PEJE posted an article on Facebook today called, "The Marketing Gap of 21st Century Education" which describes a discordance between parent markers of educational success and school markers. Parents want the three R's and schools are proudly promoting their adherence to 21st century principals (creativity, collaboration, communication,etc.) The article quoted Seth Godin’s treatise on education called Stop Stealing Dreams in which he provides some analysis of the situation. For example, Godin says:“Parents don’t ask their kids, “What did you figure out today?” Two of Godin's suggestions are to acknowledge parent reality and to avoid the use of jargon so that parents better understand a school's approach to learning. I don't believe that we have the discordance that is referred to in the article. Schools also are concerned with teaching the three R's. These skills have been, are, and will always be at the foundation of intellectual progress. Perhaps the discordance is only in the approach to learning. Whereas parents might prefer to see evidence of memorized facts, 21st century teachers might prefer to hear how a child arrived at the solution. But even then, I can't imagine a parent who would be dissatisfied with a young child who can explain in words the connection between division and multiplication. So let's not worry too much about the divide, but yes, let's make sure we do explain and demonstrate to parents, the value and the outcomes of focusing on critical thinking. #edJewcon,PEJE,#edchat,#Jedchat

Preparing for Martin Luther King, Jr. Day

Two boxes are placed in front of the children. One is wrapped with plain white paper; the other is wrapped with decorative blue paper and a large festive bow. Which box did the children like more? Did they assume that the fancy package had something better inside? To find out, the children eagerly unwrapped the two boxes. Inside they found the exact same items – heart stickers.
This activity led to a discussion about Martin Luther King, Jr. and about not judging people by their outside, by the color of their skin. What was the connection between the heart stickers and Martin Luther King, Jr.? The heart, explained the children, represents love for one another. It represents what is inside all of us, even though we might be different on the outside. It is most important to look inside, they said, and not judge the outside.
Older students watched an interview with Abraham Joshua Heschel and read a story about his decision to march alongside Martin Luther King, Jr. during the 1963 March on Washington where King delivered his I Have a Dream speech. Heschel said of this March that “he felt his feet were praying.” He also said that, “The idea of judging a person in terms of black, brown or white is an eye sickness.” Heschel’s accent made it difficult for the children to make out these words in the interview. However, once they were repeated for them by the teacher, the students listened again to the interview and their faces lit up. They were in awe of his wisdom and his eloquence.
Students in second grade have been practicing excerpts from the I Have a Dream speech, and will recite them during their Readers’ Theater performance to classmates and parents this coming Friday.
Our world has been moved by the messages of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day. They have moved our hearts, and they have influenced our actions. We are grateful for the power of their leadership.
Dina

Mindfulness and Educating Children

Teachers often use a wind chime to get attention in the classroom. How many teachers use the wind chime to increase attentiveness, that is, to ask students to listen to the sounds and to listen to how long they can hear the sounds....Ah....As they do this activity, a calmness and sense of serenity spreads through the room.

Mindfulness and its role in educating children was the focus of part of our Professional Development morning, the day before Thanksgiving. We invited in Dr. Rita Benn, a speaker from the University of Michigan whose background is in education and psychology,and who facilitates stress reduction and mindfulness for teachers, health care professionals, parents, and children. Dr. Benn shared that mindfulness is increasingly being discussed in educational circles as a tool for increasing child attentiveness and empathy as well as reducing stress.

The teachers discussed the role of prayer and blessings as mindful activities - moments to stop, reflect, breathe, sing, set the intention for the day, be present in the moment - without thinking about work that needs to get accomplished. Saying a blessing before eating is also a way to slow down and be mindful and appreciative of the food that has been given to us. The school's challenge is to use these built-in moments to their fullest, by having students slow down when they recite their blessings, and truly be intentional.

Others shared how having an intentional conversation in the morning with children helps set the tone for a successful day. What do we want to accomplish today? Let's breath together and relax before going forward.

As a follow up, some teachers requested that the school bring in a Yoga teacher to lead mindful exercises to kindergartners and other young children - something we are currently exploring. We are also looking into the MindsUp Curriculum published by Scholastic, Inc. Expect to hear more from the educational world about the role of mindfulness in education children. We are on the cutting edge...

Shel Silverstein In Hebrew and English

"Where the Sidewalk Ends" is a favorite Shel Silverstein book of poetry read to the children during library time. At HDS, that's actually where the sidewalk begins... Special at HDS is the tag-teaming of the English speaking librarian and a Hebrew speaker (parent or teacher). Together they read literature originally written in English, and translated into Hebrew; and sometimes they read literature originally written in Hebrew. This week a parent and the librarian took turns reading stanzas - first in Hebrew, then in English, and then again in Hebrew to allow the students to hear the words again after they knew what to listen for. Among the poems read were: "Peanut Butter Sandwich," "Smart," and "Lazy Jane." Many times, the translation didn't match the original meaning. The children determined that to maintain the rhyme and rhythm of the poetry in a different language, sometimes different words were necessary.

The lesson was fun and engaging! It also focused on a number of language arts common core academic standards:

· RL.3.1. Ask and answer questions to demonstrate understanding of a text, referring explicitly to the text as the basis for the answers.

· RL.3.4. Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, distinguishing literal from nonliteral language.

· RL.4.1. Refer to details and examples in a text when explaining what the text says explicitly and when drawing inferences from the text.

It was a great walk on a sidewalk that will continue around the block, through the neighborhood, and back home again - until the next walk with Shel Silverstein or another favored author - in both Hebrew and English.

Dina

Gilad Shalit - Lessons in Social Studies and Language Arts - in Hebrew

Following Gilad Shalit's release from captivity, fourth grade students at the Hebrew Day School of Ann Arbor wrote letters in Hebrew to Gilad Shalit. In Hebrew, the language goal is the use of the future tense. In addition, one of the 4th grade Common Core language arts standards for General Studies is the use of effective transition words. Given that we are making a concerted effort to align our Hebrew language goals with the general studies language goals, this presented an opportunity to teach transition words in Hebrew (Gam Kain, L'vasof, Kodem Kol, Mieshoom sheh, Af al pi). In this essay assignment, students were expected to include at least two transition words and at least two verbs conjugated in the future tense. Some of the students went beyond this expectation; they exhibited an ability to comfortably use both past and future tense within the essay.

The fourth grade students had in third grade written letters to Gilad's parents, expressing their sorry and support. The students had read the children's book that Gilad Shalit had written and illustrated about a fish and shark who make peace with one another. The human connection to history and current events unfolds in this classroom in a way that adds life lessons to the language lessons.

Here are some of the thoughts and questions included in the student essays (my translation from Hebrew to English).

Can you summarize for me what happened?
Firstly, did you read books in prison and what were they? Will you write more books in the future? Secondly, what programs did you watch on TV and listen to on radio?
I only hope (Halevai) that you will write me back in return. I sincerely (mamash) love your story because it told about peace.
I need to tell you thank you for fighting in the army. Will you continue to be in the army? Also (gam kain), because you were very courageous, you believed that you could return to Israel.
It will be good if we could solve the problems of Israel, like the fish and shark made peace.
In the end (l'vasof), you will enjoy Israel and do good things.

Dina

Classroom Rounds - We've Begun!

This week we began our collaborative classroom observations. Up until now, we have been practicing our protocols - how to communicate with one another. Our first round went extremely well. (Solid preparation paid off!). General studies teachers divided into two groups. We had asked two teachers to volunteer to be observed. We divided the "observers" randomly between the two groups such that we had upper el teachers observing lower el teaching, and vice versa. This cross-level conversation helps build our collaborative environment - a focus for our year. The Hebrew/Judaics teachers stayed together as a group, because of sheer numbers; there are fewer teachers in this group.

The General Studies teachers and Hebrew/Judaics teachers each had 1.5 hours. During the first ten minutes, the teacher being observed gave an introduction to the lesson and identified the areas for which s/he wanted feedback. We then observed for about 30 minutes, and reconvened for the remaining time to share our observations. Following our morning, our leader (the educator who is leading these efforts) de-briefed both with me, and with the teachers who had volunteered to be observed. This is only the beginning of the process of debriefing.

What were we asked to observe? There were a number of areas, but here is a sampling. One teacher wanted us to observe how well she was dividing her time between all of the students. Another teacher wanted us to observe whether students were staying on task during small group time. Were they conversing in English or Hebrew? The third teacher wanted us to observe the effectiveness of physically spreading out the groups throughout the (large kindergarten) room. She had been reflecting on how the placement of the groups (closer or further apart) effected their work.

During our feedback section, we had the protocols up on a poster board. We were reminded to use such phrases as, "What were your thoughts when..." This was also a wonderful opportunity to congratulate our colleagues on the fabulous interactions and instructional methods that we saw in the classroom.

We will be tweaking the process as we go forward. One suggestion was to have a list in front of us of the three items that we were observing - to help us stay focused on the specific areas that we were asked to comment on. All in all, it was a fabulous beginning and it felt great to hear our colleagues speak about the many factors they consider when teaching a lesson, to highlight their accomplishments, and to help them grow.

Dina

School Spirit Day

Some schools call it Spirit Day; others call it Fun Run. We are calling it "Ruach Run." Next week, the school is taking a field trip to a local university indoor gym for spirited games and activities. We are calling it "Ruach Run" to connect to the prayer added in the morning service after Simchat Torah, "Masheev HaRuach U'Morid HaGashem." This prayer acknowledges God who brings the wind and rain at this time of year. The Hebrew word for wind is also the word for spirit!

The morning of our Ruach Run is also Rosh Chodesh Cheshvan, the beginning of the new month of Cheshvan. Rosh Chodesh Cheshvan is also Rainbow Day, a day dedicated to the story of Noah that we read on Shabbat that week. Children come wearing their Spirit Wear - their colored class T-Shirt. Each grade has a different color T Shirt, and the school, as a whole, looks like an actual rainbow! To combine a social action element with our morning of spirit, students bring in stuffed animals which will be donated to our children's hospital. The children place their animals on our makeshift "Noah's Ark" which adorns our main hallway.

The theme for our upper grades this month is "God in nature." We highlight this theme through story telling about our Giborei HaChodesh, our two heroes of the month. Heroes for the month of Cheshvan are the biblical Noah who was righteous in his generation, and Rabbi Eisenberg Sasso, author and Rabbi who wrote books for children about God in the world around us, such as God's Paintbrush.

Rainbow Day, Ruach Run, Rosh Chodesh Cheshvan - all in one spirited morning!

We've got Ruach, yes we do! We've got Ruach! How 'bout you? Yeish Lanu Ruach, Kain Kain Kain. Yeish Lanu Ruach! Mah Itchem??