Most recently, we celebrated Israel’s 65^th birthday on the holiday of Yom Haatzmaut. We mark this day every year as a celebration of Israel’s independence, and all of those who fought for this. In Israel, this day comes right after Yom Hazikaron, our remembrance day to all of those who fought in Israel’s wars. On this day in Israel, everyone stands for a moment of silence marked by a siren that is heard throughout the country. We discussed in class how people all over the country get out of their cars, stop where they are, and participate in this moment of silent remembrance.

As soon as Yom HaZikaron concludes, we immediately begin the Independence Day festivities. As a child growing up in Israel, I remember this transition from a day of sadness to incredible fireworks in Jerusalem as a celebration. To celebrate at BEJP, students simulated a trip to Israel by going to a variety of stations. They played many fun games and learned about Israeli sports and music.  They also enjoyed a special blue and white snack of blueberries and whipped cream! It was a very fun day to share together!

On Sunday, April 7th, our 7th grade curriculum came together in a really important way.  We observed Holocaust Remembrance Day (Yom HaShoah) by taking a trip to Fanieul Hall for the Holocaust Memorial Service.  We heard many Holocaust survivors share their stories.  Many of them lost members of their family and close friends, and it was very moving to hear their narratives.  The students were very emotionally impacted by these stories and it was a really good way to gain a human perspective on such tragedy.   Something that was really powerful about the ceremony is that a group of Israeli soldiers was sent as a delegation.  Their stories of growing up as grandchildren of Holocaust survivors in the homeland of the Jewish people really brought together the importance of why we learn about both of these topics.  It became clear why having a Jewish state is so important.  We have an army to protect us, and a home country to go to, two things that could’ve been of great use to the Jews in Europe during the Holocaust.  The service was sad – but it was also hopeful.  We were celebrating a promising future for the Jewish people.

Overall, it was an incredibly empowering experience both for the students and for us, as their educators.  It reminded me why we teach about Israel and the Holocaust in conjunction.  The experience of remembering the Holocaust with many other Jews is important, and I’m very glad that I got to experience it with my 7th grade class!

We began the service with a short introduction by the teachers about the meaning of Havdallah, both how the literal translation means “separation” and the symbolic meanings behind the unique Havdallah prayers. Then, the students each read a short paragraph that they wrote themselves about what a book of prayers means to them. Afterwards, Dena told an enchanting story about Elijah the prophet. When the story was over, we turned off the lights to officially start the service. The students stood in a circle and held Havdallah candles, once the candles were lit, we began to sing an opening niggun (wordless melody), which led into a beautiful song that Jon the music teacher taught the fourth grade called “HaYehudim.” We then continued to sing the Havdallah prayers and passed around oranges with cloves in them to the students and parents for the prayer over the spices. After the last prayer, the students put out their candles in the grape juice of the Kiddush cup, the final act that ends Shabbat.

This service was really a wonderful experience because the students not only enjoyed doing all of these rituals for their parents but also got to reflect on what these rituals meant to them individually. It was such a pleasure to see how much each student participated in the service. At the end of the service everyone got to have a special dessert and take home their Havdallah kit that they worked hard on throughout their first semester of 4th grade.

Lara Liebmann, Grade 4 teacher

This past semester I had the incredible opportunity of directing the BJEP Theater Department’s production of Fiddler On The Roof. I have been acting throughout my life in different venues such as the schools I have attended and the communities where I have lived. However, this was the first time that I have directed rather than acted on the stage.

Every moment of the process was a learning experience for me, beginning with the informal auditions we held the first day of rehearsal. I had to quickly learn how to observe and evaluate the talent of the students while allowing them to remain comfortable and willing to participate. With the limited amount of rehearsal time it was important to map out what needed to be accomplished from the outset. My co-director Elisha Katz and I worked hard to make a schedule that would allow the troupe to have fun and exciting rehearsals while making sure we were on track with regard to the performance date.

We were incredibly grateful and fortunate to have a vibrant and enthusiastic cast of 18 BJEP students. From the first time that we learned and sang Tradition together, the opening piece of the show, we knew we were in for a wonderful experience. We encouraged the students to get deep into character. We asked questions about the goals and aspirations of their characters which caught most of them off guard, but slowly they all caught on to thinking “out of the box.”

As the show approached the group made an incredible collective effort to learn their lines and truly become the part that they were assigned to play. It was amazing to see students step up in the final moments leading up to the performance and take command over their roles.

Anyone who witnessed the performance can attest to what a magical experience it was for everyone involved. Seeing students ranging from first grade through sixth working together on stage was heartwarming and showed just how strong the BJEP program is inside of the classroom and out.

I look forward to being involved with more BJEP productions in the future and thank everyone who was involved for all of their effort.

Have a wonderful spring!

Sincerely,
Benjamin Miller

One of the other teachers was Golda Meir, Israel’s first and only woman prime minister. She was a Zionist who moved to Israel before it was created and was very active in the peace-reaching process during her day. When families visited her, she taught about the seven gates surrounding the old city of Jerusalem. The students were very involved and especially interested in the pictures she showed.

Another teacher was David Ben-Gurion, Israel’s first prime minister! He helped to create the Israeli Army (Israel Defense Forces) and also worked to plant trees in the desert to make it bloom! With the students, he reviewed the geography of Israel. He assisted them to fill in a map and color code it according to the topography of the land. This was a good test for the students and their families to see how much about Israel’s geography they know – and it was a great opportunity for them to learn more!

Our last teacher was Eliezer Ben-Yehuda, the father of the Modern Hebrew language. Before Israel was created he worked to promote the use of Hebrew as the Jewish language which led to its usage as one of Israel’s two national languages (the other is Arabic). One of his tasks throughout his work was to create new words for things that Biblical Hebrew did not acknowledge, like computer. When families visited Ben Yehudah, the students were guided in figuring out which words originated from Biblical Hebrew and which Eliezer Ben-Yehuda and his helpers created. He also shared with the families his famous story of raising his children to be the first Modern Hebrew native speakers – that is to say, he and his wife were the first modern Jews to speak only Hebrew to their children.

It was a great event, filled with many Jewish and Israeli heroes and many, many accomplished dreams! Because, as Herzl taught us, “If you will it, it is no dream.”

Rebecca Pollack, 6B teacher