As our final projects for the year draw to a close, I keep noticing the little details: those day-to-day parts of life in our classroom that make all the big, amazing achievements possible. Like… Our כיבוד (kibud– snack) routine, where the whole group joins in reciting the ברכות (berachot– blessings). These ברכות (berachot) then become …
Tag: Anafim 5778
May 17
So Many Ways to Learn Ivrit (Hebrew)!
We’ve been very active in Anafim (“Branches,” for 3rd/4th grade children) developing our projects for this theme AND setting goals to complete our Ivrit (Hebrew) challenges for this quarter! Children have found various things to challenge themselves on in Ivrit and different ways to grow on those. Some children have been…. …timing how quickly …
May 10
Springing forward
Look, I know we say it every year. But it’s true every year: I can’t believe how much you’ve grown! It’s especially visible right now, as the ענפים (Anafim– “branches” for 3rd-4th grade children) are simultaneously finishing up their last theme projects, and their last big עברית (Ivrit- Hebrew) challenges of the year. Everywhere I look, I see …
Apr 20
Joyful expression
ענפים (Anafim, “Branches” for 3rd-4th grade children) have grown a lot this year. For example, they can sit together and work in חברותא (havruta, text study partnership) to explore a new Rabbinic text, connecting it with their own ideas and their peers’ ideas. That requires a lot of different reading, writing, and collaboration skills, not …
Mar 30
Activating Pesach (Passover) knowledge and questions
After several years at the Jewish Enrichment Center, ענפים (Anafim, “Branches” for 3rd-4th grade children) know a lot about פסח (Pesach, Passover). They’re familiar with the major parts of the סדר (Seder, the “Order” of the Passover meal), the items traditionally on the seder plate, connection between the holiday and the text in Exodus 1-15 which describes …
Mar 02
Peer interviews
As our שבת (Shabbat) projects take shape in ענפים (Anafim, “branches” for 3rd-4th grade children), the children are starting to interview each other to develop their artist’s statements. Sometimes the questions are spontaneous: “Whoa! How did you do that?” Sometimes, great follow-up questions grow out of answers to our set interview protocol: “Wait, that’s really different …
Feb 23
Yes They Can
One of my favorite parts of project time is the focus and competence radiating from ענפים (Anafim, “branches” for 3rd-4th grade children). Of course, it’s no surprise that ענפים (Anafim) approach their project work with such patience and commitment, since after all, each project grows out of a child’s authentic ideas and discoveries. They’re excited to share their thinking with …