Moon Doctors

On Monday Charlotte, Nicolas, Molly, Noah, Avi ,Adam and I all played doctor. I was the patient and all of the children were the doctors. Molly and Charlotte were the drivers that took us all the way to the moon to see the moon doctor. The moon doctor was the only doctor that could make me feel all better.

Everyone worked together and problem solved to help their patient get better! First it was a shot, in the arm and leg, then they tried medicine. The game lasted for quite sometime ,and the children played and worked well together!

Written by...Ally Cohen

The Ice Cream Truck: Part I

On Monday, the Adom children found a brand new toy....it was a big cardboard box!  All the kids enjoyed being picked up and placed inside the box, and then being "package deliveries" when the flaps were closed up.  The children enjoyed playing inside of the box, pretending it was a spaceship and/or an ice cream truck.

Josh G, Ben M, and Noah S hide in the corner

Happy boys!

How many children can fit inside the box?

Noah says, "Shalom!"

Is there a doctor in the house?

Grace, Hannah, and Alex played "doctor" today! Alex went around and listened to everyone's heart...He put the stethoscope in his ears and ta-da, there was a doctor in our house!

Will you make one for ME???

Collaborating with Maddie to get it just right

I am so excited he is making one for ME!!

The eyes are just right.

Max Greenstein, our expert artist, held up his picture of a rescue hero. There were immediate requests from his some of his classmates to make one for them. Being the kind friend he proceeded to make a mask for 5 classmates: Drew, Nathan, Sam, Jared, and Maddie. He was thoughtful in his illustrations, asking about favorite colors and even collaborating with Maddie so that the eyes were perfect. Thank you Max for taking the time out of your play to make others happy. This too is Tzedakah in motion. ( Giving the gift of time) 

"Look what I made." 

Thankful for family

Sisters and families . Do you recognize your family? It was interesting to witness the process each child had in their developing their representations. Size became important in their representations. Some completed their actual family and then decided to add "sisters they don't really have, dogs named Ralphy ( also not really in the household) .

What are we thankful for in 3 D

Shabbat is here. We celebrate in community always mindful of what we have to be thankful for. On this Friday we heard children express gratitude for "God, trees , daisies, toys-submarines-cars, snowmen, basketball, summer, birthdays, juice, snakes, lions, Shabbat, Ninjas, sushi, family , and sisters. We decided to provide children with the opportunity to express their ideas using clay. It was beautiful to witness the dedication to details and how the clay was transformed as their ideas emerged . Here are just a few examples . Eli said he was thankful for Shabbat. He stared his journey of expression with those concrete items we see, candles, challah, and kiddush cup. As he was forming the candle holders he stood and looked and then said that God lived in his candle. He then proceeded to represent his image .

Etzim Fairy Houses

The Etzim class has spent the last two days in "the woods" happily collecting sticks, rocks, grass, leaves, and other items that they would like to use to create our fairy houses.  Our imaginations are soaring, our "mountain climbing" skills are growing, and our ability to walk very carefully around fragile fairy houses is fantastic!

Outdoor Discoveries

 We are truly blessed to have an outdoor environment full of opportunities for exploration. We asked the children if they would like to build a fort using just things they found in nature. We talked about safety reminders to stay together then we started our problem solving. We needed to first decide and plan where we would build this structure as that would determine what materials we needed to look for. We made our plan, and decided we would build our structure near the corner of the fence. What did we notice about the corner? What kind of materials did we need? How would we get them stablized and secure? Math, spacial awareness, problem solving learning, teamwork and cooperation  opportunities in motion. Nathan was so inspired that the next day he brought in sticks from home to add to our structure. We dined and used our imagination to tell stories in our fort. 

Introducing Mr. and Mrs. Magnifying Glass

 On Tuesday afternoon, Jacob decided he wanted to play with a new material. He and Eliza headed with the teacher to the art supply closet to search for something inspiring. After surveying the shelves, they selected Floam. When they returned to the classroom, Jacob began touching and squishing the floam. Then he retrieved a magnifying glass to closely examine the floam, explaining that there were tiny balls or spheres. After taking a closer look, Jacob used the magnifying glass to create. He sculpted the floam directly onto the magnifying glass and exclaimed, "It's Mr. Magnifying Glass!" He then added some hair to the top and said, "Now, it's Mrs. Magnifying Glass!" with a huge smile. Putting the  magnifying glasses with floam inspired imaginative and creative play. Thank you Jacob for introducing us to Mr. and Mrs. Magnifying Glass! 

Bertucci's is Open!

On Wednesday, Max Goldberg and Ezra had the idea to open a restaurant. Today, Max Goldberg, Max Greenstein, and Ezra agreed to officially open Bertucci's! They worked together to make a sign for their restaurant which read, "BRHS RSTRNT"(Bertucci's Restaurant). They drew pizza, soup, and cauliflower on the sign so the customers would know what type of food they offer. After hanging their sign for all to see, Noah joined them to prepare the menus. They decided that they would make a menu for each child in the Kohavim class. If you are feeling hungry, stop by the Kohavim classroom and grab a bite to eat!

Not a Box

The creative exploration continued with the house that several children imagined today.  They closed up the doors and giggled quietly inside.  They took in some magna-tiles to add to their fun.  What will they come up with next?

 

                                                                           

not a box!

Last week we read the book Not a Box by Antoinette Portis.  It is a picture book about all of the imaginary things we can do with an ordinary box.  The child in the story made a boat, a mountain and a hot air balloon - just to name a few.

Many of the children in the Shamayim class said that they, too, have played with boxes at their homes.  Making text to self connections helps children become excited about reading and stories.  Being familiar with a topic makes us all more invested in reading and understanding text.

On Monday, the children used a few boxes from a recent trip to Costco.  The boxes quickly became a tunnel, a lounge chair and then a jail.  The children used cooperation and conversation to bring their imaginative ideas to life.  Look for new and different "boxes" in the days ahead!!

Caution: Imaginations at Work

Today the large cardboard box was not a box, but a fire station, and then a three dimensional canvas inviting artistic expression.  It was fun to see how Joseph and Ethan worked at climbing the large wooden platform outside of the fire station and hoisting themselves onto the other platform we placed inside.  At different points over the course of the morning, Joseph and Harrison individually maneuvered the very large box around on the floor in order to better suit their play.  Muscles and imaginations worked together to add to the enjoyment of the children's explorations.

Abby and Eva are working their arms as they paint on the walls - positioning their fingers in the pincer grasp as they strengthen the muscles in the shoulder girdle.

Not a Box

is the title of a book by Antoinette Portis.  Here's a summary: "A box is just a box . . . unless it's not a box. From mountain to rocket ship, a small rabbit shows that a box will go as far as the imagination allows.  Inspired by a memory of sitting in a box on her driveway with her sister, Antoinette Portis captures the thrill when pretend feels so real that it actually becomes real-when the imagination takes over and inside a cardboard box, a child is transported to a world where anything is possible."

Exploring the possibilities began this morning.  It was a hiding place, a fire station,  and it was also the canvas for artistic expression.   Ben and Ethan chose to draw on the top and the sides, and then Ally and Ethan continued drawing on the inside, on the ceiling and on the walls.  I wonder what they will do  with it next?

 

Purim is coming

We have started to talk about the story of Esther as we anxiously await the arrival of Purim.  The Shamayim children have enjoyed hearing the tale from "long ago" about Esther and Mordecai and, of course, Haman - booooo!!!!

We made Purim puppets on Monday of Esther, Mordecai, King Ahashverosh and Haman.  Some children focused on just one of the characters while others made all four.

When Rosie and Bennet had finished making their puppets, they moved to the rug.  The used the legos to build a jail for "bad" Haman!  Great creativity!!