Page 3-THE NEWS-November, 1985
The NC Hebrew Academy
Is A Rich Experience
By Eleanor Weinglass, Academy Director
Hebrew Academy News
Academy Seeks The Best Curriculum
This is from Mrs. Weinglass’s
Yom Kippur speech.
“Educate a child when he is
young, and he will not depart
from it” we learn in Proverbs.
We all, to borrow jargon from
contemporary psychology,
follow tapes of messages,
some positive and some
negative, that were imprinted
within us long ago. There is no
question that we, as parents,
are making tapes for our
children. The question is:
What kind of tapes are we
making?
Many of us come from an en
vironment in which we were
able to absorb a sense of
Jewish identity, even without
an intensive Jewish education.
It was in the aroma of the
delicatessens; it was in the ac
cents and shtetl stories of
parents and grandparents.
And perhaps it was in seeing
people walk to the synagogue
as a normal course of life. To
day we are largely acting out
the behaviors we observed or
participated in as children, the
habits we unconsciously
learned.
Consider how much energy
it takes for a parent to teach
a child to clean his room. Con
sider also how much effort £md
time it takes to teach a child
to write neatly or speak polite
ly...
Is it not the same for Jewish
activities and Jewish habits?
“The boy is the father of the
man’’...What the child does
now, he will do later...If
children’s e£irly associations
with Judaism are satisfying,
and if children spend a con
siderable amount of time in a
Jewish environment, the more
likely they will continue this
behavior as adults.
A strong habit is powerful.
Bad habits, like smoking, ex
cessive drinking, or slop
piness, are hard to break. A
good habit that is instilled will
also be difficult to change.
As exposure to Jewish ex
periences becomes less intense
in each successive generation,
we must find a way to compen
sate.
Consider how being in a
warm, caring Jewish environ
ment on a daily basis, practic
ing our customs every day,
can make the tapes your
children will eventually play
back. Picture life in a school
where behaving Jewishly is
normal...where baking a Rosh
Hashanah honey cake
becomes a lesson in math and
reading and High Holiday
customs...where fourth
graders learn more world
geography and history, as
they follow their forefathers in
the diaspora, than many
teenagers...where second
graders can read stories from
the Torah in Hebrew...where
children go home able to lead
Passover seders.
I’m referring, of course, to
Charlotte’s Hebrew Academy.
And the beautiful part of this
rich experience is that children
C£m have it without comprom
ising their secular education.
Academy children, in fact,
from kindergarten through
sixth grade, benefit from a
more sophisticated education
than their peers in other
schools. Best of all, they enjoy
being there.
The children at the Acade
my are the beneficiaries of in
dividual instruction and are
able to progress at their own
pace. Our students usually do
exceedingly well in national
exams such as the CgJifornia
Achievement Test. They have
a solid introduction in the
Hebrew language, leeirn about
Jewish history, and develop
pride in their Jewish heritage.
Our graduates do well in both
public and private schools.
We believe that our children
are very lucky to have the op
portunity to go to the Hebrew
Academy. Indeed, many of the
children’s parents tell us they
wish they had been able to at
tend a school such as the
Academy when they were
children.
The English novelist, John
Galsworthy, once stated: “If
you do not think about the
future, you cannot have one.”
In the prayer that follows the
Shema Yisrael, the Veahavta,
we say: V’shineintem I’vane-
cha...and you will teach them
unto your children...That is
what we are commsmded to do;
that is our responsibility.
Create the tapes you want
played back...enrich your
child’s life with a strong and
vibrant Jewish ex
perience...create the habits.
I
By Arny Pickholtz
Each year since 1976, the
Conference on Alternatives in
Jewish Education has at
tracted thousands of Jewish
educators. This year’s event
was held in Chicago where
staff from the Hebrew
Academy traveled to ex
perience the latest in Jewish
teaching methodologies, alter
native life patterns, textbooks,
media materials and teacher
training materials.
Ziva London, Hebrew Edu
cation Instructor at the
Academy, who attended,
states that, “At this con
ference, we learned how to
make a school look like a
Jewish school. I attended
classes on how to organize
celebrations using drama,
music and creative writing,
and I have brought back ideas
and methods to explore the
delicate relationship between a
child’s Jewish education,
parental participation and the
school environment. A good
example is the Pesach seder. I
have brought back a plsm £md
materials to create a seder
which resembles, in form, a
game of monopoly. The child
ren will love to play and learn
at the same time.”
The CAGE organization in
ventories a total range of
Jewish curricula from nursery
to adult education. Judaic and
Hebrew studies can be access
ed with a call to the CAGE
curriculum bank which mails
the materials to member
organizations. The University
I -jjBjip-l I,
of Chicago also offers college
credit for the study of CAGE
curriculum.
Ziva adds, “Whether it is
the creation of stories or
games or just learning new
Jewish songs, the teaching
and learning methodologies I
explored emphasized the
child’s feelings of accomplish
ment, individualization of
learning experiences and
creativity. Of course, we teach
Hebrew as a second language
and one of the most valuable
tools displayed at the con
ference was a single language
curriculum which is designed
to be used for beginners in 1st
grade, progressing ah the way
through 7th. This is a tremen
dous improvement toward
maintaining quality and con
sistency in our approach to
teaching Hebrew.”
Mrs. London teaches grades
2 through 5. The conference
was attended by educators
and administrators from the
USA, Canada and Europe.
Eleanor Weinglass, Academy Director, at Academy corridor of educa
tional building.
Mrs. Weinglass looking out from a future Academy classroom.
Have a Happy
Thanksgiving
In the future Hebrew Academy classrooms in Blumenthal Jewish Educa
tional Building. Ruth Goldberg (L) and Carol Waldman, cochairs Academy
Recruitment
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