Religious School News by Davina Kelly

During March, we held a fun and educational Purim celebration. Our students put on a readers’ theater of the Purim story for family and congregants, baked hamantaschen, sang Purim songs, played games, and decorated wood flower cut-outs for a local nursing home. These included original, inspirational sayings. Also in March, students learned about a Jewish visual pop artist who helped lead the pop art movement in the United States. We then created Passover pictures in the pop art style.

In April, students participated in a Passover education morning. In small groups, students put the Passover story in order, created a mock seder plate, listed the ten plagues, and put together a matzah puzzle. They also reviewed and practiced the four questions, sang Passover songs, and made a fun craft to review the meaning of Dayenu.

Later in the month, students will learn about the history of Israel in honor of Yom Ha’atzmaut. During May, guest artists Elaine Kadakia and Josie Rochell will work with our students on a wonderful art project. We’ll wrap up the school year with closing day on May 21. All grades continue to work on their Hebrew and prayers. Our younger students have also learned about Jewish immigration to America around the 1900s, and about some more prophets. Our older students are hard at work preparing for their B’not Mitzvah this summer.

Purim Highlights MCJC proved once again that we know how to celebrate Purim. We had games, songs, the Megillah reading, hamantashen...and of course Goldschlagger! Thanks to Paula Eskoz for reprising many of our greatest hits from Purim spiels throughout the years (and adding a few more!) and leading us in song.

King Norman and Queen Paula at Megillah night

Olur hamantashen beanbag champ

Baking hamantashen with Ilene

Purim twister