Shalom Chaverim

     It just seems impossible that this is the last newsletter of the school year.  The children in the Bears class have had an absolutely wonderful year.  We have spent some time this week reflecting on the experiences here at the TCEE during the past 9 months.  Children have shared some favorite things.  We have learned that some of the favorite activities have included playing dress up, going to the “park”, painting, making projects, playing with toys, using play dough, building, visiting the Owl’s class, reading books, and having Shabbat.  When asked to name a favorite book, the entries included Brown Bear Brown Bear, We’re Going on a Bear Hunt, The Farmer in the Dell, Tracy’s Mess, Knuffle Bunny, Knuffle Bunny Free, Sammy Spider, and A Bad Case of Stripes.  The favorite holiday celebrations included Purim, Chanukah, and Thanksgiving.

     As the teachers reflected on the school year and the children in the Bear’s class, we made a list of something which reminds us of each child.  Of course each child is has touched our hearts in many ways, and we had difficulty narrowing it down to just one thought, so hopefully we have captured something unique about each of your children.

Aidan- for always introducing himself as, “My name is Aidan- A-I-D-A-N”.

Ava- for being proud of herself when she finished her lunch and getting to eat her   

     special treat

Bailey- for her bright smile

Ben- for his love of trains

Charlie- for his love of robots

Dylan- for remembering and explaining how to navigate the “T”

Ella- for always being there to sweep the floor with the child sized dust pan and       

     brush

Emily- for loving to talk about fairies

Ian- for singing the song Ma Ya Feh Ha’Yom

Leah- for loving anything to do with princesses

Orli- for her excitement when talking about her cats

Teo- for his enthusiasm when talking about his play dates

Sam- for hugging his pillow pet

Shaine- for her love of “Hello Kitty”

Victoria- for her willingness to try all activities

Zev- for always remembering the words to every song

      As the school year ends, and our summer program is set to begin, we would like to thank EACH and EVERY one of you for giving us the pleasure of spending time with your children, allowing us to teach them, and watch them grow. We have loved learning so much about each of them, and getting to know your families.  For those who will not be attending the TCEE Summer Fun Program, please feel free to drop in and visit.  We hope you enjoy your special gifts. We wish each of you a wonderful, sun filled (hopefully), fun summer, and we look forward to seeing each of you in the Fall.

     Let us not say goodbye, but L’Hitraot, until we meet again.  Shabbat Shalom.

Morah Rhona and Morah Jessica

Sammy Spider Visits the Bears

This week the children in the Bear’s classroom spent their time learning about the holiday of Shavuot.  Moses climbed Mt. Sinai and received the 10 Commandments from God.  We read the books Sammy Spider’s First Shavuot, and 10 Good Rules.  We discussed how there are different rules at different places, and that rules are in place to keep everyone safe.  When asked what rules the children knew about, they shared “no hitting”, “no kicking”, and “no sticking out your lip”.

The children also worked extremely hard to finish the special project which we will present to the families at the Shalom Picnic next Friday.  We are sorry, but you will just have to wait to see what it is!  If you have not yet responded to the picnic invitation, please do so as soon as possible.  If you will be unable to join us, PLEASE feel free to invite someone to come in your place- nanny, grandparent, aunt, uncle, etc.  We would love each child to have a special guest.

On Tuesday we helped Ian to celebrate his birthday.  Not only did he bring special cupcakes and fruit salad to share with the class, but he brought enough to share with the Owl’s class as well!  Thank you for the treat, and for including all of the children.

With the warmer temperatures we have been bringing drinking water to the playground.  We also welcome hats for outdoor play as an attempt to be shielded from the sun. Please remember that hats are not for sharing. 

It is hard to believe that next week will be the last week of our school year program.  The children have all grown so much throughout the school year.  We look forward to continue watching them grow in our upcoming summer program, and then again during the next school year.

Have a wonderful weekend.

Morah Rhona and Morah Jessica

Ten Good Rules

Is it really true that we have turned the calendar to read June? Where has the school year gone? All of the children continue to grow socially, emotionally and cognitively. Their friendships have expanded beyond the doors of the Bears’ classroom. Many of the children have bonded with the members of the Owls class and their shared playtime has included time here at the Trust Center and time outside of school, in play dates and informal soccer lessons.

This was a short week with Monday’s observance of Memorial Day, but that did not limit the fun in our classroom. The children have been very busy working on a special project. We are sorry, but you will have to wait to find out just what it is! We also began to talk about the upcoming holiday of Shavuot. The children learned that this is when God gave Moses the 10 Commandments atop Mt. Sinai. As we read a book about this, many of the children recalled the story of Passover, and baby Moses. They also remembered that he led the Jewish people out of Egypt to freedom by walking through the parted waters. The children have been thinking of various rules both in school and at your own homes. Each day we have read a book called Ten Good Rules, which has very colorful photographs in it. In anticipation of this week’s Tot Shabbat, we have spent time each day in the chapel, reading a story. The children have practiced sitting in their chairs, and not running around. We have discussed how this is being respectful. We will continue to reinforce this value.Despite the warm (finally) weather, we ask that you please send a sweater or sweatshirt to school to be left in your child’s cubby. Many of the children have expressed that they are cold, due to the air conditioning. We also remind you that although the children love to wear sandals and crocs, the best footwear for school is sneakers, accompanied by socks, since most children do not like the feel of sand and woodchips in their shoes. With the onset of warmer and sunnier days, we also would like to remind you of our sunscreen policy. If you would like us to reapply sunscreen for afternoon play, you must sign a consent form and send in labeled sunscreen. This product cannot be shared by children, except for siblings.

It is hard to believe that we only have 2 more weeks of school. Please note that we will be closing at 3:00PM on Tuesday, June 7 and will be closed on Wednesday, June 8, in observance of Shavuot.

Thanks so much to Emily's family for being our Shabbat helpers this week! Have a wonderful weekend and Shabbat Shalom.

Morah Rhona and Morah Jessica

Celebrating Lag B'Omer and Shabbat

This week, the children in the Bears’ classroom celebrated the holiday of Lag B’Omer. During this celebration in Israel, there are many picnics and bonfires. Unfortunately, the weather in Massachusetts did not cooperate with us, however, here at the Trust Center we were able to use our imaginations and improvise. On Monday, we put down several sleeping bags on the floor in the gross motor room. The entire class went on a scavenger hunt where we gathered cups, napkins, a pitcher of water, and crackers. The reward at the end was a “picnic” snack on the sleeping bags after we read two stories. On Tuesday, while we were playing out in the playground, the children collected many sticks. After lunch, we gathered on the rug in the classroom and built a bonfire, complete with real marshmallows on a stick. The highlight of this activity was eating the marshmallows once they had been “toasted.” On Wednesday at the art table, the children made pita pockets. This was done by coloring large circles. They were folded in half, stapled, and then stuffed with pretend lettuce, tomato, pickles and falafel.

On Thursday, we switched gears. For the first part of our day, all of the children from the Owls’ class joined us in our classroom while Morah Larissa and Morah Kate held parent conferences. This was a wonderful opportunity for the children to work together. Various groups worked cooperatively playing in the dramatic play area, using the manipulatives and putting together two different floor puzzles. Once the classes separated, all of the Bears helped Morah Jessica make some challah dough. During this activity, the children had a chance to measure and then mix the ingredients. On Friday, we baked fresh challah from this dough. The aroma in the school was wonderful!

Thank you to Ava’s family for being our special Shabbat guests. We loved having you visit. It has been a pleasure to meet with so many of the Bears’ parents to discuss your children’s progress. We look forward to meeting with the rest of you in the next few weeks. If you are going away for the holiday weekend, safe travels! We will see you on Tuesday.

Shabbat Shalom,

Morah Rhona and Morah Jessica

A Creepy-Crawly Week

This week in the Bears’ classroom, the children had the opportunity to learn a bit about insects. We read the books The Very Hungry Caterpillar and From Caterpillar to Butterfly. The children each made a 3-D caterpillar, and followed it up the next day by decorating a very beautiful butterfly. Before long, we will (hopefully) be able to search for real butterflies while playing outside! Next, the children paired up colorful spider webs which they “spun” themselves, with creepy spiders, which each child cut out on their own. It was wonderful to see how much their cutting skills have grown since the beginning of the school year. The children also counted how many legs they glued onto their spiders. We read the book and sang the song The Itsy Bitsy Spider. Throughout the year we have woven the Sammy Spider book series into our curriculum as we celebrate the Jewish holidays, and the children are always happy to share that spiders don’t celebrate holidays, “spiders spin webs!”

We read the book How & Why Insects Visit Flowers and the children heard how various different insects work to help flowers grow. Zev was proud to tell us how they stick their tongues in the flower to suck out the nectar. On Friday, we read the book 10 Little Ladybugs and each child crated their own ladybug.

Despite the gloomy weather, we were still able to go outside almost every day. The children enjoy the fresh air. We are anxiously awaiting the arrival of the “real” Spring! The children have become experts on helping to place the cover back onto the sandbox during our playground cleanup time. This takes group cooperation and each child is always proud to help.

Next week, we will be celebrating the holiday of Lag B’Omer, which is a holiday to commemorate the victorious Bar Kokhba revolt against the Roman Empire in 132 CE. In Israeli tradition, it is a day of parties, picnics and bonfires.

If you have not yet done so, please sign up for an end of the year conference. These conferences will take place on Wednesday, May 25^th and Tuesday, May 31^st.

Have a wonderful weekend. Shabbat Shalom.

Morah Rhona and Morah Jessica

Happy Birthday, Israel!

Dear Families,

This week, the class celebrated Yom HaAtzma’ut, which celebrates Israel’s Independence Day and Israel’s 63rd birthday! The week was filled with blue and white, and many verses of Yom Huledet Same'ach (happy birthday to you). The children boarded an El AL flight, buckled their seat belts, had a little snack and were off from Logan Airport to Ben Gurion Airport. After a musical round of Am Yisrael Chai, the passports were stamped and it was off to explore.

On Monday, the children were able to practice their fine motor skills using Hebrew stencils. They liked pointing out the letters they knew, especially the aleph. During Circle Time, the children did a concept webbing around Yom HaAtzma’ut, as the children shared what they knew about Israel. This webbing is posted outside the classroom if you would like to take a look at it. The children listened to a reading of Sammy Spider’s First trip to Israel, which documented a young boy Josh, and his family visiting Israel for the first time. Afterwards, the children saw real photographs of the Kotel, also known as the Western Wall. During project time, the children were asked to draw pictures of their own Western Wall, or they could draw the Western Wall through their eyes. The children were really able to use their imaginations, and it was great seeing how different each child interpreted the Wall. We also had music with Cantor Schloss and had fun singing many Hebrew songs.

Tuesday, the children took the Israeli bus to Jerusalem, the City of Gold. The children built their own Walls from Legos, and began to paint “bricks” for our very own Western Wall (proudly displayed in the hall, accompanied by some notes and hopes from the children). The children were given blue and white paper to cut stripes and triangles to make their own Israeli flags, (degel). Friends were also able to finger-paint with blue and white paint, and listened to the wonderful story, And Shira Imagined, by Giora Carmi.

On Wednesday, the children went on an archeological dig in our very own sand table! They used sifters and paintbrushes to discover shekels and some dinosaurs. At the writing center, the children used Jewish star and flag rubber stamps, and used counting cakes to count out 63 candles. The children painted ziti blue and white, to be strung the next day to compare the age of Israel to the United States (235). The children noticed that United States has a lot more, therefore the US is older than Israel. During Circle Time, the children sang a favorite “Hinei Rakevet” (an Israeli folk song about a train), and the children became a class train and sang to the song. The children were having a blast doing the “chug chugs” and “toot toots!”

Thursday was an exciting day, as our dramatic play corner was turned into an Israeli Shuk! The children used Israeli money to buy goods and jewelry, many of the items came straight from our pen pals in Haifa Israel! Snack was also a treat, as the children did some food taste testing. Two common founds found in Israel are dates and olives. The children were able to try these foods, some did some did not. The children also made their own versions of israeli salad. They were provided with cherry tomatoes and cucumbers that they could eat together. It was a nice day, and the children were ready for the playground to ride bikes and dig in the sand.

After a great week, it was sad to leave Israel. After a quick visit to a kibbutz, the children packed up and boarded the plane to fly back to Boston. We could not resist a little birthday treat for snack as this special week came to an end. We hope you have a great weekend and Shabbat Shalom.

Morah Jessica and Morah Rhona

Welcome new friends!

Dear Families,

This week, the Bears’ class welcomed not one, but two new friends. Victoria (Tori) will be with us every day and Sam will be here on Tuesdays and Thursdays. They are joining Ian who became a member of our class just last week, and will also be here each day of the week. That makes three new friends in two weeks!

All of the new children have become adjusted to our routine, and all have begun to join others in play. We spent a lot of time this week reminding the “older” classmates the importance of being a good role model. We have encouraged the children to make good choices and show their new friends the right thing to do.

We spent a large portion of our art time making special decorations to be handed out during Friday’s Family Day Celebration Breakfast. The children enjoyed making the colorful flowers. It is our hope that they have helped to “brighten your day!” They also loved baking the blueberry muffins for our buffet table.

A very happy birthday to our friends Zev and Orli this week!

Next week, we will be doing a unit on the land of Israel in honor of Yom Ha’atzmaut, Israel’s Independence Day. The children will be taking a pretend trip to Israel and learning about various cities and landmarks of that beautiful country. We can’t wait to share some of our experiences in next week’s newsletter.

Although the month of May has just begun, before we know it, it will be June. That being said, we have scheduled our Spring Parent Conferences for Wednesday, May 25 and Tuesday, May 31. A sign-up sheet can be found in the Bears’ room. Please take the time to choose a time slot when you are available to meet with us. If neither of those dates are a possibility for your family, please let us know right away so we can make alternative arrangements.

Please check to see that your child has season and size appropriate clothing in the box which is left at school. It is sometimes hard to realize just how much they have all grown during the school year!

We hope to see you all at Tot Shabbat tonight. Happy Mother’s Day to all of the moms and grandmothers. We hope you enjoy your special day. Have a wonderful weekend.

Morah Rhona and Morah Jessica

What a Beautiful Week!

It was wonderful to see all of the children following our Spring Break and Passover holiday. We can finally officially say that “Spring has Sprung!” The dreary days of March and April have turned to the warmth we love. The children in the Bears’ class have loved being able to spend quality time in our outside play area. This week many have made the discovery that they are strong enough to hang from, or climb on the bar on our climbing structure. We have reinforced that this is an acceptable activity only when a teacher is standing right there. We remind the children that although they are strong enough to do this, it is not safe to try without adult supervision. This week we were happy to welcome our newest Bear friend, Ian, to our class. It was also great to have Ian’s mom, Ellie, spend some time in the classroom. We are already looking forward to next week, when we will welcome another new student, Tori. Both Ian and Tori will be attending school daily until 1:00PM.

The children have been practicing singing Bim Bam and Mah Yafeh Hayom for tonight’s Teacher Appreciation Shabbat service. Some of our practicing was done right in the chapel, where the children will be called to the Bimah to sing. We hope to see many of you there.

The teachers have been busy planning for next week’s Family Day Celebration Breakfast on Friday, May 6 from 9 – 10:30am. We hope that you are able to attend and that you also extend an invitation to a grandparent, or nanny. The children all enjoy having special guests and we love to share what is happening at our school.

It seems almost impossible that when you read the next newsletter, we will have turned the page on the calendar to May. The year just seems to be flying by, and the children have all grown so much! We look forward to seeing them continue to grow for a very long time!

Have a wonderful weekend and Shabbat Shalom,

-Morah Rhona and Morah Jessica

Passover is Finally Here!

Dear Families,

The children have had an extremely busy and exciting week getting ready for Friday’s Family Passover Program, and they were so excited to sing songs and share with you their vast Passover knowledge. The Bears have been learning about Passover over the last three weeks, including the story of Passover, the Ten Plagues and the seder. This week was all about the seder and the traditions and rituals that occur during the seder. The children learned about the seder plate, the symbolic meaning of the items and why each one is on the plate. It is important to understand these themes and through books, songs and projects each area was strengthened.

This week, the children prepared for their own seders. Each child made a seder plate using watercolors. The book, It’s Seder Time, was a favorite. The children also made afikomen covers; hopefully they are good look charms at your seder!Another exciting part of Passover are the blessings, songs and wonderful music that comes along with it. Maybe some of your children have been hopping like frogs at home, because in the Passover, one of the Ten Plagues was frogs. In dramatic play, children were able to embrace a whole new set of characters. Some children were Pharaoh telling the slaves to make bricks and build pyramids in Egypt. Sometimes, baby Moses would be floating down the river and the children would break out in song, “Where is baby Moses, Moses, Moses? Where is baby Moses? He’s on the River Nile.” The children practiced their songs on Monday with the Cantor and all week long.

Another important aspect of Passover is the food. The children learned about the significance of parsley and why we dip it in the salt water, the charoset that is supposed to remind us of the bricks that the Israelites were forced to make when they were slaves. The matzah reminds us how the Jewish people were in a rush to freedom, fearful that the Pharaoh would again change his mind, and their dough did not have time to rise. The children were able to sample their own creations as they made charoset on Wednesday and matzah on Thursday. Two popular books were, A Taste For Noah and A Mouse in the Matzah Factory. Throughout this unit, the children were able to explore a new area of Judaism and these experiences helped strengthen their Jewish identity. To top it all off, the wonderful Passover program on Friday was a big success! Thank you to all who were able to come, the children get so excited to share their school with you. We hope everyone has a wonderful vacation and a great holiday.

Shabbat Shalom and Happy Passover!

Morah Jessica and Morah Rhona

Spring is REALLY here this time...Go Sox!

Dear Parents,

The Bears have continued to prepare for the upcoming holiday of Passover. We have learned the words to many songs, which we will be sharing with you next week at our Family Passover Program and Lunch (Friday, April 15 at 11am). Our crafts have included painting the pyramids which the children built from sugar cubes, cutting and gluing paper pyramids, creating matzah men and matzah ladies, making two types of frogs, including frog puppets, and painting wooden frogs, Kiddush cups and Jewish stars.

When we think of how much we have already done in preparation for this holiday, we then take a deep breath, as next week will be another filled with crafts and cooking activities.

We hope that each of you will be joining us for our special program. If you are unable to be here on April 15, please extend the invitation to a grandparent, aunt, uncle or babysitter. The children have been told that some parents will have to work, and that is OK, as Morah Rhona and Morah Jessica will be here to help them.

On Friday, we were all very excited to “dress of Sox-cess” and wear our Red Sox gear. Hopefully the hometown team will be so excited to be back at Fenway, that they will begin their road to the 2011 World Series! In support of Rally Against Cancer and the Jimmy Fund, the children of TCEE and the Ansin Religious School are collecting money in their tzedakah boxes to donate to such a worthy cause.

Rumor has it that next week the temperature may hover around 70 degrees. Keeping this in mind, the warm weather is probably not here to stay, so please continue to dress your children in layers or with jackets that are appropriate for the weather.

This week, the children were happy to welcome our newest friend, Auren, to our class. Auren has enjoyed exploring the materials and centers, and the other children have invited him to join in play. We were also happy to welcome Orli and Zev back from their vacation in Arizona. It sounds like they had a fabulous time.

Have a wonderful week. Shabbat Shalom and GO SOX!

Morah Rhona and Morah Jessica

Frogs Here, Frogs There, Frogs Were Jumping Everywhere!

This week brought the story of Passover to the Bears’ classroom. The children heard how the Jewish people were slaves in Egypt. As a class project, the children decorated people to represent the Israelites.

Each child’s photograph was attached to finish the person they decorated. They then worked collectively to create large pyramids!The symbols of the holiday are being introduced gradually. So far the children have heard about the mean King Pharoah, the 10 plagues, with jumping frogs heading the list of favorites, Baby Moses floating in a basket on the River Nile, the pyramids that the Jewish slaves helped to build, how the water in the sea turned red, and how matzah was created because as the Jewish people fled Egypt they did not have time to wait for the bread to rise. Over the next 2 weeks we will continue to hear more about this holiday. Our school celebration of this holiday will culminate with a Family Passover Program on Friday, April 15^th at 11:00 am. Watch your email, as invitations will be sent to you early next week. We hope that you will all be able to join us for this wonderful day.

On Wednesday of this week, we were fortunate to have a special reader from the synagogue Sisterhood, Doris Feldman, come to visit our classroom. She brought the book The Carp in the Bathtub, by Barbara Cohen, which she read and then donated to our class library. We can’t thank her enough for giving us her time. The children enjoyed the story.

We were very excited to receive a package in the mail from our friends in Haifa, Israel. In the box we found a book that the children made for us, a photo album, and some Purim treats for the children. We will be sending a package back to Haifa within a week or so. Believe it or not, we have also created a book for them!

Don’t forget Tot Shabbat is tonight at 5:45 pm. We hope you’ll be joining us! April Vacation will soon be upon us and there is still space for your child(ren) to join us from April 20 - 22. If you are interested, or have any questions, please contact Shari.

Next week we will be welcoming a new friend, Auren, to our class on Tuesdays and Thursdays. We look forward to having him join the Bears!

Have a great week and Shabbat Shalom,

Morah Rhona and Morah Jessica

Spring is here...or so we've been told!

This week in the Bears’ classroom we tried our hardest to focus on Spring. At times that was a challenge, as we looked out the windows and saw snow falling from the sky! Despite the weather, the children had fun as we began to bring Spring inside.

The children decorated large flowers with roller paints. On Wednesday, we had a very successful group art project. What began as an activity for 4 children soon had as many as 10 children participating at the same time! They used rollers and sponges, along with traditional paint brushed to transform white wallpaper into pastel colored wallpaper. The children also took this opportunity to experiment with color mixing. There were plates of pink, turquoise, and lilac paint placed on the table and at the easel. As the children mixed the paint, they created many shades of these beautiful colors to decorate the paper. Once dried, these pastel pieces were transformed into beautiful flowers. On Friday each child had the chance to decorate a kite, another sure sign of Spring!

As the temperature rises, we will make every effort to bring the children outside each day. This week, we even did that in the rain! The children had fun running around and getting some fresh air. Because we intend to continue to do this, we ask that you please make sure that your child has a complete change of clothes at school, including socks. This will be extremely helpful if they get wet riding the bikes or using the slide.

Next week, we will begin our unit on Passover. We will spend 3 full weeks hearing the story of this holiday and learning about the traditions and special foods associated with it. Please mark your calendars for Friday, April 15. On that day we will have our Second Annual Family Passover Celebration. More details will be sent home as the event gets closer.

We were happy to have Rob Sherry join us on Friday for Shabbat. It was great hearing all about the Sherry family’s trip to Florida.

Applications are now being accepted for the April school vacation camp, as well as for the summer program. Please speak to Shari if you have any questions about these programs.

Have a wonderful week.

Shabbat Shalom,

Morah Rhona and Morah Jessica

Groggers and Costumes and Hamantaschen, OH MY!

Groggers- check. Masks- check. Crowns- check. Mishloach Manot baskets- check. Hamantaschen- check. It looks like all that is left to complete our Purim celebration is costumes and F-U-N!

The children in the Bears’ classroom were extremely busy all week preparing for our special celebration. Each child worked hard to complete each task in preparation for the big day. Everyone had a special role in the baking of the hamantaschen. Some friends did measuring and mixing, while others helped to fill the cookies with preserves or chocolate chips. The aroma was wonderful as they baked in the oven! Each time the story of how Queen Esther helped save the Jewish people was told with the assistance of our special holiday puppets, the excitement on the children’s faces was priceless. Some of the children can even tell the story with role playing.

On Friday, there was a costume parade throughout the synagogue, followed by our weekly Shabbat celebration. All of the Bears and Owls then ate lunch together to complete our in-school celebration. To help increase our anticipation, the children enjoyed our Spirit Week. Every child wore a crazy hat on Wednesday and they all enjoyed our backwards day on Thursday. When else is it OK to have dessert before lunch?
Next week, we will begin our unit on Spring. Perhaps it has finally arrived! With the fluctuating temperatures, we remind you to please dress your children in layers. Outside play is a very important component of our program and we want to keep the children as comfortable as possible while outside.

Please remember that there is NO SCHOOL next Thursday, March 24. The TCEE staff will be participating in a Professional Development Program at Smith College for the day.

All families are invited to join us on Sunday at 9:15am for a TCEE breakfast, prior to the TOS Purim carnival.

Shabbat Shalom and Happy Purim!

Morah Rhona and Morah Jessica