Jewish Academy of Wake County, a Mom's perspective

Mother Sees Child's Needs Accommodated

2010-11-08T16:25:00.000-08:00

I have invited JAWC parents to contribute their thoughts to my blog. Here is what the mother of a boy in the 4-5 class has to say.

"J. arrives and leaves school with a smile. At JAWC he is growing spiritually, emotionally and academically. (At JAWC) we never have to worry about his academic growth being stunted or him becoming bored. If he is ready to do work in the next grade level, his teachers accommodate him. I love that the learning achieved there is not one dimensional. He is able have his imagination to soar, to express his thoughts and ideas, and to be heard. One year when students were doing standardized testing, and it was not his year to participate, he was curious and asked if he could also take the test. He was not only permitted to go ahead, but was encouraged to do so."

Note from a Parent

2010-11-01T16:28:00.000-07:00

I've asked parents to contribute some posts. Here is not from a Mom who has two sons at the school. The youngest is in the K-1 class and the oldest in the 4-5 class.

"I wanted to share with you the great joy I experienced the weekend of Sukkot from my boys carrying over their Jewish Academy experiences. D. (the kindergartner) and his buddy were belting out their benching on Friday after lunch at the shul. Also, at Sunday school (they attend a Conservative synagogue) R. (the 4th grader) took the lead in singing Ashrei in his class. He regaled me all the way home with the full prayer, even though they were only working on the first line! D. and R. continued to sing the Shabbat songs they have been practicing in Judaics all day on Sunday, for fun. Finally, D. has been locating and announcing hechshers on grocery items, drink and candies. Much to his surprise and joy, Laffy Taffy is kosher!"

School Started Today

2010-08-18T07:44:00.001-07:00

This morning the Jewish Academy started its third academic year. R is in 2nd grade!

This year, we have all primary grades. All of the classes, K-1, 2-3, and 4-5, are about the same size, ranging from 5-7 kids. In addition to two new teachers, we have hired a couple, Rabbi Lev and Dossi Cotler, to help Rabbi Aaron Herman with administration and Judaics. They are so nice, so excited and energetic, and the parents are just thrilled to have them here.

R. woke up bright and early this morning and had her usual getting dressed crisis, even though she had chosen what uniform elements to wear the night before. "This white shirt is too long. It covers the bow on the front of my skirt. I don't want to tuck it in. I want to wear the clips with the bright yellow hair piece. No, I want to wear my new headband. No, I want a ponytail..." Oy. She finally figured it out.

She got there on time with a smile on her face, walked right in and started the day. I'm not sure I even got a wave goodbye. She is very excited about Morah Jodi Gore, who also happens to be her summer swim coach, being her teacher. I am excited as well. I helped Jodi set up the classroom one day, and it is so warm and inviting, as well as academic. I think it's going to be a great year.

Micrography, Oil Spills, and L'Cha Dodi.

2010-05-10T08:14:00.001-07:00

I taught art again last Friday. We made picture for Mothers Day, inspired by Micrography or Microcalligraphy. Micrography is a style, often seen in Jewish art, where text is used to actually create an image. Lines of text are used as lines. Different density of text can be used for shading.
We started by writing a few sentences about Mom. Some of the kids wrote two sentences, some filled a page. Next we used pencil to lightly sketch out an image. The kids then either outlined their images with the text. Some used crayon to add some color, and then traced the letters using sharpies. We then erased the pencil lines. We spent about an hour and fifteen minutes on the project, most of the kids taking almost that entire time to complete it. One of the Moms came up to me and thanked me, saying the picture and the things their child wrote made her cry (happy tears, of course.) I was very proud of how seriously most of the children worked on the project.
Then we had a short Shabbat circle. The kids started the circle by telling Rabbi Aaron a bunch of riddles and jokes. That could have gone on for the entire session so Rabbi Aaron told them to tell him all of the rest of their jokes after Shabbat circle. They then talked about the oil spill. The children had read a book about oil spills, and had a science lab related to oil spills. They had all sorts of information to share about why oil spills are a problem and some of the ways people try to clean them. Rabbi Aaron then talked about the Torah, and how it has no title pages. How do we know when we are moving from one book to the next? Because there is a big space between the last line of one book to the first line of the next book. Where do the books get their Hebrew names? From the first important word in each book.
Then they sang L'cha Dodi, like they do every week. R., who had just returned from Israel, shared that she had been in the courtyard in Tzefat where the song L'cha Dodi was written in the 16th century, and that she sang the song while she was sitting there. Rabbi Aaron pointed out how the author, Rabbi Shlomo Alkabetz, wrote it as an acrostic poem, putting his name, Slomo ha'Levi, into the first letters of the lines of the song. He held up a siddur to show them where they could find his name.

Let your child come visit for the day

2010-05-10T08:01:00.000-07:00

I was having a conversation with a parent whose child is very unhappy in their current school. My proposal, let the child come spend a day at the Jewish Academy.

Did you know that your child, even a rising kindergartner, is welcome to come spend the day attending class with the Jewish Academy students? This is part of the beauty of a small school. We can be flexible. The teacher is not concerned that your child will be disruptive or make her day more difficult. The students in the class are kids who know how to treat a stranger, so they are going to be as welcoming as a group of K-2 kids can be.

I say, go for it. If you are unhappy with your child's school situation or are trying to make a decision about kindergarten, just let your child give us a try.

Notes for the Kotel

2010-04-20T06:22:00.000-07:00

My family is going to Israel. R. is very excited. She has learned quite a bit about Israel, having been first in a Jewish preschool and now in a Jewish Day School, and is ready for the trip. One special thing R. has on her schedule in Israel is putting notes in the Kotel (Western/Wailing Wall) for her class. The notes are in a ziplock. She knows she has a very important job. Many of them have the word "private" written on the outside and R. made it very clear to my husband and I that we are not to read her friends' notes, that they are private prayers and requests to G-d.

Amy Ripps visits for Shabbat Circle

2010-04-20T05:46:00.000-07:00

A week ago we had a really special visit from Amy Ripps, the Director of Education at Beth Meyer Synagogue. She was the visiting Jewish Educator during Shabbat Circle.

Amy, who is always a terrific story teller, told the tale of a bear who is hanging out in a building in Brooklyn, steeling the honey for Grandmother's Shabbat kugel as family members return from the store. The grandmother keeps repeating to the members of her family who come back from the store with no honey "But there are NO BEARS IN BROOKLYN." The children all joined in a chanted this chorus with Amy, giggling. Finally the Grandmother goes to the store herself. When she is harrassed by the bear she discovers that he is lost and invites him to Shabbat dinner. I love this story because it is a wonderful, funny way to teach that one should open their heart and their home to the person who has nowhere to go for Shabbat and Holidays.

In addition to Amy's story, many of the students read entries from their classroom journals to the group. Some of the entries were short, some of them were very long. What I always find amazing is how the students sit patiently and listen to their classmates, applauding at the end of each story. One little girl read a very long story about all sorts of weird things that kept showing up in her lunchbox. Sometimes it was gross. Sometimes it was silly, but she read the whole story and everyone listened attentively. She wasn't rushed or cut off, even when it was clear that we were going to run out of time, because allowing a little girl to read her entire story is very important.

This is another wonderful thing about being in a small school with an engaged population of parents. We ran out of time. Parents arrived and stood around the classroom, but nobody took their child. There was no carpool line that needed to be managed. Everyone waited patiently and listened to the end of Shabbat Circle. Even the tween older sister who had run in to get her brother, whose Mother was waiting in a running car in the parking lot understood that the right thing to do was just to wait, enjoy listening to the kids read their journal entries, to Amy telling her story, and to sing L'cha Dodi together to welcome the upcoming Sabbath.

2010-01-18T16:56:00.000-08:00

And here's a letter from Morah Leah, the Judaics teacher. Just to clarify, this is a K-2 class she's talking about. I did cut out one paragraph about their Hebrew reading homework. Same with the letter from Morah Erin. I edited out some specific assignment instructions.

Dear Parents,
We are busy doing many things in our Judaic Studies lessons. Here is an update of what we have been covering.

Tefillah/Prayer
We are progressing nicely through the prayer of “Ashrei” – we sing it every day and try to follow along with most of the words. Just this week we have finished the entire prayer, which is quite an accomplishment. The children feel very proud of being able to sing along to a very long prayer. We will continue practicing it so the students can become even more fluent in their reading.

Chumash/Bible Study
We are continuing reading and translating the Chumash in its original text. At this stage, a lot of the singing/reading/translating is done by memory. We are comparing similar words and looking for clues as we decipher the translations. I did send home some Chumash review homework and had varied results. Some of the students were frustrated when they tried reviewing at home. For now, I will keep the reviewing in the classroom until they feel more confident. If your child would enjoy reviewing at home, you might try showing them a Chumash opened to the first chapter of Beraisheit. The book we use in school is in large print, color-coded and is very child-friendly, but it is important for the children to see that these ancient words are the same in all different types of Chumashim, as well as in any Torah they will ever see.

Tu B’Shvat – The New Year for Trees
The topic of Tu B’Shvat has been filling our classroom – the bookshelves feature special tree-themed books, our walls are covered with artwork depicting this holiday and even our classroom door has some extraordinary artwork and reflections on giving trees.
I read Shel Silverstein’s The Giving Tree to the class and we had a fascinating discussion about the question: Who is YOUR Giving Tree? The children all had different answers and it was so interesting to hear all the different perspectives on giving and receiving.
We discussed the lessons that trees can teach us and the responsibility we have to sustain trees and all living things. Our class is very environmentally aware and brainstormed for ideas of how to take care of our world to make it a place where things can grow in a safe and healthy way.
The children each imagined “What kind of tree would I be?” Each child’s unique personality was reflected in their artwork and their choice of tree.
The children have been singing Tu B’Shvat songs as well as learning the names of various fruits and grains in Hebrew. They will make their own memory matching game to take home and practice the “Shiva Minim” – The 7 types of fruit and grains that are special to Israel and that are talked about in the Torah.
To end our Tu B’Shvat unit, we will be tasting an assortment of fruits and comparing and contrasting them, using all of our senses.
Have a Happy Tu B’Shvat!
Morah Leah Herman

2010-01-17T17:13:00.000-08:00

I love the letters I get from the teachers. Here's one from Morah Erin. Her enthusiasm is palpable.

Dear Parents and Friends,
What a wonderful beginning to a new year! First and foremost, I would like to say an official welcome to the Sh----- family. H------- joined us the first day back from winter break making First Grade student number eight (As the children and I would say- “Eight is great”!). She has been with us two weeks and has told me on more than one occasion that she is enjoying being at JAWC. Hats off to each of the other children for their genuine caring and helpfulness to make H-------’s transition a smooth one!

We have been busy learning about amphibians, reptiles and spiders the last few weeks. We experienced firsthand what it is like to have to molt like a snake at Science Lab last week. This week, we learned some amazing facts about spiders. Do you know?
1. What animal group spiders belong to and other animals in the same group?
2. How many eyes a spider has?
3. How many sets of spinnerets most spiders have?
4. If a spider’s web gets destroyed what it will sometimes do before building a new one?
Your children sure do-ask them and find out!

This week we followed directions to an experiment many of the children read about in one of our Leveled Reading books, Earth’s Riches. As each of them read this book, they asked/begged to make their own salt crystals. We now have several jars of colored salt crystals beginning to form along the edge of the window in our Science room. If you have a moment when you drop your child off in the morning or pick up in the afternoon, come in and take a peek!

Several of our students have been recipients of thank you letters recently. Several of the soldiers that we sent care packages to in December have sent us many beautiful letters. One soldier wrote: “Your kind words remind us why we are here and why we serve. It (your package) helped to soften the separation we feel at not being with our families. We feel honored and blessed to love in a nation and serve such fine young people like yourselves.” It is amazing how such a little bit of effort can have such a powerful impact!

We discussed the earthquake in Haiti this week. We learned: where Haiti is on the map, that for every one person who works, there is one person who does not and those who do work only make a little more than two dollars per day. At Shabbat Circle, Rabbi Aaron had each of the children give extra tzedakah so the school could make a donation to the disaster relief fund.

This afternoon, we read an amazing book that Syndey and her family brought in about Martin Luther King, Jr. and Rabbi Abraham Hershel. It told of both of the men’s lives and struggles. It led to a discussion about prejudice, being open minded and standing up for what you believe in. WOW!

I am happy to announce that our Second Grade girls did a remarkable job reading at Temple Beth Or Preschool last month. They have been invited to come back this month to read to the four year old classes again! These young ladies are also going to pair up and be a “reading buddy” with a four year old from Hillel Preschool every Thursday afternoon beginning in February.

Another big Thank You goes to our fabulous Art Teacher, Debbie Secan. She came in this afternoon and did a lesson on shading, sketching animals and scratch art. I hung several of the student’s creations on the board and windows in our Science room. As I was hanging things up, one student remarked, “That’s A LOT of animals!” Please stop in and see the gallery we enjoyed making.
Have a fabulous l-o-n-g weekend,
Morah Erin

Lunchtime Visit

2010-01-05T11:22:00.000-08:00

I had to take R. to a appointment mid-day today, and when I dropped her back off, I got such a nice warm fuzzy feeling. When we arrived the other kids were in another room eating lunch, so only the general studies teacher, Erin, and May Berman, a retired teacher and volunteer, were in the classroom. R. had eaten her lunch in the car so she decided to stay in the classroom with May and Erin and work on her journal, the daily writing they do every day. She happily went to gather her journal box and brought it to the table, together with the Starbucks hot cocoa we picked up on the way in. She seemed perfectly content, sitting at her desk, writing, and drinking her hot cocoa, getting lots of attention from Erin and May. Then I dropped in on the rest of the class. They were sitting around a big table in the synagogue's kiddush room, eating and giggling with Jodi Gore. Why were they all giggling? They were doing Mad Libs with Jodi while eating lunch!

Hands-On Mitzvah Projects

2009-12-22T13:12:00.000-08:00

This fall JAWC students undertook two Mitzvah projects. The first project was a canned food drive for Jewish Family Services. First they each brought in non-perishable food from home. They counted the classroom tzedakah and took a portion of the money to Kroger, where they each chose two additional non-perishable items. Taking the children to Kroger on Thanksgiving week to buy food for families that need some help is becoming a tradition at JAWC, as this is the second year they have done this. Shopping for basic items to give to people in need reinforces to the children that they have much to be thankful for, and that something as basic food is not to be taken for granted. The kids love doing the self check-out. In the end three boxes of food were given to Jewish Family Services.

For the second Mitzvah project, right before winter break, the students packed and shipped boxes filled with hygiene products, snacks, and candy to deployed servicemen. Their teacher, Erin Scoggins, has a brother serving in Afghanistan who advised her on the items the soldiers need. Some of the students gave names and addresses of people in the military that they know. Our next door neighbor is a Chaplain in Iraq so a package was sent to him. S. and her family had spent Shabbat with a Rabbi and his family at Camp Legune so she felt connected to this mitzvah project, having spent a weekend with military families and soldiers on a base. In addition to needed items, each box contained a class photo, with all of the children dressed in red, white and blue, in front of the American and Israeli flags. Some of the children wrote notes to the soldiers. Even though the packages will arrive well after the holidays, as the holidays were fresh on the kid’s minds, I did see “Happy Hanukkah, I love you” written on one card and heard some discussion between the kids on whether or not it makes sense to write “Merry Christmas” on another. Eleven boxes were sent.

JAWC Hosts Jewish Children’s Book Author Dina Rosenfeld

2009-12-20T09:28:00.000-08:00

This is the full version of the article I'm writing for the Raleigh/Cary Jewish Federation's paper. The paper's version will be much shorter.

It was a cold and snowy day, the first day of winter vacation, yet the Jewish Academy of Wake County was warm and full of happy children. Dina Rosenfeld, author of many Jewish Children’s books, was sitting in a little green chair, teaching an enwrapped audience of twenty children and many adults how to write a children’s book.
She used as an example her book “Peanut Butter and Jelly for Shabbos”. It started on a sheet of yellow lined paper that is covered with sentences and paragraphs all written in different directions, generated through brainstorming. One sentence was circled, the idea behind “Peanut Butter and Jelly for Shabbos.” She then showed the editing process, where the story is refined from a handwritten pages with many corrections to a typed pages with corrections to a finished story that is then put into an envelope and sent to the illustrator. Rosenfeld says “In a picture book, if you talk about something you have to show it.” She showed the illustrator’s process from pencil drawings to full color images and the changes they made along the way to clarify the message of the illustrations. She showed the finished book in its hard cardboard binding.
Next she showed two books in their original form that she had illustrated herself, and how professional illustrators and book designers had continued her work. In one example, the illustrator did something completely different than what she had originally drawn. She said that it’s interesting how two people can interpret a story in two completely different ways. She then showed an original layout of a book where she had created collages of colored paper for the illustrations. In that example the illustrator had used her illustrations as the inspiration for his paintings.
Mrs. Rosenfeld also held up the book “A Kind Hearted Rivka”, translated into many languages, and read the title in all of the different languages. She showed them the same book in Braille, and explained how the Jewish Heritage for the Blind prints books in Braille so that blind adults can read stories to the children in their lives.
The final message of the story “Peanut Butter for Shabbos” is “You’ll only succeed if you’re willing to try.” The children at JAWC had made their own books during the last few weeks, each one fully illustrated with a cover and a story with a beginning, middle, and end. The childen were very proud to share their books with Dina Rosenfeld who said “Everyone can be an artist and make up stories.”

Overscheduled?

2009-10-23T06:25:00.000-07:00

I was talking to a mother about JAWC the other day. “The public magnate school offers electives.” she said. Ok, so we don’t have electives, but every day in addition to general studies the children study modern Hebrew and Judaics. The children at JAWC do not need to enroll in religious or Hebrew school through their synagogues until they are in middle school, so they have much more time after school and on weekends to register in whatever extra-curricular activities they and their parents choose. R. is on a competitive swim team that practices twice a week and has weekend meets once a month, sometimes both days of the weekend. She doesn’t have religious school on Sunday morning to interfere with swim meets. She is also a girl scout and takes piano lessons. With all of these activities, R. still has two completely free afternoons each week. Unless there is a swim meet, every Saturday and every other Sunday are also completely free. Synagogue religious schools have a very important role in the community, but enrolling a child in a Jewish day school, like JAWC, can help keep the child from becoming overscheduled, providing them the time to pursue their interests.

Discussing Size

2009-10-21T12:13:00.000-07:00

I often find myself in conversations with parents about how great JAWC has been for my kid. Generally the other parent tells me why they didn’t send their child to JAWC. Often that reason is size related, but usually the fellow parent never looked at the school or talked to Rabbi Aaron about it.

Many parents say “The school is to small" based on conversations they have had with other families who have not sent their children to JAWC. Instead, if the same parents would actually take a good look at what the school has to offer, they may discover something promising. If they then talk about it with fellow parents, a portion of them will also look and some will enroll their kids. The school would no longer be considered “too small”.

The second size related reason is “Socially, my child needs more kids in a class.” I have an extremely social child. Socially, she is perfectly happy in her small class (10 children, k-2). She is friends with every girl in the class. (Boys are almost a different species from the six year old girl’s perspective.) I know that any of those girls can come to my home after school and play quite happily with my daughter, and I’m happy to send her to any of her classmate’s homes. Besides her classmates, she has also maintained friendships from preschool and developed new friendships through extracurricular activities. She has plenty of friends. In a class of 25 kids, how many children is one child really friends with?

I’m not criticizing people for choosing to send their children to other schools after looking at all their options, and some parents do exhaustive research. I am frustrated by the tendancy that some parents have to exclude JAWC from that research because of its size. The small size is not a problem for the children, and if more parents enroll their children each year, it will grow.

She is learning something!

2009-10-01T11:57:00.000-07:00

Sometimes while watching R. (6 yrs old) at, for instance, a childrens service at synagogue, I wonder, is she really internalizing all of this information about Judaism that is taught at school? She's not the kid who raises her hand to answer the questions that Rabbi Solomon or Amy Ripps ask during those services. I think she knows the answers and has something to say, but are they at the tip of her tongue?

Finally I saw a sign. R. reported that at practice for a sport she participates in, the coach commented that she didn't see her on Monday. "We have A LOT of holidays." R. said. The coached asked "Rosh Hashana?" Yes, Rosh Hashana, Yom Kippur, and then next week we have Sukkot." The coach had never heard of Sukkot, so R. explained. "When the Israelites were in the desert, they didn't have houses or restaurants or grocery stores. They had to build sukkahs." "What's a sukkah?" R. answered "A hut. So we build a hut in our yard for Sukkot, like the Israelites had in the dessert." And then she said "Mommy, she didn't know what a sukkah was, so I had to use the word "hut".

A simple answer. It was right at the tip of her tongue, she felt comfortable answering the question, and was confident in her answer.

First Day of School

2009-08-19T17:49:00.001-07:00

School started today. Drop-off was a little crowded with all of the parents hanging out while their kids got settled, but there were smiles all around. Everyone was happy to say hello and shmooze a bit after the long summer break, but we couldn't hang out and turn the classroom into a coffee klatch. Morah (teacher) Erin had worksheets ready on the returning students' desks, so that they could jump right back into study. There were new kindergarteners who needed to be shown the ropes. We grown-ups had to get on with our days.

I didn't give school one moment's thought all day. I knew she was in good hands and was probably having a great day. When we went to pick her up she ran out smiling and gave us big hugs. I saw other kids doing the same thing. One K student told his Mom excitedly about a story the Morah Leah had read during Judaics about Bagels. They had read Bagels from Benny by Aubrey Davis. We had recieved this book from the PJ Library program and it's a really good one. One of R's favorites.

R. said when she got home that 1st grade is really different than kindergarten. There is much less playing and no rest period. She was a little annoyed that the new kindergarteners don't have to suffer through rest time like her class did but I'm guessing she'll get over that. It sounded like R. really enjoyed having the new kindergarteners in the mix. I asked if the 1st graders included them during free time and she promised me that they had.

I asked R what she did today that she liked. She said the best part of the day was making three different kinds of playdough, and she described to me the different recipes. When I got home, Morah Erin completed the playdough story with her email reporting on the first day. They made three very different types of playdough for their first science lab, which are being stored till tomorrow when the kids will compare and contrast.

Morah Erin's email also had photos of the kids involved in some of their first day activities. It was nice that she made sure that every kid in the class was in at least one of the photos.

The Month of May

2009-05-27T11:01:00.000-07:00

It's been a whole month since I've posted and the year is coming to a close in a few weeks. We had another guest Rabbi this month. Rabbi Jurovics from Temple Beth Or came to Shabbat circle and told the children a story. Unfortunately I couldn't be there that day, but I just wanted to make a note that each Raleigh synagogue, Reform, Conservative, and Orthodox, has had a Rabbi participate in Shabbat circle at least once this year.

This last month has been really fun. The kids have gone on lots of field trips. They went to the Waste Management recycling facility, the N.C. Museum of Art, a farm with animals, the public library (where they each got their own card) and Strawberry picking.

I organized and led the trip to the art museum and was very pleased by the level of interest and good behavior the kids maintained for the entire visit. We went through all of the galleries currenty open plus hiked through the park to see some of the large outdoor installations. The children made wonderful observations about the artwork they encountered. One of my favorite moments was when we all sat in a circle in a room that had three huge but very different paintings hung, a Keifer, a Stella, and a Katz and the children discussed which one they liked best. The class was split in three, and each group gave a compelling k-1 level reason for liking their first choice. The other thing I noticed was that each child chose the painting that most resembled their own artistic approach!

A cute moment was in front of a painting showing the worship of the golden calf. One child stood their and found all sorts of inconsistencies with her understanding of the story. The museum guard listening to the conversation was both impressed and amused. "Mt. Sinai isn't a big mountain like that, it is a humble mountain. The Israelites wouldn't have dressed like that, etc, etc."

We also had our a school fundraiser this month, a barbeque at one parent's home. It was pouring rain that day and we worried that people wouldn't come. My husband said to me "Why are you so worried. A group of people who like eachother and are getting together to support an organization they care about." Almost everyone who had RSVPed came, and there were a few welcome extras that just showed up. All of the parents helped to make the event happen, and it was such a success.

Pesach

2009-04-23T14:28:00.001-07:00

This year at the Passover seder we got to see our tuition dollars at work. R. was so well prepared for Pesach we were rather blown away.

The day before Pesach bread R. brought home a Hadagadah that she had made in school. Each page was simple. It had the name of one part of the seder written in Hebrew on the top of the page. The pages were printouts, but one each page she had added the vowels into title words that didn't have them, added printouts of prayers or visual clues to the page, or drawn and colored on it. It was obvious that a lot of work had gone into this. It was nicely bound with plastic rings and the cover was laminated. I had a look, complimented her work and stuck it into the bag we were taking out of town. At that time I didn't really expect it to be used at the seder.

The seder night came. We went to my Sister's home were she had 23 people. R. sat down in her seat, ready to start, and the FOLLOWED THE SEDER with her Hagadah from school. When my Brother-in-law announced that we were moving from Kadesh to Urchatz to Karpas, etc, she found the page on her own , looked at her page, listened, and enjoyed feeling like she was a part of it all. Sometimes there was a little back and forth between her and my Brother-in-law or other people at the table..."Are we here yet? Isn't this next?" etc.

Then, she sang the Four Questions, solo. I needed to help briefly by reminding her the first syllable of a word her or there, but basically, she sang it by herself. They had practiced it once every day in school for a couple of weeks and had to practice at home each night. Although R. is not shy, she has stage fright and we did not expect her to pull this off completely.

I am not telling you all of this to brag about my child. Obviously I think my kid is great, but we all have great kids and they all achieve all sorts of things. I'm telling this story to show how well prepared she was for what, in the Jewish world, is an important yearly event. If she is able to enjoy and understand a Passover seder at this level in kindergarten, I really look forward to the depth of experience and understanding that she will have at the Passover seder in a few years, as she advances through the Jewish Academy of Wake County.

Rabbi Solomon visits Shabbat Circle

2009-03-30T06:06:00.000-07:00

Rabbi Solomon from Beth Meyer synagogue was the visiting Rabbi at Shabbat circle on Friday.

When he walked in the door of the K-1 class the three girls that attend Beth Meyer (including my daughter) were so excited they surrounded him, jumping up and down and making lots of happy noise. We had been working on a greeting card project in art, so a few of the kids made cards to welcome him and all the kids had signed their names. Then, the class dragged him around giving a tour of their K-1 classroom. They were so proud to show off their classroom and so excited to have him visit.

At Shabbat circle he began to tell a story about Miriam being the first to brave that first step into the Red Sea. Rather than it being a story that he told, it turned into a lively exchange, as the kids were familiar with the story and wanted to give their two cents as well. With all of the hand raising and back and forth, he did manage to squeeze a good lesson in there about how when something is hard but is the right thing to do, you just need to have faith and take that step.

Then the teachers and kids did the usual Shabbat circle thing, sharing what they had learned and achieved over the week. The first graders showed off their cursive, a few of the kindergartners read a story, and the 2nd-3rd graders read one paragraph each of their social studies essays on the Stamp Act. They sang a fun repetitive chant of the order of the Pesach Seder and the first and last of The Four Questions.

Rabbi Solomon's visit made Friday and Shabbat circle very special for my child. I thank him for coming.

Morah Erin

2009-03-05T14:08:00.000-08:00

I thought I'd write a few words about our K-1 general studies teacher, Morah Erin.

First, Morah Erin has boundless energy. She is a self-starter and is not afraid to dive headfirst into a project involving lots of steps, mess, and effort. Our upcoming Purim carnival is an example. She came up with the idea to host a Purim event for rising Kindergartners and immediately started enlisting help to carry it through. It is an event that is mostly going to be run by the kids. They are working hard making games for the preschoolers to play. I do hope a nice group of the little ones come because I think they'll have a good time playing with the big kids.

Erin is not Jewish, but she has worked as an educator in local Jewish schools for many years. This year she has decided that she will learn to read Hebrew with her K class. When I asked her "Why do you teach at this school?", she said, "Well, for instance, the kids are helping me learn to read Hebrew. I couldn't get that anywhere else." In the parking lot, I heard her thanking a child for helping her read Hebrew today. She made him feel very special. I could see by the smile.

She also said that she likes the fact that she can spend time every day, teaching every child individually. When I asked her this afternoon what she would want me to write about her, she said that this is very important to her. It's her favorite thing about teaching a small class. R. doesn't talk about general studies at school. When I ask her what she did in school that day she usually talks about P.E., recess, and lunch. Yet I see what an improvement there has been in R.'s reading, writing, and math skills. I have noticed that she suddenly has all sorts of information that I didn't teach her.

Erin is not stern. Her classroom is full of laughter and chatter, but there is also discipline. She speaks to the kids and to us very honestly and without mincing words. I remember at the beginning of the year R. was very unhappy that there was a 20 minute rest time every afternoon. I went in with R. to ask Erin what could be done about my child's terribly unhappiness during rest time. Erin, without pause, looked directly at R. and said "Kindergartners have a short rest time every afternoon. That is a time for you to rest quietly on your mat. We don't play or read during that time." R. accepted this as the way things were going to be and hasn't mentioned it again.

While she maintains discipline Erin distributes pounds of goodwill, and encouragement to the kids. She can be sort of cheerleader-like. She's very perky. She is also a very serious teacher and is doing a wonderful job teaching my child. R. has woken up every morning happy to go to school.

What the parents like about the Jewish Academy

2009-03-02T05:00:00.000-08:00

I've been asked "What do you like about the Jewish Academy?"

There are so many things that I like, that I'm just going to choose my favorite, and then encourage other parents to comment and add their own favorites.

My favorite thing about the Jewish Academy is the atmosphere of happiness. The kids are loved and nurtured. The faculty is warm and approachable. The kids love each other. Everyone is very nice to one another. The teachers and volunteers really care about the total well-being of each child.

I'll give one example that I saw while setting up for art class. A kindergartner had fallen asleep during rest time on a Friday afternoon. The K class rests for 20 minutes every afternoon. The rest of the class got up to go to Hebrew but Morah Erin decided to let this one child sleep. The child was obviously very tired and needed the nap. Rabbi Aaron came into the room and saw that there was a child still asleep on a mat instead of in Hebrew. He stood there looking at the kid for a minute, smiling, and then said something like "Kindergartners are so small. They are still our babies." (paraphrased) Maybe this doesn't speak to all parents, but it speaks to me.

It shows that while the school teaches the kids all of the things they are supposed to learn for their perspective grade, plus Hebrew, Judaics, P.E. and Music, they feel that for a kid to really achieve they must be nurtured, loved and healthy.

2009-03-02T04:50:00.000-08:00

It's a common question "Are you still happy with the school?" Yes! We are still happy, and more importantly, R. is still happy. She is very, very happy and loves school. She never complains about getting up and going in the morning.

The kindergarten class is doing great. They are all reading at some level by now. They have all moved into the 1st grade math and 1st grade spelling books. They are all learning to read Hebrew and are each moving along at their own speed.

They are planning a Purim carnival for any rising K kids that want to come. I really hope that some of the preschool parents bring their kids to the JCC on the afternoon it is planned, because our kids are working really hard at making the games for them to play.

What I like the most.

2008-12-17T06:50:00.000-08:00

The Beth Or Preschool's four year old class came to visit the Jewish Academy a month or so ago. One of the Moms asked me "What do you like the most about this school?"

I think what I really like the most are all of the benefits that a child gets from being in a small school. My favorite examples are experiential, about teamwork and thoughtfulness. Here are some examples.

For Thanksgiving the children had a mitzvah (good deed) project. They were required to earn money for tzedakah(charity) by doing chores at home for two weeks. They were each expected to earn a minimum of five dollars. It was made clear to the parents that we were not supposed to just send $5 to school for this. In the end, the children all worked hard and exceeded their earning goal. Then, a week before Thanksgiving the school went to Kroger's to buy the supplies for Thanksgiving dinner for two families that are being helped by Jewish Family Services. Each child got a note card with one item they were responsible for finding (written in English and Hebrew). Each child got to help with the self-checkout and feed a few dollars into the checkout machine to pay. Jewish Family Services came to the school to pick up all the food later that day.

Every Friday afternoon the whole school sits in a circle. The general studies teachers for each class talk about what they studied that week and usually engages the kids in some sort of exchange about the topic. Rabbi Aaron or a guest Rabbi shares some wisdom about the Torah portion of the week. Often a Mom comes with her guitar and everyone enthusiastically sings songs. Parents often come to visit at this time and join-in. The nice thing is that all the students sit together and get a chance to participate in the group conversation.

For Hanukkah the school went to a retirement home with many Jewish residents, to sing Hanukkah Songs. The children have practiced every day. They understood that they are doing this to bring happiness to others. They had a good time, had outstanding behavior, and the residents really enjoyed the luncheon. A couple of children even went around to each resident at the table and wished them individually a happy Hannukah. They got lots of hugs and smiles in return.

The entire school plays together on the playground at recess. The big kids play with the little kids. The kids are all nice to each other. I don't hear about meanness or teasing.

The academics are terrific. R.'s brain is challenged and grows every day. But the sort of experiences written above are really shaping her heart and her soul. That is my favorite thing about the school.

Learning Hebrew

2008-12-07T05:46:00.000-08:00

R. is learning to read and speak modern Hebrew in kindergarten and she loves it. She has about 10 minutes of Hebrew reading homework Monday through Thursday, and after three months is just beginning to read consonant/vowel combinations phonetically. All the kids in the class are at different levels with their Hebrew reading at this point, as it should be. They are only 5 yrs old.

R. has already used her Hebrew. When we were in Ft. Lauderdale over Thanksgiving break we stopped in a beachwear shop to buy her flip flops. The owner of the store was an Israeli woman and I was speaking to her in my rusty Hebrew . I asked R. (with whom I never speak Hebrew) what color flip flops she wants "Eze tzeva?" and R. answered "adom" (red). The store owner was just blown away. Perhaps she was too easily impressed, but she was so excited about this little American girl learning Hebrew that she ignored all of her other customers for almost 10 minutes and then threw in a stuffed animal and a mini-license plate with R's name on it as a gift.

"They" (the experts) say that learning a second language is terrific for the young brain. I'm pleased that we've been able to send her to a school that teaches a second language that is also meaningful to us as Jews. She will use it every time she attends a religious service and, G-d willing, when we take a family trip to Israel one day. One thing's for sure. When R. finds herself in an Israeli owned store again, I am sure that our little fashionista and stuffed animal aficionado will use whatever Hebrew she can to receive good service.

The common question

2008-11-12T18:34:00.000-08:00

When I say that my daughter attends The Jewish Academy of Wake county the most common question asked is "Isn't it Orthodox?"

At the Jewish Academy we are all just parents and kids. Half of the families and kids in the school happen to practice Orthodox Judasim and half of us do not. The philosophy of the school is to teach what we all have in common.

I think what I need to reply when that question is asked is "What specifically are you concerned about?"

For instance, people have often asked if the girls and boys at the school pray and learn together, and if there is a mehitzah (divider). There is no mehitzah at the Jewish Academy. The children participate in all religious activities together with no separation of genders.

Another question that comes up is "Do you have to keep kosher now?" Although we are members of the Conservative movement that also believes that keeping kosher is an important Jewish practice, my family does not currently keep kosher and nobody at the Jewish Academy has made us feel uncomfortable about that choice. The children that come from homes with different levels of kashrut observance have playdates and attend each others Birthday parties.

As far as Judaic studies go, I am not actually scholarly enough to understand the theological differences in how the kindergarten version of the story of Abraham (for example) would be taught differently in the different synagogue's religious schools or in other day schools. I do know that she is learning a great deal (often teaching me something new) and always takes away a lesson, be it tzedakah, the mitzvah of welcoming guests into your home, or wishing a sick friend a refuah shelemah (complete recovery). She really loves the Judaics lessons and so I'm happy.

Parent/Teacher Conferences

2008-11-09T05:45:00.000-08:00

We recently had our parent/teacher conference with R.'s kindergarten teacher, Morah (teacher) Erin. Our kid is doing very well, but we still had a lot to talk about. We had a thorough conversation for almost 40 minutes (much longer than the scheduled time). We were not rushed out. Because of the small class she is able to schedule one conference a day.

The conference started with a self-evaluation sheet that R. had filled out. It asked questions about classroom behavior. R. had filled out the sheet very truthfully with some self-criticism and plenty of self-praise. We thought it was both cute and telling.

Then we looked through R.'s writing journal to see how her penmanship, writing, and expression of ideas has improved over the past couple of months. The kids work in a journal every day and it's R's favorite thing to do. It was really fun to look through and read and the progress was amazing.

We learned something about the way our daughter reacts to pressure that we didn't already know. At first, we doubted that Morah Erin was even correct, but now I see exactly what she was talking about. I am now working on adjusted my own behavior while watching R. do her homework. We were also told to stop spelling things for her, which is a really, really hard habit to break, but we're working on that as well. (A retired teacher who volunteers at the school also tapped me on the shoulder in the middle of Shabbat services to remind me that I need to stop spelling for her. How's that for a community school? I love it. It takes a village!)

As parents we send them off for a day of learning and only get back little snippets of what went on in that time. I do feel very lucky, as a parent, to have my child in a school that is small enough to provide me with such a clear window into my child's school life. I am also thankful for a teacher who is willing to sit down with us for a long conversation about how to help a child who is doing well to do even better.

The Happiest Shabbat Circle, Ever.

2008-10-19T16:41:00.000-07:00

Last week Rabbi Aaron told the kids that they are supposed to be happy on Sukkot, and boy did they take that to heart. The singing during Shabbat circle got so loud and so enthusiastic that the teachers were both giggling. As the parents walked in they were very surprised and pleased. A joyous sound filled the room and probably the parking lot. Y., the quietest boy in the kindergarten class was singing the lively version of Etz Hayim Hee so loud and with so much expression that the other kids started singing louder and louder and laughing. At some point R. stood up, raised her hands in the air and started dancing in place like a dancing Torah for Simchat Torah. It was the happiest way to finish the week.

This Week's Thoughts

2008-10-15T09:50:00.000-07:00

They are learning something!

Isn’t it amazing when you realize that your child has learned something that you had no idea they knew. We went to Shaarei Yisrael for Kaballat Shabbat on Friday night and R. and a friend (both in kindergarten) recited the Veahavta by heart. The congregation was saying it quietly and Rabbi P. Herman had the two kids recite it outloud in the traditional tune with their little 5 year old voices. Boy, I was surprised and proud! I had no idea that they knew it that well. The whole place was smiles. It was very cute.

Teachers that communicate.

I received a 343 word email from R.’s Hebrew teacher reporting R.’s progress in class. I did a word count for the purpose of this blog because I was just so floored. Not only did it give a detailed account of what R. is learning quickly or struggling with, but it gave me an intimate view into how R. interacts in class with other children. While reading the letter I felt that I was as close as being a fly on the wall as I could be. This is definitely one of the enormous benefits of being in a small school.

Some Thoughts About Camaraderie

2008-09-24T09:40:00.000-07:00

About Parents:
I was just reading the weekly newsletter sent to the parents from the K-1 teacher and realized that most of the parents of the K-1 students either volunteer at the school, teach at the school, donate things to the classroom or pick up things from the teacher’s wish list when they are at the store. It’s just a wonderful group of families. I’m so glad that the teacher lets us know what everyone else is doing. If parental involvement in a school is a measure of the school’s quality, we are top notch.

About Kids:
Last week at Shabbat circle Rabbi Aaron had such a large pile of mitzvah notes from the kids that he couldn't even read them all. One was really sweet and stuck in my mind. A kindergarten boy does not like to eat and often refuses to eat his lunch. The Rabbi read a mitzvah note that said that this little boy had eaten his lunch nicely one day. All of the kids and the teachers clapped and congratulated him as the Rabbi explained that taking care of your body is also a mitzvah. The little boy had a big smile. His was the only mitzvah that received applause.

From a kid's perspective:
R. my child, said the other day “My school does not have very many kids in it, but when we all play together, it feels like there are lots of kids.”

Teaching Art

2008-09-21T12:40:00.000-07:00

I teach art on a volunteer basis at the Jewish Academy every other Friday to the K-1 class. You’d think by the end of the week the kids would be tired and ready for the weekend, but they are so great and are so easy to work with. So far I have had no discipline issues to deal with and every child has been happy to sit down and work on whatever I’ve brought for them to do.

For the first lesson we did color wheels, starting with primary colors. What amazed me was how exciting they found this simple exercise. One boy got the brown right on the first try and was so proud. They all were very impressed with his color wheel.

Then I passed around pictures of Color Plane and Minimalist paintings for them to look at and say how the colors and shapes were making them feel, and then they painted their own. They all came up with different results. Some wanted to add black tape, to mimic the black lines in Mondrian’s paintings, so they did that. This was a really good project to start with.

This past Friday I brought in tons of photos cut out of magazines and had them make a collage that tells a story. This was a much more complicated project than the first one, but all of the kids attacked it head-on. One little girl, a sports lover, composed a story about a basketball player coming to her house for dinner. Another showed a picture of a lady surrounded by all of her stuff (like in ancient Egyptian tomb paintings).

One first grader started an epic work about a man and woman going on a great adventure to discover new lands. She decided that her plans were too great to complete during my class, so she folded up her project, put it in her box, and announced that she would complete it during the week. Erin, the teacher, has an expression, "If you have think you are done, you have only just begun." I think that this attitude of working on something long and hard rather than just getting it done is great. I am so glad that she is willing to have these art projects last longer than just the time I am there so that the kids that want to can complete something they are proud of.

Uniforms

2008-09-18T05:51:00.001-07:00

My first reaction to R. having to wear a uniform to school was negative. I thought it would squelch an opportunity for self-expression. Now that we're into the school year, I realize that I was completely wrong.

First, the uniform itself is open to some variation. The guidelines are a white or light blue collared shirt, and navy or khaki bottoms. The style of these items is not dictated, nor is the policy strict. Nobody seems to mind if a kid shows up missing a collar or wearing brown rather than khaki pants. They can wear any outerwear they want or layer colorful shirts underneath, so the kids walk in looking like individuals. One little girl wears boys soccer shorts under a navy tunic, another layers a sheer lacy tunic on top, and the boys are all untucked and boyish. But still, getting dressed in the morning is easy.

Today the kids are helping a volunteer Mom plant flowers and herbs in the planters on the school deck, so the uniform was waived for the day. Old clothes were recommended.

R. woke up at 6:48 (before the alarm) and immediately set to the task of figuring out what to wear, taking all of the clothes out of the drawers. I suggested that R. just wear an older, stained uniform but this idea was immediately nixed. What was I thinking? 20 minutes later, after 3 inappropriate outfits were tried on, modelled, and returned to the overflowing drawer, R finally came in with a pair of khaki pants (uniform appropriate, actually) and an old long sleeve t-shirt that's a bit too small.

If there was no uniform, we would have to set the alarm 20 minutes earlier or spend time every evening planning an outfit. I'm glad to have that time to sleep or play an extra game of Uno.

The Jewish Academy of Wake County

2008-09-03T19:38:00.000-07:00

The reason I decided to write this blog is to give one parent's perspective on our little school. I must state from the onset of this blog that I am not an impartial observer. My heart is in The Jewish Academy of Wake County. I want this school to grow, and getting out the good word is as important as providing excellent education.

I will refer to my child as "R".

The first three weeks of school have proceeded marvelously. R. is learning so much in kindergarten. I am amazed by how much R's handwriting has improved. In three weeks R. has gone from writing in all wobbly capitals to writing a majority of upper and lowercase letters correctly on lined paper. R. loves writing. They have a journal that they write (or draw) in every day and then they have begun to share those journals with the class once a week.

Last Friday I volunteered in the office. I listened through the door as the K-1 class shared their journals with the 2nd and 3rd graders and the 2nd and 3rd graders read stories they had written to the K-1 class. Then, at Shabbat circle on Friday afternoon, they all sat together again, telling more stories about their weeks, singing songs, and listening to a visiting Rabbi talk about the parshat hashavuah. The Shabbat circle is open and parents often attend. One parent brings her guitar to accompany the singing. What a great way to end a week!

So far, every day I have picked R up from school and asked "How was school?" R's answer has been "Good" or "Great". What more can a parent ask for?