Working in Chevruta..

Working in "Chevruta" (group or a team in Hebrew) is a very popular form of working with the Mitkadem Hebrew program.

I absolutely love to see some of the kids working together, learning Hebrew and prayer while having fun together and catching up with their own life.

I am happy to report that both classes are moving along nicely. 4 of our students tested and moved up a "Ramah", and few others are very close to doing the same.

Often times, our 6 graders are craving a snack, and I would like to extend an invitation for parents to send individual, nut free, dairy snacks for them, as well as water bottles, or one snack for the class to share. This applies to Thursdays. On Tuesday, Lauren has a "Snack Break" for them all.

As always, please contact me with any questions or concerns, I would love to support them in anyway that I can.

The "IN" Group

This week, 7th graders in the H and HB classes watche a 5 minute clip from a program entitled: "An Evening With Elie Wiesel". One of the speakers was a teenage girl named Eve Shalen. Eve talked about being bullied when she was in 7th grade, and feeling very much a part of the "out" group. One day, the "in" group began to bully another girl and Eve found herself joining in on the bullying. She was not proud of her actions.
After the film clip, students talked about their reactions and offered their perspectives. They talked about the different groups in their schools, and what it means to be part of a group, or to be excluded from a group.
Students then participated in a silent activity. Torah/Talmud/Pirkei Avot quotes were taped on the wall, students were broken out into groups and had to have "conversations" (in writing only!) based on the quotes. The "conversations" were very interesting and thought provoking and when the class was over, students talked about REALLY enjoying the activity!
Shabbat shalom, to all!
Sheira

Marc Chagall Inspirations

Chagall, "I and the Village," 1911

For our final Israel & Art class, 7th graders learned about the art of Marc Chagall, especially his beautiful windows at the Hadassah Medical Center in Jerusalem:


Then the students made their very own "stained glass windows" using Mod Podge (my favorite!) and tissue paper. These beautiful transparent creations can hang in a window and remind us of Chagall all year round!

7th Graders & Inclusion

This week, the ladies of Leah's 7th grade Holocaust and Human Behavior class heard Eve Shalen's story about inclusion/exclusion, and discussed what it means to create an "other" for the sake of feeling included. Then we had a "silent" conversation, a la the Talmud, about how we treat other. For a great break down of this activity and the Eve Shalen clip, see Max's blog post here.

Class discussion about the quote "It is easy to make an enemy; it is harder to make a friend."

Talmud activity

Eve Shalen, Talmud and Middle School

This talmudic proverb was the backdrop for some very interesting conversations on Tuesday. We started class by hearing Eve Shalen tell of an experience she had in 8th grade:

Eve's experience is one that we discussed, and particularly turned our thoughts to whether we have ever felt as if "often being accepted by others is far more satisfying than being accepted by oneself."

We continued our learning about human behavior by turning our thoughts to several talmudic quotes about treating others. First, we shared on butcher paper whether we agreed or disagreed, and then continued class with a discussion about our thoughts. Of course, we also paused for a picture!

We spent a good amount of time discussing the talmudic quote, "It is easy to make an enemy; harder to make a friend." Students shared that being mean, or not being an upstander, can sometimes be easier than standing up for a friend, or reaching out to make a new one.

We finished with a quick "check-in," going around and sharing something happening in our life, and said shavua tov—until next week!

Tuesday Night Madness!

The Cooking class got crazy last night with a Top Chef cook off. They were asked to research Jewish recipes and begin to understand what was Jewish about those foods. The winning recipe? Humantaschen!

Overheard on Facebook: "This is the highlight of my week!"

More Mikveh

Exploring the pools, discovering the getting ready rooms, and learning the steps to using the Mikveh.