Recent articles and news from Tiferet Bet Israel. http://www.tbibluebell.org Once when Rabbi Abraham Isaac Kook was walking in the fields, lost in deep thought, the young student with him inadvertently plucked a leaf off a branch. Rabbi Kook was visibly shaken by the act, and turning to his companion he said gently, "Believe http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=433 http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=433/ Thu, 02 Feb 2012 00:00:00 GMT ". . . the great stories of the past are great because they bespeak that which is timeless."
Torah Talk, Y. Chubara, M. Feinberg, R. Rotenberg

We tell stories to children for many reasons -- to entertain them, to engender a love of http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=426 http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=426/ Fri, 06 Jan 2012 00:00:00 GMT Fortunate is the generation in which the elders listen to the youth.
-- Rosh Hashanah 25b

Curriculum is what happens when you least expect it! It is well documented that children learn best when the lessons are based on their int http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=418 http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=418/ Fri, 02 Dec 2011 00:00:00 GMT God said to Moses, Go up to the top of the mountain, and be there.
- Exodus 24:12

This newsletter is being written just before the High Holy Days, the Days of Awe, a time of deep introspection. This newsletter is being read after http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=410 http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=410/ Fri, 28 Oct 2011 00:00:00 GMT "The root of religion is the question what to do with awe, wonder and amazement. Religion begins with a consciousness that something is asked of us."
- Abraham Joshua Heschel1

In this season of reflection and renewal of spirit, w http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=402 http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=402/ Thu, 27 Oct 2011 00:00:00 GMT "If we want children to flourish, to become truly empowered, let us allow them to love the earth before we ask them to save it."
David Sobel, Beyond Ecophobia

The last few newsletters have addressed the vital importance of childre http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=393 http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=393/ Thu, 25 Aug 2011 00:00:00 GMT The Talmud advises that to sing to God and not see God's world is a contradiction!

Children have a strong connection to the natural world. Yet today's children spend less time outdoors in free, unstructured time. Today's children are n http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=383 http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=383/ Fri, 27 May 2011 00:00:00 GMT ...and what do they want from us, anyway?

By the preschool age, children are well on their way to being able to answer that first question about themselves. The major development of identity starts at birth (and some say before birth), http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=375 http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=375/ Wed, 04 May 2011 00:00:00 GMT The 3 R's of Readiness: Relationships - Respect -- Responsibility

Each of the ancient Israelites, when given the chance to leave Egypt and taste freedom, had to decide if he or she were ready: ready to take the risks of journeying into http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=366 http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=366/ Tue, 29 Mar 2011 00:00:00 GMT It often seems that there is TMI coming from the Early Childhood Education Community. However some information is 2G2B4G. Therefore in keeping with the need to use time efficiently, and to take care of our environment by using less paper, we will b http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=356 http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=356/ Wed, 16 Mar 2011 00:00:00 GMT Practice makes perfect, and it certainly makes life easier when we need to accomplish something. Young children, especially, find comfort in repetition. Living with young children, we all know that routines often work for such things as getting ou http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=348 http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=348/ Wed, 09 Feb 2011 00:00:00 GMT "Life is a gift, and if we agree to accept it, we must contribute in return. When we fail to contribute, we fail to adequately answer why we are here."
Albert Einstein

Calendars measure time in different ways: 2011; 5771; the new http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=337 http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=337/ Thu, 13 Jan 2011 00:00:00 GMT The world exists only because of the breath of young students at school.

Pirkei Avot, Shabbat 119b



The focus of this statement -- breath--implies life, something living. The image this brings to mind is that of l http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=308 http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=308/ Tue, 30 Nov 2010 00:00:00 GMT The truth of being human is gratitude; its secret is appreciation. . .
It is gratefulness which makes the soul great.
-- Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel

What does being human mean? What is the soul that is made great by gratefu http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=300 http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=300/ Wed, 03 Nov 2010 00:00:00 GMT Early Childhood Education has been shown to have powerful and long-lasting effects on the human brain. In a new paper1, Flavio Cunha, an economist from the University of Pennsylvania, and James Heckman, a Nobel Laureate at the University of Chicago http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=281 http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=281/ Wed, 29 Sep 2010 00:00:00 GMT Such is the world of the young child.

Our sages tell us to study Torah lishma ("for its own sake"). So it is with children. "A paradox of parenting is that if we love our children for their own sake rather than for their achievements, i http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=290 http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=290/ Wed, 29 Sep 2010 00:00:00 GMT "No one is lonely when doing a mitzvah; for a mitzvah is where God and man meet."
--Abraham Joshua Heschel

The above quote, displayed on the door to Cantor Shammash's office, refers to the partnership that is affirmed each time one http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=272 http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=272/ Fri, 16 Jul 2010 00:00:00 GMT There are some stories that are told and retold. As I am writing this we are preparing to retell one famous story that we hear every year. The intriguing thing about the story of Passover, as told in the Haggadah, is that it is set up to be heard b http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=264 http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=264/ Fri, 21 May 2010 00:00:00 GMT Many of the previous newsletters have spoken of the alignment of our daily curriculum with the PA Department of Education Early Learning Standards. Standards give us a yardstick against which to check the children's progress toward desired learning http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=256 http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=256/ Tue, 18 May 2010 00:00:00 GMT I don't have all the answers, but I am beginning to ask the right questions.
(author unknown)

Our tradition puts great value on questions. We are encouraged to ask questions. The image of scholars actively seeking meanings to rev http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=246 http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=246/ Wed, 17 Mar 2010 00:00:00 GMT Early Childhood -- yes it should.
It should, in Early Childhood . . .

How should a child spend his day?
Would you say that it's JUST play?

A school that truly is first rate
Should be a place to educate, http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=236 http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=236/ Wed, 27 Jan 2010 00:00:00 GMT There is power in community. Human beings function best in community. Community gives us comfort, acknowledgement, encouragement, identity and responsibilities. Our first community is our family. Beyond that there are many communities, intentiona http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=226 http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=226/ Wed, 20 Jan 2010 00:00:00 GMT A human being mints many coins from the same mold, and they are all identical. But the holy one, blessed by God, strikes us all from the mold of the first human and each one of us is different.
Mishnah Sanhedrin 4:5

Let other peop http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=216 http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=216/ Fri, 04 Dec 2009 00:00:00 GMT "Human subtlety will never devise an invention more beautiful, more simple, or more direct than does Nature, because in her inventions, nothing is lacking and nothing is superfluous."
- Leonardo da Vinci

Children have a strong conn http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=206 http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=206/ Fri, 13 Nov 2009 00:00:00 GMT "Leftover parts are proof that you made it better."

- Anonymous quote on a T-shirt



Some of the world's wisdom is found on T-shirts. These words, displayed by a young engineering student, reminded me of the value http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=191 http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=191/ Fri, 02 Oct 2009 00:00:00 GMT Much have I learned from my teachers:
even more from my colleagues;
most of all from my students.
- Taanit 7a

For many of us in the Early Childhood Education Community (EC)2, this summer was very much about learning a http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=192 http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=192/ Fri, 02 Oct 2009 00:00:00 GMT In order to know where you are going, it is important to know where you've been.

What's in a name?
For the last year it may have seemed that we don't know who we are. A variety of names has been used to refer to what has always http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=177 http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=177/ Thu, 04 Jun 2009 00:00:00 GMT "Train your child in the way that he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it." (Proverbs 22:6)



The short term goal of discipline may be to control behavior, but the ultimate goal is more far reaching, and i http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=169 http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=169/ Tue, 19 May 2009 00:00:00 GMT There is a children's song that starts:

Wherever you go, there's always someone Jewish.

You're never alone when you say you're a Jew.

So when you're not home and you're somewhere kind of newish

The od http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=139 http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=139/ Thu, 26 Mar 2009 00:00:00 GMT This is the time of year that parents of young children are looking at preschools or early childhood education programs for next year.

Sadly, consumers often put more time in looking at options related to choosing a car, than in choosing http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=147 http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=147/ Thu, 26 Mar 2009 00:00:00 GMT Relationships, Respect, Responsibility

In a recent announcement, Arne Duncan, President Obama's Secretary of Education, prioritized early childhood programs as "Job One" in the new administration's education agenda.

Years ag http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=154 http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=154/ Thu, 26 Mar 2009 00:00:00 GMT "When we become parents, whether intentionally or by happenstance, our whole life is immediately different, although it may take some time to realize just how much. Being a parent compounds stress by orders of magnitude. It makes us vulnerable in way http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=161 http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=161/ Thu, 26 Mar 2009 00:00:00 GMT E pluribus unum: Out of many, one.

I am writing this four days before Election Day. By the time you read it, we will all know the outcome. The interpretation of the above phrase is pivotal to how we view "being American," and was even http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=134 http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=134/ Tue, 16 Dec 2008 00:00:00 GMT Am HaSefer traditionally refers to the Jewish people and our relation to the Torah, and subsequently to the Mishnah, the Talmud, and other sacred books. Books and learning have always been important in our tradition. The importance of books is app http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=125 http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=125/ Thu, 30 Oct 2008 00:00:00 GMT The Talmud advises that one should pray only in a room with windows. To sing to God and not see God's world is a contradiction!

Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch suddenly announced to his students that he was going to Switzerland to climb in http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=111 http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=111/ Tue, 07 Oct 2008 00:00:00 GMT The Lord said to Moses, "Carve out two tablets of stone . . . I will inscribe on the tablets the commandments. . . "
-- Deuteronomy 10:2

Even God doesn't do things alone.

Perhaps it is the American frontier mentality t http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=117 http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=117/ Tue, 07 Oct 2008 00:00:00 GMT Love, Protect, Nurture, Guide, Teach ... MOTHER

God could not be everywhere, so (s)he created mothers.
-- Jewish Proverb

Every day is a time to appreciate mothers. Mothering is manifested in many ways. The words abo http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=88 http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=88/ Wed, 30 Apr 2008 00:00:00 GMT Creating Shalom Bayit*
While Responding to War and Superhero Play

Or -- Where Have All the Hamantashen Gone?

This month we celebrate Purim. The Megillah of Esther speaks of persecution and heroism. Some major themes http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=72 http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=72/ Wed, 02 Apr 2008 00:00:00 GMT Oh The Places You'll Go!

This phrase, the title of a book by Dr. Seuss, conjures up excitement and adventure, as well as fear and insecurity. Last month, at just about the same time as we celebrated Dr.Seuss' birthday, the children in http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=80 http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=80/ Wed, 02 Apr 2008 00:00:00 GMT AT HOME IN A JEWISH WORLD

Adopt the pace of nature: her secret is patience.
--Ralph Waldo Emerson

In Israel, the almond trees are just beginning to bloom; the new fruit is beginning to form, signaling the beginning of http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=64 http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=64/ Wed, 13 Feb 2008 00:00:00 GMT The Gift of Time . . . Too Valuable to Give Up

One who is descended from you often teaches you.
-- The Talmud

The Preschool ended the calendar year with a flurry of activities.

The first part of the year h http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=55 http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=55/ Tue, 08 Jan 2008 00:00:00 GMT The Jewish people, ever since David slew Goliath, have never considered youth as a barrier to leadership."
John Fitzgerald Kennedy

Today's Preschoolers will shape our future!
One of the goals of early childhood education is http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=48 http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=48/ Tue, 04 Dec 2007 00:00:00 GMT Fall is such a wonderful holiday season for Jewish families. Jewish holidays seem to be planned with young children in mind. We know that children learn best when their hearts, hands and minds are engaged. Jewish holidays have so much that is conc http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=38 http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=38/ Tue, 30 Oct 2007 00:00:00 GMT The Preschool at TBI has been in session for a month. Based on the 9 Key Learning Areas of the PA Early Learning Standards, our program is similar to other high quality secular preschools, with an additional focus on Judaism. The Jewish component http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=28 http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=28/ Tue, 16 Oct 2007 00:00:00 GMT Co-Chairs: Margie Kerbel and Sheila Kowit

The mission of the Preschool Committee is to be a voice and an advocate for all of the members our Preschool family. With the direction and input of the Preschool Committee, the Preschool D http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=25 http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=25/ Tue, 16 Oct 2007 00:00:00 GMT Camp TBI is the summer session of our preschool with registration for 4 or 8 weeks (other time periods by special arrangement). We welcome campers from 2 to 5 years of age. It's a great opportunity for your child to get acclimated to our staff and http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=26 http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=26/ Tue, 16 Oct 2007 00:00:00 GMT "Many things we need can wait, the child cannot. Now is the time his bones are being formed, his blood is being made, his mind is being developed. To him we cannot say tomorrow. His name is Today."

Gabriela Mistral

No http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=27 http://www.tbibluebell.org/article.aspx?id=27/ Sun, 16 Sep 2007 00:00:00 GMT