The Jewish Chronicle
JFS triumphs at inter-school education challenge
More than 200 students put their knowledge to the test in the annual Beat the Clock contest
July 24, 2019 14:39
More than 200 students put their knowledge to the test in the annual Beat the Clock contest
July 24, 2019 14:39A team from JFS took the spoils in this year’s Beat the Clock challenge, the annual contest run by King David High School in Manchester.
More than 200 year-seven students, divided into teams of eight, had to complete a variety of tasks, which test their Jewish knowledge in different ways.
It is the event’s fourth year and 82 students came from London to take part.
Behind the winners, a team from Yavneh Boys (King David’s religious stream) edged out others from Yavneh Girls, Yavneh College and Immanuel College to clinch second place.
In one task, the teams had to pack a box of food for the charity Gift, selecting only kosher items. The food, donated by Tesco, was later distributed to poor families in Manchester.
Any queries could be checked using the London Beth Din’s “Is it Kosher?” app.
Ruth Wilkinson, SmartGiving grants co-ordinator of JNF UK, which supported the event, said, “To see our partner secondary schools joining together in such a vibrant learning environment was an absolute pleasure. You can’t help but get sucked into the excitement of the quiz.”
Hayley Simon, Yavneh College’s head of Jewish studies, said, “Feedback from the pupils was unequivocally positive and all of them clearly enjoyed the whole experience from start to finish.”
Zara Zell Davis, a King David pupil, said she “really enjoyed it. I made friends with new people from other schools.”
The event’s director, Rabbi Jonathan Goodman, a teacher at King David, said it was “incredible to see so many year seven students engaging with Jewish education in such a fun and exciting way”.