My Home, Hashem's Home!

What is a Home?

Our home is  a comfortable place where we can be ourselves, and with the people we love.

We brought out this love by printing pictures of each child's home. Through talking, drawing and "driving" to our friends homes, we were able to help the children realize how special each of their homes are to themselves and learn more about their friends. 

 

 

Using roads, cars and their own homes as the landmarks...the children used their own faces on blocks to travel to each others homes! We went around the circle inviting each of the children to share something special about their own home! Shua let us know he had a special type of fan in his house, and Yedidya- who just moved into a new home, has a really big window that lets him see Dolphins swimming in the Ocean!  

 

Menachem decided he would travel to his friends homes on a firetruck!

Hashem's Home

The next day we offered the children a different perspective, by placing all their homes on the floor using a road puzzle. But his time we added a picture of the Beis Hamikdash "Hashem's Home" to add to their imagination and to visualize what it will be like when we have the third Beis Hamikdash! Menachem took an airplane to show that he can fly there!  Chana commented, "when we get the real Beis Hamikdash, I want my house to be right next door! " 

   

Beis Hamikdash Center

Building on the children's innate love for their home, and understanding what a "home" is, we introduced "Hashem's Home" with a Beis Hamikdash Center! The kohanim were the people who had jobs in the Beis Hamikdash. Using costumes, and a visual tour (3D rendering) the children discovered some of miracles and jobs that took place in the Beis Hamikdash.

 

The Kohanim wore special uniforms, which we provided for the children to dress up/ role play what it might have been like to "work" in the Beis Hamikdash.

 

We noticed that the Menorah had 7 branches, and was lit every single day!

  

There was a "Lechem Haponim" Bread stand that contained special trays for 12 loaves of bread!

The children counted up 12 loaves of bread, inserting them into the pretend Lechem Haponim station!

  

We learned that the oil used for the Menorah had to be made from Olives! The children had a chance to crush olives in Ziploc bags, to see how the oil comes out!

 

For another dimension of appreciating what the Beis Hamikdash might have looked like, we watched a video that gave us a 3D tour of each of the sections of the Beis Hamikdash. It helped us get super excited for when Moshiach comes, of what we will be able to see in person !

My own Beis Hamikdash!

Wrapping up the big idea of this week, we discussed how we can actually make our OWN homes, into a Mini Beis Hamikdash! Even though we don't have the real Beis Hamikdash right now, we are still able to invite Hashem into our homes, and make it into a Beis Hamikdash. We explained that when we learn Torah and do mitzvah's, our home turns into a home for Hashem! 

    

We asked each child what Mitzvah they like to do, that helps make their house into a Beis Hamikdash! Yossi said he will say Amein when his Mommy lights Shabbos Candles, Yedidya said he will make Kiddush on Friday night, and Menachem said he wants to actually make golden bricks in his house, so his house can actually be a Beis Hamikdash💓

 

We look forward to exploring the Beis Hamikdash 

even more next week, as we get closer to learning the story of Chanukah!