1. Associations – Trigger Activity

Try free associations, going around the group once.

Note: Individual free associations with the Yom Kippur War can be varied (bad, danger, Yom Kippur, 1973, Israel, IDF, Wars, Peace, Syria, Egypt...)

They should be collected, without any observations being made, and listed on poster board, or in a Power Point frame.

The second part of this brainstorming activity is to try and find major themes and create connected lists under these titles.

Finally, it will be easier to see if there are more associations to add - and review what kind of picture the group holds of the Yom Kippur War.

2. Reflections

Feelings about Israel are related to the way in which we perceive events - either historical or recent.

Using the Timeline as a guide [and preparing copies of the outline chart in advance], ask participants to suggest several events and dates and say whether they feel these were highs or lows, noting the outcomes, and then conduct a second round asking how each incident impacts on their feelings about Israel (positive or negative), writing down these reactions, including where opinions differ:

Please see attached Reflections on Israel in Time – Timeline Table

Additional Resources:
http://www.jafi.org.il/education/100/concepts/d3.html
http://www.jafi.org.il/education/100/concepts/aliyah4.html

Debriefing:

Were there more highs, or more lows?
Was this what the participants expected?
Where does any divergence begin, in terms of: whether a particular event was a high, or a low; and whether the perspective is positive or negative?
Participants can now work on two graphs illustrating their reactions (on a PPT or large sheet of paper), further quantifying these reactions and depicting very clearly the highs and lows/feelings about Israel, using different colors for the divergence in opinion.

Review:

Participants compare these charts and discuss what generates the highs, lows, and positive or negative feelings about Israel in connection with those events, and about Israel in general.
What was the place of the Yom Kippur war in this representation?
Return to the number of highs and their relative predominance: should the overall feeling not be more positive?
What do participants seek for Israel in order to change this feeling, what are their wishes for Israel in this coming year, 30 years after the Yom Kippur War?