Our First Tefila of the Year!
K - 2 Morning Tefila - Our First Tefila of the Year!
by Stephanie Rotsky
Last Monday Rabbi Micha and I led our first Tefila
of the year in grades K, 1 and 2! And was it inspiring and filled with ruach (spirit)! What informs every tefila experience are three big ideas: 1) we
help fix/mend ourselves and the world through tefila; 2) we gather each week in the Beit Midrash as a community
to pray together and learn together and create a sacred space together; 3) As
we learn new tefilot and have regular
opportunities to examine them and use them, we are able to see everyday
happenings as daily miracles and blessings in our lives.
Some
snapshots from this week’s tefila...
Barukh Atah – We thank You,
God
Kindergarten was taught the song –
Barukh Atah, We Thank You, God. The lyrics are: Barukh Atah, we thank You, God. Thank You for making our bodies work. Thank You for making them work! Using fun hand motions with a focus on saying
thank You to God for making our bodies work – students thought about
what it feels like when their own bodies are working well.
The Morning Blessings - "The Miracles of the Day"
First Grade had so many thank yous to
share during our Morning Blessings...thank you for the solar system, my family, my pets, The Rashi School, video games, friends, my teachers, nature, trees, the Torah, peace...
Shechecheyanu Moments this Summer
First
and Second Grade:
As
it was our first tefila of the year and the start of a new school year, we
joined together and sang Shechecheyanu
to mark this special moment. Then we invited students to share their own Shechecheyanu moments from the summer. Students
and teachers said: Going on a roller coaster, meeting a new cousin, going to camp, taking my daughter to college, passing my swim test, bringing my
daughter to the beach for the first time, going to Canobie Lake Park, going to
Montreal…
Kindergarten was asked: What
makes the Beit Midrash a special holy place – different from all other rooms
and places at Rashi? What do you notice?
Students
noticed: The hanging shofar with the light (the ner tamid), the ark (the aron)
– some called it a closet, the Torahs in the ark, the American and Israeli
flags, all of the Hebrew books and prayer books (siddurim) and the stone wall that reminds us of Israel…But what did
everyone forget to mention??? It is all of us gathering in the Beit Midrash
every week who have the power to make it a special and holy place!
The Shofar Call #1 – The
Shepard Boy and His Flute
During
tefila this month, we will share powerful stories that we are calling “The
Shofar Call.” These stories wake us up
and remind us about the power we have to bring more peace and goodness into our
world. Ask your child to tell you the story
of The Shepard Boy and His Flute.
A New Melody for Hinei Ma Tov from Elana Arian
First
and Second grade learned a great new melody for Hinei Ma Tov
written by Elana Arian – a gifted Jewish singer/songwriter. Throughout the year
students will be introduced to different melodies and sometimes new lyrics to
connect with a tefila they already know. A goal in doing this is for students
to build up a repertoire of prayers and different melodies they know so not
only can they deepen their understanding of what a particular prayer is all
about but also that they will feel comfortable and confident in various
settings when they attend services.
Here
is a link to a youtube video of Elana Arian singing this melody at Central
Synagogue in New York City.
First Grader Tali Smith – An
Amazing Shofar Blower
Tali
was invited to blow her shofar at the end of first grade tefila as we all sang:
Tekiah G’dolah. I think everyone would agree that it was a “WOW” moment! Kol
Hakavod, Tali! If your child would like to blow shofar on any Monday this month during tefila, please let me know! You can bring your own shofar or we can share a shofar with your child!
