Jun 03
I asked 3rd – 5th Grade Anafim (“Branches”) what they worked on this year in Hebrew, and they shared this (partial) list: sorting out frequently mixed-up letters, like resh (ר) and dalet (ד) knowing our final letters and vowels super well reading and writing in script conceptual understanding of the root system in Hebrew (lots of verbs are …
May 27
Third through fifth grade Anafim (“Branches”) children are writing and producing our own play! Our play is based on legends about an early rabbi, Rabbi Akiva. It has been tremendously exciting. We divided into teams (loosely) and got down to business. Writing Team: We collaborated on an entire script! “I didn’t know it was so hard to …
May 26
This week in Yetzirah (creativity – art), Anafim (“Branches,” for 3rd – 5th grades) worked on creating large scale paintings for a secret project that will be shown on June 5th! The way they translated a small rough draft into a huge canvas was very impressive. There was such a positive energy in the air. …
May 13
At the Jewish Enrichment Center, children figure out their own thoughts and beliefs about Judaism. Even as we’re exploring specific content, like an early rabbinic text in which Rabban Gamliel talks with Ceasar, we make room for children to wrestle with their underlying assumptions about Torah and about religious life. This week, I captured two …
May 12
For the past two weeks in Yetzirah (creativity – art), 3rd – 5th grade Anafim (“Branches”) children have been working on a large scale timeline with the important dates from Temple Judaism through Rabbinic Judaism. They have been working together to have a group of four pieces (date, title, image, text) for each …
May 05
When I reflected on our week in 3rd – 5th grade Anafim (“Branches”), I noticed that children collaborated so easily throughout the week. What a wonderful demonstration of the skills we now have for working in different ways with different people! Building Puzzles: figuring out the structure of Hebrew words by finding patterns and explaining our ideas …
Apr 28
This week in 3rd – 5th grade Anafim (“Branches”), children struggled to understand what Judaism was like when the Temple in Jerusalem stood. Sacrifices, priests, no (or few) synagogues and rabbis – it was all so different from what we know today. We had to help each other understand this very different way of life. …
Apr 28
When Jewish holidays fall on Enrichment Center days, we do something special to recognize the holiday. This week, we invited children to read together. Beautiful.
Apr 21
Sometimes, the best learning comes up unexpectedly. It’s up to us to seize the moment. There we were, pulling apart the structure of Rabban Gamliel’s argument (really! with great enthusiasm!), and one fourth grader said, “Hallel is in the Tanakh.” [Tanakh is an acronym for Torah, Nevi’im (Prophets), and Ketuvim (Writings).] And I said, “Prove …
Apr 14
In Anafim, our third through fifth grade children have been exploring how the meaning of the seder changes in every generation. Through the years, we redesign Judaism so it can remain vibrant through the centuries. Our Enrichment Center children are taking their place in the ongoing conversation of just how we’ll redesign Judaism for ourselves today. …
