they see fit. The whole activity should take 15-45 minutes

depending on the group. If they solve it quickly, put the balls in one of the

baskets and then ask them to transfer the balls without letting any touch the

toxic waste pool. [Note: There is no one right way to solve this, it can be

done in at least 10 ways that I've seen when I've run it so let their

imagination go wild with it].

Sicha: Ask the chanichim how it felt to complete the task as a group? Who was

the leader? What was their leadership style? How did it feel for the leader,

or other members of the group, to lose the powers that made them the leader

in the first place?  Is there anyone else who they thought was a leader? In

what ways? How could they have done the job more quickly, efficiently or

cohesively? What would they change if they could do it again? What would they

keep?

Explain to the chanichim that in any group, there are more than one leader and

more than one leadership style, and that that is what makes a group strong

and finish the task together. It's important to know your leadership style

and how you can contribute to the group, but also to be able to step in and

help out outside your comfort zone in order to help the team's goal come

together when it needs to. So too, Pesach is all about leaders. Moshe is the

clear classic leader of Bnei Yisrael but he isn't mentioned in the Haggadah.

His style was direct and understanding but at various times other people had

to step up as leaders (Aharon, Chur, Yehoshua, Miriam) to fill a need, and

Moshe had to take on roles he wasn't comfortable with to serve the needs of

Bnei Yisrael (Tochacha).

Conclusion: Anyone can be a leader when the situation calls for it, and we can

build on our own strengths to lead in ways that work for us and the needs of

the group, and we can even surprise ourselves when we're called upon to lead

with how great things can turn out and what we can learn about ourselves and

the group. Am Yisrael needs strong leaders these days who are passionate and

committed to leading in different ways and different realms. Everyone can and

should step up as much as they can to lead as best they can and help make the

world a better place.