Fall Arrives to the Hebrew Kindergarten Class!

Shalom everyone!

We had a great experience learning about the holidays.  Our breakfast in the Rockwern sukkah was a highlight.  The kids really loved having you at school to celebrate Sukkot with them.

Now that the holidays are over, we are beginning the fall (סתיו in Hebrew) unit.  We will learn vocabulary words and songs related to the fall season.  We will also be working with a daily weather chart to help us learn new vocabulary words.

I taught the kids that in the fall Jews begin to read the Torah from the beginning, starting with the creation story in Bereshit (בראשית).  I talked to them about creation, and what God created on each of the six days.  The class drew and colored pictures of what was created on each of the six days of creation.  We also learned that God rested on the seventh day - Shabbat.  We also learned about the story of Noah and his ark.  This gave us the opportunity to learn Hebrew words for some of the animals that Noah brought onto the ark, and to learn a new dance called 2 by 2.

We have very much enjoyed celebrating Shabbat together in class.  Shabbat is a very special time in the classroom.  Aside from Kabbalat Shabbat and the blessings, we sing Shabbat songs.  Each week from now on, we will touch upon and discuss the Torah portion of the week.

The kids are doing great writing their Hebrew names, and recognizing the Hebrew alphabet.  They are very excited about writing their names.

I have added some of the new vocabulary words that we learned in the area titled "Our Vocabulary Words" to the right of this post.  The classroom slideshow has also been updated, so please enjoy our classroom activities.

I love teaching your children.  I hope that through our class they learn to love Hebrew, Israel, and Jewish heritage.

As always, please email me at etscheier@rockwernacademy.org or call me at 513-984-3770 ext. 4217, if you have any questions.

Simchat Torah!

Shalom everyone! 

We have now finished our Simchat Torah unit.  I taught the class that Simchat Torah is a happy occasion when Jews around the world finished reading the entire Torah, and started it all over again from the beginning.  We also learned about a  sofer stam, a person specially trained to transcribe Torah scrolls (and also the parchment in a mezuzah and teffilin). 

As part of our classroom learning experience, I brought a Torah scroll from the synagogue to our class.  The kids held the yad, which is used by Torah readers to follow the text, and we all pretended to be Torah readers.  We also danced around the our classroom with the Torah scroll to celebrate the holiday.

We also joined our "bigs" in Mayerson Hall and unrolled a Torah scroll.  We listened to them read Torah.  We danced and celebrated this very happy occasion.

Make sure to have a look at the updated slideshow to see pictures from our Simchat Torah activities.

I am having trouble with the gadget that was to the right with vocabulary words, so until I figure out a solution I will add them here:

Synagogue - Beit Knesset - בית כנסת

Hand or Pointer - Yad - יד

Happiness - Simcha - שמחה

Sofer Stom - Torah Scribe - סופר סת"ם

Our next unit will cover the fall. We will learn songs, dances, and vocabulary related to the new season. I will provide you with the details in the next blog update.

Thanks, and you can always contact me by emailing me at etscheier@rockwernacademy.org.

Learning About Sukkot In the Hebrew Kindergarten Classroom Sukkah

Shalom everyone!  I hope that you had a meaningful Rosh Ha'Shana and Yom Kippur!

Here is another update on what we are doing in Hebrew Kindergarten class.

We have been learning about the Jewish festival Sukkot. We discussed building the sukkah, how one is built, and what is done in the sukkah.  The sukkah is a very important symbol of the Jewish people. I taught the children that the Israelites lived in them in the desert while on their journey from Egypt to Israel since it was an easy structure to build and break down along the way.

I built a sukkah in my room so the children can learn their Hebrew lessons during the holiday sitting inside it. The class helped me to decorate our classroom sukkah. The kids enjoyed this very much.  I have added new pictures to the blog slideshow, and you will be able to see photos of the class sukkah!

We also learned about other Sukkot traditions and symbols like the lulav and etrog. I brought a set to our class and let the kids hold and smell each one.  I also taught the kids about the four arba’at ha’minim – the four species. These are:

Lulav –we can eat the fruit of the tree (dates); the leaves do not have an odor

Ha’das – no fruit to eat, but the leaves have a wonderful smell

Etrog – has a smell and taste (similar to a lemon)

Arava – no fruit to eat; leaves have no smell.

The children learned vocabulary associated with Sukkot.  I have posted new vocabulary words in the "Share What We Are Learning" post to the right of this blog entry.

This week we are going to learn about Simchat Torah, which falls at the end of Sukkot. On this holiday, we celebrate the completion of the annual Torah reading cycle, and again turn to the beginning.

As always, feel free to contact me with any questions that you have. My email is etscheier@rockwernacademy.org.

Chag Sameach!!!!!

Yom Kippur - Time for Slicha

Shalom everyone!  I hope that you all had a Happy New Year and a meaningful Yom Kippur!

In our Hebrew Kindergarten classroom we learned about the meaning of Yom Kippur.  I taught the class the Hebrew word for sorry and forgiveness, slicha.  We also talk a lot about that concept - slicha - as it relates to the High Holidays and in life generally.

I also taught the classes about the importance of doing good deeds.  We played a game with different pictures that the kids placed on a felt board.  One side was ma'aseem tovim (good deeds) and the other side was ma'aseem lo tovim (not such good deeds).  Through this we learned the importance of being nice to friends and family and doing positive things for them and for ourselves.  Ask your children to share with you what they learned about ma'asim tovim.

We also went over tzedaka, charity to those less fortunate.  We talked about how giving tzedaka is important not only during the holidays, but all year round.

The class also learned about other holiday customs and traditions.  Examples are wearing white, how grown ups fast on Yom Kippur, and that we use a special prayer book on the High Holidays called a Mahzor.

We also went over the biblical story of Jonah and the whale.  We made and decorated a whale from construction paper after we discussed the fable.

We also had a special event sponsored by our wonderful PTO.  Chabad of Blue Ash visited Rockwern with their Shofar Factory and our Hebrew Kindergarten class participated.  We learned how to make a Shofar, other interesting facts about the Shofar, and all of the different sounds that the Shofar makes.

The next unit we will cover is Sukkot and Simchat Torah.  This is an especially exciting time of year in our Hebrew class with so many important holidays coming on the heels of each other, and the kids seem to be engaged and learning a lot.

I have added additional pictures to the slideshow so be sure to take a look.

As always, please contact me with any questions or comments.  My email is etscheier@rockwernacademy.org.  My phone number is 513-984-3770, extension 4217.

Rosh Ha'Shana - The Jewish New Year and Sweet Beginnings!

Shalom everyone, and Shana Tova, Happy New Year!

We have been very busy getting to know each other, and learning about Rosh Ha'Shana, the Jewish New Year.

We learned about Rosh Ha'Shana traditions like the blowing of the shofar. We also did a Rosh Ha'Shana listening exercise. We listened to a tape of a shofar sound and other sounds. I asked the children to identify which sounds were from a shofar and which were not. We had so much fun and many laughs, and we learned a lot too.

There are also special Rosh Ha'shana greetings. We learned to say shana tova (Happy New Year), and shana mituka (wishes for a sweet New Year) to each other. We also learned songs related to the New Year. And with the songs came seasonal dances that we learned.

On Wednesday our class joined Toni's 4 year old class and with the generosity of our wonderful PTO were able to taste apples and honey, pomegranate, and a traditional round chala.  Dr. Finell joined us and he blew the shofar.

We also worked hard making New Year gifts for our families. They will be coming home on Monday.

In addition to Rosh Ha'Shana, we will learn about Yom Kippur as part of our High Holidays lesson. I will teach the class the concept of slicha, asking for forgiveness.  We will also discuss good deeds - mitzvot - which will be a large part of our next unit after the High Holidays.

Have a very happy, sweet, and healthy New Year. Shana Tova u'mituka to all.

As always, please contact me with any questions. My email is etscheier@rockwernacademy.org, and my phone number is 513-984-3770, ext. 4217.