Learning and Decorating a Super Special Chupah!

Today I had the joy of spending time with the Kohavim class! They are busy getting ready for Jesse's wedding celebration so we did a teacher switch!!

The Kochavim class has been busy talking about weddings and are starting to learn about different traditions that are part of a Jewish wedding. This gave me an idea, my 2nd and 3rd grade Mayim students had created a book tilted, The Chesed Guide For Kids to help teach kids about  how to understand and show respect and kindness during different Jewish life cycle events. This book has a whole chapter dedicated to weddings that is easy to read, and written by some older siblings who we know and love. 

The Kochavim class was already busy at work creating a chupah, but we took sometime to talk about what exactly is a chupah and why do we use them at weddings. We looked in the guide and read and examined Abby Berger's (Sister of Haifa Student Jared Berger) page and learned about the chupah in our tradition. 

We learned that it has four poles, no walls, a canopy and that it is open so that the wedding couple is able to feel the warmth and the welcoming of the community around them.  We also learned that they often had decorations. 

The Kochavim class was very eager to start decorating their chupah. Eliza, Lily and Eli spent a lot of time with the water colors using eye droppers to create flowers that they can add to the chupah they are creating. Jacob, Hannah, Max, Eli and Sabrina colored and cut out hearts that they will decorate the chupah with as well.  Some made signs I taught a few of the kids the phrase, "Mazel-Tov!" Ryan even wrote it in Hebrew! 

I enjoyed seeing how focused and engaged they were as they worked hard to create something special for Jesse. Having a meaningful product gave them a lot of drive as they created beautiful works of art. It was a great morning and I am excited to hear how the project comes out! Thanks for such a fun day Kochavim, it was great spending time with you!