The Schechter Difference: Minyan Matters

On the way to Camp Ramah...I am almost always the first car on the property each morning.  This is not new.  For the last nine years that I have been a Head of School at a Schechter – five years as founding head of the Solomon Schechter Day School of Las Vegas  and the last four, here, at the Martin J. Gottlieb Day School – however early childcare was available…that’s when the Mitzmacher family arrives.  My daughters since birth have had the pleasure of dining at school each morning at around 7:00 AM.  (You’re welcome!)  Why do I insist on arriving so early?

Based on the title of this blog post, you might think the answer is “minyan”.  That I try each morning to get to work as early as possible so that I can attend daily morning services at the synagogues in which my schools have been housed.

Nope.

Despite the fact that minyan begins (here) at 7:10 AM, I had not been in the habit of rushing to drop off my girls to attend.  Not that I never attended; I would attend sporadically on my own or to be present at school-related events.  But my rush in the morning was really to take advantage of that magic hour of silence before teachers and students arrived.  That was my hour to catch up on voicemail and email and to be ready to greet teachers and students at their arrival times.  For many parents and students, seeing me in the carpool line each morning is my primary point of contact, one that I take very seriously for communication and community-building.  So if I am being honest, when the minyan would be short the requisite ten and I was sent for, there were times when I either went begrudgingly or not at all.

And evening minyan?

Never.

Ironically, with all my talk of transparency and role modeling, there was always a disconnect between my schools’ expression of the value of daily prayer and my own personal practice.

“Do as I say, not as I do.”

That is not typically my leadership style, but when it has come to prayer that has been my unstated approach.  

And I like prayer!

So much so that it is the focus of my teaching time in the school.  I teach tefillah to Kitah Alef twice a week, to Kitah Zayin once a week, and teach a seminar about tefillah to Kitah Chet once a week as well.  I love visiting all our minyanim and our monthly Kabbalat Shabbat service.  We come each week to Shabbat services as a family and attend all Jewish holidays.  So what’s going on?

I think it has to do with my initial visit to the University of Judaism (now American Jewish University) in the winter of 1994.  I have shared about my religious upbringing before, but it is worth mentioning that that morning began with this thing called “minyan” and I can still feel the shock to my system I felt that morning as I watched peers participate in the first Hebrew (only) service I had ever experienced.  It was also the first time I had ever seen tefillin.  And that feeling of discomfort served both as the catalyst for the Jewish journey my life has taken since…and the roadblock to my daily minyan attendance.

Because, I still feel it each time I put on my tefillin.  I still feel it each time I walk through the doors.  I still feel it each time I am asked to lead.  All those feelings of inadequacy or ignorance or fraudulence…they are still there.  Despite all my years of education, my years of teaching, my years of leading those same prayers for children and teens – you put me in a room with 500 children and I am fine.  7:10 AM with 9 other adults?  Terror.

And if that’s how feel…imagine how the average parent in our schools feel.

I can.

And in a normal year, this would be the point in my blog post where I would transition into an educational and religious exposition of the value of prayer, linking it to why we engage our students in daily prayer and our aspirations for the outcomes.  But for me this is not a normal year.  Because my life changed forever almost eight months ago when I unexpectedly lost my father and with that change, my attitude about minyan has undergone a fundamental transformation.

I realize it is a cliche.  The process of mourning often has this impact on people.  But cliches are often built on a foundation of truth and one person’s cliche is another person’s life-changing experience and this has been mine.  And since July, I have attended minyan each day in order to say Kaddish.  Any my appreciation for those who ensure that there is, in fact, a minyan is unbounded.  And it isn’t always easy to do…there are days we struggle to make ten.  This is why my colleague Hazzan Holzer began a campaign this year at the Jacksonville Jewish Center called “Minyan Matters”.

It really does.

And this is the part that I do connect to our school and my newfound appreciation that as a Schechter school we value daily prayer.  We value it not only because of the skills it provides them with so that they will never have to feel the discomfort and fear many of us experience as adults with prayer.  We value it not only because we hope to inspire a lifelong love of prayer and future synagogue affiliation.  We value it because part of what it means to be a community is to provide its members with opportunities to have its spiritual needs met.  It is a blessing to have that opportunity with our children each day.

It is a blessing for me to have that opportunity each day as well.

And only by raising our children to appreciate this value can we be assured that when it is our turn in the circle of life to be the subject of someone else’s Kaddish that there will be a minayn in which it can be said.

That’s the Schechter Difference.

Jon’s #iJED Storify

Jon’s #iJED Storify

This is my quick, rather unedited, Storify of #iJED14 using JUST MY Twitter. I encourage everyone to make and share THEIR Storify using all the social media you are comfortable with! Let the connectedness and collaboration continue!

  1. What’s a little snow? Almost 600 educators have a lot of learning to do. #ijed2014
  2. The only snow I see is on the ground! Ready to fill the parking lot and let the learning begin! #ijed14 #TeacherDay pic.twitter.com/ukzdAv2yEo
  3. @Edtechmorah @JewishInteract Don’t miss their presentation! @mjgds @shoshyart There is always room for more collaboration! That’s #ijed14
  4. @HeidiHayesJacob “Help our students as self-navigators and collaborators in the physical and virtual world” #ijed14
  5. There you go! #iJed14 is a TRENDING TOPIC! Way to go, Tweeters! Keep up the momentum! pic.twitter.com/XdbL5VIjXY
  6. Learning from @nirvan about how to find, foster, and fund the creativity of children. #ijed14 pic.twitter.com/wSnaEJoXng
  7. The Schechter Network will be livestreaming our Network time tomorrow, from noon to two. Click this link to watch it– http://bit.ly/1g2M0KM 
  8. The event honoring Elaine Cohen will be livestreamed tomorrow at 12 during the Network time  http://bit.ly/1g2M0KM  pic.twitter.com/qMbgJCfSzc
  9. These children are amazing! What a beautiful tribute for Dr. Elaine Cohen! Thank you @SchechterLI! @SchechterTweets pic.twitter.com/JnL8hyeKUN
  10. Delighted to have joined you & the remarkable teachers. RT @iJEDConference: Wonderfully inspiring speech by @rabbisacks. #ijed14
  11. @rabbisacks discusses the parallels between Anglo Jewry and American Jewry over the past 30 years #ijed14
  12. Tal Ben Shahar: “Focus on what works” #PositivePsychology #ijed14 “Build the best qualities in life”
  13. Reality. Reality. Reality. The 3 secrets of happiness – Tal Ben Shahar. #PositivePsychology #ijed14
  14. Happiness is looking at reality – both of what works and the problems. But what works is vital to recognize! #ijed14
  15. Tal benshachar: resilience is a key factor in success #ijed14
  16. When you have a “what for,” every “how” becomes possible -Tal Ben Shahar, Positive Psychology #ijed14
  17. “The best self-help books are biographies because they give us reality- stories of real people!” – Tal Ben Shahar #ijed14 @PEJEjds fav bio?
  18. In schools, physical activity improves grades and levels of well-being and decreases depression and anxiety. Let’s get kids moving. #ijed14
  19. Tal Ben Shahar: “When we appreciate the good, the good appreciates.” #PositivePsychology #ijed14

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MJGDS Got Game II – “Whack-a-Haman” – Now Please Get It Too!

[Quick note about last week’s post covering edJEWcon LA: The decision to take edJEWcon on the road this year as regional mini-conferences was jointly made between the Martin J. Gottlieb Day School and the Schechter Day School Network out of recognition that the dual national Jewish day school conference schedule made it impossible to hold a third-annual full edJEWcon here in Jacksonville.  In order to keep the brand and the learning alive – and out of responses from across the nation – we decided to take the show on the road.  By continuing to provide the highest quality 21st century professional development to Jewish day schools throughout North America, we have simply widened the scope of what edJEWcon might be in the future.  There may be a full edJEWcon in Jacksonville in 2015 as well as other regional mini-edJEWcon’s.  But what last week demonstrated and what April 1st will demonstrate at edJEWcon FLA, is that the desire for what edJEWcon has to offer the field remains intact and the need for edJEWcon to grow and thrive remains significant.  We’ll keep you posted on the future of edJEWcon and if it winds up coming to a neighborhood near you soon!]

featured-image1In December of 2012, I blogged about an amazing new project we were launching at our school:

We are pleased to announce that Jewish Interactive will be embarking on a joint project with the Martin J. Gottlieb Day School of Jacksonville, Florida, where students will be designing from the ground up an educational Purim video game.  Jewish Interactive will actually build the software, to be released in advance of next Purim for use in their current network to more than 50 elementary schools around the world.

In this jointly planned and executed cross-curricular project, MJGDS students will first learn about the software development cycle and form project teams, each receiving a specific role, e.g.:

 Project manager

 Content expert

 Instructional designer

 Gaming expert

 Graphic artist

 Programmer

 Animator

 Sound effects

Students will research and gather the Jewish content to be included in their game, develop a curriculum and learning objectives, script an instructional game design, and develop characters and graphics. Every step of the process will be supported and guided by the team and educators at MJGDS and the Jewish Interactive team.

The MJGDS team has been a leader of innovation and entrepreneurship in the field, and a strong voice of change and advancement, most noticeably through their edJEWcon initiative, a conference for Jewish schools and institutions on 21st century teaching and learning, and the cross-curricular use of technology in their own school, sharing Jewish Interactive’s vision.

Jewish Interactive is thrilled to embark on this joint initiative with MJGDS and to pioneer the involvement of students at the very core of the learning experience.

And it is with great pride that just over a year later, we can share the following post from the Jewish Interactive website:

Whack-a-Haman is an international collaboration between Jewish Interactive (based in South Africa, UK and Israel) and Martin J Gottlieb Jewish Day School (Jacksonville, Florida).

The students designed the game and its assets under the guidance of Jewish Interactive and their teacher.  Jewish Interactive produced the game.

Download and play this game on your computer now.

MJGDS Team

  • MJGDS teacher/director: Mrs. Gutterman
  • Project Manager: Casey B.
  • Quality Control: Sarah C.
  • Art Director: Sarah S.
  • Art Team: Talya P. and Lily H.
  • Audio Engineer: Sydney T.
  • Photographer: Noah R.

A special thanks to sixth grade for coming up with the questions:

Benjamin C., Elior L., Gil S., Itamar L., Jamie B., Jolie W., Rebecca B., Zachary S. and Zoe M.

Follow the MJGDS blog describing their progress here.

JI Team

With thanks to the JI team for mentoring and believing in the talent of young adults and for their individual roles:

  • Instructional designer and production management: Corinne Ossendryver
  • Programmer and game mechanics: David Komer
  • Graphics:  Rachel Silke
  • Curriculum development: Chana Kanzen
  • Content approval: Rabbi Johnny Solomon
  • JI Director: Nicole Newfield

Jewish Interactive presented Skype lessons to the middle school students on:

  • Purim
  • Lesson plans and education
  • Instructional design of games
  • Audio
  • Graphic design
  • Basic programming
  • Marketing and budgeting

Thank you to all the students who submitted game ideas and we look forward to collaborating and producing them in the future.

Thank you to Jon Mitzmacher and Andrea Hernandez, Corinne Ossendryver, Chana Kanzen and Nicole Newfield for initiating this project and to Shana Gutterman for making it happen.

Google-play-download-Android  app_store_badge

Or to see how our students’ wrote about it:

JI-Press-release-JPEGI cannot be more proud of the results!  And I am pleased that Shana Gutterman has been asked to present alongside Jewish Interactive at next week’s iJED conference in New York to share with the field the amazing work she and the students have done.

I cannot think of a project that brings together everything we have been learning, talking and trying to do here at MJGDS these last four years than this amazing project.  I hope you download the game.  I hope you go onto to the students’ blogfolios and let them know how incredible their project was.

This is this thing called “21st century learning” in full flower.  This is the future of Jewish education.  And this is just the beginning…

 

UPDATE: This just came from the good folk at Jewish Interactive…

Dear Team

Mazeltov on the release of the first Jewish Game made by kids, for kids. This is truly a ground breaking project. It is very rare that a collaboration is so seamless, so mutually productive and enjoyable. Well done to everyone who worked on it to make it happen. I am proud to be part of a dynamic team that believes so strongly in the power of our children, who hears what they need and helps facilitate their process of learning. Often people talk about doing projects but they often don’t  happen – even for legitimate reasons.
Everyone on this team has given of their personal time to make this a success. I appreciate all the intellect, guidance, out-the -box thinking and for being ‘YES’  people who find ways to do things. I pray that our learning will help empower many other teachers and young students to have such a positive learning experience and that the App ‘Whack-A – Haman” inspires many schools , families and kids.
Shana and Corinne and David and Rochi –  you were the real push to actually make it happen. Jon thank you for making it happen . To the following kids:
  • Project Manager: Casey B.
  • Quality Control: Sarah C.
  • Art Director: Sarah S.
  • Art Team: Talya P. and Lily H.
  • Audio Engineer: Sydney T.
  • Photographer: Noah R.

Benjamin C., Elior L., Gil S., Itamar L., Jamie B., Jolie W., Rebecca B., Zachary S. and Zoe M.

Message to Kids : Thank you for being part our time. We have been honoured to work with you as colleagues. You guys have talent and we will watch you as you grow and develop over the years . We believe in you and know you all going to do big things in this world to make it a good place for us all. We look forward to more projects  with the whole school.

Shalom  and thank you from Jerusalem,

Nicky

 

•••

Nicky Newfield
Director, Jewish Interactive

Mobile +27 82 307 4691
Email   [email protected]

Habits of Kindness: “Seek First to Understand, Then to Be Understood.”

“Man was endowed with two ears and one tongue, that he may listen more than speak.”  – Hasdai, Ben HaMelekh veHaNazir, ca. 1230, chapter 26

unnamedWe introduced Habit #5 this week at our monthly “Habits of Kindness” assembly: “Seek first to understand, then to be understood.”  Our 8th Graders introduced the habit through skits and song and the essence of the habit seems to boil down to the ability to be a deep, active, empathetic listener.  Therefore, many of the activities we will engage in this month will be to educate and encourage our students (and our teachers and our parents) to practice the skills of being better listeners.

This is actually something I blogged about a long time ago with regard to thinking through how we prepare our teachers for challenging conversations with parents.  More recently, however, it is a topic that I actually have had the privilege of teaching to exceptional leaders in the day school school field through a program called YU Lead (part of the Yeshiva University Institute for University-School Partnership).  It is the second year I have taught this module and each time, I have used similar prompts to facilitate fascinating conversations.

So what I thought I would do to inspire conversation here is to share the prompts and see what it…prompts!

The part that I want to share here was the part that was the most impactful to the students and was borrowed completely from a professional development session we did here with our faculty with Dr. Elliott Rosenbaum in preparation for an early round of Parent-Teacher Conferences in which he showed us the following examples of ineffective and effective communication:

This led, with our faculty, to a very productive conversation about listening that opened our eyes (or I guess, ears!) to a better way of interacting with the parents in our school.

When I use it for YU Lead, I ask the following question:

Compare and contrast “The Ineffective Physician” and “The Effective Physician”.  What can we learn about the art of communicating difficult truths?

And to be fair, I ask the school people to read an article from a parent’s perspective called, “Help!  I Can’t Talk to My Child’s Teacher!” by Domeniek Harris.

And then I ask the following questions:

  • What new ideas about parent-school partnerships has this conversation raised for you?
  • How will these new ideas impact your current practice?
  • What new ideas about parent communication has this conversation raised for you?

And I then spend the rest of the week, mediating a conversation between these rising professionals on these topics and wherever these topics take us…

 

So…I invite you to check out the clips, read the article, and share how you think our school – its teachers, students and parents – can do a better job to embody the habit of “seek first to understand, then to be understood”!

DIY Mah Tovu Spaces

One of my joys as head of school (for real!) is that I teach a weekly Tefillah class to Seventh Grade.  Because as everyone knows, there is nothing that seventh graders enjoy more first thing in the morning than an opportunity to learn and explore prayer with their principal!

This is the second year I have taught this class (I also teach Tefillah to Grade One twice a week and have a weekly seminar with Grade Eight), and I have tried to make sure that my pedagogy is in line with our learning target despite my limited exposure (and planning time).  I don’t always succeed, but I think it is important to talk the talk and not leave it up to the rest of the faculty to walk the walk.

A couple of weeks ago, after completing a unit, I thought it would be interesting for our students to design their own prayer spaces.  We had been studying “Mah Tovu” – a prayer which comes early in the morning service (traditionally on the way into synagogue) – and discussing the blessing of having synagogues and sanctuaries and places in which we are encouraged to connect with our spiritual selves.  I was curious to see what environment our students felt encourages spirituality and so, without time to prep, they were given one brief period to design their own personal “Mah Tovu” space using whatever medium they liked and to email it to me by the end of the period.

Almost each student chose Pixie as their medium and you can see for yourself what some of them designed:

Pixie - Untitled-1-2 Pixie - Untitled-1 Pixie - Untitled-2 Pixie - Untitled-3 Pixie - Untitled-4 Pixie - Untitled Pixie Screenshot_1_14_14_8_51_AM-2Do you see any common themes?

Do you see anything that surprises you?

How would you design your own prayer space?

 

I look forward to more integration between 21st century learning and Tefillah and welcome suggestions from those of you who are doing this work in your schools and synagogues.  I am going to spend some time thinking about what my Mah Tovu space would look like and when I’ve designed it, I’ll update this blog post.

 

Habits of Kindness: “Think Win-Win”

This time we will let our 8th Grade introduce this month’s habit:

Like others of the 7 Habits, I am struck by the paradox of simplicity the habits create. “Think win-win” seems so simple, right?  Yes, there are developmental examples where that not might be the case (thinking of my 5 and 8 year-old daughters) and, yes, there are issues that perhaps are not so easily resolved with two winners (someone has to win the basketball game).  But as a philosophy?  Sure – of course things are best if we viewed challenges as opportunities for everyone to win, not with an inevitable outcome of a winner and a loser.  We might not always achieve a full “win-win”, but striving towards it will always yield a kinder result than “winner-takes-all”.

So instead of using this blog to highlight a personal or professional “win-win” of my own, I want to make a brief comment on the power of transferability utilizing the Habits of Kindness between home and school…

Our leadership team is presently reading The Leader in Me, which is the book that helpsbooks schools begin the journey of bringing the 7 Habits into the school. And as we have been reading, we are realizing the broader impacts, particularly the opportunity to strengthen the relationship between school and home.  From Chapter 3,

“…observe that the same principles and approach being taught at these schools can also be taught at home. One of the great things about the leadership approach is what it is doing to enhance the parent-school partnership.  For starters, it is bringing more parents into the schools to volunteer and support school and classroom activities.  But even more important is what is occurring as students apply the principles to their daily tasks and behaviors at home.  In other words, it is not just teachers who are reporting better behaviors and reduced discipline issues. Parents are reporting the same kinds of positive results. This is particularly true in families where parents have come to know the principles for themselves and have made conscious efforts to reinforce and teach them…If you are a parent, I promise that if you open your mind to it, you will have endless ideas of how you can apply what these educators are doing to your home.”

Excerpt From: Stephen R. Covey. “The Leader in Me.” iBooks. https://itun.es/us/NPFVw.l

Now that we are a few months in, I do actually see – as a parent – my children beginning to use the language.  Eliana will say that she is “being proactive” or that she is “putting first things first” which has definitely allowed her to be better organized.  Because we are currently working on “think win-win”, I am hopeful it will have a spillover to our family because I think this attitude could only help siblings navigate the everyday challenges of sharing time, people and stuff in a busy 21st century family.

I have shown examples from our school of how we are putting the Habits of Kindness into effect…

…if you are a parent at MJGDS or Galinsky Academy and you are seeing the impact at home, please offer a quality comment!

…if you are a parent or educator at another school who utilize the 7 Habits, please share your experiences with us so we can continue to improve our implementation here!

We’ll keep sharing our successes and struggles…and if you keep offering advice and feedback…well we just might achieve a “win-win” of our own!

Habits of Kindness: “Put First Things First”

paper-chain-in-the-dark-1215912-mIt is a new month at the Martin J. Gottlieb Day School and that means…a new Habit!

Habits of Kindness has become our shorthand for how we are utilizing the “7 Habits” to approach our “Community of Kindness” initiative.  As part of the first Habit, “Be Proactive”, I blogged about my commitment to blog each month about that month’s Habit and we spent August & September on the first Habit.  October had us spending time on the second Habit, “Beginning With End in Mind”, and like many of our teachers and students, I created my own personal mission statement.  (For ongoing information about our “Community of Kindness” program, please visit its blog…or even better, subscribe to it!)

November and December has us exploring the third Habit, “Put First Things First”.

There are 525,600 minutes in one year.  However, when you consider that approximately 175,200 minutes of that time will be spent sleeping, 16,425 minutes spent eating, and if you’re a student, 72,000 minutes spent in school, you have less than half that total to spend on the rest of your life. Therefore, it is essential to do the important things first—if you leave them until last, you might run out of time.

You know how something is so obvious that you dismiss it?

That’s how I feel about this habit.

You have likely heard that song and/or seen that video numerous times in the past and you know that the moral of the story is to remember that your big rocks are your family and friends and to not get bogged down in the sands of workaholism.

So why did I get to work yesterday at 7:00 AM and come home at 9:15 PM?

Why do so many of us struggle with finding balance when we know where our true priorities lie?

I don’t have an answer…but I do have an opportunity!  It just so happens that the theme of this year’s Day School Leadership Training Institute (DSLTI) Alumni Retreat – which is this Sunday-Tuesday – is on issues of health and wellness.  I welcome the opportunity to share and reflect with colleagues about how we try to keep ourselves spiritually, mentally, emotionally and physically prepared to passionately pursue our profession while remaining loving and present spouses, partners, parents, children and friends.

I look forward to updating this post next week.

And in the meanwhile, feel free to share your secrets via a quality comment on this blog!

UPDATED 12/13/13

I wish I could say I came back with a secret success to wellness.  But I did come back with a commitment to take my wellness more seriously and that the only way to do that is to schedule wellness into my day.  Exercise, sleep, eating well…we all know these are among the keys to wellness.  Making them a priority is the trick.  Here’s hoping when I re-read this blog post in a few months that I have put my time where my words are!

There is a November Dilemma: Thankful for the “Schechter Difference”

Funny Thanksgiving Hanukkah 2013 Greeting Cards from Zazzle.com
Funny Thanksgiving Hanukkah 2013 Greeting Cards from Zazzle.com

It has been too long since I have written about the “Schechter Difference”.

The Martin J. Gottlieb Day School is a proud member of the Schechter Day School Network.  And because we write about what that means in our handbook, and even have a picture of Solomon Schechter on our walls, I assume that many, if not, most of our parents are aware that as a Schechter school, we adhere to the norms and practices of the Conservative Movement when it comes to how Judaism is lived in our school.  I am less confident, however, that some, if any, of our parents could speak more affirmatively about what the impact of being a Schechter school has on the overall educational philosophy of our school and educational impact on our students.  I am less confident, for example, that they realize that much of what our school does and stands for: 21st century learning, Hebrew language immersion, Community of Kindness, Zionism, etc., etc., come as a direct result of what I like to think of as the “Schechter Difference”.

And the once-in-a-lifetime confluence of Thanksgiving and Chanukah, presents an opportunity to see the Schechter Difference in action.  Not so much on Thursday…but on “Black Friday”.  Because the ease with which we conflate “Thanksgiving” and “Chanukah” into “Thanksgivakkah” provides an opportunity to refine our understanding of what it means to have an “integrated curriculum” and makes it fair to ask if the dissonance between our shared cultural heritages does, indeed, produce a November Dilemma.

What does it mean to have an “integrated curriculum” and what does the “Schechter Difference” have to say about it?

Let’s define our terms.

I have always felt it useful to think of this in terms of a dialectic between the two poles of the most common attitude taken towards curricular integration and that is to be “rejectionist”.  A “rejectionist” attitude simply rejects one part of the curriculum when conflict arises.  If there is a conflict between, for example, what “Science” and “Torah” say, it is clear that one is authoritative and that resolves the conflict.  Whether it is the General Studies or the Jewish Studies that is viewed as authoritative depends, of course, on the school.

Other prevailing attitudes towards integration include “Judaizing” – the felt need to apply a Jewish view to every general studies topic otherwise risk students will view general studies as the more relevant – and a new attitude, not prevalent during the beginnings of the day school movement, which one could call “assimilationist”—where Jewish studies as defined in the school’s mission clearly takes a backseat to the general and any clash between values is left unmentioned and unexplored.

Thanksgiving provides us with a much better “dilemma” to see the “Schechter Difference” in action than Christmas does because regardless of which attitude a Jewish day school takes, it almost surely isn’t going to integrate the ideas and values of Christmas into its curriculum. Thanksgiving, however, especially if you take a hard look at the phenomenon of “Black Friday” and American consumerism, allows us to see how complicated integration can be.  Consumerism with its focus on individual material attainment is not consonant with Jewish values.  So what is a Jewish day school to do with that aspect of Chanukah in today’s America?

Being “Jewish” and being “American” is not the same thing.  However proud we legitimately ought to be of both our identities, we are not being intellectually honest if we claim they are identical and never in conflict.  Please keep in mind that the choice not to choose between is itself a choice.   Celebrating the consumerist aspects of Chanukah without acknowledging their conflict with Jewish values is to claim that such a conflict does not exist.

The “Schechter Difference” is that we are neither rejectionist nor assimilationist.  Nor do we feel so threatened by general society that we have to make everything Jewish.  We strive to be interactionist—our philosophy which can be seen in everything from our mitzvah trips to our blogfolios—seeks to allow the Jewish and the general to interact naturally as it does in the real world.  We believe guiding our students through authentic interactions is what will produce serious, committed, affiliated, literate and involved Jews capable of succeeding in a modern world.

So, please, celebrate the historical and secular significance of Thanksgiving with food, football, and gratitude.  And please, celebrate the historical and religious significance of  Chanukah with joy, festivity, and yes, presents.  But this and every year, let’s not forget our Jewish values of tzedakah (charity) and kehillah (community).   Along with your normal gift-giving, consider donating a night or two of your family’s celebration to those less fortunate.  Our Middle School focuses on “Turkey Tuesday” – where we go out into the community and deliver turkeys to families in need – not “Black Friday”.  By doing so we send a powerful message that there are times when our Jewish values command us to set aside the values of secular culture and that not only is that okay, but sometimes it is both necessary and appropriate.

That’s the Schechter Difference.

Happy Turkey Day & Chanukah from my family to yours!

Martin J. Gottlieb Day School Middle School Retreat 2013 Part I – The Storify

Martin J. Gottlieb Day School Middle School Retreat 2013 Part I – The Storify

Each year, we take our Middle School for a fall retreat at Camp Ramah Darom. We spend four days playing, praying, learning, adventuring and building community. This year our theme was "derekh eretz" and how to strengthen our Community of Kindness.

  1. It all begins with with a bus ride from Jacksonville, Florida to Clayton, Georgia!
  2. (The days and times for the Flckr images are not accurately labeled.  They are slotted appropriately.)
  3. We leave so early that we always stop on the side of the road for some “roadside davening”!
  4. A meal in a kosher restaurant is always a treat!
  5. We take advantage of driving through Atlanta each year to take educational field trip.  This year?  CNN!
  6. The final stop before Camp…Walmart!  Here are a few girls enjoying a creative “ice cream campfire”!
  7. Our theme was “derekh eretz” and we had three educational activities to explore it.  The first one divided our students into “Hokies” and “Pokies” – two cultures with many differences that had to learn to get along.
  8. Hokies and Pokies had to work together to cross the raging river!
  9. Later that day we hiked to Telulah Falls…there it is!
  10. Martin J Gottlieb DaySchool is on our way to zip-line…we are doing our best to balance visual updates with edited video and pictures…be assured that all is well! #MiddleSchoolRetreat
  11. Our second educational activity required Planet Kreplach, Planet Gefilte Fish and Planet Matzoball to identify which Jewish values they needed to barter from each other to resolve serious issues facing the Council of (Jewish) Planets!
  12. Our second major outing was tubing!  The best part was watching how many pairs of students who never really interacted prior to the retreat, sharing rides and enjoying the beautiful day.
  13. Our third educational activity was trust walks and conversation about how one builds trust and loyalty into our community of kindness.
  14. After a night of #Schnupencup dreams and a morning friendship circle, the Martin J Gottlieb DaySchool #MiddleSchoolRetreat is on the bus and headed home to Jacksonville!
  15. A final campfire, a night of final finding, and a final friendship circle took us onto the bus and back to school…and now the real test will begin.  Will the magic stay at camp?  Or will it come with us to school and help deepen our community of kindness – not just within the Middle School, but throughout the entire school?  We hope so!  But only time well tell.

    Watch this space!

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Habits of Kindness: “Beginning With the End in Mind”

paper-chain-in-the-dark-1215912-mLast month I blogged about how our school had decided to attack “Community of Kindness” through the “7 Habits” – which is how I have come to the appellation “Habits of Kindness” as a shorthand for ongoing kindness activities.  August & September were spent on the first Habit: “Be Proactive” and I committed to blogging each month about that month’s habit.

October has us spending time on the second Habit: Beginning With End in Mind. Students, teachers, and classes have all been charged with creating individual and class “mission statements”.  I invite you to tour the MJGDS Blogosphere for examples.  [For one excellent example, check out Kitah Dalet’s latest blog post.]

So…what is my “mission statement” as a head of school?  I realize that “mission statements” are supposed to be brief.  Any reader of my blog knows that I don’t do “brief” all that well.  So let me be a bit more creative and supply a mission/vision statement…here’s my crack at it:

Statement of Educational Philosophy & Practice

Background

There is no theory or idea that when put into practice works equally well in all or even many situations.  My experiences in the field coupled with my experiences in academia have lead me to conclude that pragmatism is truly the best philosophy.  As I have moved on in my career – from different kinds of jobs (informal Jewish educator/congregational educator/day school head) in all kinds of different communities (Los Angeles/New York/Las Vegas/Jacksonville), I have taken that pragmatism with me. I believe that every educational situation is different, and that to be successful one needs to be willing to try anything and everything to fulfill one’s mission.

Overarching Goals for Jewish Day School Students

  • Students will be academically prepared for advanced and rigorous study at the next school of their choice.
  • Students will see education and Jewish education as life-long endeavors in which they are active participants.
  • Students develop a sense of independence, positive self-esteem, and are encouraged to reach their truest and highest potential.

Pedagogy – Na’aseh V’Nishma

This quotation from the Torah, “Na’aseh V’Nishma” (Exodus 24:7), has been interpreted in many ways in Jewish tradition.  The meaning, which speaks most deeply to me, is: “We will do and then we will understand.”  I believe strongly that children learn best by doing.

In addition, I believe the following:

  • Children learn best through experiences in which they are able to construct personal meaning.
  • Jewish children deserve the opportunity to experiment with authentic Jewish ritual practice.
  • Students learn in different ways and have varying needs.  It is our responsibility to provide a wide array of learning experiences to meet those needs.
  • Each student is unique and benefits from the freedom and responsibility involved in developing his or her own identity.
  • Jewish tradition provides a wealth of wisdom and insight that contributes to one’s whole life; therefore, Judaic and secular curricula are treated with equal respect (if not always time).
  • Family and community are critical partners in a child’s education.
  • An experiential approach to learning compels one to aim not only for students’ minds, but their hearts, bodies, and souls as well.
  • 21st Century Learning – technology, second-language acquisition, global connectedness, collaboration and transparency – is an essential pedagogy for today’s school.

Jewish Education

American values are not necessarily Jewish values and vice versa.  Integration cannot be imposed by the school; it is constructed by the student.  Jewish education does not reflect a synthesis of the secular and Judaic, but rather an interaction.  Academic excellence within the disciplines only serves as a prerequisite.  Schools have a responsibility to let students struggle with authentic examples of these interactions, as they exist in the world around them.

Jewish education has a stake in the choices students make.  Schools must make clear which choices are considered more preferable than others and why.  What those desired choices are and why they should be so desired will naturally differ from school to school. The basic pedagogic principle, however, ought to be consistent.  Students learn best by doing.  Jewish students learn best to make Jewish choices by choosing.

Vision of How to Lead a School

To be a Head of School is to have primary responsibility for enacting the mission of his/her school as determined by its primary stakeholders: board, parents, professionals, students, donors, and community partners.  Being a Head of School requires infinite pragmatism and the ability to actualize a varied set of skills across ever-shifting contexts. One has to see both the forest through the trees (focus on the mission) and the trees through the forest (focus on the details) in order to be successful.  The job requires one to be comfortable functioning as a bundle of contradictions – knowing when to listen and when to speak; when to inspire and when to be inspired; when to act and when not acting is the best course of action; when to lead and when to allow others to lead; etc.  Context – and the ability to recognize contextual cues – is paramount.

 

Do you have have a professional or personal mission/vision statement?  If you want to begin with the end in mind, you’ll need to create one!