Bruchim Habaim - ברוכים הבאים and Welcome, to all of our new and returning students at JFCS.  On our first day of Kindergarten, at JFCS, we started our morning with learning the word "Moreh – מורה" (teacher) in Hebrew.  I then introduced myself to the children as Moreh Copeland. After explaining to the students who knew me as Chef David, from Engman Camp Shalom, that at Sunday school I was Moreh Copeland.  I promised we would be doing some cooking this year and to be ready for Chef David to be back, but at Sunday school I want to emphasize using Hebrew as much as possible.  So I asked all of the students to use "moreh".   We then went around the room and learned each other’s names and about each other’s family members.  After some apple juice and animal crackers we stepped outside to enjoy some of our beautiful weather and played a soccer style game of “no hands on the ball run around and kick it”.  

 

 

     When we got back inside we started talking about how we had just celebrated Rosh Hashanah earlier this week.  That there is a Jewish calendar as well as the Gregorian we normally use.  Rosh Hashanah is the beginning of this calendar and sometimes called the “Birthday of the World”. I asked the students to share some examples of symbols they thought to represent Rosh Hashanah.  Examples shared were Torah, Shofar, Challah (round), and apples and honey.  We learned that those are all used as Jewish symbols to keep us connected to each other as Jews.  We participate in the intake of all of those things together.  Reading and learning the Torah.  Hearing the Shofar to mark special times of the year and to gather Jews.  Challah to eat, not just on Rosh Hashanah, but every week for Shabbat.  And last, apples and honey to remember to make life “sweet” for everyone.

 

Shanna Tova - שנה טובה

Happy New Year,

Moreh Copeland - מורה קופלנד