Dear students and families:
It was wonderful being with the class today for our first session. Our warmup activity was drawing something we are
thankful for. Then I took attendance,
after which we sang about the weather “Bahutz hayom” - outside today. We usually go to tefilla (prayers) at
9:10, so it would be helpful if the children are in class by that
time. If you are running late, please bring your child
directly to the sanctuary.
Today we began learning about Rosh Hashanah, which ushers in 5777 . We reviewed pictures of customs and rituals, such as round challah
apples and honey, blowing the shofar, tashlich, creation of the world. We heard a story, The Announcing Tool,
about how a boy tried many different instruments until he found just the right
one to announce the New Year. He tried rocks,
a gong, a harp, and a trumpet. Students eagerly helped me imitate the sounds of
each. Assistant teacher Cheryl Gelfand
demonstrated the various sounds with her shofar.
Students created their own New
Year’s cards. Students also had
the chance to solve an apple maze. During break, they can play my
learning games or read books. Our
class aide Ariel, who is helpful in so many ways, enjoys working with the
children on their craft project, Hebrew, and learning games.
We also discussed some guidelines
to make the class a safe and happy place.
We should walk, use inside voices, be kind to each other, share
materials, etc. Next week, we will all
sign this contract.
Our Hebrew letter for
today is the letter בbet, which is the first letter in “bayit”
house, Bar/Bat Mitzvah, bet knesset, and “banana,” the same word in both
languages. I am keeping the Hebrew books
in class until the end of the year, so that they will always be available for
class. Each week the students
will take home a reinforcement paper to look at during the week with their parents. Please help your child remember the letters
through a mid-week review.
Each child has a job to do to help the class, such as pass
out pencils, or Hebrew books, help with the trash, etc. These jobs will change weekly.
Thank you for providing your child with a small kosher snack
and a bottle of water. After snack, we
will wash our hands and clean the tables.
We closed with some music, such as “Here’s My Yad,” the
color song, and “Tapuach u’dvash” (apples and honey).
Judy and Cheryl (Esther and Tzipporah)
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