Holiday Update:
Over the past few weeks, your children have been progressing in their Hebrew Language studies and have been learning about Chanukah, the Festival of Lights! This Holiday is coming up very soon and we hope that you will all be joining us for the Chanukah Carnival on Las Olas!
Happy Chanukah!
Tuesday , November 18
Morah Ilana: Level 1
Today we learned all about the letter ‘Vav’ and the Mitzvah of ‘Vatranut’ which means sharing. Together, we looked at pictures of children sharing and discussed the ways we can share with our friends, adults and even teachers. We talked about how even flowers share their nectar with bees and each child was asked to give an example of sharing. We learned that ‘Vered’ means a rose in Hebrew and played a match-it game, comparing and contrasting the different shapes and colors of various flowers. We created a wall flower where each petal had a child’s name on it. We had a great time painting little flower pots. A few of the children volunteered to perform scenes of sharing in creative dress-up and we enjoyed watching them. We learned a cute song called ‘You share, I share’ and used musical instruments.
It is nice to see the Mitzvah Tree Notes being brought in each week and we hope to see more of them!
Sunday, November 16
Morah Ilana: Level 3
This week we learned all about Noah and the Flood.
We discussed the significance of the olive branch that
was brought back to Noah and the reason why there are
so many different languages in the world today! We
talked about how Hashem told Noah to take with him on the
ark two of each animal- a male and a female. To enforce
this idea, we played a match game where we had to find
the pairs of animals.We continued with our Hebrew learning and played a fun
game of bingo with candy! We are so excited out David passing through the
first level of Aleph champ! He passed the
‘White’ Level Test with flying colors! We hope he continues to improve and go
from level to level successfully! He is
doing a great job! Jacobs reading is improving each week and he is
doing a great job focusing on the pronunciation of difficult words. We are very
impressed with his diligence and wish to continue to see his progress. To learn more about the Shma Prayer, we discussed
the second paragraph of Shma and its meaning. The boys were encouraged to give
their own interpretation of what the Shma means to them.
Tuesday, November 11
Morah Ilana: Level 1
Today we learned all about the Mitzvoth of ‘Derech
Eretz’- Respect, which begins with the letter Daled
and ‘Hachnasat Orchim’, Inviting Guests, which begins with the
letter Hey. We discovered many objects and pictures about
these commandments in our special treasure box. Each
child had a turn to participate in the wall activity. We
discussed the origins for the Mitzvah of Respect and found out that in the
Torah, Eisav had great respect for his father Isaac. He would go and hunt for his
father and do whatever he asked. Even though he was a wild man, he was very careful
with this Mitzvah. We discussed all the people we must show respect to like; our
parents, old people, our teachers and even our friends. The children were divided
into teams to play ‘Tick Tack Toe’ and answered questions about the different ways of
giving respect. We also discussed the Mitzvah of Inviting Guests. We
talked about how we should make our guests feel comfortable in our home and
related it to the way Abraham behaved when Hashem sent him the angels to come and visit
him when he was sick. We made beautiful ‘Welcome to my Home’ and ‘Ssshhh Mommy
is sleeping’ plaques to hang on our doors.
Morah Esther: Level 2
Today, we saw how quality is more important than quantity. Only four kids came to class! But boy, did we have a good time! We missed all the children who could not make it.
We had a special Israeli woman come in and read Hebrew with Andrew and Josh, while I worked with Kaylee and Kelly. The boys are already reading from their orange workbooks and are beating their time on the timers! We are so proud of them!
The girls learned a few new tricks to remember the more difficult and confusing letters and they are also advancing really well in their reading skills.
We then learned all about Avram- the first Jew. We discussed how he discovered G-d and how he knew that the sun, moon or idols could not be G-d.
We learned about his father, his travels and his kindness.
Then came the best part of the class- each kid decorated their own cookie cake with an image from the stories we learned. We had so much fun doing this and I'm sure the cookies tasted delicious..
Can't wait to see ALL of you next week!
Morah Ilana: Level 3
This week at Hebrew for Kids we continued our curriculum of Torah Studies with the section about Adam and Chava (Eve). We read from the Chumash and filled out a fun worksheet with questions and answers. We also decorated delicious cookies with images which represent the different characters in this weeks Torah portion.
We also concentrated on our Hebrew language skills- reading, writing and progressing in our knowledge. We started a new element to our weekly class, of using a timer to see how many Hebrew words can be read with in a minute, in order to challenging ourselves and see how we improve over the weeks.
We continued to learn the
meaning of the prayers, by reading a detailed explanation of the prayer
‘Shema’, which expresses the greatness of God and the commandment to give ones
children a Jewish education, providing for them an understanding of the Torah
and Mitzvot.
We were very happy to see that some of the children brought in their Mitzvah Notes. We read them out to the class and they were so happy to received two stickers each! Pease remember to start bringing in your Mitzvah Notes. This weeks Mitzvah Note is at the bottom of the 'Peek into the Week' letter home.
We had a great time! i cant wait to see them all next week!
We had a great day at Hebrew for Kids. We had fun doing our Alef Champs workbooks. I divided the kids into groups of 2 and they helped each other work through the workbooks. It was great to see their reading skills as well as their team work.
We then learned about the story of Noah. We discussed how low the people of the world were behaving, that G-d actually decided to destroy the world. We learned how Noah was the only righteous man and how he built an ark to save him and his family. We each drew our own ark, and showed how we too care for animals( like Noah did).
We learned about the people of Bavel who decided to built a tower to reach G-d. G-d punished them by making them confused- each man talking with a different language, and therefore they were unable to co-ordinate the building.
Hope the kids showed you their Noah booklets...
See you next week!
Tuesday, October 28
Morah Ilana: Level 1
WOW! We had
such an amazing time today at Hebrew for Kids!
Today we started our
new curriculum of ‘Marvelous Middot and Mitzvot’. We discussed the difference
between a Middah and a Mitzvah and understood that a Mitzvah is a commandment
given to us by Hashem and which make the world a better place. We also talked about
how a Middah is specific to our behavior and manners, like kindness,
sensitivity and honesty and that having good middot will make us better people.
To impress this concept, we learned a song about Middot and a song about
Mitzvot. The first Middah we learned about starts with the first letter of the
Aleph Bet, the Aleph! We learned all about ‘Ahavat Yisroel’ – ‘Love of your
fellow Jew’. We played a game called ‘hug a bear’, made delicious heart shaped
cookies and created friendship bracelets which we gave to each other. Each
child had a turn to act out a different scenario which showed Ahavat Yisroel. We
also received heart pins in a game of ‘What does your heart tell you’, where
the children were asked what they would do if they were confronted with a
situation where they were able to express Ahavat Yisroel. eg: How can you show
Ahavat Yisroel when you are given something from your parents or how can you
show Ahavat Yisroel to someone in a wheelchair. They all answered so nicely and
we were very proud of them!
We cant wait to enjoy
another day teaching your children!
Please remember to bring back the Mitzvah slip with your child so that he/ she can get a sticker on the Mitzvah Tree. The slip is located at the bottom of the ‘Dear Mom and Dad’ paper they went home with. In the even that it is lost, the slip may be copied and printed off from this website:
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
My child __________ did the Mitzvah of ‘Ahavat Yisroel’ by
doing _________________________________________________________.
Signed:___________
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
We had a great time at Hebrew for Kids. We started off by getting into pairs-
and timing each other while we read from our Alef Champ workbooks. We know our first two vowels and next week we will learn the third!
This week, we learned all about the creation of the world. We studied each day of creation and what was created on that day. We made our own creation workbooks- which you were able to see and enjoy!Ask your kids to tell you what was created each day- they will have fun showing you!
Sunday, October 26th
Morah Ilana: Level 3
Last Week at Hebrew
for Kids, we learned about the historical origins of the Torah. We
discussed the connection and the difference between the two parts- The 5 Books
of Moses and the Oral Law and understood that there are many sections within
these two parts. Within each of the 5 Books of Moses, known as the ‘Chumash’,
there are many chapters which discuss various characters in our Jewish History,
Stories of the Jewish people and laws and commandments which we follow in our
daily Jewish Lives.
In keeping with our Curriculum of
Torah Studies, we began learning Chapter 1, Book 1- called Genesis (or
Bereshit). We learned all about God creating the world in 6 days and what was
created on each day. We made a special ‘Bereshit’ folder containing all the details
of creation. We did a fun worksheet where we explored the idea of God creating
‘something from nothing’ and humans only being able to create ‘something from
something’- meaning that God created everything in the universe in originality
and man-kind can only create from existing materials.
We also improved on our Hebrew
skills, reading, writing and furthering our knowledge in the aleph bet. It is
so pleasing to see that the boys enjoy their Hebrew studies and desire to
improve their skills.
We will see you next week for another day of learning through fun!
Over the past few weeks we learned all about the Holiday Sukkot! We used our 5 Senses to learn all the mitzvot and customs of Sukkot. We discussed different foods: which ones are appropriate to eat on Sukkot and which ones are eaten on regular days and which ones we eat on other Holidays. We learned about the way the Sukkah is built, the four species which we shake on Sukkot and the mitzvah of seeing the stars through the leaves on the Sukkah. We had so much fun comparing an Esrog to an orange and a lemon. We felt the bumpy skin of the Esrog and smelled how different it is to a lemon and orange. We learned to recognize the different shapes and names of the ‘Arba Minim’, the 4 Species which we shake on each of the 8 days of Sukkot and shaped them out in play-dough. We continued in learning the Aleph Bet- with a lesson all about the Daled! We learned its shape and sound and watched a Video about the Daled. It was so much fun to make a Degel (flag) and Draw on them. We also learned that Simchat Torah is the celebration of the beginning of the Torah and played a present game.
The past few weeks at Hebrew for Kids have been fun filled and busy. We learned all about the holiday of Sukkot. We made our own edible and 3D Sukkot, lulav and etrog, Sukkah decorations and flags. We learned how the Lulav and Etrog correspond to different kinds of Jews and how the Sukkah reminds us of the Jews in the desert. We also learned about Simchat Torah- a time of celebration with the Torah.
We are also advancing in our Alef Champs program. We now know all the letters of the Alef Bet as well as a few vowels. We are reading our workbooks, playing games and singing songs to enforce our reading skills.
Morah Ilana: Level 3
For the Past few weeks over the Holidays, we learned about Sukkot and Simchat Torah. We didn’t only learn about what it is, the laws and customs but also the deep background of the Torah itself. We learned that the Torah is separated into 5 Books, each with its own name, stories and laws. We discussed and made our own historical timeline of the passing down of the torah and mitzvoth. We also discussed the differences between the written and oral law and the reasons the oral law was written down. We also designed our own flags to use on ‘Simchat Torah’.
The boys are really progressing in their Hebrew erading and recognition of words and letters. We practiced our Hebrew reading and tested ourselves using flashcards and Aleph Bet flip packets. David has been having private tutoring with Devorah and furthered his knowledge of the Alpeh Bet and is going very well! Jacob is focusing on the vowels and improving on his reading. He too is going well!
Sunday September 28th
Morah Ilana: Level 3
Today we were introduced to the many elements of Yom Kippur. We focused on the special meaning of the Holiday and how the prayers of this ‘Day of Atonement’ relate to us. We learned that Yom Kippur is a day where we go to Shule and pray and we may not eat and drink or wear creams. We also made a ‘Yom Kippur Prayer Booklet’ which allowed us to understand some of the special prayers like ‘Avinu Malkainu’ and the ‘Viduy’ (Confession) prayer. We understood the difference between the two relationships we can have with Hashem, one being a father and the other a king.
As well, we created our very own ‘Yona’ story book. We learned the story and its significance and illustrated the text. It was interesting to see how the children related the story and its deep meaning which they then applied to themselves.
Along with our Holiday studies, we played a game which reviewed the Hebrew vowels. We are still perfecting our acquired knowledge and we hope that by next week, the boys will know them well. We tested them by playing a fun Match Up game. They both did very well! We also practiced our reading by playing a game called ‘My trip to Israel’. We had so much fun and the time flew by!
Cant wait to see you next week!
Tuesday September 23rd
Morah Ilana: Level 1
Today we reviewed everything that we learned about Rosh Hashanah and made a special platter for apples and honey! We also learned all about the holy day of Yom Kippur and what it means to us. We discussed all the things we do and may not do, and understood the comparison between this day and others. We played a game to help us understand that Hashem measures our deeds and judges us on Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement. We used jellybeans to represent our deeds, Red ones for good and black for not good deeds. We discussed the good deeds and not good that we can do and placed the different colored jellybeans on scales to help us understand the way Hashem measures our behavior. We now know that God judges and counts all our deeds and we should do a lot of good things so Hashem will give us a sweet new year.
We reviewed the Aleph Bet by shaping it out in Popsicle sticks, in the air and drawing it. The letters Bet and the Vet look similar but sound totally different so we learned to differentiate between them by using dolls to represent the ‘Bet’ and ‘Vet’ brothers. We saw how the Bet Brother had a Button while the Vet brother was missing a button. We compared the dolls and understood the difference between the letters. We progressed and learned the next letter, the ‘Gimmel’ through drawing out and discussing its shape. We also ate delicious ‘Glida’ (ice cream) and coloured a picture of an ice cream with the letter ‘Gimmel’ as the cherry on top!
Have a Happy and Sweet New Year!!!!!!!
Tuesday, September 23rd
Morah Esther: Level 2
Today was a great day of fun and learning at ‘Hebrew for kids’.
We reviewed our Alef Bet letters and the two new vowels that we learned last week, by playing games and doing worksheets.
We finished learning about Rosh Hashanah- the Jewish New Year. We understood that Rosh Hashanah is a day of judgement, and therefore we want to get rid of all our sins by going to a river/ lake and “throwing our sins” away to the fish.
We also learned about Yom Kippur- the holiest day of the Jewish calendar. We covered some of the important prayers and created our very own “Prayer Book”. We had fun learning about what we can and cannot do on this day.
Today, we brought home our special holiday bags. They are packed with many things we created for the holidays. The kids will have a great time showing and explaining to you what the objects in the bag are… so remember to ask them!!
Wishing you all a Sweet New Year and well over the fast.
Tuesday September 16th
Morah Ilana: Level 1
Mom and Dad!! I had SUCH an amazing day! We used our whole bodies to experience Rosh Hashanah!
Now I am ready and prepared for the New Year!
I Tasted delicious honey cake
I Touched the rough scratchy inside of the shofar horn.
Saw the special candle light that mommy and girls bless.
I Smelled the yummy round Rosh Hashanah challah.
I Heard an amazing story and sang wonderful songs about Rosh Hashanah.
I also learned the letter Bet! I completed a Bet booklet full of Buttons, Bubas (dolls) and Bananas!
We played a game called 'Find the Bet in the Bayit'.
I can't wait for next week! I'm going to learn all about the next special holidays coming up AND the next letter in the 'Aleph Bet'. Im so excited! Thank you Mommy, for letting me come!
Tuesday September 16th:
Morah Esther: Level 2
'Hebrew for kids' was great fun this Tuesday. We reviewed our Alef Bet and could not believe how many letters we can all remember! We moved on to two new vowels 'kamatz' and 'patach' and the kids had great fun writing these vowels on their very own white boards! Parents- please remind your kids to review the Alef Bet workbooks which where sent home with them.
We continued learning about Rosh Hashanah- the Jewish New Year. All the children helped when we baked honey cake! It came out so delicious- we all wanted seconds! We then decorated honey jars, which will be filled with honey to be brought home before Rosh Hashanah.
Can't wait to see you all at the Shofar Factory on Sunday and then again on Tuesday at 'Hebrew for Kids'!
Sunday September 14th
Morah Ilana: Level 3
Today we welcomed our new student David!
We reviewed and learned our Hebrew vowels and made a 'Flap' page which will remind us of each of the names.
We baked yummy cookies in the shape of the Hebrew letters which make up our names!
In honour of the upcoming holiday, Rosh Hashanah, we completed an informative worksheet on the few most important things about the special day! We also discussed what the meaning of the shofar is and what it means to us. We wrote on our papers something that we will work on for the year and another thing which we will pray for on Rosh Hashanah.
We look forward to seeing you both at Hebrew for Kids next week for another day of fun and learning!
Tuesday September 9th
Morah Ilana: Level 1
Wow!!! What an EXCITING first day of Hebrew for Kids! We had such fun today! We learned all about Rosh HashanahWe tasted sweet Lolly-pops, touched the rough shofar horn, saw the beautiful sparkly fish’s scales made with sequins, smelled the delicious honey scent and heard wonderful songs and stories about Rosh Hashanah. We learned the song "Apples dipped in Honey" and also learned the letter Aleph from the Hebrew Aleph Beis. We did cute worksheets which helped them with recognising the Aleph and even played a tasty jelly-bean game. through the 5 senses!
I am looking forward to next week for another AMAZING day at Hebrew for Kids.
Morah Esther: Level 2
It was a pleasure meeting your children. We got off to a great start reviewing their Aleph Bet skills. The kids remembered almost all the letters by themselves and with a little help, they remembered the others. We prayed and sang some songs together.
Each child received a a beautiful handbag with a passport inside, as we are "packing and getting ready" for the Jewish New Year. This bag will soon be filled with all the fun objects we will need for the festival.
We then learned all about Rosh Hashanah(The Jewish New Year). Each child took on their own New Year's resolution. Please encourage them to fulfil these resolutions!
We set up our own festival table for Rosh Hashanah, complete with the apples and honey, head of fish, round Chalot and candle sticks. The children learned how we eat and do certain things in order to have a sweet new year.
The kids then made a special festival table on paper, which they are keeping in their handbags..
Look forward to seeing you again next week!
Sunday, September 7th
Morah Ilana : Level 3
Today in Hebrew For Kids we reviewed all we know about the Aleph Beis and reading. We learned all about the meaning of Rosh Hashanah and the customs of the day. We talked about the importance of thinking deeply and seriously about our actions and about the significance of the Shofar and different holiday symbols. We filled out an awesome worksheet- the ten most important things to know about Rosh Hashanah. We did a Match-it worksheet and went through the Machzor for Rosh Hashanah so that we can follow along and Daven in Synagogue. We also made a cool bookmark to keep our place in the Machzor.
We cant wait until next Sunday for another great Hebrew experience!
Morah Esther : Level 2
It was a pleasure meeting your children. We got off to a great start reviewing their Aleph Bet skills. The girls remembered almost all the letters by themselves and with a little help, they remembered the others. We prayed and sang some songs together.
Each child received a a beautiful hand bag with a passport inside, as we are "packing and getting ready" for the Jewish New Year. This bag will soon be filled with all the fun objects we will need for the festival.
We then learned all about Rosh Hashanah(The Jewish New Year). Each child took on their own New Year's resolution. Please encourage them to fulfil these resolutions!
We set up our own festival table for Rosh Hashanah, complete with the apples and honey, head of fish, round Chalot and candle sticks. The children learned how we eat and do certain things in order to have a sweet new year.
The kids then made a special festival table on paper, which they are keeping in their briefcases.
Look forward to seeing you again next week!