Welcome to Omanut!

It was such a privilege to meet all of the new students in Omanut on Sunday, and as we mark the beginning of a new week tomorrow, I am excited to continue on our journey to get to know one another, establish a creative community and learn more about God, Torah, and Judaism through art and the very varied artists that produce Judaic art.

We played a name game in small groups that encouraged the students to think of "2 Facts, 1 Fiction" and there was a lot of silliness, fun and interesting facts to be found!  

Can you guess…

Who wants to own a cow? 

Who has traveled to more than 10 places?

Who is a great performer and loves art?

What family owns a hamster?

What sibling twosome has a crazy cat that eats all their socks?

Who loves mushrooms? (Ok, that was a fiction! I'm with you on that one, Z! I don't like mushrooms, either!)

To start the year on a happy note, we began an individual project to make "stained glass leaves" with tissue paper to be leaves on our classroom tree. Those leaves will incorporate each student's wish for the new year, which was fairly fresh on their minds since we just finished the High Holy Days and contemplated those goals on Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur. We came together to produce a list of "Classroom Rules" that we will add to our classroom tree, along with those beautiful leaves. I will be taking pictures tomorrow of our completed project so you all can see the full effect of our creative endeavors!

We are learning Hebrew Through Movement, with Tammy and Yardena every class, and I love experiencing it along with the students! I think everyone likes it a lot more than traditional workbooks, and since we are using so many different modalities of learning when we do Hebrew Through Movement, it reaches all of the various learning styles.

Upcoming fun events to keep in mind:

On Sunday, October 27th, 2013 we will be meeting at the Contemporary Jewish Museum in San Francisco at 10 am. What caught my eye initially was the exhibit Beyond Belief: 100 years of the Spiritual in Modern Art, and since it is their very last day of the exhibit before it leaves the museum, we will have a private tour before the museum opens to the general public! How awesome is that?!

Along with the Beyond Belief exhibit, the museum will also guide us to: Work in Progress- Considering Utopia and To Build and Be Built- Kibbutz History. We will all be meeting there and all costs for admission will be paid for by the Religious School. More details to follow as we get into October.

Here is the link to CJM:   http://www.thecjm.org

On Sunday, November 10, 2103, we will have a Family Program all about ketubah! More details to come as the date gets closer!

Danielle and I are so happy our class chose Omanut for their 3rd or 4th grade religious track. We are looking forward to a great year of learning, inspiration and creative expression!

M'oadim L'simcha!! Wishing us all a wonderful year! :)

B'Shalom,

Heather