What Happened in Grades K-2 on Sunday, January 26...

Kindergarten

Kindergarten had a great day! We started with our good morning song and then we each got to share something exciting that happened to us during the past week.

We went to Kehillah and after we went to T’fillah where the Cantor was not there, but the service was led by a teen named Rebecca Shankman. 

After, we went to art with Mrs. Schulgasser. We made books by placing folded paper inside colorfully designed covers. In class, we are learning all about the synagogue, so we used our books to draw the different places in the synagogue that we have learned about so far. In these pictures, we are drawing what we see in the sanctuary.

Grade 1

There was no class for Grade 1 students this past Sunday as they spent Shabbat participating in their very meaningful Consecration service. It was wonderful to see all of our students and their families join together to celebrate this exciting life cycle event!

Grade 2

Grade 2 started their day by reviewing the Alef Bet. They worked a bit in their workbooks on the letters chet and hay, reading words with them and adding vowels. 

Next they went to Kehillah...

and then T’filah. Cantor Yomtov wasn’t able to be there, but thankfully Rebecca Shankman was able to help Rabbi with singing.

When we went back to class, we learned more about the Torah. This week was focused on Moses going up Mount Sinai, and the whole ordeal with the Golden Calf. With this in mind, we made art projects displaying our different ideas of what the 10 Commandments mean.

What Happened in Grades 3-6 on Sunday, January 12...

Grade 3

In Art class today, we made bookmarks that look like trees. Each branch of the tree is a different Hebrew letter! Some of our "tree" branches even spelled out words like "etz" (tree) or "ahavah" (love).

In Hebrew class with Mrs. Zaas, we learned about the holiday of Tu b'Shevat. We talked about the order of the Tu b'Shevat seder and what foods we eat during the seder.

We also did a word puzzle to help uncover what words and concepts are associated with Tu b'Shevat.

Grade 4

In Mr. Feinberg's Judaics class, we began to learn about Philosophical Inquiry, a new process of learning that will frame our exploration of Jewish text this semester. One key part of Philosophical Inquiry is establishing classroom protocols that will help us all fee safe when sharing our thoughts and brainstorming our ideas. To do this, we played a game called Zen Counting, which will help us notice the importance of being in tune with the body language of our peers, so we can be aware of when others might want to enter into the conversation. 

After Zen Counting, we had a discussion about what makes a question philosophical. Mr. Feinberg explained how questions like "Did Sarah eat cake" are different from questions like "What makes a person a person."

In Mrs. Abrams' Judaics class, we learned about the new unit that we'll be exploring this semester. Our curriculum will focus around the quote, "It is not upon you to complete the work, neither are you free from desisting from it" (Pirkei Avot 2:15-16). To understand what this means, we attempted to build a starfish out of string on the floor and then carry it back into our classroom. Through this activity, we learned about the value of teamwork and the power of working well with others.

In Hebrew with Mr. Feinberg, we talked about the V'ahavtah and entered into a discussion about the power of prayer and why it is that we pray the same words over and over again. We also considered the difference between praying silently and out loud. 

Grade 5

Even after three weeks off, the Grade 5 students quickly jumped back into the Sunday morning routine!

In Hebrew with Ms. Silverstein, we reviewed where we left off before break, going over the connections that we can make between what God does for us as outlined in the G'vurot and what we can do to help others.

We also spent time in our workbooks reviewing some of the ways that G'milut Chasadim (Acts of Loving Kindness) connect to the G'vurot.

To end our day, we created quizzes about the G'vurot that we used to challenge our classmates. 

Grade 6

In Kehillah, the Grade 6 students led us in Havdallah. Every time we have Havdallah, the students get very excited about being able to help lead. We're going to start a rotation, to make sure that everyone gets an equal chance to help out.

In Mr. Solomon's class, we talked about the meaning of the words "Tu b'Shevat" and the different foods at the Tu b'Shevat seder. Ask your student what was on his or her plate and which foods he or she liked or didn't like!

In Ms. Killam's class, we learned about the environmental challenges that Israel faces and connected this to our life by discussing how we could be more environmentally friendly at Temple Emanu El. 

Ms. Killam also brought us dates, figs and olives so that we could taste test the flavors of Israel!

What Happened in Grades K-2 on Sunday, December 15...

Kindergarten

During Circle Time today, we talked about an important Hebrew word - Kavod. Kavod means "respect" or "honor" and showing people Kavod is one way that we treat our neighbors the way that we want to be treated.

One way that we show God Kavod is by being respectful during T'filah (prayer services). Our madrichim help us with this by helping us following along in our siddurim (prayer books).

Did you know that this year we're using brand new siddurim? They are just like the blue Mishkan T'filah Siddurim, except they are made just for kids like us!

Back in class, Mrs. Bernstein asked us for examples of how we can show Kavod to others. When we shared an example, Mrs. Bernstein gave us a heart.

After that, it was time for the Shabbat Boogie!! It's great to get up and moving during class.

To end our day, Mrs. Bernstein took us on a scavenger hunt around the synagogue. We visited lots of cool places in the synagogue. Some of them were familiar, and some we'd never seen before. We're excited to get to know our building even better in the coming months. We can't wait for school to start again on January 12!

Grade 1

To begin our day, Mrs. Milgrom visited our classroom to talk to us about the importance of listening to our madrichim. Some of us are having a difficult time showing our madrichim kavod (respect). We like to play with them and it's hard to listen when they ask us to stop and focus on class instead. But, after our conversation today, we feel confident that we'll do a great job starting next semester!

In Kehillah, we had Havdallah, which is where we celebrate the conclusion of Shabbat and the start of our new week.

We also enjoyed animal crackers for snack - yum!

In T'filah, our madrichim help us find our place in our new Mishkan T'filah Siddurim (prayer books) for Children.

After T'filah, we rehearsed for Consecration. Don't forget to help us practice our songs and our lines for the D'var Torah at home, especially over Winter Break!

In Art class with Mrs. Schulgasser we worked together a free flow creative mural. We practiced working as a team to create one cohesive piece of art. In doing so, we needed to not only communicate well together, but also make sure that we showed kavod to each other's ideas and personal artistic space. It was challenging, but we had fun!

Grade 2

Grade 2 had a great day! Now that we know so many Hebrew letters and vowels, we're able to follow along in the Hebrew during T'filah. Our new siddurim (prayer books) are great!

It is hard to believe that we're already half way through the year. Mrs. Ehrenreich helped us review the letters and vowels that we've learned so far and we're really excited by how much we know!

She also gave us mid-year awards. Everyone got an award that recognized how we are each unique and positively contribute to our classroom.

To end our day, we played a review game. We each got a Hebrew letter and if Mrs. Ehrenreich or one of our madrichim called out our letter we got to get up and do a crazy dance. We can't wait for school to start again on January 12!