What Time is it in Gan Aleph!?

Tick tock, tick tock! Can you hear the clock ticking in Gan Aleph? This week, we explored the concept of telling time to the hour. The children learned the different parts to the clock what the big and small hands represent. We practiced telling time to the hour by making a human clock! The children were assigned a number necklace and formed a clock using their bodies. We then took turns rolling dice and adding the two numbers together. The "dice thrower" yelled out the number formed by adding the 2 dice together and the "arrow holder" quickly formed that time in the middle of our circle. We took turns switching off the different "clock jobs." The children are having fun using manipulative clocks to explore the concept of time and are eager to continue this unit next week using their own handmade ladybug clocks!

Ganon Bet learns about sets!

In math,
we learned the concept of sets and subsets. We drew three colored circles and placed different colored bears in each circle. We manipulated the bears into different groups based on either their size or their color. We also created different patterns using the bears.

Zot Chanukah!

Every day of Chanukah held special treats for the Early Childhood Department. Today, on the last day of Chanukah, the Small Wonder Puppet Theater performed the Chanukah story for us. The children were totally enthralled with this interactive presentation, singing, clapping, shouting out Antiochus and proudly announcing themselves as Maccabis. The holiday may be over, but it is sure to be remembered.

Chanukah Workshop

The children enjoyed our Chanukah Workshop this morning where they had an opportunity to enjoy some science and math activities in each of the early childhood classrooms. In Ganon Bet they made edible menorahs, created colorful designs by spinning dreidels in paint, and used their five senses to look through magic glasses, taste potato chips in different dips, listen to Chanukah music, smell spices, and feel objects in a "touch box." In Gan Aleph they went through an obstacle course and created Chanukah rubbings. In Gan Bet they made Chanukah cookies and edible dreidels, and decorated Chanukah bags. In Gan Gimmel they played a latke number game, made dreidel graphs, and did some patterning with candles. They then returned to our classroom where they made wax resist paintings, created mirror images, and experimented with colors on a light box. What creative ways to have fun and learn at the same time!!

A Chanukiyah Out of Potatoes???

After reading the book "A Hanukkiyah for Dina" by Floreva Cohen, the children were asked whether they thought the story was fiction or non-fiction. They decided it must be fiction because you could never make a chanukiyah out of potatoes! We then proceeded to cut four potatoes in half, scoop out the middle, put a whole potato in the center as the shamash, pour in some olive oil, place some wicks inside, and light our potato chanukiyah, just like Dina did in the story!! (The children then decided that the story was non-fiction!)

Busy Moms in Ganon Aleph

This week a few moms came to our class to help the children with some baking and cooking for Chanukah. Flora's mom came in to help the children make Chanukah chocolates, Daniella's mom helped the children bake and decorate yummy Chanukah cupcakes, Hannah's mom came to dip pretzels in chocolate and decorate them with the children, Tiferet's mom came to help the children make delicious potato latkes (they peeled and grated the potatoes themselves!), and Eli's mom came to make sufganiyot with the children. What a busy, productive, tasty week we had! Thank you to all the parents who came to help out!

Chanukah Fun with Morah Roberta

This week Ganon Bet joined us for a special musical session with Morah Roberta. She used her Chanukah puppets to tell the children a story, to sing our Chanukah songs, and to teach the children special dances for Chanukah. We love meeting with Morah Roberta every Wednesday for music!

How Many Candles?!!

Ganon Bet is having a blast so far during Chanukah. We have been lighting candles each and every day in school as a class, singing songs, putting on Chanukah plays, and the children have even been lighting their own chanukiot during center time. The Chanukah spirit is definitely in the air!

Gan Aleph "Flips" for Chanukah!!!

It smelled so delicious today in Gan Aleph. Meir's mommy, Ruchi Abboudi, graciously spared some time to come in to fry latkes with our class. The children peeled and cut and grated the potatoes and onions. They mixed it together with eggs and finally Meir's mommy helped the children fry them in oil. The smell was so delicious it wafted all the way through the halls of Yavneh. The children could not wait to eat them. What a yummy activity for Chanukah time! Happy Chanukah!

Chanukah Oh Chanukah

Gan Bet brought some Chanukah cheer to the Rockleigh Nursing Home. The children had been practicing many new and familiar Chanukah songs with our music teacher, Morah Roberta. Morah Roberta accompanied us on this trip, and led the children in songs such as Ner Li ,I Have a Little Dreidel, Surah Bachoshech, and Chanukah, Oh Chanukah. The children danced and spun like dizzy dreidels! The seniors in the home joined in and clapped, sang and hummed the wonderful Chanukah tunes. At the conclusion of the singing, Gan Bet presented the Home with a Chanukah Sameach poster, signed in Hebrew by each of the children. We also presented them with a chanukiyah that we had made in class. Before we left, the children signed Chanukah Sameachin in sign langauage! A fun time was had by all! Chag Urim Sameach!

We Flip Our Latkes In The Air Sometimes. .

Gan Gimmel was so lucky to have Yishaya's dad, David Pearlman, owner and executive chef of Executive Caterers, come to our class on Monday and make latkes with us. Armed with potatoes, onions, eggs and salt, Yishaya's dad and 22 excited children made very delicious latkes. From peeling to grating to frying, the "iron chefs" made latkes that could be smelled all the way down the hall and beyond. Not only did the children love the huge latkes that they ate but they were all looking for more!

Bright Lights Shine In River Vale

Chanukah is finally here and Gan Gimmel is celebrating the Festival of Lights with joy and gladness.

On the first day of Chanukah Gan Gimmel visited the Jewish Home For Assisted Living in River Vale. Under the direction of Morah Roberta Seltzer, the Early Childhood music teacher, Gan Gimmel and Gan Aleph entertained a group of senior citizens.

The children sang, danced and lit a chanukiah for the residents. The performers had an opportunity to interact with the seniors who enjoyed their company. Before returning to Yavneh the children presented the residents with a gift that they had made - a beautiful chanukiah and a drip mat.

The children returned to school happy that they had brightened the day for the seniors.

Chagall's Windows

Gan Gimmel integrated the study of the Jewish artist Marc Chagall with the parshiot which are read at this time of the year. These parshiot deal with the lives of the twelve sons of Yaakov from whom came the twelve tribes of Israel. Marc Chagall's magnificent stained glass windows at the synagogue of the Hadassah Hospital in Jerusalem sumbolize the twelve tribes. We explored how stained glass windows are made and examined pictures of other well known windows.The children designed their own beautiful version of the Chagall windows inscribed with their Hebrew names.To view the pictures of the windows at Hadassah Hospital http://www.hadassah.org.il/English/Eng_MainNavBar/About/Art+at+Hadassah/The+Chagall+Windows+Pictures.htm

Gan Aleph's First Day of Chanukah!

What a better way to start off Chanukah than with some dancing and performing Miztvot! We began the morning with a celebration in the gym...singing songs and dancing with excitement.

We then got ready to go on our big trip to the Jewish Home at Rivervale Nursing Home!

Gan Aleph and Gan Gimmel sang songs, danced like a candle, got dizzy like a dreidel and enjoyed the claps and laughter from the residents of the nursing home. We lit the Chanukiya together and presented the residents with our own hand made menorah and drip mat. The

children walked around shaking their hands and saying "Happy Chanukah!" What an amazing way to begin our Chanukah together!

Creating Yosef's Colorful Coat

The children learned in this week's Parashat Vayeshev about Yosef's special relationship with his father Yaakov, and about the special gift his father gave him. Each child in Ganon Aleph made Yosef's multi-colored coat in a very tactile, hands-on way which also tied the parasha in with science and Chanukah. After cutting out Yosef's coat, they colored it with crayons on top of a warming tray. It was interesting to watch the heat turn the solid crayon into liquid. They all "oohed" and "aahed" as they felt the crayons glide across the paper as the wax melted, creating beautiful, colorful designs.

We Love Playing Dreidel!

The children in Ganon Aleph have been playing the traditional dreidel game using pennies. We sing the dreidel song to help us remember the rules:

Nun means you get nothing, Gimmel means you win

Hay means you get half the pot, and Shin means put one in!

They practice math skills, Hebrew letter recognition, as well as waiting patiently for their turns!

SHHH! Gan Aleph is Learning About Digraphs!

Have you ever put chocolate on a chair or sheep on a ship!? Gan Aleph has! After learning about the "th" sound during Thanksgiving, we spent time this week exploring 2 other digraphs...the "ch" and the "sh" sound. The children were presented with a big "sh" ship and a "ch" chair. We sat around in a circle as we sang a song to the tune of "1 little, 2 little, 3 little Indians." First, we placed 10 sheep on our ship, then 10 shells, 10 sharks etc. We brainstormed other words with the "sh" sound and quickly realized that "Shoshana" belongs on our ship! We made Shoshana Lofstock the captain of our ship and placed her picture right at the top. Next, we sang the same song as we placed 10 chocolates, 10 cheerleaders, 10 chipmunks etc. on our chair! The best part of this song was when the CHildren were surprised with pictures of their own faces as we placed them on our chair too! We have been singing our "sh" and "ch" song daily to remind us of each of these sounds. The children followed up this activity by making their own ships and chairs and sorting pictures of things that begin with each of these sounds. They glued pictures onto each shape and decorated them. Who knew chairs and ships could be so much fun!?

Learning About Our Five Senses In Ganon Bet

Ganon Bet continued the unit on their Five Senses by smelling and tasting various foods with their eyes covered. To culminate the activity we looked into five bowls filled with various white food. The only way we could figure out what was in the bowls was by smelling and tasting the different foods. Ask us what we tried.

Baking in Ganon Aleph

We got a head start on our Chanukah baking when Danielle's mom came in to bake cookies with the children this morning. The children did all the measuring, pouring, and mixing under Mrs. Beckoff's supervision. Of course, science, math, and fun are inherent in every baking activity. And just look at the delicious results of our efforts!