Garinim

The Garinim class has been getting ready for Thanksgiving this week!

 

We have been talking a bit about what it means to be thankful, with the help of this song, to the tune of Frere Jacques:

 

We are thankful

We are thankful

We are glad

We are glad

For the many good things

For the many good things

That we have

That we have

 

We have also been talking about all of the good things we have to eat at Thanksgiving dinner, and the children were asked what they would add to the Thanksgiving table if they could choose. The results were quite eclectic!

 

Maya- sushi (no avocado), broccoli, and spaghetti 

Drew- green beans

Ashley- macaroni and cheese

Ella- ice pops

Alon- toast

Silas- potatoes

David- pancakes

 

We also introduced a new practical life/grace and courtesy work this week- setting a table. Using a tray with a small floral centerpiece, and two of each of plates, forks, spoons, cups, and napkins, the children were invited to set the table with two place settings. Not only is this good practice for real life applications, but it also reinforces one-to-one correspondence, an essential early math skill that is foundational to counting. 

 

On Tuesday, we celebrated Liora’s birthday with her family! She brought some yummy fruit to share with us, and special goodie bags to go home, too. It was so much fun; thank you Liora!!

 

Hebrew & Judaica:

 

Head Shoulders Knees and Toes is a favorite song to sing in both Hebrew and English! The children are really grasping a few of the words in Hebrew!

 

The children had so much fun making our challah dough on Wednesday, baking  our on Thursday and eating on Friday - they were  delicious!

 

Anafim

We spent this week talking a lot about Thanksgiving.  The children have loved hearing the story retold many times and loved hearing Thanksgiving Day by Anne Rockewell.    They are excited to tell us all about the Pilgrims traveling on a boat called the Mayflower, and that it was a treacherous journey.  They enjoyed hearing about the Native Americans from the Wampanoag tribe and how they helped the Pilgrims acclimate to their new land.  On Friday we acted out an abbreviated version of the story and the children had such a blast. 

 

This week we introduced the letter sound “t” with the sound pouch and sandpaper letter. Other new work included a table setting activity, counting and identifying different thanksgiving items, and a patterning activity with Pilgrims, Native Americans and turkeys.  

 

This week our class got to make challah!  The children are really learning the recipe and are quickly measuring out the ingredients and dumping them into the bowl.  They delight in watching it grow and seeing it getting punched down.  They all very much enjoy tasting their creation on Friday.   

 

It was so lovely to have Itamar’s family join us in the chapel this week and all the children are anxiously awaiting the week when their family joins us for this special time. 

 

Next week we will continue talking about Thanksgiving ahead of the holiday.  Shabbat Shalom!

 

Alim

 

This week we talked about BEING THANKFUL.   We had a nice group discussion about  the meaning of the word ”Thankful'' and there were many responses.  Some children said… Thankful means “being kind to others”….”saying thank you”…. “taking turns' … “Lucky for what we have”... which were all sweet responses.   The children did a fun activity about what they are thankful for.   We read some very sweet stories about Thanksgiving.  One of their favorite’s stories was called Sugar and Spice and Everything Mice.  It was a great story about a group of Mice friends working together and asking for help when needed.

 

The classroom transformed to the Secondary color Green in Practical Life and Art.  We did some new Practical Life activities like sponge squeezing and eye glass cleaning. There was a stringing activity that was new too.  In Art,  we mixed yellow and blue paint and chalk to make green.   

 

On Tuesday,  Coach Oren did a fun color game in the gym that involved a lot of running and switched bases.  The children really enjoyed this.  

 

On Wednesday,  we discussed the parsha of the week.   Chayei Sarah about Abraham’s servant Eliezer’s mission to search for a wife for Yitzchak from relatives far away.  We did a puppet show about Rivka,  who had energy drawing water from the well for Eliezer and his camels. She was very kind and Eliezer knew she would be a good choice to be Yitzchak’s new wife.  Also,  we reviewed parts of the body in Hebrew.  We did a fun letter yoga with the Hebrew letters as well.

 

On Thursday,  Morah Dawn came into our classroom and did another lesson on Do Re Mi Scale. Also, she played the Xylophone for the kids to hear the notes of the scale.  They really enjoyed this.

 

On Friday,  we went down to the Chapel.  We sang songs with Morah Lana. Then we went back to our classroom and enjoyed the Challah.   The children have been taking turns doing the blessing of the Challah every week.  Our Shabbat helpers for the blessing were Levi and Lily.  The Shabbat box went home with Denny and his family.  We look forward to hearing what they do together over the weekend.  The children really have been looking forward to Mondays and finding out what our Shaul (Fox)  did over the weekend with our classroom families.  

 

Keshet

Thanksgiving is around the corner - there were twenty two turkeys strutting past the Ezra office today!! (They’d better start running ;) We started telling the story - the story about the Pilgrims leaving England due to religious indoctrination from King James, the trip on the Mayflower, the harsh winter in North America, the meeting of the Wanpanoag… Ask your child what the Pilgrims ate on the journey over, what they ate once in North America, where they lived, where the children went to school… We followed up with discussion about the Wampanoag tribe and all the first people who lived here before the Pilgrims arrived. The harvest festival from their perspective, life before and after, and the importance of continuation of stories passed on through generations. In support of this story we read Keepunumuk, Weeachumun’s Thanksgiving Story, by Danielle Greendeer, Anthony Perry, and Alexis Buntenin. 

 

We continue working on the continents, pin-pricking the corresponding puzzle pieces as we discover information on the continents (Australia and Antarctica this week). 

 

In Science we are immersed in learning about the Human Body.  We began with tracing around each student’s body and then the cut along the lines.  We studied the brain and how it works, the senses (touch, smell and taste) and the digestive system.  Feel free to ask your child any questions about the food in the mouth, down the esophagus and into the stomach.  The small and large intestines and how everything works.  Of course everyone poops!!!! 

 

In Hebrew we continue learning the letters and their sounds. We are working on remembering the names of common classroom items and asking for them in Hebrew! And we are singing a new song  ‏יש לי יש לי שתי ידיים

Ask your child to sing it for you with the hand motions! 

 

In music they’re singing Doh, Re, Mi… singing along with body motions and progressing to playing on the xylophone! Ask your child for a demonstration. 

 

See this week’s photos here https://photos.app.goo.gl/p16WVsaLtnndj2mZ9