Apr 28
This week in Shalom Chaverim was all about what we can our bodies can do in the boker. We woke up some babies and practiced wishing them “Boker tov” (and then tucking them in with a “Lilah tov” many times over.) We painted our own renditions of the sky in the boker, with bright yellow …
Jun 06
This week in Yetzirah (and in Beyt Shteelim!), the Shteelimers reviewed many of the skills, techniques and Ivrit (Hebrew) vocabulary they learned throughout the year. It’s interesting to see what they remember, how they’ve improved and how they do things differently this time around. Several Shteelim girls showed off their Ivrit (Hebrew) writing skills by painting the אותיות (otiot- …
Apr 12
This week, Nitzanim completed one final investigation of our mysterious words (that we saw first in these morning blessings). We’ve seen what our mysterious words are in the Torah (something God does), in the Talmud (a discussion among the early rabbis about what to say when we get dressed and ready for the day), and …
Mar 14
Every group of the Jewish Enrichment Center participated in Yetzirah this week- it was pretty extraordinary! Through out this Boker Tov unit we have focused on ourselves: how we treat others and how the Modeh Ani prayer resonates with us individually. And there’s no better way to wrap up the unit than with a communal activity …
Mar 06
We have a new Mah Tovu tent in Beit Shteelim. Morah Miryam invited us in pairs to come to the Mah Tovu tent. When I stuck a יד (yad – hand) into the tent, I pulled out a surprise! It was a picture of a part of my גוף (guf – body)! Then I thought about how I …
Mar 05
Sometimes it feels good just to do the regular stuff. We had such a lovely Sunday and Monday this week. What a shame we didn’t get to have a session on Tuesday because of the snow. Here’s some of our regular stuff: Checking out the moon chart. It’s near the end of the Hebrew month …
Mar 01
Shteelimers gathered around the Torah this week… Girl 1: Wow. It’s sparkling. Morah Miryam: What do you see? Boy 1: It’s like an army of letters. Morah Miryam: Oh, show us where you see an army. Boy 1. In all the lined up letters. Like Pharaoh’s army is some of the letters and the Hebrews …
Mar 01
Missed Part 1? Catch it here. Missed Part 2? Read it here. Part 3: Could children understand berakhot as something the early rabbis said to get their brains ready for the day? And if the rabbis were getting their brains ready, what were they getting their brains ready to do? I asked: Why would the rabbis made a berakhah (blessing) after every single …
Mar 01
Missed Part 1? Read it here. Part 2: Nitzanim had been focusing on the morning berakhot as a way of getting our bodies ready in the morning (stretching, getting dressed, etc.). Next, I asked Nitzanimers: do you do anything to get your brains ready in the morning? Turns out that many children read in the morning: “Reading makes my …
Feb 28
The Starting Point: Children made the connection between ברכות (berakhot – blessings) we say in the morning and the actions of getting up and ready for our day. Here we are acting out our favorite ברכה (berakhah – blessing): הנותן ליעף כח (“Who gives strength to the weary:). We love to shout “koach (strength)!” Part 1 So…the …
