Yonatan's Chanukah Play

It has been a while since I have written and I have received a few comments asking me where I am..........well thank Gd. we have been very busy with friends visiting and our Chanukah break. It is funny, I really miss writing and I feel that when I don't write I am not in contact with you all. This blog thing has been an unbelievable way to feel connected to our old lives and our family and friends.....or atleast those of you who read it.



Before Chanukah Break we were invited to Yonatan's ulpan school for his Chanukah play and party. I wasn't sure what this would look like and was somewhat apprehensive. As you may or may not know, Yonatan has temporarily left his school in Efrat to study hebrew language more intensely at the Baka Teen Ulpan school. It was a very hard decision for us to make as it meant removing him from a torah environment with boys similar to him and putting him in a mixed school....I mean in every way...boys,girls, religious , non-religious, and from many, many different countries. Ultimately, I think we made the right decision for him and he is learning loads of hebrew and becoming more confident all the time. He was part of the decision and took the whole situation and change on in a very mature fashion. He has also demonstrated to us his strong identification with Yiddishkeit and his ability to do what he needs to do even when the environment isn't exactly tailor made. He has once again shone in the face of change and upheaval and we are so very proud of him. He left his new chevra in Efrat and once again walked into a new school not really knowing anyone and did not complain. We think Yoni knew that this is what he needed to succeed elsewhere and saw it as a necessary stepping stone. Yonatan goes to school in Baka most mornings with Alex Pomson, who brings Anna out to NeveD. to catch a ride to her school with Avital and gang, talk about basheret. Alex and Yonatan have struck up a nice friendship and I know Yonatan really enjoys his time with Alex. Yonatan davens at the Pomsons and heads down the street to school......thank you so much to the pomsons! Yonatan has had to learn to take a bus home from Derech Chevron, two stops and maybe a half hour later he is home in Neve Daniel. He is becoming so independant and I think feels quite good about it!


Back to the party. Why was I apprehensive? I wasn't sure how this party would look like and I was worried that my concerns about his environment would be actualized. The play was about to begin and I looked about the room. There were really all kinds it was quite interesting. I introduced myself to his teachers who seemed lovely and spoke nicely about him and his progress. The play started, Yonatan was in the opening act. He looked so tall standing up there..........he has actually grown quite a bit since we arrived. He took a step forward and in a beautiful hebrew with an Israeli accent, he said his lines, nice and loud. Of course, I was blinking back tears just to see him speak hebrew in public and to so willingly and enthusiastically participate in this play. There were 8 children , one for each night of chanukah, who introduced themselves and said which country they originated from...........some of them were Canada, Ethiopia, France, Russia, Romania, USA, and some spanish country (she wasn't loud enough to hear). It was so interesting. There were songs and the teachers were enthusiastically trying to get everyone to sing. Most of the teachers are secular but you could see their strong connection to Chanukah and the story. The children presented their plays each group at their own level and I watched the teachers as they watched the kids, they were so proud and sat at the edge of their seats when anyone struggled to get the hebrew out. There was a chidon at the end and Yonatan represented his class. The teachers made sure that each child in the chidon succeeded (of course my Yonatan didn't need much help)..........I was so impressed by the level of pride and concern the teachers showed for the students.


My conclusions at the end of the day......is this an environment I would want my child to be in on a permanent basis , No........but what I did conclude was that the bottom line to a positive learning experience for any child is a positive learning environment in which a child and his difficulties are understood and where the child is able to succeed and feel good about himself. Yonatan is progressing in his hebrew in leaps and bounds and while he is still not really comfortable speaking too much I see he understands a lot....enough that Darrell and I can no longer speak hebrew in front of him when we don't want him to understand. I believe we made the right decision for Yonatan and gd. willing he will continue to expand his hebrew language skills enough to return to Rav Shmuel and kita Vav in Efrat very soon.