Civilly Speaking: A Curriculum on Civil Discourse

As Jewish educators, it is our responsibility to bring more kind and empathetic discourse—and possibly more peace—to our classrooms and our world. With that goal in mind, we commissioned a six-part curriculum, written by master Jewish educators Joel Lurie Grishaver and Ira J. Wise, on the topic of teaching civil discourse. This curriculum includes material appropriate for Grades 6 and 7, Grades 8 to 10, and Grade 11 to adult learners.

Each lesson is available for free download here on our website.

Explore these lessons and let us know if they bring a modicum of civility to your classrooms, and your worlds.


Joel Lurie Grishaver is an author, a teacher, a spiritual counselor, and an artist. He is also the Creative Chairman of Torah Aura Productions, a publisher of books that help Jewish teachers create learning experiences in and out of the classroom. Grishaver lives in Los Angeles, California.

Ira J. Wise is Director of Lifelong Learning at Temple Emanu-El, in New York, NY. He is also a teacher, an author, a mentor, an educational consultant, and a student of Joel Lurie Grishaver.