1 SHAMASH.ORG /usr/www/wwwhc/listserv/archives/scj-parenting June 2002
2 53 50_[SCJ-PARENTING:6836] Re: SCJ-PARENTING digest 16450_16_DKerzner@aol.com28_Sat, 1 Jun 2002 14:35:56 EDT546_- Daniel,
What a great opportunity to talk about nationality. Generally speaking, nationality is associated with country of origin. Those who themselves come from another country, or are within a few generations of that immigration experience, feel a sense of dual nationality. Eventually, the foreign national identity falls away, and the individual is left with the nationality of the new country. Hence, longtime Americans are essentially from here, just as members of the First Nations are, though they have different traditions. [...]
56 129 58_[SCJ-PARENTING:6837] Re: Problems with a School Assignment5_Debbi18_daffymom@yahoo.com28_Sat, 1 Jun 2002 19:36:59 EDT412_- When both of my children were in 4th grade they had a similar project. They had to "dress" a clothes pin in native clothing of their country. The teachers told the children that if their family is traced to more than one country, then use the clothing from which ever country they wanted. Then at Thanksgiving, instead of a typical Thanksgiving feast, the children were to bring a food from their origin. [...]
186 74 50_[SCJ-PARENTING:6838] Re: SCJ-PARENTING digest 164517_Daniel S. Schultz18_danschul@umich.edu28_Sun, 2 Jun 2002 21:35:45 EDT644_- Re: School Assignment about family history.
My third grade son had a similar assignment at the beginning of the year. I thought that it had the potential of being harmful, because it fostered a misconception that the US is the only ethnically diverse country, while each "old country" is ethnically and culturally homogeneous. Most "ancesteral homelands" in reality are patchworks of different groups. I wanted to make certain that the teacher stressed the point that other countries are also culturally and ethnically diverse with her students. Since my son's class is almost exclusively well-off and white, I used his teacher's [...]
261 43 58_[SCJ-PARENTING:6839] Re: Problems with a School Assignment11_Nina Salkin21_nsalkin@optonline.net28_Sun, 2 Jun 2002 21:35:47 EDT467_- On 5/30/02 11:15 PM, "Discussions about raising Jewish children" wrote:
> Am I wrong in seeing a bias in this assignment towards 1st generation > immigrants? Is this something worth making a stink about? My daughter, a 5th > generation Reform Jew, is very proud of her heritage, and we have been working > with her to figure out how to educate her teacher (who I believe is also from > an Asian immigrant family) about this. [...]
305 60 58_[SCJ-PARENTING:6841] Re: Problems with a School Assignment6_Jfer P17_J3fer@hotmail.com28_Mon, 3 Jun 2002 00:28:57 EDT584_- In response to the school assignment about national origins, Nechama suggested focusing "on Israeli traditions--the thinking being that we are all "children of Israel" in terms of ancestry."
I tried this once when I was about eight or ten. The other neighbourhood kids were proudly finding Greece and Italy on the big map of the world, and I stuck up my hand and claimed "Israeli" nationality. The teacher called my bluff, though, pointing out my lack of Middle Eastern complexion and the fact that I had never been to Israel. In fact, I was perhaps the only kid in the [...]
366 46 58_[SCJ-PARENTING:6842] Re: Problems with a School Assignment10_Dan Kimmel27_dan.kimmel@worldnet.att.net28_Mon, 3 Jun 2002 09:20:01 EDT475_-
"Daniel P Faigin" wrote in message news:3CF5DABF.29158.378B892@localhost...
> Am I wrong in seeing a bias in this assignment towards 1st generation > immigrants? Is this something worth making a stink about? My daughter, a 5th > generation Reform Jew, is very proud of her heritage, and we have been working > with her to figure out how to educate her teacher (who I believe is also from > an Asian immigrant family) about this. [...]
413 55 58_[SCJ-PARENTING:6843] Re: Problems with a School Assignment16_Evelyn C. Leeper21_eleeper@optonline.net28_Mon, 3 Jun 2002 09:20:10 EDT545_- Nina Salkin wrote: > > On 5/30/02 11:15 PM, "Discussions about raising Jewish children" > wrote: > > > Am I wrong in seeing a bias in this assignment towards 1st generation > > immigrants? Is this something worth making a stink about? My daughter, a 5th > > generation Reform Jew, is very proud of her heritage, and we have been working > > with her to figure out how to educate her teacher (who I believe is also from > > an Asian immigrant family) about this. > > I think you pointed out precisely the right [...]
469 110 58_[SCJ-PARENTING:6844] Re: Problems with a School Assignment19_Alexandra J Schmidt28_aschmidt@gematria.crd.ge.com28_Mon, 3 Jun 2002 20:06:58 EDT329_-
Daniel Faigin writes--
> My daughter is 7 1/2, and in 2nd grade. Her class has recently been doing > an assignment on family trees. This is all well and good, except it is > making me (and her, as she is the only Jew in the class) realize how the > Jewish immigrant experience is different than all others. [...]
580 50 58_[SCJ-PARENTING:6845] Re: Problems with a School Assignment19_Alexandra J Schmidt28_aschmidt@gematria.crd.ge.com28_Thu, 6 Jun 2002 18:36:27 EDT594_-
Following up on myself (this message will no doubt be posted before my original response, as things usually seem to go)...
While we may not fully be "of" the countries our immigrant ancestors came from, it's not really true that they had no stamp on us, either. Daniel cites as an example that we eat bagels, not spaetzle. True, if you're a Jew with origins in Russia or Poland. But I remember when I first began meeting Sephardim (in college and thereafter) who were really annoyed at the assumption that Jewish food meant gefilte fish and slow-cooked brisket and potato [...]
631 53 45_[SCJ-PARENTING:6846] Sifronim for the summer?6_Jfer P17_J3fer@hotmail.com28_Sun, 9 Jun 2002 10:31:47 EDT540_- My son, 7, and daughter, 6, are just finishing Kitot Alef and Bet (Grades 1 & 2), and their Hebrew skills are coming along well. Mine, however, are minimal; passable for davening and Torah study, deplorable for conversation and casual use.
I'd like to keep the kids' Hebrew going over the summer, but I'm kind of stuck for how to do this. They are generally frustrated with any Hebrew books I find, because his English reading is at a very high level, and Hebrew books they can manage seem plotless and babyish in comparison. [...]
685 65 86_[SCJ-PARENTING:6848] Online Multilingual Word Search Game (English / Hebrew / Russian)13_Jacob Richman17_jrichman@jr.co.il29_Wed, 19 Jun 2002 08:30:13 EDT556_- Hi Everyone!
This email is to inform you of a new educational flash game called:
The Multilingual Word Search Game
The game is located on the J educational site at: http://www.J.co.il
This fun and educational word game can be played in three different languages (English / Hebrew / Russian) without special fonts or language support. The game has an easy mode for beginners and a harder mode for the more advanced players. The game has 50 topics with over 1,000 words in each language. [...]
751 42 28_[SCJ-PARENTING:6849] candles9_Vicki S-F29_revsf90@alumnae.mtholyoke.edu29_Thu, 20 Jun 2002 09:37:53 EDT456_- yay! we have a daughter! before zora was born we would celebrate the coming of shabbat by blessing razi and lighting two candles. when one has a second child, does one add another candle, or two? or should one stick with just two candles no matter how big ones family gets? is this perhaps one of those "do what your ancestors did" kind of answers? (my ancestors did nothing. :) or might it depend on preference or branch of judaism? help, please!! [...]
794 112 32_[SCJ-PARENTING:6851] Re: candles7_Nechama20_nechama809@yahoo.com29_Thu, 20 Jun 2002 11:08:33 EDT559_- First, mazel tov Vicki! And welcome little Zora!
My sense is this is based on personal choice and/or family tradition, and/or the tradition of whatever branch of Judaism with which you choose to identify. AFAIK there is no set rule about how many candles. Many women do light as many candles as there are members of the family. Personally, I think it's a nice tradition and reminds me of how thankful I am for each and every family member (although we are a tiny family of 3, and will be staying that way:) I have a pretty candleabra that holds [...]
907 77 32_[SCJ-PARENTING:6853] Re: candles17_Aliza N. Fischman28_fisch.chips@worldnet.att.net29_Fri, 21 Jun 2002 08:48:02 EDT619_- Mazal Tov! Mazal Tov! General practice, AFAIK, is that one adds one candle per child. I haven't heard of any other minhaging, but there may be.
Aliza
----- Original Message ----- From: "Vicki S-F" Sent: Thursday, June 20, 2002 9:37 AM Subject: [SCJ-PARENTING:6849] candles
> yay! we have a daughter! > before zora was born we would celebrate the coming of shabbat by > blessing razi and lighting two candles. when one has a second child, > does one add another candle, or two? or should one stick with just two > candles no matter how big ones family [...]
985 48 32_[SCJ-PARENTING:6855] Re: candles6_Jfer P17_J3fer@hotmail.com29_Sun, 23 Jun 2002 20:41:16 EDT303_- Mazel Tov, Vicki, Josh and Raziel! And Brucha Haba'ah (welcome), Zorah!!!
I agree with Nechama -- adding candles is not exactly a matter of halacha or which movement you belong to, but just a nice thing a family can do to welcome its newest member, whether by marriage, birth or adoption. [...]
1034 60 40_[SCJ-PARENTING:6856] Re: choosing a shul14_Robyn Kozierok21_robynk@primushost.com29_Tue, 25 Jun 2002 01:03:49 EDT415_- In article , news.bellatlantic.net wrote: > >Have you found that larger shuls are more or less responsive to the needs of >children outside the bell curve? Will they restrict my children to age-peer >classes, or can they move to a more academically appropriate level? Does >anyone have anything positive to say about large congregations? > [...]