Jan 25-29: Tu Bish Whaaat?

Holy moly, as I look back on my day-planner from this week, I can't believe how busy it's been!

Starting in kindergarten, there was a big leap this week to station-work. Usually the whole class does the same activity at the same time all the time, but when they are independent enough to work in small groups, it's a whole new ballgame. Everyone can have more turns at every activity, and it's a much more efficient and MUCH more fun way to have a gym class. Even the scooter station was successful.

In grade 4/5, the self-portrait unit is really moving along, and while many have completed self portraits, a few have gone on to do portraits of others, one of which you can see below.

In junior high, dvar Torahs, Shabbat projects, and Ashkenazi reflections were being finished up, with all new units starting next week. Shabbat was amazing, really high energy, designed and led by the people in the selfie.

 Tu Bishvat was also a wonderful afternoon, my tree-planting station went very smoothly and the junior highs helping at my station did an outstanding job. Enjoy the photos and Shabbat Shalom. Oh, and check out the article written by our tree leader, Sarah, in the Jewish news.

Oh, one more thing, too, student Tu Bishvat memes. Very funny! Shabbat Shalom again!

Jan. 18-22 - More basketball and trees

Just a quick update to say the basketball game was a victory, and not to exclude the curlers, they had a win last week and a tie this week. I know the players playing both sports are having a great time with their after-school activities, and certainly did not mean to leave them out of this blog so far! I'm gonna get my hands on some pictures of the curlers soon and get them up here pronto!

The tree art is almost all finished, only grade 2 has to put the finishing touches on. Below are some pictures of the animal art that the grade 3s finished a few weeks ago, and come see the tree displays outside grade 5 and grade 3 later this week.

Happy Tu Bishvat!

Jan 11-15: Why do trees love basketball? Because the court is made of wood!!

This week was dominated by basketball. In grade 6, junior high, and even in kindergarten, it was all the buzz. And trees.

The Tu Bishvat campaign has begun, and our tree leaders have been hard at work making sure everyone has the jingle stuck in their heads and that donations are flowing in.

In grades 2-5, Tu Bishvat is the conversation, and the irony is not lost on a soul. It is by far the coldest week of this Winter, and we are celebrating the blooming of flowers in our classes. But so it goes in the Diaspora.

In junior high, the students are working on their Shabbat presentations, in grade 7/8 I am seeing some excellent personal connections to Vayera, and in grade 9 we just finished reading about the Ashkenazi Jews in Israel. They were the first to start turning swamps into farms, build Jewish cities, and became the first leaders of the State. They enriched the Hebrew culture by giving themselves new Hebrew names like Ben Gurion as opposed to Grun. In the early days of the state, a new wave of immigration presented the Ashkenazim with a new challenge - how to integrate hundreds of thousands of Jews escaping persecution in Arab countries. Next we will study the Mizrahi journey in the State of Israel.

This week at Shabbat we'll be talking about the connection between the Torah, our lives, and trees. Think about those connections over the week as we approach our celebration of Tu Bishvat next week. 

And if you can, stay after school Wednesday to see the basketball team in their second game of the season. 

First Week Back- Jan 4-8th

It was a really really nice break. I got some great plans done for all my classes, and am looking forward to an exciting basketball season.

It was such a busy week! I am looking at my camera and all I have are pictures of my cat, but I'll try to take more this week. Here are some of the great work that was done this week and a look ahead:

Some highlights from Jan 4th-8th:

Art 3, 4, 5, 6: A lot of trees being drawn. Beginner trees in grade 3, and advanced in grade 4-6.

JS 2, 3, 4, 5: Learning about Tu Bishvat:
God told the Israelites in the desert that they should not forlorn their wandering, for one day He would lead them to a land filled with wheat and barley, pomegranates, figs, and grapes, a land of olive oil and honey: He announced the 7 species we celebrate on Tu Bishvat. The aim of the unit is to be familiar with the 7 species and their meaning in Jewish faith and ritual. The 4/5 class is even preparing to lead their own Tu Bishvat seders at home should they so choose.

Gym: In grade 6-9, you can hear basketballs booming around the gym as they hone their skills and play some conventional and non-conventional games.

Junior high Shabbat: Groups are preparing to lead special services with a variety of activities based on the parasha each week.

On the campaign: This week we will kick off the annual JNF campaign to plant trees in Israel. Our tree leaders will sing to the classes and have the students in stitches with their tree jokes. For example: what was the tree's favourite hockey team? The Toronto Maple Leafs!!

Parashat HaShavuah:
Having heard the finale to the story of Joseph, the classes now have begun to talk about Moses, his birth, escape from Pharaoh, and initial conversation with God at the Burning Bush. Moses was very hesitant to lead, and I asked each class: when have you stepped up when no one else was willing?

The coming weeks will be extremely busy, and I look forward to continuing excellent work with each class and each student as we head towards Tu Bishvat. I will try to update again Thursday with some thoughts on Va'era.