THEME:
Havdalah (Separation)
AGE(s):
Second-Third Grades (Ages 7-8)
YEAR:
Winter 2025 (5785)
INSIGHT:
“Havdalah can't take away fear or sadness. But it can help us feel those feelings, plus happiness. It's important to feel bad and good feelings at the same time for the same reason it's important to have bones AND blood - armature AND clay. If they're together, it makes it better.” — (age 7)
PROJECT:
Sacred Space and Time for Feelings
STORY #8:
Havdalah (Separation) is a Jewish ritual for marking the end of Shabbat. Second and third grade children read a midrash (rabbinic story) about how Adam HaRishon (the first human) learned to make fire as darkness crept across the earth for the first time.
Children explored Adam’s fear and sadness at the end of his first Shabbat, and how Havdalah helped him feel better. It led this young child to see how separating time through rituals like Havdalah provides a safe space for humans to hold a mixture of emotions– allowing us to feel both happy AND sad at the end of Shabbat. The child’s insight led one parent to realize, “Havdalah cannot take away feelings, yet it can make you fully feel them.”
Children and families learned that Jewish ritual can be a way to help them fully feel and process the big emotions that come their way.
