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Lyrics to our songs

Rosie, Sarah Rose, Rosie and Jennie

At first I was afraid
I was petrified
Kept thinking I could never without those scrolls of mine
But then I spend so many nights
Just thinkin' how King J did wrong
And I grew strong and I learned how to get along
So now I'm back to write some stuff
Then my scribe said "I'd love to help, cuz I am so very tough"
I should have hid those scrolls so fast,
I should have not let them be burned
If I had knows for just one second
I'd have to rewrite them in turn

So go now go!
Burn all my scrolls!
But watch your back now!
Cuz you are gonna pay the tolls!
Yeah God supports me, and so does Sarah Rose
And you're gonna, yeah you are gonna pay the tolls
Oh Oh Oh Oh

I will survive, I will survive
As long as I know how to write, I know that I will stay alive
Cuz I got all my stuff to write
And I got all God's thoughts to give
I will rewrite
My words will never ever die
I will survive!

Mikaela and Isaiah

At first he delivered the words of God
But the people didn't believe him
Said his head was full of sod
He was rejected from the temple
They said he could do no wrong
But he grew strong
And he learned how to get along

Behind their backs
He hired a scribe
He told him "Son I've got some words of God for you to write"
Nebuchadnezzar is a very very terrible name
What were his parents thinking when they played the naming game?
The scribe read the words of God
But they still didn't believe him
Still said his head was full of sod
And he spent so many nights
Without a single nod
But her never ever doubted
The important word of God
hey hey

We will survive - the Vav remix

Here's a link to a video of some songs written and performed by the class. Their assignment was to tell the story of Jeremiah, who overcame great adversity to bring God's message to the Israelites, by setting it to music. I'll get the lyrics to these songs up soon.

I will survive - Gloria Gaynor

Ask your son or daughter why we watched this in class today!

Also- I was interviewed for a great Jewish book podcast, The Book of Life. You can listen here if you like.

Paradigms and Prophets

Today we read about the typical structure of the prophetic stories. They usually feature someone with a calling from God, who then tries to avoid doing God's will. God gives the prophet a message to transmit, and ultimately the life of the prophet is difficult.

After reading 2 stories of prophecy (Moses and Jeremiah), I asked students to write their own stories, set either during Biblical times or the present, featuring all of these elements. The stories were wonderful! I asked all of the kids to take them home and share them with their parents immediately. If yours was in school and didn't give it to you, please ask!

Apology

Today we read a story in which the Israelites were conquered by the Assyrians. The text attributes their defeat to their idol-worshiping ways. I asked the students what other reasons there might have been for the Assyrian victory, that were not divine in nature. We followed this up with a d'var torah writing exercise, in which I asked students to think of an event that could have two explanations, one supernatural and one not, and write which explanation they agreed with.

Some students were having a hard time thinking of an example, and I gave a gloriously poor one. I shared the story of Pat Robserton's absurd and hateful statement that Hurricane Katrina was God's reaction to letting Ellen Degeneres host the Emmy's. Not only do I think this was probably an inappropriate story to share with the class, but it also turns out to be false.

I did have a chance before the end of the day to correct my error, but I wanted to let you know as well. Please forgive my lapse of judgment.

Art and Music

We've been trying to beautify the classroom while also deepening our understanding of some of the prayers we have worked on this year. There are two interesting new art projects on the walls. One is called "Kol Adonai", the voice of God. We've been studying the Psalm 29 , which is recited at the end of the service and describes many manifestations of God's voice in the natural world. I asked students to reflect on a place in the natural world where they experience God's voice, and to illustrate the scene. You'll find these watercolors hanging above the blackboard in our classroom.

In our study of the prophet Isaiah, we read about his apocalyptic vision of seraphim singing "Holy, Holy, Holy" to the Almighty. (This story is the source of "Kadosh, Kadosh, Kadosh" in the Shabbat Kedusha.) I asked students to carefully read Isaiah's description of the seraphim and illustrate what they imagined.

It look like tomorrow may be a snow day. Don't forget Yom Shira on Sunday!