Spring Is Here and, Boy, Are We Busy!
Our Cycles in Nature project has come to a happy conclusion. The students must be proud of their creativity and curiosity as they reviewed our texts, scoured the internet and used cameras to portray the natural and man-made cycles we experience every day. This unit reinforced information from their science class and reading done independently. Do see our bulletin board display. not quite complete, yet.
Purim came with a great deal of fun and fanfare. The Tal Am program for Purim focused on a Purim play telling the story of the Megillah. Both third grade classes worked together to act out each scene; this gave the students the opportunity to sharpen reading skills, read with expression and gain a clear understand of the text.
Scenes Above Were Quickly Photographed at The SeasonsWe continue to study the weekly Torah portions. We got a pretty clear idea of how the tabernacle in the desert and its important appointments (e.g. the altars, the menorah, the ark, the meeting tent) were constructed, as well how it was made portable and carried from place to place. Bezalel and Ohaliav were the gifted artisans in charge. This gave us an opportunity to think about our own talents.
We also have a clear picture of the clothing worn by Aaron and his sons our first priests from the tribe of Levi. The people generously donated the materials as the artisans went to work.; they actually over-did it. The dramatic sin of the golden calf was part of the last portion in the Book of Shemot, Ki Tissa; Moses successfully implores God to forgive the people. The first portions of Leviticus teach about sacrifices and how this was a way of feeling closer to God; other sacrifices were made as a way of asking for forgiveness. We know that today prayers replace the sacrifices. To this day the Kohanim in the congregation bless the people and the holy ark with the burning lamp nearby can be found in our places of worship. |
The very special holiday of Passover has kept our attention during the last few weeks. We reviewed sections of the Haggadah as we prepared to lead a Seder for the residents at The Seasons Retirement Home. The theme of Tal Am's Passover unit is Slavery and Freedom. Each part of the Haggadah was read with an eye to the question - Does this remind me of slavery or of freedom. The students each chose a part in the seder and explained whether it reminded him or her of slavery or freedom and why. Our model Seder took place on Tuesday afternoon, March 27, 2018. The residents out-numbered our students and sat totally engrossed in the students' explanations and instructions. One resident said it was the most meaningful seder she had ever attended. Some of the guests were not Jewish; they were thrilled by the opportunity to participate in a real Jewish seder. Another resident told the students they had done an important mitzvah by inviting the residents to their model seder. This is a 'heads up' regarding our next project just after Passover. The third grade will be taking the school and then the community on a virtual tour of Israel. The all-school exhibit for families and the community is on the calendar for April 22nd in honor of the 70th Yom Ha'atzmaut (Israel Independence Day). Time is short after the Passover break. The students are choosing sites in Israel and thinking about their site during Passover break. Detailed information will be coming home in a white folder before the break. |
From Tu B'Shevat to Havdalah
The holiday of Tu B'Shevat got our attention soon after winter break. We began with a disagreement, once again, between Hillel and Shamai - What date in the month of Shevat is most suitable for the birthday of the trees? Shamai made a case for 'aleph' (1st) of Shevat; Hillel preferred 'tet vav=Tu (15th) of Shevat. The rabbis did an experiment and the 15th of Shevat was chosen. Do ask your student how the decision was reached.
As Tu B'Shevat approached, our focus has been on cycles in nature. The students were already familiar with the water cycle as well as the plant cycle; these they had learned about in science. To these two cycles the Tal Am program added cycles of the moon and the months, the seasons, day and night and days of the week. Our students noted the cycle of life should also be included. As we continue to study the cycles in Hebrew, the students will be presented with a project: They will be asked to make a photographic or pictorial representation of two (or three or more) of the cycles of their choosing. Details will go home next week.
We celebrated with a Tu B'Shevat seder. The PTO provided us with foods representing the Seven Species; we also had white and red grape juice that we mixed to show the passing of the seasons. Our seder included stories and songs connecting to the holiday and a taste of date honey, a yummy surprise.
We are all dressed in green for the holiday. On our plates are wheat crackers, Cheerios, bananas, oranges, dates, olives, pomegranate seeds, carob chocolate. I may have missed one or two.
As Tu B'Shevat approached, our focus has been on cycles in nature. The students were already familiar with the water cycle as well as the plant cycle; these they had learned about in science. To these two cycles the Tal Am program added cycles of the moon and the months, the seasons, day and night and days of the week. Our students noted the cycle of life should also be included. As we continue to study the cycles in Hebrew, the students will be presented with a project: They will be asked to make a photographic or pictorial representation of two (or three or more) of the cycles of their choosing. Details will go home next week.
We celebrated with a Tu B'Shevat seder. The PTO provided us with foods representing the Seven Species; we also had white and red grape juice that we mixed to show the passing of the seasons. Our seder included stories and songs connecting to the holiday and a taste of date honey, a yummy surprise.
We are all dressed in green for the holiday. On our plates are wheat crackers, Cheerios, bananas, oranges, dates, olives, pomegranate seeds, carob chocolate. I may have missed one or two.
Preparations for our Havdalah program lead us in new directions. First, we learned that havdalah comes from the Hebrew word 'to separate". What is being separated? Your third grader can answer this. Then we learned about different customs for candle lighting on Shabbat; families light anywhere from two to seven candles. Finally, we learned how to lead a complete Havdalah ceremony as we say good bye to Shabbat. All this will be included in our Havdalah program on Saturday evening after we see three stars in the sky. We look forward to seeing you there.
We continue to study the weekly Torah portion. We began with the ten plagues and the Exodus from Egypt. The Passover story is one we know, but it is always exciting to hear it again with Hebrew text included. The Israelites have safely left Egypt. We are familiar with the song lead by Moses as they rejoiced in their safety and freedom; we recognized the words from our morning prayer services. Moses's father-in-law, Yitro, has important insights and is honored with the Ten Commandments included in the portion that bears his name. It is always interesting to review the Ten Commandments and discuss their impact on the decisions we make, especially the fifth one. The fourth commandment was relevant to our Havdalah program.
STEAM events were also part of the weeks in January. The culminating activity was a bridge building competition. It was won by our classmate Cassie Tucker; her bridge was able to support more than 70 pounds of weight. She was not without challenges from her classmates as you can see below.
We continue to study the weekly Torah portion. We began with the ten plagues and the Exodus from Egypt. The Passover story is one we know, but it is always exciting to hear it again with Hebrew text included. The Israelites have safely left Egypt. We are familiar with the song lead by Moses as they rejoiced in their safety and freedom; we recognized the words from our morning prayer services. Moses's father-in-law, Yitro, has important insights and is honored with the Ten Commandments included in the portion that bears his name. It is always interesting to review the Ten Commandments and discuss their impact on the decisions we make, especially the fifth one. The fourth commandment was relevant to our Havdalah program.
STEAM events were also part of the weeks in January. The culminating activity was a bridge building competition. It was won by our classmate Cassie Tucker; her bridge was able to support more than 70 pounds of weight. She was not without challenges from her classmates as you can see below.
It's the First Day of Winter and There's A Lot to Tell
Kindness has been an important part of the discussions in our third grade classroom. We read a story called, "Each Kindness" by Jacqueline Woodson. The story had a very significant message for us - Every kind thing we do has a wonderful ripple effect and makes our classroom, our homes, our community and the world a better and happier place. The story is a sad one as it tells about an opportunity lost forever. Our students were very moved by the message and asked to hear the story again. The message will be repeated at every opportunity throughout the year.
Hanukkah has been a happy focus for us these past weeks.Our reading text for Hanukkah described what happened "in those days" and how we celebrate the holiday "in our times." The students did a mini project collecting ideas on 3x5 cards using the text and adding ideas that were important to them. They then organized their cards so that there would be a good opening sentence and all the information would flow. We have some amazing results and final products appeared on our bulletin board during the last days of the holiday.
Our candle lighting for the school was a big success. Besides the actual ceremony we told the story of how Rabbis Hillel and Shammai disagreed on how the Hanukkah candles should be lit in the best possible way. Do ask your student for details. We then prepared a Trivia Quiz for the audience and put in some well-appreciated humor. I know the students would love to entertain you with the humorous answers. We ended with our favorite Hanukkah songs and a fun time was had by all.
Additional opportunities for Hebrew reading and comprehension came in two booklet the students read; each one had an important message. The first one was:"Saving a person is more Important that protecting Shabbat', so going to war on Shabbat is, of course, sanctioned by the sages. The second message was the result of the Hillel/Shammai disagreement: "We increase holiness rather than taking away from it." Again, here your student can give you the missing information.
In Lech L'chah, we completed chapter 12. Pharaoh, it seems a good one, sends Avram, Sarai and Lot on their way back to Canaan. Avram had told a lie to save his own life; when Pharoah realized this (that Sarai was Avram 's wife and not his sister) he ordered the whole entourage out of Egypt. The students were tested on the chapter by answering riddles, and we are ready to move on.
We look forward to Fridays when we learn about the weekly Torah portion that will be read in Synagogues and Temples on Shabbat. The chapters being read these weeks are the stories of our fore-fathers and mothers and well loved by the students. By the time we return after winter break, we will be learning the first portions in the Book of Shemot.
The class went on a field trip to the Skirball Museum at HUC. We viewed the ReArt exhibit and then had an opportunity to do our own ReArt project. We also had a Treasure Hunt in the permanent collection of ceremonial objects. The collection is beautiful and worth another visit.Below you can see us ReArting the pictures each of us chose.
Hanukkah has been a happy focus for us these past weeks.Our reading text for Hanukkah described what happened "in those days" and how we celebrate the holiday "in our times." The students did a mini project collecting ideas on 3x5 cards using the text and adding ideas that were important to them. They then organized their cards so that there would be a good opening sentence and all the information would flow. We have some amazing results and final products appeared on our bulletin board during the last days of the holiday.
Our candle lighting for the school was a big success. Besides the actual ceremony we told the story of how Rabbis Hillel and Shammai disagreed on how the Hanukkah candles should be lit in the best possible way. Do ask your student for details. We then prepared a Trivia Quiz for the audience and put in some well-appreciated humor. I know the students would love to entertain you with the humorous answers. We ended with our favorite Hanukkah songs and a fun time was had by all.
Additional opportunities for Hebrew reading and comprehension came in two booklet the students read; each one had an important message. The first one was:"Saving a person is more Important that protecting Shabbat', so going to war on Shabbat is, of course, sanctioned by the sages. The second message was the result of the Hillel/Shammai disagreement: "We increase holiness rather than taking away from it." Again, here your student can give you the missing information.
In Lech L'chah, we completed chapter 12. Pharaoh, it seems a good one, sends Avram, Sarai and Lot on their way back to Canaan. Avram had told a lie to save his own life; when Pharoah realized this (that Sarai was Avram 's wife and not his sister) he ordered the whole entourage out of Egypt. The students were tested on the chapter by answering riddles, and we are ready to move on.
We look forward to Fridays when we learn about the weekly Torah portion that will be read in Synagogues and Temples on Shabbat. The chapters being read these weeks are the stories of our fore-fathers and mothers and well loved by the students. By the time we return after winter break, we will be learning the first portions in the Book of Shemot.
The class went on a field trip to the Skirball Museum at HUC. We viewed the ReArt exhibit and then had an opportunity to do our own ReArt project. We also had a Treasure Hunt in the permanent collection of ceremonial objects. The collection is beautiful and worth another visit.Below you can see us ReArting the pictures each of us chose.
Moving Ahead in Our Third Grade Class
Reading books in Hebrew has been a focus in our Hebrew class. The students choose a Hebrew book from our class library or from the school library; they know they do not need to understand every word on a page to understand the message, certainly not on the first reading. They then go on to writing a book report on the book, one that they will share with the class.There are four or five formats for writing a report; the students choose the one that best suits their book.
In our guided reading book, B'Hatzlachah, we are getting to know our classmates a little better than before. We began with our appearance - eyes, hair, height. Next we will learn about hobbies and talents. This is giving us an opportunity to practice Hebrew language by describing ourselves and our classmates. We are also added what the boys and girls are wearing every day - an opportunity for more Hebrew speaking.
We read a booklet - Ronen Has A Problem. Ronen is new to the city and, of course, to the class. It takes him a while till he manages to solve his problem. Do ask your third grader how he does this.
In Torah, every Friday we study the weekly protion that is read in our temples and synagogues on Shabbat. The last weeks took us quite quickly from Abraham and Sarah's story, through the stories of Ishmael, Hagar and Isaac, Rebecca, Esau and Jacob. It was our turn to lead the program for Shabbat Shirah last week - Parashat Toldot - and we had much fun, a little nervousness, and a lot of learning as we put the material together.
In our guided reading book, B'Hatzlachah, we are getting to know our classmates a little better than before. We began with our appearance - eyes, hair, height. Next we will learn about hobbies and talents. This is giving us an opportunity to practice Hebrew language by describing ourselves and our classmates. We are also added what the boys and girls are wearing every day - an opportunity for more Hebrew speaking.
We read a booklet - Ronen Has A Problem. Ronen is new to the city and, of course, to the class. It takes him a while till he manages to solve his problem. Do ask your third grader how he does this.
In Torah, every Friday we study the weekly protion that is read in our temples and synagogues on Shabbat. The last weeks took us quite quickly from Abraham and Sarah's story, through the stories of Ishmael, Hagar and Isaac, Rebecca, Esau and Jacob. It was our turn to lead the program for Shabbat Shirah last week - Parashat Toldot - and we had much fun, a little nervousness, and a lot of learning as we put the material together.
Each week we continue in detail to learn the Parashah Lech L'chah. We have followed Avram and Sarai from Ur Kasdim to Haran and now to Canaan. We have carefully noted the two blessing given to Avram in this parashah - the blessing of having descendents too numerous to count and the blessing of possession of the land of Canaan, the land of Israel. We noted that these blessings impact our lives today. We just read about Avram's journey to Egypt when there is famine in Israel. Your third grader can give you some of the unusual details of their arrival in Egypt and why they chose Egypt.
We read the Tal Am booklet that tells the Rabbi's story about how Avram broke all the idols in his father's shop. To our disappointment, it is not found in the Torah. We did learn that Avram's belief in God probably began at an early age.
We meet with our Friends from Israel every other Wednesday. Last week we learned about the games that are played by children in Israel. We got to play a few. and loved it.
Dates to remember:
December 21 - Field trip to Hebrew Union College Museum (more information will follow after Thankgiving)
February 10 - Third grade Havdalah Program
From Mrs. Weisberg and 3A
We read the Tal Am booklet that tells the Rabbi's story about how Avram broke all the idols in his father's shop. To our disappointment, it is not found in the Torah. We did learn that Avram's belief in God probably began at an early age.
We meet with our Friends from Israel every other Wednesday. Last week we learned about the games that are played by children in Israel. We got to play a few. and loved it.
Dates to remember:
December 21 - Field trip to Hebrew Union College Museum (more information will follow after Thankgiving)
February 10 - Third grade Havdalah Program
From Mrs. Weisberg and 3A
A Full Week of Learning!
These last few days, we turned our attention back to the Tal Am guided reading text - B'hatzlachah. The focus has been on different work habits that can make us more successful as learners. They range from 'looking and seeing, hearing and listening' to 'don't give up' if something seems difficult. We have discussed the first four and will read about the last three this week. Do ask you student for details.
We received our copies of the activity book that will support the Torah parasha we will be learning this year - Lech L'chah. This is the story of our first forefather - Avraham, and it will be a highlight of our learning each week in third grade.
We also spent time remembering and discussing the two portions that were read in our temples and synagogues on Shabbat these last two weeks - B'reisheet and Noah. The days of creation, Adam and Eve's story, Cain and Able's interaction, Noah as a reighteous person, the flood, the promise of the rainbow, the Tower of Babel and, finally - Avram., these were all part of our learning. We discussed the difference between the Raven and the Dove's behavior when Avram sent each one out as a scout - the Raven never came back (concerned about himself only), but the Dove came back with valuable information to help his ark-mates.
We received our copies of the activity book that will support the Torah parasha we will be learning this year - Lech L'chah. This is the story of our first forefather - Avraham, and it will be a highlight of our learning each week in third grade.
We also spent time remembering and discussing the two portions that were read in our temples and synagogues on Shabbat these last two weeks - B'reisheet and Noah. The days of creation, Adam and Eve's story, Cain and Able's interaction, Noah as a reighteous person, the flood, the promise of the rainbow, the Tower of Babel and, finally - Avram., these were all part of our learning. We discussed the difference between the Raven and the Dove's behavior when Avram sent each one out as a scout - the Raven never came back (concerned about himself only), but the Dove came back with valuable information to help his ark-mates.
Can You Believe - We Ate A Sukkah!
In-between rain showers, the third grade classes met in the Rockwern Academy sukkah and built mini sukkahs. The walls were carefully constructed using Graham crackers and chocolate frosting, The s'chach (roof) consisted of pretzels and parsely. Decorations included Cherrios and other colorful breakfast cereals. The third graders proved to be careful and patient engineers, resisting the temptation to taste before the construction job was completed. Two of the three mitzvot associated with the Sukkot holiday were fulfilled - sitting in a sukkah and being happy; the mitzvah of shaking the lulav and etrog had already been fulfilled.
During our class time, we learned a lot about the four species we bring together on Sukkot - the palm branch, the myrtle, the willow and the citron.Your third grader can fill in some of the interesting details. We also asked why we say the blessing only on the lulav if we need all four species to fulill the mitzvah; we came up with some good answers. Again, do ask your student about our ideas.
And now we are looking forward to a full week of fun learning!
Mrs. Weisberg
During our class time, we learned a lot about the four species we bring together on Sukkot - the palm branch, the myrtle, the willow and the citron.Your third grader can fill in some of the interesting details. We also asked why we say the blessing only on the lulav if we need all four species to fulill the mitzvah; we came up with some good answers. Again, do ask your student about our ideas.
And now we are looking forward to a full week of fun learning!
Mrs. Weisberg
Why Do We Eat Pomegranates This Time of Year?
The high holidays are a time for reflecting on the year past, recognizing our mistakes, and thinking seriously about the good deeds we hope to do in this coming year. We learned in our classroom that Maimonides counted 613 mizvahs in the Torah. Because pomegranates are so full of seeds, the custom has become to eat this fruit in the hope of doing as many good deeds as there are seeds in a pomegranate - maybe 613! So last week, just before Yom Hakippurim, the third grade class decided to count the number of seeds in a pomegranate. We bought 20 pomegranates, cut them in half and assigned two students to each pomegranate. The students carefully counted the seeds in their half of a pomegranate,and added them together. The totals varied extremely with one pomegranate having more that 700 seeds and most closer to 500. We averaged them together and came out with an average of 556, not too far from the 613 we had hoped to reach. Still, we figured that if we did 556 good deeds during this next year we could be proud of this acheivement. The project was great fun and an opportunity to combine math and science together with our Jewish traditions and heritage.
Mrs. Weisberg and Mr. Netanel
Mrs. Weisberg and Mr. Netanel
We Began Our Year in Third Grade with A Riddle
Our third grade class began with a puzzle. Twenty six Hebrew letters were divided among the ten students in 3A and sent by mail to each student just before the first day of school. The carefully decorated letters arrived at school with the students on the first days; we put them up in a large pocket chart and looked at them for a day or two until one of the students unscrambled the first word in the puzzle (riddle) - b'hatzlacha (good luck, success.) It took another day of two to find the next word - talmidim (students, m.); from there it was simple to find talmidot (students, f.) and a second b'hatzlachah. You see the product in the photograph above.
B'hatzlachah is the theme and guiding spirit for our year in the Hebrew and Judaic Studies classes. We wish all our third graders success in all they undertake during this next year. We talked about their hopes and dreams in this classroom. Everyone wanted to learn more Hebrew, have good friends, learn a lot of Torah, learn about Jewish history, have interesting lessons (a challenge to me), and have a lot of fun. This lead us to list some rules we will need to reswpect in order for our hopes and dreams to come true. We listed these, as well; everyone agreed on being repectful of others, our selves and our environment. many students added - Treat others the way you want to be treated. Success and respect - fine themes as we consentrate on academics.
When we began the year, we were still in the Jewish month of Av, solid summer month; all we noted here was the sad destrution of the Temple in Jerusalem - twice. As we moved to the month of Elul, the 12th month on our Jewish calendar, we knew that Rosh Hashanah was fast approaching; as is customary each morning in Elul (except on Shabbat) the shofar is blown. We have done just that in our classroom, giving each student a chance to try his/her skill as a shofar blower with many successes. Do ask ask your student why this is done. We talked about the four steps in T'shuva; this is also a good question for your children.
Watching the lunar eclipse was a once in a lifetime experience. We were amazed by the sight filtered through special glasses. It was a good time to note that the Jewish calendar is a lunar calendar.
In keeping with our hope to learn a lot of Hebrew, we have read several of the Tal Am library books library. We began with "The Riddle at the Beginning of the Year' and noted that their riddle was much easier than the one our students received in the mail. We continued with "The Most Important Box"; there was competition among about a dozen boxes - first aid, candies, games, art supplies, musical instruments, tzedakah, to name a few; the students voted and split between tzedakh and first aid but tzedakah won out. But it turned out that the book had an entirely different box in mind - The Memory Box. This year the third graders will each have a Memory Box which they are decorating with much care. These Memory Boxes will be filled with special stories, projects, photos, drawings, cards - all special things that the third graders want to keep safe during this year and save as memories of third grade.
We quickly turned our attention to holidays fast approaching in the month of Tishrei - the first month of the Jewish year. We read a library book called "Which Month Am I?" This gave us an opportunity to review the months of the Jewish calendar noting two things - first which holidays came in each month (several months have no holidays), and,second, in which month did each of our birthdays fall.All this information is noted on a chart in our room.
There was a lot to review and a lot to add to our understanding as Rosh Hashanah approaches. We easily recalled all the customs and ceremonies connected with this important holiday. There is only one mitzvah that the Torah says we must fulfill. Your third grader will be able to fill you in here. The library book "What Does the Greeting Shanah Tovah Say?" challenges us to write meaningful greetings, greetings that 'suit' the person you are greeting. This asked each of us to think of a meaningful personal greeting for each classmate. Each student will pick a name of a third grader out of a bag and send a special Shanah Tovah card to that student. This is part of a school-wide project!
The first field trip of the year was to Greenacres Honey Bee Farm. We learned how the honey bees made the honey we eat with apples on Rosh Hashanah.
Did you know that honey bees actually can communicate? We learned how this happens. We watched up close how bees gathered pollen and nectar as we waked from flower patch to flower patch. If you don't bother them they won't bother you. We saw a live bee hive and learned that there could only be one queen and all the workers ware females! We watched Joe Phelps (one of our guides) cut the tops of two sealed honey combs and extract the honey by centrifical force in an extractor. And finally, we got to taste the honey. We tasted three kinds - buckwheat, clover and one I can't remember. Please ask your student.
B'hatzlachah is the theme and guiding spirit for our year in the Hebrew and Judaic Studies classes. We wish all our third graders success in all they undertake during this next year. We talked about their hopes and dreams in this classroom. Everyone wanted to learn more Hebrew, have good friends, learn a lot of Torah, learn about Jewish history, have interesting lessons (a challenge to me), and have a lot of fun. This lead us to list some rules we will need to reswpect in order for our hopes and dreams to come true. We listed these, as well; everyone agreed on being repectful of others, our selves and our environment. many students added - Treat others the way you want to be treated. Success and respect - fine themes as we consentrate on academics.
When we began the year, we were still in the Jewish month of Av, solid summer month; all we noted here was the sad destrution of the Temple in Jerusalem - twice. As we moved to the month of Elul, the 12th month on our Jewish calendar, we knew that Rosh Hashanah was fast approaching; as is customary each morning in Elul (except on Shabbat) the shofar is blown. We have done just that in our classroom, giving each student a chance to try his/her skill as a shofar blower with many successes. Do ask ask your student why this is done. We talked about the four steps in T'shuva; this is also a good question for your children.
Watching the lunar eclipse was a once in a lifetime experience. We were amazed by the sight filtered through special glasses. It was a good time to note that the Jewish calendar is a lunar calendar.
In keeping with our hope to learn a lot of Hebrew, we have read several of the Tal Am library books library. We began with "The Riddle at the Beginning of the Year' and noted that their riddle was much easier than the one our students received in the mail. We continued with "The Most Important Box"; there was competition among about a dozen boxes - first aid, candies, games, art supplies, musical instruments, tzedakah, to name a few; the students voted and split between tzedakh and first aid but tzedakah won out. But it turned out that the book had an entirely different box in mind - The Memory Box. This year the third graders will each have a Memory Box which they are decorating with much care. These Memory Boxes will be filled with special stories, projects, photos, drawings, cards - all special things that the third graders want to keep safe during this year and save as memories of third grade.
We quickly turned our attention to holidays fast approaching in the month of Tishrei - the first month of the Jewish year. We read a library book called "Which Month Am I?" This gave us an opportunity to review the months of the Jewish calendar noting two things - first which holidays came in each month (several months have no holidays), and,second, in which month did each of our birthdays fall.All this information is noted on a chart in our room.
There was a lot to review and a lot to add to our understanding as Rosh Hashanah approaches. We easily recalled all the customs and ceremonies connected with this important holiday. There is only one mitzvah that the Torah says we must fulfill. Your third grader will be able to fill you in here. The library book "What Does the Greeting Shanah Tovah Say?" challenges us to write meaningful greetings, greetings that 'suit' the person you are greeting. This asked each of us to think of a meaningful personal greeting for each classmate. Each student will pick a name of a third grader out of a bag and send a special Shanah Tovah card to that student. This is part of a school-wide project!
The first field trip of the year was to Greenacres Honey Bee Farm. We learned how the honey bees made the honey we eat with apples on Rosh Hashanah.
Did you know that honey bees actually can communicate? We learned how this happens. We watched up close how bees gathered pollen and nectar as we waked from flower patch to flower patch. If you don't bother them they won't bother you. We saw a live bee hive and learned that there could only be one queen and all the workers ware females! We watched Joe Phelps (one of our guides) cut the tops of two sealed honey combs and extract the honey by centrifical force in an extractor. And finally, we got to taste the honey. We tasted three kinds - buckwheat, clover and one I can't remember. Please ask your student.
Shofar Blowing during the Month of Elul
During the month of Elul, we had the opportunity to blow shofars of many sizes and shapes. Each had a different sound. We found out that the longer ones were actually easier to blow. But we even managed to get an sharp sound from the smallest shofar.Each time we said the blessing "...lishmo'a kol shofar". We thought about ways we could make someone smile each day. We also thought about 'T'shuva', and this was a little more complicated because it has four parts tp it. Do ask your student for more details. We do want to make our homes, our classrooms and the world an even better place.
In the photos on the left, you can see us actually drilling and cleaning out a real horn from a kosher animal - one who had died of natural causes; We learned that you may not kill an animal for its horns. Thank you to Chabad for bringing to Rockwern a very interesting and fun hands-on program. |