Shalom First Grade!

A collection for the opening of the new school year – 5776 (2015-2016)

As we begin a new school year, we hope you all enjoyed the summer vacation. We invite you all – adults and children – to mark the beginning of the new school year with some prayers, readings, and songs. We wish everyone a peaceful, productive, and happy school year!

The blessings and prayers in this collection were originally written by Rabbi Talia Avnon Benvenisti, Maya Vamosh-Dubinsky (of Beit Daniel), and other Israeli Reform rabbis.

Blessing for Educators

May God who blessed our fathers Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob Our mothers Sarah, Rivka, Rachel, and Leah And generations of Jewish educators Bless those who educate our children as they begin a new school year. May God who blessed Moses with initiative and leadership Bless our teachers with enthusiasm. May God who blessed Hillel with patience – bless our teachers with endurance. May God who blessed Maimonides with a broad and deep mind Bless our teachers with a thirst for knowledge. May God who blessed Janusz Korczak with a love of children and a belief in children’s abilities Bless our teachers with the ability to accept and respect every child. God, please guard our teachers in schools and kindergartens, and may they be privileged to learn and to teach with creativity and love. And let us say: Amen.

The Educator’s Prayer

Our God and God of our fathers and mothers You who grant knowledge to humans and teach understanding to people, Grant us knowledge and teach us to teach. Open our hearts to our students And to your Torah which is heard in each and every voice. Let us rejoice in study, education, discovery and innovation And let a good spirit rest on us That we might understand, fathom, hear, Learn and teach. Put love in our hearts So we may teach one another and learn from each other. And may we establish many students in the world, as it is written:

“Establish many students”. (Ethics of the Fathers, 1:1)

In the Mood for Blessing Rabbi Dan Prat

Blessed are you, O book. Blessed are you, O page and sentence. Blessed are you, O letter. Blessed be God’s glorious name. Blessed be all the inglorious names. Blessed are you, O molecule; blessed is the light. Blessed are the shoulders. Blessed is the burden; blessed is the yoke. Blessed is the moon, blessed is the calendar. Blessed are you, O hands of the clock.

A Blessing for Students

“Moses received the Torah from Sinai and gave it over to Joshua. Joshua gave it over to the Elders, the Elders to the Prophets, and the Prophets gave it over to the Men of the Great Assembly.” Ethics of the Fathers, 1:1

May God who blessed the members of the Great Assembly Who commanded us to establish many students, Who gave Hillel and Shammai the gift of debate, tolerance, and friendship, Who blessed Rabbi Akiva with love of the word and Love of his fellow, Who granted Bruria wisdom and daring, Who placed a good spirit and love of learning in the hearts Of Jewish students throughout the generations, Who dwells in every house of study and learning And who created the world in letters and words –

May He bless you as you enter the gates of your school and classroom. May He grant you the joy of study, the delight of discovery and innovation, the gift of friendship and tolerance, And love for Torah and knowledge. In your studies, may you preserve and renew the heritage of the generations. May you, too, create countless worlds of words, numbers, pictures, and melodies. And may learning always be in your hearts like the bubbling spring.

May God bless you and keep you So may it be God’s will May God make His face shine on you and be gracious to you, So may it be God’s will May God lift up His face to you and grant you peace. So may it be God’s will.

Texts about Learning and Teaching

Mishna Elisha the son of Avuyah would say: One who learns Torah in childhood, what is this comparable to? To ink inscribed on fresh paper. One who learns Torah in old age, what is this comparable to? To ink inscribed on erased paper. Rabbi Yossei the son of Judah of Kfar HaBavli would say: One who learns Torah from youngsters, whom is he comparable to? To one who eats unripe grapes and drinks [unfermented] wine from the press. One who learns Torah from the old, whom is he comparable to? To one who eats ripened grapes and drinks aged wine. Said Rabbi Meir: Look not at the vessel, but at what it contains. There are new vessels that are filled with old wine, and old vessels that do not even contain new wine. Ethics of the Fathers 4:20

Rabbi Nehunya Ben Hakanah used to say a short prayer on entering and leaving the Beit Midrash. People asked him why he said a prayer. He replied: “On entering, I pray that I do not make any mistakes, and on leaving I give thanks for my lot.”

Berachot, Chapter 4, Mishna 2

Talmud Rab Judah has told us in the name of Rab: Verily the name of that man is to be blessed –

that is to say Joshua ben Gamala – for but for him the Torah would have been forgotten

from Israel. For at first if a child had a father, his father taught him, and if he had no father he did not learn at all… they then made an ordinance that teachers of children should be appointed in Jerusalem… Even so, however, if a child had a father, the father would take him up to Jerusalem and have him taught there, and if not, he would not go up to learn there. They therefore ordained that teachers should be appointed in each

prefecture, and that boys should enter school at the age of sixteen or seventeen. And if

the teacher punished them they used to rebel and leave the school. Until Joshua ben Gamala came and ordained that teachers of young children should be appointed in each district and each town. And the children should enter school at the age of six or seven.

Babylonian Talmud, Baba Batra, 21a

Songs to Begin the School Year With

Tudra Village

Lyrics: Yehoshua Sobol, Melody: Shlomo Bar

This song describes the village Tudra - located in the Atlas Mountains of northern Morocco, where the children would lick Hebrew letters made of honey, as a part of a special ceremony in their first day of the Jewish school.

אצלנו בכפר טודרא In our village Tudra Etzlenu bikhfar Tudra שבלב הרי האטלס In the heart of the Atlas mountains Shebelev harei ha’Atlas היו לוקחים את הילד We would take the boy who Hayu lokkhim et hayeled שהגיע לגיל חמש Reached the age of five Shehigi’a legil chamesh כתר פרחים עושים לו A crown of flowers we make for him Keter prachim osim lo אצלנו בכפר טודרא In our village Tudra Etzlenu bikhfar Tudra כתר בראש מלבישים לו A crown we put on his head Keter berosh malbishim lo שהגיע לגיל חמש For he has arrived to be five Shehigi’a legil chamesh כל הילדים ברחוב All the kids on the street Kol hayeladim barechov חגיגה גדולה עורכים לו Would throw a big celebration for him Chagiga gdola orkhim lo שהגיע לגיל חמש For he has reached the age of five Shehigi’a legil chamesh אצלנו בכפר טודרא In our village Tudra Etzlenu bikhfar Tudra

ואז את חתן השמחה And then, the guest of honor, Ve’az et chatan hasimcha שהגיע לגיל חמש Who reached the age of five Shehigi’a legil chamesh אצלנו בכפר טודרא In our village Tudra Etzlenu bikhfar Tudra

מכניסים לבית הכנסת Would be taken into the synagogue Machnisim leveyt hakneset וכותבים על לוח של עץ And on a wooden board Vekhotvim al lu’ach shel etz בדבש מא' ועד ת' Writing with honey the Alphabet Bivdvash me’alef ad tav את כל האותיות בדבש Et kol ha’otiyot bidvash ואומרים לו: All the letters made of honey, and we Ve’omrim lo: חביבי, לקק! tell him Habibi, lakek! והיתה התורה שבפה !Our beloved - lick it מתוקה כמו טעם של דבש And the Torah in his mouth Vehayta haTorah shebapeh אצלנו בכפר טודרא Would be as sweet as honey Metuka kmo ta’am shel dvash שבלב הרי האטלס In our village Tudra Etzlenu bikhfar Tudra In the heart of the Atlas Mountains Shebelev harei ha’Atlas

Alef-Beit

Naomi shemer

The song Alef-Beit is a well-known children song, helping to recite and memorize the Hebrew Alphabet; it presents every Hebrew letter followed by a word starting with that same letter.

אלף - אוהל, בית - זה בית ,A – tent, B - house, Alef – ohel, Beit - ze bayit גימל זה גמל גדול ,G - a big camel, Gimel ze gamal gadol מהי דלת - זוהי דלת what's D - a door Mahi Dalet – zohi delet שפותחת את הכל .that opens all. Shepotachat et hakol

הא - הדס, ווו הוא ורד H – myrtle, and Vav - a rose Hei – hadas, u’Vav - hu vered שפרחו לי בחולות ,that bloomed for me in the sands, Sheparchu li bacholot זין - חית שתיהן ביחד Z - CH - the 2 of them together Zayin – Cheit – shteihen beyachad זהו זר חבצלות .is a wreath of sand-lilies. Zehu zer chavatzalot

בני השש ובני השבע ,Six and seven year olds Bnei hasheish uvnei hasheva אלף-בית, אלף-בית ,ABC, ABC, Alef beit, alef beit מציירים בגיר וצבע ,Draw with chalk and color Metzayarim begir vatzeva אלף-בית, אלף-בית ,ABC, ABC Alef beit, alef beit ויוצאות במחול מחניים And go out to sing with joy Veyotzot bimchol machnayim אלף, אלף-בית ,ABC, ABC Alef, alef beit אותיות עשרים ושתיים ,Twenty two letters Otiot esrim ushtayim אלף-בית .ABC. Alef beit

טית זה טוב ויוד זה יופי T – is good, and Y - beauty, Tet – ze tov, v’Yud – ze yofi כף זה כן ולמד לא ,K - is yes and L is no, Kaf - ze ken, v’Lamed - lo מם ונון זה מן ונופת M and N - is manna and honey Mem - v’Nun – ze man vanofet קח לך ותן גם לו .take for yourself and give to him too. Kach lecha v’ten gam lo

סמך - ספר, עין - עין ,S - a book, A - eye, Samech – sefer, Ayin – ayin פא - פרפר וגם פשוש ,P - butterfly and graceful warbler too, Pe – parpar v’gam pashosh צדיק - צחוק עד לב שמיים ,TZ - laugh up to the heaven, Tzadi – tzchok ad lev shamayim קוף זה קוף וריש זה ,K - a monkey Kof – ze kof ראש גדול על הכתפיים ילד טוב and R - it's a big head v’Resh – ze – Rosh Gadol ירושלים on your shoulders - good child of Al Hak’tefayim Yeled Tov Jerusalem Yerushalayim.

וביחד - Uveyachad - בני השש ובני השבע... ,All together Bnei haseish uvnei hasheva… Six and seven year olds…

מה צריך לבוא עכשיו? What comes now? Ma tzarich lavo achshav? איפה שין? ואיפה תו? Where is SH and where is T? Eifo Shin v’eifo Tav? שין - שלום ותו - תודה SH - is peace, and T - is thanks Shin – Shalom, v’Tav – Toda ונגמרה העבודה ,and the work is done, V’nigmera ha’avoda ד"ש לכל המשפחה ,greetings to the whole family Dash lechol hamishpacha ולך לך לדרכך .and off you go on your way. V’lech lecha l’darkecha

בני השש ובני השבע... …Bnei haseish uvnei hasheva בני… oldsהשש ובניyear בני Six and seven