Photos from the week of October 4

Unicorn

Scientist

Our Mitzvah Ring is growing.....

The Unicorns are always keeping their eyes and ears open to see a Mitzvah and hear a Mitzvah. Performing a Mitzvah literally means doing a commandment, but is often used to mean doing a good deed or carrying out an act of kindness towards others, whether done at school or at home. As Jews we don't do these acts because we are nice, but because it is our responsibility to help others.  Whenever Unicorns see or hear a Mitzvah, they remember them and share them in Unicorn Circle Time. We write the Mitzvah on a paper and the new Mitzvah Ring becomes another link in a growing chain.

In this Hebrew month of Tishrei, the bible commands us to build a Sukkah as a Mitzvah. The Unicorns also consider it a Mitzvah to work cooperatively to accomplish the task of building the Sukkah. The Mitzvah of building a Sukkah together as a community leads to the Mitzvot of learning to be a friend, of waiting our turn to share important ideas, and of listening while friends and teachers speak. One Mitzvah leads to more Mitzvot to add to our chain.

Here are some of the new Mitzvot that Unicorns shared at Circle Time:

• A Unicorn brought her sister in to read to us in class
• A Unicorn helped zip another friend’s jacket
• A Unicorn helped her mommy change her sister’s diaper
• A Unicorn passed a cup of mayyim (waterמיים) to a friend
• Unicorns helped looking for a friend’s family photo.
• A Unicorn shared a toy car with a friend
• Unicorns invited each other to our kitchen to play
• Together Unicorns picked up the play dough from the floor
• Unicorns are helping to clean up at home as well.

Your children have really embraced the Mitzvah Ring. We are using our math skills to count how many Mitzvot we hear or see in one day( in Hebrew too) and then count all the Mitzvot together. So far we counted 16 Mitzvot. Unicorns enjoy hearing about the Mitzvot of others and see that friends are doing Mitzvot at home as well as in the class. Our goal is to cover our room with kindness. We want the Unicorns to realize that every simple Mitzvah counts, and together our Mitzvot make a beautiful and strong chain that we can all be proud of.

Making Challah in the Sunshine Classroom

First you take the challah dough and divide it into three pieces. Then you roll the pieces into snakes, braid them and finally brush with honey. Into the oven goes the challah. Smells delicious. Wait until you taste it! We hope you enjoyed our first Shabbat challah.

Making Challah for Shabbat!

Challah making in the Tel Aviv All Star class was a lot of fun!  We kneaded the dough, shaped the bread into loaves, baked it in the oven and wrapped up our challah to take home for Shabbat!  As you can see everyone had their own way of shaping the bread into loaves.Sam made three long thick snakes, made sure they were all accounted for (from all angles) and then braided the dough.  Mia had a different strategy.  She rolled out three thin small pieces of dough, attached them all at one end and then braided them.

All the children were so proud of the challah they made and could not wait to take it home to share with their families!

Poll Results: What are your child's favorite veggies?

Carrots are the clear winner at TBSCC. A few more favorites got write in votes: celery, edamame, sugar snap peas, veggies with hummus. Thank you for letting us know which veggies your child likes best. We'll incorporate these favorite veggies into our snacks, and also add some new ones to encourage the children to expand their repertoire.

Celebrating Simchat Torah

On observing the holiday of Simchat Torah, the Sunshines joined Rabbi Jay in the sanctuary along with the entire TBSCC to unroll the Torah. What an awesome experience for all of us. As the children held the Torah with hands as soft as pillows, the sacred beauty of the Torah could be felt. The Hebrew letters and the stories within were noted by the Rabbi and the teachers.

A Hidden Treasure by the Temple

The Tel Aviv All Stars were treated to a final celebration of Sukkoth before Rabbi Todd and his family took down their Sukkah. We walked through a "secret" path in the woods which winded its way towards the Markleys. The children were very excited about the outing, the temptation of the Markleys' swingset, and the sound of their dog barking plaintively from the house. Rabbi Todd asked if the children could solve the mystery of the missing corn kernels. Their answers included chipmunks, squirrels, birds, and the Markley children themselves!In the end we decided it must be squirrels who could climb up to the corn, nibble on the cobs, and safely return down.
Thank you Rabbi Todd for graciously opening up your Sukkah to us all.
Shabbat Shalom.


Melissa Bogdan