Shabbat is Different

On Friday, we celebrated Shabbat together as a class. The emphasis of our celebration for this week was that Shabbat is different from every other day. To exemplify this, while the children were at recess with Morah Andrea and our teaching fellow, Morah Sarah, I rearranged the room and set the shabbat table with a tablecloth, candles, grape juice, and two challot, still warm from the oven.

Meanwhile, you may remember that it was an unusually hot and muggy day on Friday. When I came outside to gather the children I offered everyone an ice cube. Children licked them, ate them and even rubbed them on their faces. So, when we gathered in the room, I said "remember how hot and sweaty you were? How did it feel when you took the ice cube?" After the children shared their answers, I said "Shabbat is a lot like that. The rest of the week is busy and we're working - but shabbat feels different." We then proceeded to sing or listen to some shabbat songs, recite or listen to the shabbat blessings, drink grape juice and finally, eat our delicious challah. We ended our "shabbat party" with The Schmutzy Family.
the story

Preparing for shabbat in the Gan was also different. We divided into smaller groups so that every child had a chance to mix and knead the dough and, after it rose, to braid it and paint it with egg. As we become more familiar with the routines, children will take turns serving as "shabbat helpers" and leading the rituals.

On Friday, we also went on a milkweed walk, returning to the class with a large seed pod to investigate this week. We'll be learning more about the importance of milkweed to the monarchs over the course of this unit, and participating in the effort to increase the amount of milkweed available to monarchs.

Outside, there's a lot going on. Children play on the structure, but they are also deeply engaged in our new, emerging outdoor classroom in the wooded area of the playground. Some children were very keen on the idea of building a see saw. After I helped secure a plank for them to use, the project spontaneously morphed, at least for a while, into a balance beam, which they children helped each other across. I really, really loved watching this unfold, especially the way the children cooperated so effortlessly.

I'll do my best to keep updating the blog frequently. We are really focused on getting to know one another, learning to care for our classroom, the materials, and each other's feelings, and building community, and almost everything we do is designed with those primary goals in mind. I'm looking forward to another busy, busy week.