The Little Shofar - Winter/Khoref2011/5771

Dear Parents,

As I write this, I am looking out my window at a world in white. The snow

has certainly dominated our days making traveling difficult and, sadly, closing

school. Fortunately it has brought learning into our classrooms as our children dis-

covered why snow forms and melts, and what animals do to protect themselves

from snow and all the winter elements. Yet, in the middle of our winter studies we

stopped to plant seeds and learn about trees. Yes, it was Tu B’Shevat, the Jewish

Near Year of the Trees, and it gave us a chance to acknowledge our role in caring

for our environment by planting and learning about what trees give us. It was a

welcome addition to our curriculum as we took a break from the snow and ice. The

highlight of Tu B’Shevat was our “Shabbat and Tu B’Shevat for Me” service, and it

was wonderful to see so many families brave the cold and join us for a fun service

and pizza dinner.

There is always something special happening in your child’s class from

“Orange Day” to “Pajama and Teddy Bear Day.” Each special day brings science op-

portunities, such as mixing colors, reasons for increased verbal expression and ex-

citing literary adventures. There are also special things happening for you at JFC.

We have rescheduled the workshop to be given by Ellen Weisberg titled “Turning

Sibling Rivalry into Sibling Acceptance” to Wednesday, March 2, 2011. You will

have a chance to learn how to handle the problems that often arise between sib-

lings and will be able to discuss any parenting questions or concerns that you have.

A most compelling presentation was given by Alexis Johnson, PhD. Her topic

was “Understanding and Working with Your Child’s Temperament,” which is part of

the three-part series titled “Wise Parenting for the Preschooler.” It was an

honor to be in attendance that evening. Dr. Johnson gave a psychologically reveal-

ing description of temperament types, and I would like to tell you a little about

her discussion for all who were unable to attend. She began by detailing the two

different types of temperaments described by Carl Jung as an “extrovert,” which

is a person who is refueled by contact and an “introvert,” which is a person who is

refueled by quiet time. As she explained, these temperaments are qualities that

stay constant. Along with the quality of being an extrovert or an introvert, there

are other characteristics that can impact a child’s or parent’s temperament. The

Jewish Family Congregation Early Childhood Center Newsletter

The Little Shofar

Winter/Khoreff 2011 / 5771

ECC Little Shofar Winter/Khoreff 2011 / 5771

first characteristic is whether a person is a “thinker,” one who depends on rules

and thought to define their decisions, or if a person is a “feeler,” one who bases

decisions on what is felt or sensed. The second distinguishing factor is that some

people are risk takers, while others would be more comfortable playing it safe.

As parents, it helps to know what type of temperaments their children have

and also what their own temperaments are like. This knowledge guides parents on

how to best parent their children. It also helps them alter their children’s more

challenging behaviors to become more acceptable behaviors. Moderating a child’s

inclination may help a risk taker make safer choices or an introvert learn better

social skills. Other influential factors in determining a child’s temperament include

a child’s activity level and whether a child is sleeping and eating regularly. The

best part of the presentation was the time spent analyzing our own children’s

temperaments and seeing how different or alike we are to them. The discussion

created was enlightening, as I not only learned about the intricacies involved in

determining temperaments, but I marveled at the dedication our parents give to

raising their children. It is not too late to catch Dr. Johnson’s next two sessions.

Please see the flier included in this newsletter and sign up today for the next two

parts of this engaging program on parenting.

We do not mind the snow here at the

ECC. We learn about it and go out and have

fun in it. Our outside snow studies will soon

be leading into learning about our inside

selves. The Yellow Room looks forward to

learning about their bodies, the Blue Room

will be exploring their five senses and the

Green Room will be continuing to discover

the world they live in and how it affects

them.

In the mean time, enjoy the winter

and stay warm!


FROM THE RABBI’S DESK In a religious tradition that is top-heavy with serious occasions, Purim stands out like the prover-

bial “sore thumb.” It is a holiday with tenuous historical referents, with an emphasis on behaviour

entirely unlikely the rest of the year.

The serious part of Purim is the religious obligation (mitzvah) of hearing the chanting of the me-gillah, the scroll containing the Biblical Book of Esther. In traditional Purim services, the scroll is

chanted in its entirety, but we, in deference to the young people who attend our service, tell the

story in English and listen to tiny excerpts of the chanted scroll. In traditional services, the offici-

ants (rabbi, cantor, scroll chanter) all dress up in costumes, often elaborate and impressive, and in-

troduce silly things into the service, like facing the wrong way, singing prayers to unexpected melo-

dies, and chasing each other around the sanctuary.

In addition, most congregations plan something special, just for the kids. The tradition is to hold

a carnival, with lots of games and activities, to which the kids are encouraged to come in costume.

Many carnivals (not ours) feature a costume contest, with ridiculous prizes for the winners.

So the question is: what is this holiday doing on the otherwise quite solemn Jewish calendar?

That’s a good question. In the Book of Esther, the name of God never occurs. The evil machina-

tions of the bad guy, Haman, are defeated by the cleverness of the good guys, Mordechai and his

niece Esther, not by the grace of God. The story is set in Persia (present-day Iran) and the names

of the hero and heroine bear a striking resemblance to the names of two Persian gods, Marduk and

Ishtar. Furthermore, a search of the records of ancient Persia will not reveal a king with a name

like Ahashverosh. There is no evidence of a Persian king with a Jewish bride.

It is also interesting to note that amongst the Dead Sea Scrolls, there is not even a tiny frag-

ment of the Book of Esther, which shows that it was included in the “authorized text” of the He-

brew Bible quite late, well after the year 70 CE (the date by which the scrolls were hidden).

So, what is this book doing in the Bible, and why is this holiday on our calendar?

The book is in the Bible because it shows both the continuing persecution of the Jews, after the

Egyptians and the Romans, and the continuing triumph of the Jews over their persecutors; and in not

mentioning God it is consistent with the diminishing presence of God in the Bible itself. The theory

is that, though God actively intervenes repeatedly to keep the Jewish people alive, over time, God

turns that responsibility over to us; in this book, Mordechai and Esther handily defeat the bad guy,

demonstrating that we can look after ourselves and do not need dramatic rescues by our unseen God.

Purim arrives on the calendar in the early spring. Regardless of how bitter or mild the winter has

been, for us all it has gone on a long time. And we need some lightness, some joy, to get us through

till the first flowers blossom and the first leaves open.

Purim is that lightness, that joy. With its invitation to be silly and to turn the world upside-down

in doing so, Purim allows us to lighten the burden of the long winter, which, this year, seems espe-

cially appropriate.

So we invite you to join us on Sunday, March 20, at 9:00 am for our Purim service,

and from noon to 2 pm for our Purim carnival. True to tradition, there will be

games, food and silliness galore….all appropriate for very young children! We encourage you and your

youngster(s) to come in costume, and to take full advantage of Purim and all its joy!

Rescheduled for Tuesday, January 26


Discussing the difference

between mittens and gloves.

Listening to Fern and Mon-

tana sing Tu B’Shevat songs.

Nature of Things

brought a chinchilla!

Relaxing with a stuffed

Friend on pajama day.

Putting Elmo to bed

on pajama day.

Planting sun-flower seeds

for Tu B’Shevat.


CELEBRATING SHABBAT

IN PAJAMAS!

Creating a

snow scene.

Exploring magnets at our science

center.

Getting ready

for Shabbat.

I prefer leopard

gloves over my fleece mittens.


These are a few of our favorite things...

Jason:

TRUCKS

Owen:

TRUCKS

David:

HOUSE

Jordan:

DRESS-UP

Kayla:

HOUSE

Tammy:

HOUSE


Ellen and Lori

Max: BUILDING WITH

MITCHELL

Sydney:

HOUSE

Macey:

DRESS-UP

Mitchell:

HOUSE

Solomon:

PLAYING WITH BALLS


NATURE OP THINGS

COLLECTING SNOW FOR OUR EXPERIMENT

PUTTING OUR SKATES ON THE POND

BUILDING IGLOOS


NATURE OF THINGS

MAKING EDIBLE SNOWMEN

PAJAMA DAY

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The Little Shofar - Winter/Khoref2011/5771

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