The Sound of the Shofar!

Rosh Hashanah is on its way, and the main mitzvah on this special day is to listen to the shofar! All around the world, Jews will gather together to hear the shofar blow.

The shofar has three different types of sounds: Tekiah, Shevarim and Teruah. The children went on a special “shofar walk,” showing off their amazing shofar-blowing skills.

Mordy, ran on the sounds with so much excitement!

We learned that the shofar sounds like crying. Just like parents listen and care when their baby cries, Hashem, our father, listens to us with love when He hears the shofar.

Fun sensory shofar playdough! Ashira made a pattern of white pink. 

We learned that real shofars are made from ram’s horns, and we even watched a short video about how they are made. After the children got creative and made their very own shofars! They also practiced their Hebrew writing skills by writing the word שופר (“shofar”).

Making Challah dough together for Shabbat!

We used apples dipped in honey to write our names, and enjoyed the sweet treat.

Moshe, wrote his name in English and Hebrew!

On Thursday, we celebrated a very special day on the Chabad calendar, Chai Elul (the 18th of Elul). It is the birthday of two very special Rabbis who brought so much light to the world, the Baal Shem Tov and the Alter Rebbe. Their teachings help us feel close to Hashem and remind us that every mitzvah we do makes the world brighter! The children each shared their favorite mitzvah, the one they feel helps bring more light into the world. Here are some of their answers:

✨ Moshe, said he loves helping his baby brother.
✨ Yehudis, said davening.
✨ Yosef, said giving tzedakah.
✨ Chana and Mordy both agreed on “Ve’ahavta lereacha kamocha” (to love your fellow as yourself).
✨ Avraham, said reading the Megillah!

K Kria

The kids learned their very first vowel Kamatz! They picked it up so quickly, learning how to write it and sound it out. What an exciting start!

Academics

We have been learning about 2D & 3D shapes. Here we are having fun playing a 3D shape game.

We learn through playing! Yossi & Chana use unifix cubes to build a “city”(utilizing fine motor, number recognition  & counting.)

Aftercare 

We made delicious garlic bread in shape of Shofars!

Happy birthday Yossi and Ashira!

Shabbat Shalom!

How can we BEE sweet?

Rosh Hashana is coming! 

Crowning our father and our King, Hashem!

We listen to the Shofar on Rosh Hashana and it reminds us how much Hashem cares for all of us. 

Zalman, helped by holding a shofar and listening to a baby's recorded cries. How similar the sounds are! 

Just like we listen to a baby's cry, Hashem attends to our every need.

Where does a Shofar come from?

Eliara, petting 'rammy' the ram and noticing his horns. 

Ella, pretending to be the ram and Avigail knew exactly where a shofar comes from on the ram's body. 

We have been listening to the different types of sounds a Shofar makes.

 Tal, practiced the long sound on the long tape line! This helps us visually and auditorily learn about the Shofar. 

Avigail,  adding felt texture to her shofar craft. 

We often sing, “Have a happy, sweet new year”—but what does that mean for our friends? After tasting sweet honey, the children learned that what’s truly sweet for Hashem are the mitzvot we do! 

Our friends were invited to draw mitzvot they love to do, and then enjoy a taste of honey to bring the message home in a joyful, hands-on way.

Catching SWEET moments! Ella, working hard helping clean our tables after we did a painting project.

Oliver, making sure all of his friends got a Tzedaka penny!

While we have been tasting honey in preparation for Rosh Hashana. We got a chance to learn how honey is made!  Using our fine motor skills we filled up a bee hive just like a busy bee does!

Making our very own honey dishes for Rosh Hashana. 

Akiva, making sure our garden is getting watered!

 

Inside the Treasure Box!

On the first day of Gan, Morah brought out a treasure box and said, “There is a very special new friend waiting inside!” The children’s eyes lit up with excitement as they got ready to meet this new friend who will be so special to our class. One by one, each child opened the treasure box and discovered the greatest treasure of all. Inside the box was a mirror! When the children looked inside, they saw their own reflection and realized that they are the most special treasure in our class!

The next day, our treasure box had a surprise waiting inside. Mr. Potato Head was there! We tried to help him get out, but he could not hear us because he did not have any ears! That reminded us how important our ears are for listening. In Gan, listening to Morah is so special and helps us learn and grow. Together we decided to practice attentive listening.

Yehudis, putting the ears on Mr. Potato Head.

Yossi and Avraham were so silly and they made a Mr. Potato Head with only ears!

We got to listen to Eli B. blowing the shofar!

Feelings can sometimes feel really big and a little hard to understand. That is why it is so important to help children learn the words for their feelings and how to share them in healthy ways. At the start of the year especially, we practice giving names to our feelings. The kids did such a wonderful job expressing themselves, even when it wasn’t easy!

In the month of Elul we learn that “the king is in the field.” This means that Hashem, our King, is extra close to us during this special time. Just like a king who leaves his palace and comes to visit the people in the field, Hashem is near to every one of us and listens to our tefillot with love. To bring this idea to life, we went to daven together in the field right next to our classroom.

Before davening we decided to practice our breathing. Breathing is such a wonderful tool that helps us feel calm and strong. We practiced our breathing with bean bags, placing them on our tummies and watching them move up and down as we breathed in and out.

With Rosh Hashanah coming soon, the children are preparing special cards to wish a happy and sweet new year to their loved ones. Ashira and Theo using their fingers to create a pomegranate.

Our new morning rituals!

Pre-K Kria

We are very excited to start learning the Alef Beis! We got brand new workbooks and we're off to a great start..

K Kria

This week, we practiced our “sister letters” (letters that look alike) and the final letters. These are our last steps before starting to learn the vowels, and the children are so excited to begin this new adventure in kria!

Academics

Eli and Yosef using scissors to strengthen our fine motor skills.

Ashira playing a number recognition game.

Aftercare

New Year, New Me!

The children drew self-portraits and wrote about what they want to learn this year! It’s so sweet to see their hopes and dreams on paper! 💕 Activities like this encourage children to reflect on themselves, set intentions, and take ownership of their learning. When they put their goals into words and pictures, they’re more likely to believe in them and work toward making them happen!

Shabbat Shalom!