Shalom Atid Families,A Talmud Tale
Told by Peninnah Schram
Honi the Wise One was also known as Honi the Circle Maker. By drawing a circle and stepping inside of it, he would recite special prayers for rain, sometimes even argue with God during a drought, and the rains would come. He was, indeed, a miracle maker. As wise as he was, Honi sometimes saw something that puzzled him. Then he would ask questions so he could unravel the mystery.
One day, Honi the Circle Maker was walking on the road and saw a man planting a carob tree. Honi asked the man, “How long will it take for this tree to bear fruit?”
The man replied, “Seventy years.”
Honi then asked the man, “And do you think you will live another seventy years and eat the fruit of this tree?”
The man answered, “Perhaps not. However, when I was born into this world, I found many carob trees planted by my father and grandfather. Just as they planted trees for me, I am planting trees for my children and grandchildren so they will be able to eat the fruit of these trees.”
Your partner in Jewish learning,
Kitah Alef (K-2)
Teacher: Limor Dahan
Sunday we:
-read a story about Tu B’Shvat
-learned the word “Ilan” (a kind of tree)
-decorated and planted parsley (hopefully it will sprout in time for your Passover seder)
-explored the Hebrew letter Tet ? for Tu B’Shvat and the sound it makes. We decorated the Hebrew letter with colorful tape.
-tasted the flavors of Tu B’Shvat at the seder with our ALC friends
Kitah Bet (3-4)
Teacher: Meirav Shahar
Sunday we:
-continued our unit about Tu B’Shvat.
-identified the seven species (Wheat, barley, grapes, fig, pomegranate, olive and dates…
the staple foods consumed by the Jewish people in the land of Israel during biblical times)
-learned a song of the seven species and discussed how we use each of those fruits and grains are a part of our daily lives
– read the story “Sammy Spider’s First Tu B’Shevat”
-discussed what we get from trees, and how we can help the trees and nature in return
-had a lovely Tu B’Shevat seder lead by our director, Luisa.
Thank you to our wonderful parents volunteers and for all the fruits donated for our Seder.
Our tzedakah total as of today: $239.15!….Lets keep that going!
Kitah Gimel (5-6)
Teacher: Yosef Landy
Sunday we:
-we discussed the topic of Tu Bishvat, and why we celebrate the trees’ birthday.-explored the 7 species in Hebrew and English (see Kitah Bet for significance of 7 species)
– discussed the traditions of Tu B’shvat, such as eating fruit and planting trees.
– the class practiced the brachot for eating fruit and shehechiyanu.
– each student took turns reading through the environmentalism chapter in the Modern Israel textbook.
-the class enjoyed a video of Honi the circle maker.
– we joined the other classes in a Tu B’shvat seder.
Rosh Chodesh Program
