… there were 12 Nitzanim children who LOVED reading Shabbat stories, but not just any Shabbat stories, stories with magic in them.
“Can we read another story at כיבוד (kibud--snack)?” they would say to Morah Sara.
Morah Sara heard the children talking about the storytelling that they do at school: “I filled my black and white journal with a three-page story about a mystery today,” she heard one child say. “My teacher says that all good stories have a beginning, a problem, and a solution,” she heard another child say.
“It sounds like you know a lot about telling stories,” Morah Sara said. “Would you like to tell our own magic Shabbat story?” she asked.
“A play!” they cheered.
And they were off. The children worked together to retell a favorite story, The Uninvited Guest by Nina Jaffe, with a few changes. “It should be a magic challah tree,” said one child, “YEAH!” said the children, excitedly.
A merry bunch of storytellers.
The children acted out the story that they worked on together while Morah Sara read the words. “We need a bigger stage,” one child said. “Can we make a play that we work on for more than one day with props?” said another child.
Our main characters, Michael and Linny.
Preparing for Shabbat.
Michael brings home a guest for Shabbat.
Linny, the magic challah tree, and the Shabbat queen.
What an exciting beginning to our first day as storytellers. To be continued next week as we see how the children hone their storytelling technique, work together, and weave their own ideas about Shabbat into their stories.
