Jun 04
This week in Shalom Chaverim, children and parents worked together to create an object to commemorate our year together. Children (and some parents!) painted away to create squares that will form a Shalom Chaverim quilt. Then everyone– parents and children alike– had a chance to get their hands dirty (really dirty!) by stamping handprints on …
May 18
There were lots of different ways for children to continue exploring mezuzzot in Shalom Chaverim this week. We made special houses for the shema using Legos. We are also building a foundational understanding of Hebrew letters as we look for the letter “shin” on every Mezuzzah we find, and even make our own versions of …
May 01
We asked (and answered!) lots of big questions in Shalom Chaverim this week. Like… What is a Mezuzzah? And where can you find one? And what’s inside? We are leaning to identify the letter shin– to make the “shh” sound and to find it on the outside of a Mezuzzah. To finish our exploration, we …
Apr 23
Exploring Pesach in Shalom Chaverim this week looked like a lot of ways to play with matzah. There were bags to decorate so we could hide and find, cover and uncover our matzah. There was matzah to smash. There were even pictures of matzah to add to play dough creations. And, of course, there was …
Apr 06
This week in Shalom Chaverim was all about including young children at the Seder table. We spent lots of time creating objects for children to interact with authentically as they learn the story of Pesach. We focused throughout the morning on sensory experiences for children relating to Pesach– things for children to touch and feel …
Mar 02
This week the children in Shalom Chaverim were hard at work making and exploring groggers. Children tried out a variety of noisemakers and explored all the ways we can make sound with our bodies and instruments. Then there were our own groggers to make. Our fine motor skills have come a long way this year! …
Feb 25
As the youngest children at the Jewish Enrichment Center, much of the learning happening in Shalom Chaverim looks like open exploration– because it is. This week we learned about the Beit Knesset by simply exploring one. Children were free to walk, to climb, to crawl, to pick up and and examine objects. After children took …
Feb 13
What does it look like for an under three year old to learn about the alef bet? For the past few weeks, the children in Shalom Chaverim have been doing just that– building an understanding of alef bet. Mostly, this looks like playing. As we notice our shemot (Hebrew names), as we notice the letters …
Feb 06
This week in yetzirah we’ve been busy adding more and more color to our matzah covers. First the Anafimers generously and creatively illustrated the six items we traditionally see on a seder plate during פסח (Pesach). They were then made into stamps. Our matzah covers were tie-dyed with natural ingredients… so why couldn’t we paint with natural …
Feb 04
The children in Shalom Chaverim had the chance to visit a real Beit Knesset this week! The windows were a favorite for many children, but we also spent time searching for lots of other objects… and just exploring the space. There was a lot of interest in the rimonim in particular. “Bells!” Exclaimed one boy …
