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Erin Hirsh

Going iPhone-less: Camps trying to ban gadgets while embracing technology | Jewish Tele... - 1 views

    • Erin Hirsh
       
      Why does screen time seem diametrically opposed to the values of camp? Is this a false dichotomy? What messages are camps like this communicating to children about technology? I wish we were searching for a way to help kids use screentime in moderation year-round . . . that would seem like a great gift to our children and community to me.
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    My children are all attending Camp Ramah in California and they are not allowed to use technology at camp either! (iPhones, cell phones, game bos, etc) They do have camper mail that parents email to the camp and the camp prints out. Their technological offerings are limited. This article does raise an interesting point. When we go camping as a family, we have ano technology rule as well. It is a time to connect as a family without the distractions of the outside world. Perhaps that is the goal of the summer camps as well. Thanks for posting this article!
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    I used to work at sleep away camp and I completely understand having the kids disconnect from technology for the summer, while at camp. If there is a serious issue, their counselors and the administration staff have direct contact with the camper's parents. Also, if they have access to a phone and a problem occurs with another camper, they will call home and complain to their parents and say they want to come home. By the time the parent reaches the camp and staff has had a chance to talk to the camper, the issue has been resolved already. This is especially true for middle school students who are constantly having "fights" with their friends. This has happened to me! Kol Ha'Kavod to the camps for not giving in to letting kids have electronics!
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    My two kids are at Ramah Outdoor Adventure in CO right now. I miss them so much. One more week. They have a similar policy. Now onto to the topic: I've also worked at camp before (Ramah and Camp Thunderbird) and we also didn't allow screens. The exception that Ramah makes though is for kids who have their bar and bat mitzvah training. They can use their screens for that. And they also told us the kids could have an MP3 player and listen to soft music if they needed to in order to fall asleep. It's very true that the phones would be abused at camp like mentioned above. I think I also could see the need to have like 12 IPads at camp for a special video making elective. It's not that the technology is inherently bad or something to always shy away from. For me, the technology ban is so the kids can connect with nature and not have anything holding them back like mentioned by Yvonne. Every year I lead a b'nai mitzvah camping trip at our Synagogue and I tell parents it's fine with me if the kids bring their screens, we just limit the time they can use them. But if it breaks, it's on them. One time a camper brought an expensive screen with them and it broke and I said oh well, that's what happens in the woods. While on the theme of screens: When my kids at home overstep their lines or are not the nicest to each other or whatever (they are really good kids), they get their screens taken away. We don't say no TV, because then they go to the IPad, or the computer, so we just say no screens period when they overstep. I do think this is an important topic though and but would like to see ways camp can integrate technology more. It's pretty cool I think that I can email my kids every day and look at pictures of them every day on photobucket. Thanks for the conversation!
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    Eliyahu, I am not sure how old your kids are, but we find it difficult to take away screens because our two oldest (15 and 17) have many of their school books, assignments, projects, etc on their tablets! It can become tricky. We do limit xbox, game time, movie time, etc, but the absolute no screen time becomes too difficult and therefore takes much more monitoring if they have overstepped the bounds!
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    Good point Yvonne. My kids are 12 and 8. As they get older, you're totally right that it really isn't realistic and hard to monitor. Saying no to every screen, especially if they have homework to do on it. That would be like shooting yourself in the foot and no one likes to do that! And even though screens are limited at camp, at least at ROA, the counselors can go to the staff lounge and log in when they have time at night to do so.
Lisa Vendeland

Judaism Basics - Judaism 101 - 0 views

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    This is a website I have recommended to interfaith families that I have in my Practice. So many time when a baby enters into a marriage I become a resource for the "how to's" : How do we have a naming, what is a Bris, how do we name him/her appropriately ? I know it sounds crazy but as an OB/GYN Dr. I do A LOT of Jewish Teaching!
ikatro23

Free Kids' Books for Jewish Families - The PJ Library - 2 views

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    I think PJ Library does a great thing for the youngest generation by sending stories monthly. It starts them out at a young age being invested in Judaism. But it is not always books. Sometimes it is CDs as well! I know my son looks forward to receiving his book each month.
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    I also love the PJ Library. What a simple but profound idea! All our kids five and below get the books. My two kids get it too and when they were younger they actually looked forward to the books each month. On their site they actually go up until 8 and below. Age appropriate books and CD's. I think they also sent us a DVD one time. Very multi-media and worthwhile. In Tulsa, it's run through our Federation and it costs them $40 per child per year to sponsor it. Our families love it. One issue though: At our Synagogue we have a full time preschool with 110 kids. Very big for Tulsa and we have a long waiting list. Literally. NAECY accredited and 3 stars. It's a fantastic school. I supervise the preschool director and we have a great relationship. The rub is that of the 110 kids, only a handful are Jewish, like 8 or 9 of them. So we have 100 kids here in the building learning about the universal themes of Judaism all week long, 7:30-5:30, and they are not Jewish. It's not that they are trying to be Jewish. It's just that our program is so great. So when I asked Federation and the PJ Library if they could be included, they said no. Even if the Synagogue paid for it. Boo-hoo. I wish there was an exception that could be made and all kids who go to Jewish schools, whether they are Jewish or non-Jewish, could get the PJ Library. What do you think?
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    I completely agree with you, sort of. I think anyone who attends a Jewish school (Jewish or not) should be able to receive the PJ Library books. However, having worked for a little bit of time for the PJ Library in my area, the reason that they won't allow non-Jews to receive the books even if someone else pays for it, is because only a certain number of books are allocated per town that participates in PJ Library. If non-Jews receives those books, there is a chance that the Jews in your area will not receive the books.
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    I see what you are saying about running out of books and I've heard that same perspective from someone who worked for PJ Library when they were at the ISJL conference. But I think if Harold Grinspoon heard that they were concerned with running out of books, they could solve that problem pretty quickly. I understand that the children who go to our Synagogue preschool are mainly non-Jewish and I'm not saying they should become members or anything. Getting the book would be nice but they are okay with out it. Each fall I check in with my federation executive to see if there should be any updates for the PJ library list. It is so generous and it works!
Deborah Nagler

Google Docs Story Builder - 1 views

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    March 10, 2013 | Leave a Comment Here is an interesting tool. Google Docs Story Builder is basically a short story telling tool with a video in a very exciting way. Without any registration you can start creating your story. Go to docsstorybuilder.appspot.com and click on Get Started.
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    This an amazing tool. I will use this with my students. Thanks for sharing it. It reminded me of paper bag midrash when you give a group a paper bag filled with objects and they tell a Midrash about some prescribed topic Jewishly related but they have to use all the props. Also, one thing my wife and I do is create back and forth poetry. She says a word, then I say a word, and you switch off. A good tool for students too and it's low tech.
Deborah Nagler

Crap Detection 101 - 1 views

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    Howard Rheingold speaks about how to know if a Web-based source is reliable.
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    I like that term Crap Detection. Literacy is so important. Not everything you read or see on the web is true. Haha. Seriously though, he makes a good point about the site that mentions MLK that is really a white supremecy site. I also feel like I have to be very careful when I send out links to parents to check out. I do this in all my mass emails because it's a good way to continue the discussion and learning. But one time I sent out a youtube video and in the comment section there were some bad words. So important to scroll to the bottom. Another time one of my teachers was using this site to get prayers off of but then realized it was a Jews for Jesus site that was cloaked as a Jewish site. Oye. She was mortified. So important to know how to detect crap! Especially when you can't smell the screen but have to dig a little deeper with your eyes.
ikatro23

Word Clouds in Education: Turn a toy into a tool - 0 views

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    Using Word Clouds are a great way to initially summarize something you are about to teach in class. After doing the reading, have the students summarize on their own. This gives many different ways of how to use a Word Cloud in the curriculum.
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    I have used word clouds (digitally made and hand-made on paper!) for students to show their understanding of different concepts. For a unit where students created their own tzedakah organization, they had to create a word cloud for their organization.
Moshe Vaknin

resource for Jewish educational materials - 1 views

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    'Miss' Emily Aronoff Teck is a Jewish Music Educator who believes wholeheartedly in the power of informal education and utilizes music as her tool of choice. Emily studied at Brandeis University and in Israel before graduating from Florida Atlantic University with a B.A. in Jewish Studies. Emily was awarded the Grinspoon-Steinhardt Award for Excellence in Jewish Education in 2010. In 2012, Emily received a M.Ed. in Curriculum and Instruction with a specialization in Music from Florida Atlantic University. She is currently pursuing an Ed.D. in Jewish Education from Gratz College. Emily's primary focus in her career is early engagement of young Jewish children and their families through developmentally appropriate, enjoyable and meaningful musical experiences. She has written and recorded 4 albums of music and was featured on a PJ Library song compilation. Emily is grateful every day for the fact that it is possible to make a living doing what you love, and is looking forward to developing new ways for young families to meaningfully engage with their Judaism. - See more at: http://www.jewishlearningmatters.com/A-Director-JewishLearningMatters-com-Emily-Aronoff-Teck-M-Ed-508.aspx#content
ikatro23

Bar/Bat Mitzvah Ceremony - 0 views

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    They say that no matter what happens, at the end of your wedding day the goal is to be married. I find the same to be true for a Bar/Bat Mitzvah. At the end of the day you are a Jewish adult. You will be held to higher standards. It does not matter if you only have an aaliyah to the Torah or if you lead the whole thing. The point is you have reached adulthood in Judaism and you need to start acting like it.
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    You are a Jewish adult, then you go back to middle school! Seriously though, I really love myjewishlearning.com. I use it all the time for references and articles. The articles make a lot of sense and speak to a wide yet focused and community. I also appreciate how even though it keeps it serious, it remains consistent in its respectful approach to pluralism. In terms of the adult b'nai mitzvah, we have a class at the Synagogue for just this type of thing. We use Hineni Prayerbook Hebrew for Adults through Behrman House. People can take the class even if they don't schedule an actual adult bar or bat mitzvah. The ceremonies are really quiet special....it's never too late. And there's also the tradition of every 70 years having a bar or bat mitzvah which also has lots of potential. We all should live so long!
Erin Hirsh

| Behrman House Publishing - 1 views

    • Erin Hirsh
       
      It is so interesting to me that she was in a traditional Jewish camp environment and her impulse to increase the learning quality was to integrate technology - it shows how clearly of a different generation I am. It is also interesting to see how it made sense to Behrman House to bring the game out of that specific environment into those where we might more typically expect technology and Jewish education to intersect. 
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    I sent this out to my school famlies last week when behrman house sent their email out. I love this game. It's an innovative way to combine fun and Jewish values. When I play Jenga with my kids, I like to put Jewish values on each block and when they pick a block or remove a block from the tower, they have to say how the Jewish midah applies to their life or situation. I think it's also interesting to see how Behrman House is amping up their technology. Like I said in a previous post, they also have a new Online Learning Center as well. The new fad of technology is becoming the new norm.
Deborah Nagler

How Students Develop Online Learning Skills - 1 views

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    More and more, adult learners are finding the convenience and flexibility of online learning a match for their learning goals and busy lifestyles. Online degree programs, courses, and virtual universities targeting adult learners have proliferated in the past decade.
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    I agree with this statement in this article: "Online discussions with fellow students and the instructor are central to the learning experience." In the 5 C's, this would be all about collaboration, connectivity, and communication. If it's and art project, you could through creative expression in there too. If specific questions are asked too, customization would be the next step too. Having our class last night and yesterday afternoon really helped me see the big picture of where we are headed in this summer course. Surfing can be isolating, as can teaching, so the more we can increase communication with real people the better. I just signed up for a free quote from a car insurance deal online and not three minutes later, my cell phone rings with a service agent trying to get my business. How efficient is that...but kind of creepy too!
Erin Hirsh

Israeli Hi-Tech Jewish Summer Camp - eCamp - YouTube - 1 views

    • Erin Hirsh
       
      I have to say, when I watched this video, what I kept thinking was that - in terms of this being a summer camp - it made perfect sense to me that kids could have fun and learn and explore amazing activities using technology, I had this overwhelming wish that the computers would be in an outside pavilion.
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    Ecamp looks like it would be a lot of fun. Innovators, workshops, pictures under the Google sign, dance pads, and now even time in Greensboro at that amazing facility. Did you check out that comment in the comment section by some guy named Jack? Maybe a self hating Jew but I hate comments like that. So disappointing. I like the idea of an outside pavilion with computers. Touch screen and super fast. That would be really cool Erin.
Yvonne Webber

How To Create a 'Personal Learning Environment' to Stay Relevant in 2013 - 0 views

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    "Our understanding of learning has expanded at a rate that has far outpaced our conceptions of teaching. A growing appreciation for the porous boundaries between the classroom and life experience...has created not only promising changes but also disruptive moments in teaching."
Lisa Vendeland

Akhlah :: Shabbat - 0 views

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    This is one of my all time favorite websites for Jewish Education. There iisn't a single category that I don't use! I also subscribe to the weekly Parsha for kids on am on their email list. The Hebrew word of the day would be great to use in a day school program.
Eliyahu Krigel

Technology and Jewish Education - 0 views

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    This is a great article about integrating the smartboard into your lessons. We don't have smartboards at the Synagogue (not yet) but they have one at the day school and at the federation. I've taught some classes before for adult ed at the federation and for kids at the day school and using the smartboard is quiet an experience. It is so much fun and really is the future. Typical story though: We have this family who donated a smartboard to the school but then wanted the smartboard to be used in the same class as their daughter who will be in first. But the director want's to have the smartboard in fifth grade so it can maximize student learning. Plus, the first grade teacher doesn't know how to use it and doesn't really want to incoorporate it into her classroom experience. If you were the director, would you put the nicely donated smartboard where the donor wanted it to go in the first grade classroom with their child or use it in another classroom entirely because that's what would benefit the school? Or would you humbly say no thank you to the gift because it has strings attached?
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    I would let the donor know that it is best suited in the fifth grade class. However, anytime any teacher wants to use it, arrangements would be made so that they could use the smart board. That's what we did in our religious school. The classes that would most likely use the smart board received it in their room. But if a teacher was doing a special project or needed use of the smart board, the classrooms were switched so that someone else could use it if need be.
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    Makes good sense to me. Giving gifts with strings attached really complicates the matter and everybody loses in my experience.
Rachel Rosenberg

'Start-up nation' Israel to help Jewish day schools go from textbooks to tablets? - 1 views

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    Another article about tablets being used in the classroom setting
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    Tablets will be the new spiral notebooks, every student will have them. Even in our Synagogue supplemental school, we are moving away from computers with keyboards and more in the direction of having tablets for the students to work on. Hebrew apps continue to get better and I hope one day our Jewish games will be as tech savvy as the best of the X-Box or whatever counsel games. We're on the right path but we are not there quiet yet.
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    Another benefit of using the tablet is that it isn't as likely to get left at school, like textbooks are now, they weigh less, so much less impact from those backpacks kids lug around with them all day and finally, when kids want to read or work on an assignment they easily can. Not just at a time or place where they are suppose to. I think having a flash card program on a tablet or hand held mobile device can be a great tool for Hebrew teachers to use also for vocabulary. Morah Rickey uses Quizlet for our class. So I agree with EK that we are on the right path in this respect.
elainelampert

The Synagogue Today | New model for Jewish education a bad thing for shuls? - 0 views

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    This article talks about a new model of Jewish education, a program for two hours after school Monday - Thursday.
amykingschoppert

The Ten Commandments of Social Media - 0 views

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    Written by Guest Blogger, 24 of June, 2014 By Rabbi Arnold Samlan A hallmark of my work as a rabbi and Jewish educational leader has included the use of social media, be it as a blogger, and as a user of Facebook and Twitter.
Deborah Nagler

9 Wrong And 8 Right Ways Students Should Use Technology - 0 views

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    Technology is a tool. It's not a learning outcome. Too often do we get distracted by all the activities and action we can perform with an iPad or some other device. We can post to Edmodo! Make a Prezi! Post to Facebook! All exciting things, to be sure.
Erin Hirsh

Mission/Vision - 1 views

    • Erin Hirsh
       
      This is a Jewish organization taking a whole different role in working with Jewish camps and technology - funny that it came up right with the articles about Jewish camps, education and technology. At the same time, it shares the same core mission as many Jewish camps and camp organizations like FJC.
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    Harold Grinspoon has done so much to help the Jewish people. Matching grants of 60 million, wow. PJ Library, the list goes on and on! What I apprecaite about Jcamp 180 and this site is that they work with all Jewish camps to make them more sustainable. This is a powerful model of Jewish unity. This type of program will help ensure Jewish continuity!
Lisa Vendeland

WebCanvas - http://webcanvas.com - 0 views

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    Webcanvas.com/#78923 Sky full of Kites. Student drawings become part of something much, much bigger: Great for introducing the concepts involved in a collaborative project.
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