KDH "Student Teachers"

KDH was excited to begin the "Student Teacher" Parsha exploration. Each week one of the children prepare something about the Parsha/weekly portion with their parents and present it to the class. 

Parshat Vayaira

Menny came in with his mother, Morah Shoshi, last Wednesday, carrying a nylon bag and a shopping bag. What did he bring? We went outside enjoying the early morning sunshine. Menny took out a tent for all of us to assemble. Why a tent? We all sat inside together with some Kitah Aleph children while Menny read from his Parsha book. He explained to us that Avraham had a tent with doors on all sides. He sat outside even in the extreme heat, when he was recuperating from his Bris, looking for guests. Menny chose three of his classmates to act out being the three angels who came to visit Avraham. 

Menny served everyone hot cocoa, wafers and clementines to show us how to do the mitzvah of Hachnasat Orchim/inviting guests.

On Thursday, Menny put Parsha pictures into everyone's Erev Shabbat bag to take home and tell the Parsha to their families.  Thank you Menny!

*****

Parshat Chayei Sara

Yesterday, Maddy came in carrying a box filled with small ziploc bags that were filled with colorful popsicle sticks, toilet paper rolls, and disposable whiskey cups attached to a string. We peeked inside the box and found a well that Maddy and her mom had made at home. The bags were kits for each child to design a well. 

After tefilla, Maddy took out one of the Parsha picture pages that she had brought in. She showed us the pictures and told us that Avraham sent his servant Eliezer to find a wife for Yitzchak. Eliezer had ten camels filled with gifts for Yitzchak's future wife. Eliezer stopped at a well and Rivka came out and offered to give Eliezer and all of his camels water. That was a huge kindness! Rivka agreed to go with Eliezer to become Yitzchak's wife. 

We all sat down around the tables and Maddy gave us instructions on how to construct the well. 

Everyone is looking forward to taking home their wells and Parsha pages to share with their families. 

Thank you, Maddy!!

Kitah Alef Prepares for Shabbat!

We have been getting ready for Shabbat this whole week in preparation for the Friday Night Dinner at IJP! There are many themes that emerge when discussing Shabbat. One of them is the concept of light and dark. We made our own light box for the children to experiment with, placing different objects on top for different results.

         

Our sensory table became our Shabbat table, resplendent with a white tablecloth and wooden Shabbat set. White Shabbat candles serve as great loose parts, where the children can choose to use them as traditional candles in candle holders or as drinks in their cups, objects to roll down the slide, or tools for playdough. We used the playdough to make candle holders as well.

Each Friday morning we bake challah! Working with food is a wonderful, organic sensory experience. We alternate poking, patting, squeezing and doing all kinds of things with our challah dough. It's a great fine motor workout too!

    

Our role in table decoration was to make the table runners. Morah Jessica joined us to make it happen in a dynamic way. We used two different methods of ball rolling to make designs in the paint on our runners. One time we rolled the balls down a ramp, and another day we held a kiddy pool together and lifted up and down to make the ball roll. Way to combine art and ergonomics, Morah Jessica!
    

Another day we engaged in art that will serve as our over-the-cubby displays. We glued purple collage items onto shiny foil to represent grape juice in a shiny kiddush cup.

    

Every Friday we have a Shabbat party while the children eat their lunch. We turn off the lights, a morah lights the candles and we say the bracha. Next we sing Shabbat songs, have a little grape juice for kiddush and taste some freshly baked challah.

Shabbat Shalom!

Kitah Bet: Tie-Dye Challah Covers!

In celebrating our Shabbat unit, Kitah Bet children explored lots of Shabbat items featured on the Shabbat table.  One of the components with which we are most familiar--we make it at school every week on Friday--is challah bread.  Children knead, stretch, roll, squish, and shape the dough then we bake it fresh and send home on Friday afternoon in preparation for Shabbat that night.

To adorn our challah bread, the children noticed that our classroom Shabbat set includes a decorative challah cover.  A parent volunteer--Jack’s mom Shayna--offered to help the class make challah covers with tie-dye.  Children chose their favorite three colors and took turns squirting the colorful dye onto their own challah covers.  After the covers dried and were washed, children squealed in amazement at the colorful designs which they created.  


Our finished products :)

Shayna (Jack's mom) helping us as artists:

See your child tie-dying his/her challah cover!

Tubular Transformations in Extended Day

The children are continuing to create with cardboard tubes.

 They have been making binoculars and telescopes, 

armbands, 

   

and Masks!

The children were intrigued by each other's designs and asked each other for help in recreating these designs. 

The Morahs have noticed the children's interest veering away from tunnels and ramps 

and moving towards dramatic play and creating their own costumes.

Some of the children are writing a play together.

Sylvia said: "These are the costumes that we want to make."