Gimel – Third Year – Wednesday (Weiner)

12/18: Today in class we worked on:

  1. Today, the students gathered in the sanctuary, with Rabbi Prass, for tefillah. He pointed out that at this time of year in Chicago, the amount of sunlight is less and less, and asked the students what they do to feel the light and find the light.  They shared some lovely ideas.  He pointed out that one source of light for all of us is how much the students are able to participate more and more confidently in our t’fillah.
  2. Went over our letter/vowel assessments from last week and warmed up with a review of commonly missed letters
  3. Discussed the miracles of Hanukkah
  4. Practiced prayer vocabulary
  5. Reviewed the Shehecheyanu including what it means and when we say it
  6. Practiced reading the Hanukkah Blessings individually and practiced singing them together
  7. Played Bingo to practice the words from the blessings
  8. Students were with other Kitot and Rabbi Prass for “A surprise pizza dinner”. A good time was had by all.
  9. The Gimmel students worked really hard this afternoon!

Homework to be completed by next class:

  1. No Homework.
  2. Hope you have a wonderful Hanukkah and a fantastic winter break!!

12/11: Today in class we worked on:

  1. School began with an all school Tefiilah led by Rabbi Prass.  He started asking us who and what makes you feel safe? We then looked at our prayer avot v’imahot, and how the last line talks about God being the “Shield of Abraham and the Help of Sarah”, or in other words make us feel safe.  We also talked about how the Maccabees fought to make our ancestors feel safe.
  2. Warmed up with a review of “look alike letters”
  3. Continued learning about Shabbat blessings
  4. Went more in depth about the blessings for the wine and challah
  5. Began reading and translating the Hanukkah Blessings
  6. Took a letter/vowel assessment
  7. We closed the session by joining all of the other classes to play Hebrew-Thru-Movement, Chanukah Style, led by Rabbi Prass.
  8. The Gimmel students were very productive this afternoon!

Homework to be completed by next class:

  1. There is no new homework this week. Students should catch up on workbook page 40 if they didn’t get to finish it for this week.

12/4: Today in class we worked on:

  1. School began with an all-school Tefillah.  Rabbi Prass asked the students “What is something positive you caused to happen over Thanksgiving?” and “What is something good you did?” The students provided many excellent answers and examples to further our learning.  We then connected this to the gevuorot prayer and specifically the word “mechaye” which means “the one who causes..” and talked about the good things mentioned in the prayer.
  2. Warmed up with a review of 5 Hebrew letters and vowels
  3. Started our next unit on Shabbat blessings
  4. Learned the blessings for candles, wine, and bread
  5. Practiced prayer vocabulary to understand the meanings of the blessings
  6. Had a great discussion about why we light at least two candles on Shabbat
  7. Learned about all the different candles we light and the blessings for each of them
  8. Aleph, bet, gimmel, daled classes ended in the sanctuary for Hebrew Through Movement with the other classes. Rabbi Prass brought out a hanukkiah, and he explained the difference between that and a menorah. Ask your student what the difference is. We also added on new verbs and vocabulary centered around Chanukah.
  9. The Gimmel students worked hard this afternoon!

Homework to be completed by next class:

  1. To reinforce what we did in class, students should complete the activities listed below on page 40 in their workbook, The New Hebrew Through Prayer.
  2. Welcoming Shabbat (Page 40): Fill in the missing words for each blessing and then say each blessing.

11/20: Today in class we worked on:

  1. Today we started with Rabbi Prass for tefilot and learned about hacarat hatov, looking for the good things in the world around us, and how it so important, perhaps easier, and so very more needed in the world.
  2. Warmed up with a review of 5 Hebrew letters and vowels
  3. Reviewed all the roots we’ve learned so far this year
  4. Learned two new roots including the root meaning holy and the root meaning command
  5. Practiced reading words with these roots
  6. Learned the reading rules for the letter vav and used these rules to practice reading
  7. We then joined the rest of the classes and Rabbi Prass for Hebrew thru Movement, where we continued to learn the Hebrew words for parts of the body, including an all school “Head, shoulders, knees and toes”
  8. I’m so proud of all the effort the students put in today!

Homework to be completed by next class:

  1. To reinforce what we did in class, students should complete the activity listed below on page 38 in their workbook, The New Hebrew Through Prayer.
  2. Recognizing the Root (Page 38): Circle the root in each word and then write the root.

11/13: Today in class we worked on:

  1. School began with an all-school Tefillah. Rabbi Prass led a discussion, asking the students how the word awesome can have both positive and negative attributes. Our students presented many thoughtful ideas and understood the complexities of the question.  He then pointed out that the word Hanorah, or Awesone One is in the Avot V’imahot prayer, and teaches us to praise those awesome things which are positive, holy, and beautiful.  We also talked about the word of the week, “eezoon” which means balance, and we shared the good and challenging things in our lives which balance our days.
  2. Warmed up with a review of 5 Hebrew letters and vowels
  3. Continued working on reading the Birkat HaMazon
  4. Began learning about blessings of mitzvah
  5. Shared different mitzvot we do every day
  6. Practiced reading the 10 words these blessings start with and learned what the words mean
  7. Then we joined the entire Hebrew school for Hebrew thru movement, where we reviewed the words we learned last week, the body part words, by playing “Simon Says” and sharing personal “human tricks” in Hebrew to reinforce these words.
  8. Students worked really hard today!

Homework to be completed by next class:

  1. To reinforce what we did in class, students should complete the activities listed below on page 35 in their workbook, The New Hebrew Through Prayer.
  2. Blessings of Mitzvah (Page 36): Write the 10 words that begin a blessing of mitzvah and then read the words.
  3. Siddur Phrases (Page 37): Read each phrase and circle the phrase that is part of the blessing we learned about today.

11/6: Today in class we worked on:

  1. School began with an all-school Tefillah and a Rabbi led discussion about who is the stronger person, someone who is kind or someone who is mean. Our students presented many thoughtful ideas and understood the complexities of the question. Rabbi Prass connected this to the prayer in our amidah, the gevurot, which means strength.  It praises the type of strength which helps others, and gives several specifics.
  2. Warmed up with a review of 5 Hebrew letters and vowels
  3. Reviewed the blessings we learned last week over foods we eat
  4. Learned what the Birkat HaMazon is including what it means and why we say it
  5. Practiced reading it with a variety of reading activities
  6. Then we joined the entire school for Hebrew Thru Movement led by Rabbi Prass and Brady H. Rabbi Prass introduced some new Ivrit vocabulary for body parts.
  7. Students did a terrific job today!

Homework to be completed by next class:

  1. Students should complete the activities listed below on page 35 in their workbook, The New Hebrew Through Prayer.
  2. Make Believe (Page 36): Read each word and write the sound alike word next to the Hebrew word.
  3. Letters into Words (Page 36): Read the words and circle the word meaning fruit.

10/30: Today in class we worked on:

  1. School began with an all-school Tefillah and a Rabbi led discussion asking the learners how they tell time.  They had an amazing variety of answers.  We then learned how Jewish prayer also helps us tell time including in our Gevurot prayer where the words change during the summer and the winter.
  2. Warmed up with a review of 5 Hebrew letters and vowels
  3. Reviewed the six words that most blessings start with
  4. Learned and practiced the blessings for many different foods we eat with a variety of activities
  5. Reviewed the roots we’ve learned and learned the root meaning ruler
  6. Practiced reading words built on this root
  7. Had the opportunity to see the Torah up close with Rabbi Prass! Kitah gimmel, daled, and hey joined Rabbi Prass in the sanctuary for a discussion on Simchat Torah, and coming close to inspect the Torah scroll and ask questions about it. Finally, the students had an opportunity to taste a piece of the Etrog.
  8. Students worked really hard today!

Homework to be completed by next class:

  1. Students should complete the activities listed below on page 35 in their workbook, The New Hebrew Through Prayer.
  2. Recognizing the Root (Page 35): Circle the root letters and practice reading the words.
  3. Pick a Fruit (Page 35): Fill in the missing word and practice reading the blessings.

10/9: Today in class we worked on:

  1. We began in an all-school t’fillah with Rabbi Prass during which we honored the memories of the 1200 people killed in the Hamas terror attack in Israel on Oct 7, 2023 and prayed for the release of the 100+ hostages still being held in Gaza.  We listened to songs of hope, emphasizing the resilience of the Jewish people.
  2. Warmed up with a review of 5 Hebrew letters and vowels
  3. Began our next unit on blessings
  4. Learned the meaning of the six words that most blessings start with
  5. Practiced reciting these 6 words individually and together
  6. Reviewed the root meaning bless and learned the root meaning faith
  7. Practiced reading different blessings and translating what the blessings are for
  8. Took a letter/vowel assessment
  9. Students worked really hard today!

Homework to be completed by next class:

  1. Students should complete the activities listed below on page 34 in their workbook, The New Hebrew Through Prayer.
  2. Thank You (Page 34): Write the 6 words that most blessings start with and then read the words.
  3. Count Your Blessings (Page 34): Students should write their own blessing starting with the 6 words we have learned.

9/25: Today in class we worked on:

  1. We had an all school Tefillah led by Rabbi Prass.  We discussed What is something precious you were given? And how do you ‘handle it differently’ knowing it is precious? Why is Jewish prayer/t’fillah a gift? We also heard the shofar in celebration of the Jewish month of Elul.
  2. Warmed up with a review of 5 Hebrew letters and vowels
  3. Learned the different ways G-d’s name is written and found examples of the different ways in our books and in the Siddur
  4. Practiced reading the Torah blessing and learned why the Barkhu is part of this blessing
  5. Learned what a minyan is and how this is connected to the Barkhu
  6. Practiced lots of reading with a variety of activities
  7. Gimmel & Daled went outside for Hebrew through Movement with Rabbi Prass
  8. Students did a great job today!

Homework to be completed by next class:

  1. Students brought home a Barkhu worksheet to complete to reinforce the activities we did in class.

9/18: Today in class we worked on:

  1. Participated in an all-school Tefillah led by Rabbi Prass.  We shared ‘noises’ that distract us and things that help us quiet and focus our brains.  We talked about how t’fillah is one Jewish language/tool for quieting and focus.
  2. Warmed up with a review of 5 Hebrew letters and vowels
  3. Reviewed what the Barkhu means
  4. Reviewed Barkhu vocabulary
  5. Learned how the Barkhu got its name
  6. Learned what a Hebrew root is and learned the root meaning bless
  7. Practiced reading and translating words with this root
  8. Gimmel & Daled went outside for Hebrew through Movement with Rabbi Prass and hearing the sounds of the shofar for Elul.
  9. Students did a terrific job today!

Homework to be completed by next class:

  1. Students should complete the activities listed below on page 5 in their workbook, The New Hebrew Through Prayer.
  2. Recognizing the Root (Page 5): Students should follow directions as written and circle the root letters in each word.
  3. Siddur Phrases (Page 5): Students should circle all words built on the root and then practice reading the phrases.

9/11: Today in class we worked on:

  1. We began with an all school assembly.  The 2 older grades (daled & hey) shared 3 things that are helpful to learn Hebrew and 3 things that used to make them nervous about learning Hebrew.  We also lit a yizkor candle to remember the victims of 9/11.  We also sounded the shofar in celebration of this month of Elul.
  2. Played icebreaker games to get to know each other
  3. Warmed up with a review of 5 Hebrew letters and vowels
  4. Looked through the textbook and workbook we will be using
  5. Began our first unit learning all about the Barkhu
  6. Learned Barkhu prayer vocabulary with a variety of activities
  7. Practiced reading the Barkhu individually and together
  8. We ended the session with all school assembly to do Hebrew Thru Movement.  Our kitah hey students helped lead it.  Parents were invited for this first session so they could meet the teachers. It was great to see so many parents and to have perfect attendance at Hebrew school!
  9. We had a great first day, and I’m looking forward to a fantastic year!

Homework to be completed by next class:

  1. Each session, students will be assigned a workbook page to complete to reinforce what we did in class. This should only take 5-10 minutes to complete. If it ever takes longer, please have your student stop working, and we will complete it together in class.
  2. Students should complete page 1 in their workbook, The New Hebrew Through Prayer.
  3. A Call to Prayer: Students should fill in the missing Hebrew words and then read the prayer they have written.