Bet – Second Year – Tuesday (Rogin)

9/17: Today in class, we worked on:

  1. Our session began with Tefillah where Rabbi Prass reviewed how our services are structured. We discussed why we are wearing kippot during Hebrew School t’fillot. We then prayed the avot v’imahot and sang the Israeli National Anthem. It was nice to hear the older students joining in.
  2. We went over the nikudot (vowel markings) and the Alef Bet. The sooner your student becomes as “expert” with these, the more comfortable they will be reading, and participating in class. I give mnemonic devices to help the students remember the nikudot. The little dot in some of the letters in called a dagesh lene. It changes the sound from a soft (spirant) sound, to a hard sound. The letters are chaph כ  to kaph כּ  fay פ to פּ pay vet ב  to בּ  bet. There are other letters with a dagesh forte, but we will cross that bridge some other time. That is a doubling dagesh.
  3. Aleph & Bet students went outside to have a lesson in how to blow the shofar with Rabbi Prass. It was fun to listen to the students try their best. I heard some impressive sounds!
  4. We returned to the classroom to learn new vocabulary and read a story about Rosh HaShanah.

Homework to be completed by next class:

  1. ***THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT***Take 5 to 10 minutes each evening to work on the Alef Bet with your student. They should have their flashcards from last year. If, for some reason, they cannot find their flash cards, you can buy a set on Amazon or make a new set. We will be jumping right into reading next week.
  2. We cannot make much progress until each student is competent with the Alef Bet and Nikudot.
  3. We are off next week. I sent home the story, and some questions to be filled in for the homework. If your student has trouble, perhaps they have an older sibling who may be able to help them. Have them try to do as much as they can.
  4. Please sign the homework and send all pages back on September 30.
  5. A folder for Hebrew papers would be extremely useful.
  6. Have a safe, sweet, and wonderful New Year.

9/10: Today in class, we worked on:

  1. All students met in the sanctuary with Rabbi Prass. He explained how the Hebrew school day will typically run. Rabbi explained, since it is the month of Elul, the shofar is blown every day. Ask your student if they remember how many sounds the shofar makes.
  2. We had a round of introductions in our kitah (classroom). It’s going to be a lively, fun group!
  3. The students took an Alef Bet quiz. This was for my eyes, to see what they remembered over the summer.
  4. The students did a survey of what their expectations are for Kavod in the kitah. This is for our classroom covenant. Kavod/כּבוֺד means respect. A good learning environment works based on kavod.
  5. The students gathered back in the sanctuary with Rabbi Prass for Hebrew through Movement. And from there the parents came back to our room so we could meet and discuss our classroom.
  6. Tzedakah will be collected every week.
  7. Occasionally, I give the students lollipops. The brand is Yum Earth. They are kosher, vegan, and do not contain tree nuts, peanuts, shellfish, soy, sesame, egg, gluten, fish, or dairy.

Homework to be completed by next class:

  1. Take 5 to 10 minutes each evening to work on the Alef Bet with your student. They should have their flash cards from last year. If, for some reason, they cannot find their flash cards, you can buy a set on Amazon or make a new set. We will be jumping right into reading next week.