Corona Changed Everything

I am no worrier. I've lived in Israel for a very long time. I have friends. I even have childhood friends who also moved here. I work, I bought an apartment, I did IVF and had a baby, I've been a single mother for almost 12 years. And all this in a language I'm not 100% comfortable with.

I hate the weather in the summer which is far too hot for me, and getting hotter apparently. I hate the national pass-time of hiking in the countryside because I can't see any countryside - only Mediterranean scrub. Otoh, I love it that we live 45 minutes from the Mediterranean. In theory. We're actually not beach lovers.

I love visiting the UK. I love the countryside, I love walking in the countryside. I love London, I love the humour, I love listening to the radio talk shows and understanding all of it. I love dealing with bureaucracy or commerce on the phone or by email because I have full command of the language and all its nuances.

I've always been torn between living here and living in the UK. The more years you expat yourself, the harder it is to go back. The more you have invested in your expat life and the less you have to go back to. However, no one expected covid-19 or that it would change everything. Not just highlighting what I already knew, but bringing up things that I also already knew but had buried deep.

We are far away from close family. It wasn't a problem when a short plane ride was available and traffic went both ways - they came to us and we went to them. But now what happens if I get sick? Who looks after DD? Would you take in a traumatised child who needs to be in quarantine for two weeks and could endanger your own family?

So I'm being over cautious about social distancing. DD came to me last night and said sadly, "Mummy everyone else is out having fun." In theory she's correct. In practice, we both know that we hate that sort of hiking or even picnicking in 34 degree heat sort of "fun". I don't even know what other kind of fun there is in this country in this sort of heat. In past years we went along with friends and endured the heat in order to enjoy the company.

I have a drivers' license but I don't drive here because I don't have a person to call if we break down, get stuck or have an accident. I mean, I have people to call in an emergency but once the emergency bit is over, I still have to deal with all the mechanical and insurance issues. This scares the hell out of me. So we don't have a car and as much as I say it's cheaper to take a taxi any time we want to go anywhere out of town (which it is - I've done the maths) we don't. Our lives are limited.

Our lives are limited, not only by lack of private transport. It's a language thing. I shy away from too much responsibility at work, at school (DD's and mine) and in the community. This is tragic for a natural joiner and organiser.

Finally, as we face DD going into Middle and High School, I feel I'm limiting her education. Her Hebrew has surpassed mine but due to our English lives at home, she doesn't have the language skills necessary to excel. And though I can help her with the material, by looking up the information in English, I can't help her with presenting what she knows. School is half about what you know and half about presenting what you know according to the teachers' requirements.

Maybe covid-19 has turned me into a worrier. Or maybe it has just made me face some difficult truths. Whichever, it has changed everything.

From One Day To The Next - R2BC

The lettuces on my window sill are doing well.
As soon as I plant them outside the birds get them.
Maybe I'll stick to the hydraponic approach inside this time. 

I didn't have any Reasons 2B Cheerful on Thursday when Becky published the R2BC linky on Lakes Single Mum. I didn't have any big reasons not to be cheerful but there was nothing particular to write about. By Friday God had provided me with three R2BC - because the world is running so smoothly he obviously had time on his hands to sort out my petty niggles. 

1

Dinner With Friends

We used to do this every few weeks. Friday night dinner with another single mum at either their place or ours. A friend for me and a friend for DD. Nothing grand, just company and good simple food. But then corona happened and we stopped doing it. So last night we walked over to their place and caught up, ate far too much, and had fun. (I need to get my place in shape so that they can come to us in a couple of weeks.)

2

The Home Front

Talking of getting my place into shape, I saw the funniest meme on facebook. Of course the funniest ones are the most true. 

Is my house clean and tidy? - No

But are we having crazy fun times making memories? - Also no. 

A friend told me yesterday that when they got the notice that it would be back to school and work in two weeks in their State of the US, he panicked because they'd not done any the things he'd planned to do during lockdown. That too. 

3

School Changes

Talking of going back to school. DD had one week of the two day arrangement and her school decided that they're all going back on Sunday - full normal schedule, full classes. 

My school was a nightmare because when they were splitting the classes teachers got put in wherever they were needed. The English staff got shuffled around (at least we're still teaching English) and now we're with classes we've not taught all year. I don't know any of the kids' names, I'm taking over specific remedial programmes for the weaker students (who are also less motivated) and I have no idea how these programmes work, and all in masks with no breaks because every teacher is on playground duty and lunch duty three times a day because of staggered break times. And if you found that long sentence difficult to read and take in - that's how I feel all day in school. I honestly didn't know if I could do it for another three weeks. 

The primary school teachers union had agreed with the government to continue school until July 12th instead of the usual June 30th. Meanwhile the middle and high school unions were still saying they want to finish on June 20th as usual, instead of continuing until June 30th. Then yesterday afternoon the labour court sided with the teachers. Middle and high school students are suddenly and abruptly finished for the year (except those taking public exams over the next month) and us littlies have only a week and a half to go. 

Hooray! I would have been happy to teach for the extra couple of weeks but I can't do this babysitting lark whilst pretending to teach. And K - 4th grade are getting free summer school until August 6th.

5
The Summer Holiday
Talking of breaking up from school, obviously we're not going anywhere this summer but what plans I have for us whilst stuck at home for two months. LOL. See R2BC 2 above. #procrastinatingoptimistsyndrome  No seriously...

4

Sick Note

I got a sick note from my doctor for the two weeks that we were in enforced quarantine. So I'll get paid for the full month of June and not just for the two weeks I went back to school. Hooray again! 

Unschooling Happened

Real homeschooling would involve trips to Kew Gardens,
learning photography, about plants, and Chihuly. 

Unschooling is a thing. Really. And it's allowed in places where homeschooling is legal, which is in most of the world these days.

Unschooling is leaving your child to his or her own devices in an information  and experiential rich environment and trusting that they will educate themselves. Perhaps with some gentle guidance and a few rules like only educational screen time during the day, a certain amount of out of house time, obligatory chores that promote useful skills, etc...

The rich environment could include books; the internet; the library, museums; available adults who are willing to engage; group activities like scouts, a choir or orchestra, swim team; family experiences like travel, camping, religious rituals and celebrations, cooking, gardening; play with other children; a part time job; and anything else that provides stimulation and opportunities to learn anything at all.

The coronavirus lockdown is nothing like homeschooling. It's temporary, we're not set up for it, we can't use the library, museums, go on nature walks, etc... There's distance learning from the schools, and regular parents have their own work to do. It's a sad but true fact that only families in which one parent can do flexi-hours from home, can do homeschooling. Most families don't have this choice.

Most important of all, there are at least seven different methods you can adopt for homeschooling and/or combinations thereof. It can take a while to explore the options and see which method works best for your family. For example, recreate a classroom at home and follow the national curriculum with textbooks and a weekly schedule. Co-op learning with other families and each parent teaching their field of expertise or passion. The Charlotte Mason method of real literature and learning till noon followed by outdoor pursuits in the afternoon. Place Based Learning uses the local environment, community and culture. Remote online learning. Umbrella or theme based learning. You get the picture, it's not just staying at home and working through the textbooks.

Despite all this, a lot of unschooling by default has taken place over the last three months. In our home I had lots of online teaching going on. DD also had some remote lessons but also a lot of free time during which I wasn't available to occupy her. Add to this that she's an only child and I'm almost dying of guilt as I write this. I admit that there was far too much screen time and not enough no baking, balcony gardening, art, teaching her to sew and knit, playing the recorder or piano, learning a foreign language, board games, jigsaw puzzles, or reading aloud.

All of the above were mentioned by various mother friends on facebook as a job well done. I let it go and put my trust in the theory of unschooling. Largely my trust was misplaced but I was surprised by some definite indications of unschooling success.

1. DD suddenly got interested in world affairs. She became obsessed with the corona numbers and statistics. She listened to Trump's daily media briefings in order to analyse how vague and ignorant he sounded. She told me about the murder of George Floyd before any of the protests had spread around the world. She gave me an hour by hour update as events unfolded in the US. She knew all about racism and white privilege, and started expressing strong opinions about the racism in various tv series and movies she watches.

2. She asked me to help her get rid of her lisp and stop saying f for th. I showed her how to place her tongue and she's been constantly practicing. It's almost perfect now.

3. She has been reading more, out of sheer boredom. And also because I say no treats until she's read a chapter in English and three pages in Hebrew. Ok, so that's not exactly unschooling, but I've noticed that more reading is being done without the bribe incentive.

4. She has decluttered and organised her whole bedroom, deciding what she wants to keep and what needs to go. She's started making her bed and hoovering the carpet because she likes a clean and tidy environment.

5. One day she wanted to make sushi so we bought the equipment and made it. We tried a few times with grilled salmon and tinned tuna - because I didn't trust the raw fish that was available. We don't love it but we know how to make it.

6. I've noticed an inclination towards documentaries on You Tube and Netflix. So far DD has watched the whole series of History 101 and Explained. She also chooses to watch Sky News Live at least once a day. And of course she doesn't just watch these programmes, she asks questions and we discuss them.

So we didn't do half or even a quarter any of the things I'd planned for us to do during lockdown. But it seems that a bit of unschooling magic happened. Not much but enough to renew my interest in unschooling as an alternative method of education.

Back To School On Sunday?

School - so near and yet so far

There were news reports early in the week that Kindergarten to 3rd Grade, and 11th and 12th Grades, would return to school on Sunday, 3rd May.

Facebook was full of it of course. I'd say there was about a 50-50 split of parents who were for it and those who said it was too soon. And all the parents who were for it weren't 100% convinced either. As usual, those with children in that age bracket who needed to go back to work, didn't have a choice. Those with money (either savings or with desk jobs that can be done from home) to see them through another month were able to make their own decisions. Not to mention the gap in mental health between those with outside space and those without. Bottom line - we are not all in the same boat.

On Wednesday elementary schools were told to prepare for Sunday. Kindergartens are deleted from the equation - enforcing social distancing on 3 - 7s isn't practical. The final decision was made today, Friday, and we're still on. I don't believe this is the final decision but I've been wrong before.

Apparently (I didn't hear it myself but someone posted it on Facebook so believe it or not) they felt compelled to ease restrictions because they think that if they don't, there will be serious unrest and actions against the government. It's the economy stupid.

Other news reports say social distancing is falling apart in many places and the government has lost control over it. Lifting restriction on babysitters, how many families can share childcare, opening high street shops, and easing permitted travel distance, have all helped to erode any sense of logic. Although I am sticking to the rules, I can understand others who won't not go to the park with their kids when people can go to IKEA. (News flash - a corona positive man from Jerusalem spent an hour in IKEA in Rishon on Monday. So there you go.)

A poll found that the biggest hurdle to returning to work is the lack of childcare. The classes are being split into halves (no more than 15 children in a class) so there's only room for half a school to return. They assume that 4th - 6th Graders can be left alone, or with siblings, while the parents go to work. My 6th Grader can but I didn't leave her for more than a couple of hours when she was 9.

In my school the following measures are in place. 1st Graders will enter the school via the top gate, the others by the bottom gate. No parents are allowed on the premises. The class teacher will team up with a subject teacher and teach half the class at a time. No other teachers will be with each class. (The class teachers for 4th - 6th Grades will continue with distance learning.) Only one child per table. Playtimes will be staggered and masks worn during the breaks only. There was some more about the toilets and hand washing.

Many parents are scared and not sending their children. Some children live in families with at risk members. Some teachers live with at risk family members or are at risk themselves. So it's not compulsory. Teachers can opt to take sick leave although there is a certain amount of pressure not to.

My take is that it's a national experiment, with the children as the subjects. If it were known to be safe then everyone would go back. The economy has trumped health with the safety net of restricted school so that the hospitals will be able to handle a modest spike in corona cases.

As an overweight, older mother of an only child, single parent, with no immediate family in the country, this does not reassure me. I'm glad my 11 year old is in 6th Grade (and I am on unpaid leave from school) so I don't have to decide whether to allow her (or me) to be part of the experiment. But if I did have to decide... we have a balcony, I have enough money for another month in lockdown, and we are two people in a not tiny living space. I won't judge.

Israel Indepencence Day - R2BC

Here are my Reasons 2B Cheerful for this week. I missed last week as I had so many students' papers to grade. So even though very little has changed since two weeks ago, I don't want to miss another week. The Linky is with Becky on Lakes Single Mum (and I promise to go back and read all the posts from last week too.)

1
Independence Day
We're 72 years old! We celebrated on our balconies instead of in the national parks and on the beaches. The road outside my building has become the local synagogue as it was our neighbours who started the regular prayers.

On the eve of Independence Day a couple of guys came out with a harmonica, a guitar, and a microphone. We sang all the prayers together, then we sang some Israeli favourites, and we finished with Hatikva, the national anthem. It was much nicer than when we all troop up to the promenade for a rock concert and outrageously priced food and souvenirs.

We did miss the fireworks though.

2
Distance Learning
DD is really into her distance learning from school now that her friend's mum is there to help her. She's much more relaxed and she doesn't worry if she misses an assignment or two because she's getting most of it done. It's actually fantastic because she's occupied for the whole morning.

There's a lot of Zoom and video calling going on. Every so often she calls out from her bedroom: "Mummy! Don't come in, I'm in a meeting!"

3
The Wonders of Boredom
It took a whole month of nothing to do and nowhere to go but slowly slowly, DD has been tidying out her bedroom. Drawer by drawer, shelf by shelf. Every few days a couple of bags of clutter appear by the front door ready to be taken down to the bins.

And she's developed a love of the Windolene squirty bottle. So far the balcony doors, the kitchen window, her bedroom window and the mirrors in the bathroom have been cleaned.

I'm being as encouraging as I can whilst trying not to seem too happy about it or I know it will stop as suddenly as it started.

Have a good week y'all. Take care, stay safe and keep well.

Back On Distance Learning And Summer School,

Sunset over Jerusalem

Yesterday, after a major meltdown, I'd had it with distance learning. But DD is far more conscientious than I am about her school work and she wasn't happy about giving up. Thankfully another mother from our class came to our rescue. Her child, also an English speaker, wasn't into reading the long texts in Hebrew, so she has been reading them with him and she invited DD to join them via video call.

This morning they had sport, maths, Hebrew (in which she learned to work the system and managed to do the activity without reading the lesson), and History. So she joined her friend for History and it was fantastic. She finished it and I've not seen her that relaxed and happy since before the Pesach holidays. Even during the holiday she was anxious about going back to distance learning. I won't mention names but Friend's Mother, I thank you from the bottom of my heart.

You'll notice that I'm using the phrase distance learning today, instead of home schooling. It was rightly pointed out to me that Home Schooling is a thing and this isn't it. I knew that but I used the phrase carelessly yesterday because it described our situation. However, we are not Home Schooling, we are School Schooling without the teachers present.

Which brings me to the enormous facebook fracas that erupted yesterday after a disastrous TV interview with Yaffa Ben-David, the head of one of the Teacher's Unions in Israel. She is probably the most hated woman in Israel atm and all because she didn't handle the interview well.

The problem is twofold:

1. Distance learning, 
We're trying to do distance learning so that the children keep up with some education and not feel so isolated. Also it's a good idea to have an outside adult in contact with every child under these lockdown conditions. Unfortunately, the teachers are learning to do this on the fly. Whilst there are a lot of instructional meetings via zoom and sharing of information and resources, it's all a bit hit and miss. It's being refined day by day and the teachers are putting in hours and hours of work to make it all happen, plan lessons, give individual feedback, be available and to trouble shoot.

It's a herculean task and they are doing it while trying to supervise their own children at home with different school schedules and often limited screen and internet access. Despite all this, there is a lot of frustration among parents who also need to work on the family computer and have a number of children who cannot work alone, and all need the computer or phone for a zoom lesson at the same time, etc...

For all these reasons the directive is that these online lessons are not compulsory and everyone should do as much as they can.

2. Summer School
In order to recover some of the economy, if we are out of isolation by the summer, we need the children to be in school so that parents can work. Some people are saying that the teachers are off school now so they should make up the hours in the summer. Excuse me? You may not like the distance learning but  the teachers are working very hard to make it happen and it is a lifeline for some families and children.

Ben-David argued that the teachers will not be working an extra 6 weeks with no pay. This created an uproar mainly with the response that the teachers are paid for 12 months a year but only work 10 months, so they need to forgo their ridiculous amount of holiday and do their bit to help to help the nation.

There are three points to make here.
A, the teachers are not paid for 12 months of the year. Many years ago their 10 months of salary was spread over 12 payments to help them budget better. Pay in July and August is for work done from September till June.

B, I don't think Ben-David could have argued anything else, she was just doing her job which is to protect the teachers.

C, No one has asked the teachers. Most of the jobs that teachers pick up over the summer break to make up the shortfall in their salaries, will not be available this year. If you asked the teachers to volunteer over the summer I suspect that most of them would say yes. What they object to is the assumption that they must pay back for the years of shirking over July and August. That they are paid anyway so they owe the country to work.

Teachers are willing to do their bit, as they have been doing and will continue to do through the many hours it takes to organize and execute distance learning. All they ask is some respect and acknowledgment. If you want them to volunteer over the summer to help the nation get back on its feet, call a spade a spade and ask them to volunteer. And don't forget to thank them afterwards.

I'm Done With Home-Schooling

This teacher is rubbish if you have a problem. 

Today, after the Pesach holiday, was the day I had to get back to my work, catch up with planning online lessons and grading incoming work. I have so much to do.

Home-schooling started up again today after the Pesach holidays. DD had to sign in at 09.00. The first two lessons were English and Maths. No problems there. Then came science.

It was a read, learn, quiz programme online. She figured out how to translate some to the information into English so we understood that the topic was mirrors, reflection, angles of reflection, etc... It's not rocket science, it's just 6th grade science and I understand all of it - in English.

The multiple choice questions were fine. If you get it wrong you just choose something else until the bell rings for a correct answer.

The questions that require a written answer were harder. First you have to understand the question. It all fell apart when I didn't understand one of the questions and DD couldn't explain it to me. The diagram looked fine to me but apparently there was something wrong with it and we had to correct it somehow, or choose another diagram - I couldn't see any other diagrams, or say what was wrong.

DD lost her temper with me and screamed at me that she's explaining but I'm not listening. I'm screaming back that I'm listening but not understanding. And shouting the same thing louder while waving her arms about at the computer isn't going to help me understand it any better. Eventually she clicked on enough points in the diagram to be rewarded with the bell.

I told her just to do what she can and don't worry about the rest. But she does worry because they have to send it in to be checked. I told her I couldn't help because she always ends up screaming at me. But then what am I going to do when she asks, "Mummy can you help me?" Of course I try to help and I end up being screamed at again.

There's approximately two minutes between the end of being screamed at and the next request for help. I cannot begin to concentrate on doing any of my own work. I feel a headache coming on and am close to tears. I feel emotionally battered.

Next question. It was a story about a village in Switzerland overshadowed by a mountain. We put the story through google translate and we had to write the solution. I told DD the solution in English. "OK, how do I write that in Hebrew?"
"I don't know, you can speak Hebrew."
I won't  repeat the whole exchange of words. I can't even call it a conversation as it quickly descended into me being screamed at - again.

I told her, again, that the only solution for us is to move to England for a few years so that I can help her with her school work. More screaming followed and now she's in her bedroom crying. I'm at the computer crying. And apparently there's History yet to do today.

DD asked me if she could not do sports. They are supposed to make a video of them doing some sort of exercise. At this moment I don't care. I'm going to watch some tv and eat, and eat some more probably.

I don't want to hear any more about home-schooling. I'm done with it.

Home Schooling In A Foreign Language

She started her education with so much promise. 

First lesson, 09.00 - 10.00 maths. We got off to a good start. The assignment was to complete five pages about area and one page starting the notion of volume. There wasn't actually much calculating to do but there was a lot of explanation and wordy word problems. This is our downfall as it takes us ages to work out what it means. I was with DD all the way - it's easier for me because at least I know the maths in advance. Needless to say I didn't get any of my work done.

10.00 is supposed to be a snack break. We missed it as we were still doing maths.

At 10.something history started. DD abandoned the rest of maths only half done. We went to the page in her history book and were horrified to see a double page article to read, in Hebrew of course, on the autonomy of the Judean State in Hellenistic Times. My cultural background at this age is A Day in the Life of a Viking. I was lost before we started.

The first question was: What does autonomy mean? That was easy. I wrote a sentence straight onto Google Translate and DD copied it into her history notebook.

Next, and final question: Describe the autonomy of Judea in the time of the Hellenic Empire. I went to Wikipedia in English, copy-pasted a paragraph onto Google Translate, edited it down, and DD photographed it with her cell phone. Done.

Before we got to the next subject - English, a message from the class teacher came through that there was a live interactive broadcast of something at 11.00 and they could tune in to it. I scanned the message and saw the word, "tosefet". That means it's an extra not an obligation. Phew. We didn't go there.

But we'd missed the start of English at 11.something.
DD: "Shall I do the English now or finish my maths?"
I thought it was better to get maths out of the way but DD was concerned because it was English time. Suddenly a message came through with a link to a maths quiz on percentages. You had to do it over and over until you got it all correct. I don't know if there was a time factor but the pressure was on and DD kept making mistakes. In the end I sat with her and told her the answers.

We had the 'shall I do English or maths?' discussion again. I insisted that she we I finish maths. Suddenly DD was asked via Whatsapp to write five good things that happened today. I had loads of great ideas: I didn't have to go out in the cold, rainy weather, for example.
DD:"No! That didn't happen. It has to be things that happened or we did."
Me: "I finished my maths and photographed my History and I'm going to do my English if I get a moment's peace from Whatsapp."
DD: "Mummy you're ridiculous."

In the end she looked at what everyone else was writing and copied a few of the others. Then I made lunch as it was already 2 pm and school was supposed to finish at 12.30. Then I made her do her English. Then I sat down to do some of my own work and found that I didn't have the energy.

And now we learned that today is the final day of home school. *DD dances around the apartment with joy.* Instead they are taking 9 days off the summer holiday, with the optimistic view that we will be returning to school after Pesach. *DD virtually in tears.* Life is indeed an emotional roller coaster atm. 

Lockdown Meltdown And Losing The Plot

The almond tree
in the school vegetable garden has blossomed.
We have not blossomed.

Yesterday I got up bright and early and ready to start the lockdown routine. I went to my school to collect all my books. DD had been to her school on Saturday evening to clear out her locker. (Yes, they told us to take EVERYTHING! What does that tell you about the thinking here? Kids were signed out once they had cleared their lockers.)

I didn't go to the bank on the way home because I was carrying a heavy load of books, so that's still to do, but not today.

DD was still in pyjamas when I got home, and watching You Tube. Her bedroom looked like a bomb had hit it with her bed unmade and all her school books everywhere.

I calmly continued with my planned schedule by setting up homework for my school pupils. Then I smugly filled in my Day Book about the morning's activities and went to make lunch. This is where it all started to fall apart.

DD didn't want any lunch and insisted on taking a bag of crisps instead. Later she came back for some cake. I said that I'm not buying any more sugar things because she eats them instead of proper food and it makes her irritable off-the-wall crazy mad. She screamed at me that I was talking rubbish. (She didn't see the irony.) She stomped off, I ate too much to calm my nerves. She hated me. I hated myself. And that was lunch on day 1.

In the afternoon I insisted that we watch a documentary together. We chose one about the history of astrology. She sat on her phone saying that it was boring. I was totally fascinated and spent the rest of the day watching more and more programmes about the link between astrology and religion. Then I fell asleep on the sofa.

DD did do some painting in the afternoon but she refused to enter into the spirit of the day book at all.

Day 2. I vowed to do better. We got up and I got dressed. DD: "Why? It's just a waste of clothes!" I had no answer.

At 09.00 DD had to sign in for school with an emoji on the class whatsapp expressing how she was feeling. They have 'classes' until 12.30 every day with the teachers available on email, whatsapp and phones. The first lesson this morning was English so we were cool.

I had set up a laptop for her on the dining table but luckily today's work was all in notebooks and on the phone. Others are reporting that so many kids are on the educational websites that they're all crashing. Other families are trying to juggle one computer amongst several kids and working at home parents. It's a jungle out there.

Next DD had geography and I had to set up two classes of work online in lieu of my lessons in college tomorrow. DD didn't understand what she had to do and neither did I - 6th grade Hebrew and all. She had a meltdown. I called one of her friends to ask. She screamed at me that I was embarrassing her. Now that I knew what it was about, I wrote down some reasons why we still need to save water despite desalination. She screamed at me that I don't know anything. I burst into tears. I wrote to the class teacher that I don't think we can do this.

Eventually we came up with a good rhyming couplet to encourage saving water and used google to check our Hebrew spelling. Part of the problem was seeing everyone else sending in great jingles. DD crumpled under the double pressure of writing something and then having everyone see it.

DD was finally happy. I had to eat a packet of crisps.

Then came Tenach (Bible Studies). This is not only in Hebrew, it's in biblical Hebrew (think Shakespeare for EFL students) and there's a website involved. We gave up.

I've not done any of my work but I'm exhausted and I've got a headache and I'm still a bit teary and fragile from the whole experience. I'm blogging to get it off my chest and then I'm going to find out more about Noah's Ark, Moses, Mithras, The Budha, Joseph and Jesus all being based on Pagan myths about the sun and the stars.

I'm done for the day, I'm done in, and it's only 11.30 am. We'll try again tomorrow.

No School Reality Sets In

Life was easier when this was school work.

Today was only the first day of no school and Friday is quasi-weekend so it doesn't really count. Thus, writing advice about how to deal with no school perhaps seems a tad premature. However, I've something to say and a platform so I'm going to say it. And when the UK and US close their schools, maybe someone will remember this post.

Last night DD was dancing around the apartment with joy, chatting to her friends on whatsapp, and generally on a high, not believing her luck.

I admit that I was quite liking the idea of all that time at home to pursue my own interests without daily work obligations, even though I'm very happy in my jobs. But then reality set in. We will have obligations.

It very quickly became apparent that the children and students will have online work to complete. Teachers with little knowledge of how to create online courses, are suddenly required to put assignments, quizzes, lessons, presentations, etc... on various education platforms that they are not familiar with and the children/students do not know how to navigate.

Read this article. https://anygoodthing.com/2020/03/12/please-do-a-bad-job-of-putting-your-courses-online/?fbclid=IwAR191aF-odPx9L6PrGe03ACmyjKPFyDC__xuWpZAfn9pV8qfj7cZ5HD5_ns

It explains exactly what I was thinking. Not all pupils have access to computers, printers, cameras, and any other tech devices. Some of them are working on their phones which we all know is inconvenient and frustrating to say the least. Most of them are sharing a computer with other pupils, students and parents working from home. Devices go wrong or break, and then they're even more handicapped.

Some of them may be looking after younger siblings or helping to care for sick relatives. They may not have a quiet place to work or a parent who can help them. Scheduled meet-up lessons are a no-no.

Some of them may be stuck at home with people with anger issues or who are abusive. Some children's only respite is when they escape to school. Some children only get their square meals provided for them by the school. There may be emotional issues that prevent school work from getting done. Don't expect them to work to deadlines.

DD's teacher sent a beautiful graphic of a schedule where pupils could write in what they did each day against a list of eight things: morning routine, something educational, physical exercise, reading, Pesach cleaning (spring cleaning), screen time, a family activity, and evening routine.

Then there was a meal schedule where you could write in whose turn it is to help prepare the meal, cut the vegetables, lay the table, clear away and do the dishes. Good for a family of four or more, not so relevant to our family of two. We just do it all together. I just do it.

I think it's a great idea in theory but every family is different. We are not good at sticking to schedules or having routines. We are a very laid back family. We fulfill our obligations on the fly and rely heavily on the panic monster. We waste hours just hanging out. We look forward to Friday afternoon and then 'POOF!' the weekend is gone before we even did anything. We're not tech savvy and we're not crafty. Being expats, we don't even know the language that well. (DD was born here but we live an English life.)

I dread what's coming. I'm already composing my opting out letter in my head. Home schooling would be a disaster for us. Maybe we'll have to change. I always wanted to be highly disciplined and self-motivated but I know myself and unfortunately for her, DD has learned my lifestyle well.

I too have to set work for my pupils and students. I'm feeling the pressure as all heads of departments seem to think we'll have it up and running by Monday - all seven classes in my case! (Luckily one of my courses is already online).

I'm going to think about it very carefully. I intend for us to go to the park every day and use the work-out equipment, I would like us to watch a tv documentary every day on whatever takes DD's fancy, I'd like to take up the recorder again but I don't think DD will go for it. We will definitely do the spring cleaning. Maybe cook together, except that she only like pasta with cheese (no sauce), tuna salad, and sausages and chips.

I'll let you know what happens.

Artists' Class Finale 2019

Yesterday we had the closing even of the Artists' Classes. I wrote about last year's fabulous event here.

To remind you, this is a small class of up to 15 pupils who have a passion for art. They do weekly art sessions in school and every couple of months they go to the Israel Museum for a special tour or project. There are about 50 primary schools in Jerusalem who take part. Contrary to folk 'wisdom' in the rest of the world, the programme includes Jewish, Arab, and 'Other' schools; secular and religious. We don't need Madonna to tell us how to work together.

There were about 500 dioramas.
This was the best one. 😜

Yesterday we went to the Israel Museum well prepared with our own bottles of water and summer clothing but the weather was mild, even a bit chilly. We already knew the drill. Daphna from the Museum made a short opening speech in Hebrew and in Arabic. She welcomed 43 schools and reminded the children that there is no 'right' or 'wrong' in art. Whatever you create is your truth.

Each school had an area of the sculpture garden. We had a tree-top previously painted by our wonderful art teacher, Moriya. And each child had a box in which to draw a background and then make a sort of diorama. The boxes would then be stuck onto the tree and displayed with all the other trees in a forest of artistic creativity.

This was our school's finished tree. 

The backgrounds were supposed to be a view or sculpture from the museum but our children mostly opted for sunsets or country scenes. DD did a beach. But by the time all the diorama's had been completed with all sorts of incongruent additions, very few of them were specifically identifiable as Israel Museum based.

Unlike last year, the children really didn't need our help. I gave DD a couple of ideas at the end and helped her cut out the birds and the boat. Mostly I walked around spying taking an interest in other schools. The school where I teach was there with three of my own pupils so I hung out with them for a while and chatted with the parents. Like last year there were loads of people I knew who have children on the programme from other schools. Jerusalem is like that. Still small enough to know people.

Here are some of the other trees from other schools You can click on the photos for a bigger picture:

I loved this background on the tree.

I liked the way this school used real branches and leaves.

These guys decorated the outsides of the boxes to great effect.

This school really used the Museum sculptures.

The most tree-like.

We didn't stay for all the speeches at the end. We learned something from last year. We slipped away and came home on the bus. On the way from the bus stop we stopped to buy half a watermelon for today's event in school. It never ends. It's that time of year.

I Did DD's Maths Homework

I know it's a mess. Don't judge me, it was traumatic. 

DD came home with maths homework. Geometry to be precise. I love maths and geometry was always my favourite part of maths. I have also been a maths teacher in my time and I once co-authored a series of maths textbooks for primary school (published by HarperCollins although never actually used but that's another story*). So I offered to help her. She needed help as she didn't understand all the technical terms in Hebrew. Neither did I but at least I understand them in English.

So I'm translating all the technical words with the Google Translate. Meanwhile DD is screaming at me that I don't understand and that I'm doing it wrong. She was totally out of control. It was hard to concentrate. I'm saying, "listen to me, I'll explain," while she's shouting, "no you listen to me - I DON'T GET IT!" You can see how this might take us round in circles. And it did, until I had to send her out of the room and do the homework myself.

I figured that it's ok if I do it providing I explain it to her afterwards so that she understands. It's not ideal but this is the only way we can work. If I show her the answer on the page, she calms down a bit and will listen to the explanation. She cannot watch me working it out as it makes her panic and get hysterical in case I'm doing it wrong.

I worked out that makbilim are parallels and me'unahim are right angles. But now I'm looking at the words, I think it might be the other way around. Alexonim are diagonals, and tzla'im are lines, I know that much. I'd recognise the word for angles if I saw it but it didn't come up in this exercise. It begins with a z.

I kept getting the words muddled up so some of the answers were written after the wrong questions. When you're counting parallel diagonals and perpendicular lines on multi-angled shapes, you need to use different colours on the diagram otherwise you can't keep track. So I employed some pens. Pens don't rub out. The page looks a bit of a mess but all the answers are there - somewhere. Except for two questions which I understood but didn't know what the teacher wanted them to answer: How do you check that two lines are parallel? How do you check that two lines are perpendicular? I don't need to check on a hexagon (meshusheh if you're interested), I can see by looking.

My co-authored maths books for Year 5

I invited DD back to the table to explain my answers to her. She was upset by the messy page but she did understand the geometry in the end. Putting the maths page back into her bag she said casually, "now I need to do my Hebrew homework. Will you help me?" I just couldn't deal with any more of DD's homework tonight. She actually said she could do it herself but she didn't feel like it after doing all that maths. Excuse me? She is so doing it herself tomorrow evening.

*The other story. The books were ahead of their time, using computer programmes in parallel to the books before most pupils had access to a computer for more than one hour a week. This maths programme required an hour of maths with a computer every week when the one weekly computer session in school had to cover all subjects.

R2BC - Proud Mother

Preparing for Chonchut

Reasons 2B Cheerful for this week are all about DD.

We have a something in Israeli schools called Chonchut (with both ch's being a raspy sound at the back of your throat). The nearest translation I could think of is 'mentoring' as the root of the word is the same as guide and educate.

I first heard of it when DD was in first grade and once a month on a Friday morning, two fourth grade girls would do some fun activities with her and a friend. The whole class was divided into groups of two first graders with two fourth graders. One day we were walking out of school and DD ran over to give a hug to an older girl. When I asked she said, "oh, that's one of my Chonchot (mentors, pl,f) for chonchut (mentoring, n)." I know it sounds like a throat disease if you're not used to it.

The way it works is that the fifth graders are paired with the second graders and the sixth graders are paired with the third graders. Last year in fourth grade, DD was a chonechet (mentor, s,f) for first grade. I remember one Friday when her partner didn't come to school and she had nothing planned. I was very proud that she used her initiative and they chose board games from the class library which the Chanichot (mentorees, pl,f) enjoyed. And one day, as we were leaving school, a little girl ran over to give her quick hug. Her Chanicha (mentoree, s,f) of course. [*wipes a tear at how fast they grow up.]

 

Hanukkah Bingo with prizes
(After play so some pictures are crossed or ticked instead of using counters.)

This week DD had to organise an activity for her second grade chonchot. Her partner had not been in school for a few days so she took it all upon herself. She spent a long time making a Bingo game with Hanukkah symbols. She told me she also needed something active and I shared a Hanukkah game we used to play in my Youth Club when I was a teenager.

It was all a great success.

And on Friday DD came home with the monthly class prize for good work, kindness and patience towards her friends. I didn't know about the prize until I got an email from the teacher tonight saying that she was proud of DD. Apparently DD 'forgot' to mention it.

So from one proud mother, have a good week and if you're looking for more R2BC, the linky is over at Michelle's Mummy from the Heart.

Extra Curricula - You Can't Do Everything

Goodbye classical music career
(My dream, not DD's)

At some point in your life you learn that you need to make choices. You can't do everything. No one can. There might, often, be some wriggle room to change times and dates, or fit one thing in after another, but no one goes through life without, at some point, confronting the inevitable choice of one thing over another. And sometimes it's not a matter not being able to fit it all in. Sometimes it's simply a matter of what feels comfortable.

All the above to say, we gave up clarinet. Neither of us was 100% happy about it. However, there were a number of issues that made continuing less than comfortable:

The Art Class that DD loves moved from a different day to just before Orchestra in a way that made getting to the minibus on time a source of stress every week.

Orchestra is held in the Valley of Death and totally inaccessible without private transport.

They do have a minibus from two schools but they wanted the parents to take over the organizing of it and for one of us to go with the bus every week. No parents volunteered.

They said that we needed to have private clarinet lessons if we wanted to continue in the orchestra. The one other clarinetist from DD's school dropped out and private lessons on our own would be very expensive. If DD was passionate about playing the clarinet I could find a way to have lessons. The music teacher even said he would find a solution for us (they are desperate for musicians as the school cancelled the music progamme this year so no new players are coming up and five of DD's school friends from last year pulled out this year). But she kept saying she didn't like it and wanted to stop, now that the social element from last year has gone.

Only one other kid from DD's school is still going to Orchestra and he's a boy. (He's a really nice boy and DD gets on very well with him, but she insists that they're not friends. "We only talk together because it's convenient.")

It's a real shame that the music programme at school was cancelled and that there is no school orchestra this year. But we made our decision given the circumstances. I hope we won't regret it.

We also pulled out of Swimming in the end. Both of us are 100% happy about it. It was only a five-lesson course and we agreed to it because it was still hot at the beginning of October. The lessons were postponed and postponed and by the time we had a date, the weather had changed.

Twice a week we go out in the evening, whatever the weather (we weather the weather whatever the weather), for Gymnastics - DD's new passion. We take a taxi there as we don't have a car. I won't lie, when it's cold and dark outside, we'd prefer to stay at home but we don't. We go and DD loves it once she gets there.

But to go out for swimming with all that involves - wet [now very long] hair, undressing and dressing when it's cold out, even leaving the house on a Sunday as soon as I get in from my work and having to rush to the pool to get there on time... And DD can swim to save her life so it wasn't essential. We just didn't want to so we pulled out and we'll maybe have more swimming lessons next spring and summer.

This week we were offered a place on a programme whereby 3rd Year students from the local teacher-training college (where I happen to work) volunteer to tutor weak pupils in Hebrew and maths. We're fine with maths although I would have taken maths too if we had both days free, however, one of the days is at the same time as the Art Class. So once a week DD will getting a private tutor for Hebrew, at school after school hours. Free.

The weekly schedule has settled into a routine that we can work with and are comfortable with. We have gymnastics, art, and Hebrew tutoring after school. We're both a bit sorry about the clarinet but you can't do everything. You just can't.

P.S. Please God, don't give DD the student who hates me because I made her do all the work assignments when she hates English and thought she could scrape a pass with no little effort.

Reasons 2B Cheerful In A Turbulent Week

The school wheat field ready for harvesting.

Here are my Reasons 2B Cheerful for this week. From entertainment to politics to war to harvesting to love. It's been a turbulent week. 

1
Eurovision
Last Saturday night Israel won the Eurovision Song Contest for the fourth time in the history of the event. The singer, Netta Barzilai, is an example of how you don't have to be stick thin to be successful. She's a lovely person - modest, kind, and unspoilt by all the glitz. I hated the song at first but all my pupils at school and my DD at home are playing it and singing it constantly. I admit it's growing on me. I can't argue with the song's message.

2
Embassy
The US Embassy moved from Tel Aviv to the capital city of Jerusalem. It's positioned within the Green Line - the pre-1967 borders - so it doesn't touch or any way alter East Jerusalem which can still be the capital of Palestine in the future, if that's what is wanted. All the two state solutions are about Palestine being all the land allotted to it in the 1947 UN vote for partition (i.e. before Israel took it over in the 1967 Six Day War). So it's only a provocative move if you want the whole of Jerusalem to be Palestinian and not a shared city.

3
Defense
This week my friends who live near the border with Gaza, again within the Green Line of course, were safe because the IDF stopped thousands of terrorists crossing the border with the express purpose of murdering Israelis. And yes I am happy that 53 of the 60 who died were Hamas activists who will not be able to try again.

-1
Suffering
I'm also angry at the parents of an eight month old baby with a serious heart condition, who took their child to the front lines of a war zone where they knew there would be violence and tear gas - as  there has been on every Friday for the past few months. I am sorry that the other six casualties and the many others who were wounded, did not heed the IDF warning leaflets to stay away, that were dropped over Gaza at the beginning of the week. But most of all, I'm sorry that the Gazans have to live under Hamas because the Israeli Arabs that I know do not want to live like this. I suspect that most Gazans would also choose to live and prosper rather than wage war and suffer.

Partially harvested. Each class harvested a patch. 

4
The Wheat Harvest
This weekend it's the festival of Shavuot. We celebrate the giving of the Torah on Mt Sinai and also the wheat harvest. My school is very agricultural as it's a kibbutz school so we do actually have a small wheat field for educational purposes. This week we harvested the wheat. Each class did a small section. They threshed the seeds out of the chaff, they ground it to make coarse flour, and they cooked with it. We use the straw to .... something ... with the animals (I'm not an animal person so I don't go there), and also to build mud walls strengthened with straw. I learned loads.

5
Love and Gratitude
Today hundreds of Israelis filled their cars with food and other supplies for the holiday and drove down to the border areas with Gaza to feed our boys on the front line. It's not just the food of course, it's the outpouring of love and support after a difficult week. It's acknowledgement that they are in a shit situation and they do it to keep the rest of us safe.

So there you have it. A roller-coaster of a week. I'm joining Michelle's linky on Mummy from the Heart. 

I'm exhausted from all the facebook activity and trying to explain what's going on here after the BBC and other media channels unfairly reported that Israel massacred 60 peaceful and unarmed civilian demonstrators. There was nothing peaceful, they were mostly not civilians, and they were armed. I'm done with explaining so I won't be accepting any challenging comments on this post. Just so as you know, I'm up for discussion on facebook but my blog is my home. 

In The Greenhouse

The greenhouse is enormous

 My school is run by a kibbutz. They are an urban kibbutz but the founding members came mostly from farming kibbutzim (pl) and they have continued with their values of being connected to the land. We have a large greenhouse, a large vegetable garden, and we recycle the grey water for cleaning the floors and watering the gardens. (We also have animals but I don't go there.) To be fair, many schools, including DD's, have animals, growing walls and vegetable plots, but ours is on a grand scale and we have projects running with many other schools and colleges all over the city.

Behind the wall in a workshop
They make everything themselves, including the furniture.

There are three fish tanks in the greenhouse.
Right at the back you can see auditorium seating for lectures.

It's also a big thing atm to take the children out into nature for all sorts of core lessons such as art, maths, language, science, etc... It's a nationwide initiative to move away from formal classroom and formal timetabling, to a more holistic learning environment. I don't understand exactly how it works but it involves a lot of beanbag seats on carpets in the classrooms. I watched a video about a maths lesson where they went out and counted the whorls on plants. I get that, and I remember the maths involved from own my biology lessons in school. After that though, I have no idea how you could teach the whole maths curriculum in the park.

A computer and screening room for classes.

Some of the children made this traditional mud and straw wall.
They put in a window, a seat, and a cubby or shelf.
Now they use the window to get into the workshop when it's locked.
LOL

We were also encouraged to have English lessons in the greenhouse. We did one lesson at the end of last year where the kids had to go round and find things in the greenhouse beginning with each letter of the alphabet. It was fun for one lesson but what about teaching the Present Progressive. I can't imagine doing that without a whiteboard.

There's also a lab/planting room for hands on projects.

All these plants are watered with drip irrigation

So last week my colleague asked me to join her with a class in the greenhouse. Each pupil made a booklet with different types of simple sentences in singular and plural, positive and negative forms. On each page they had to complete or write a number of sentences. E.g. There is..., There are..., There isn't..., There aren't... and: In the greenhouse I..., ....I don't...,  My friend..., She doesn't..., In the greenhouse I can see..., I can't see..., or In the greenhouse I like..., I don't like..., I want to..., I don't want to..., etc...

These plants are watered with a misting system overhead. 

This area is dedicated to hydroponics
(growing plants in water instead of soil).

It was a very successful lesson. The kids really enjoyed it and the value of practicing all those sentences in a more interesting environment was amazing. It got me thinking how I could perhaps teach the Present Progressive in the greenhouse.

And a wall garden of course.
Each graduating 6th grade class build a legacy for the school.

My Science Project Homework

Here's an update to yesterday's post about the science project. I overreacted. Being creatively challenged, I could only imagine a wooden bird feeder like you buy in a garden centre. After posting my open letter to the science teacher a number of sensible friends pointed out that it's not a carpentry project. They put me in the direction of a much simpler affair involving egg boxes, milk cartons, empty toilet rolls, etc... Oh. Well this is my first child.

So I quickly finished a whole packet of crackers with copious amounts of butter and Marmite. I rescued the plastic tray which is the perfect size for a bird bath for the little tiny gray/brown birds that we have no idea what they're called. I found a shoe box and took the lid. I stuck the bath to the box tray with sellotape. I attached gift-wrapping ribbon and hung it from one of those back of the door hooks. Sorted.

DD wasn't remotely interested in helping me. I did it all by myself. However, I could hear the relief in her voice as she shrugged her shoulders and remained silent.

So Dear 4th Grade Science Teacher, 

I completed my homework assignment. No effort went into making it at all. I did not enjoy making the bird feeder. It was an exercise in making my child feel comfortable to go to school and face you. 

Having completed the assignment, I would like to point out a few features incorporated into the design. I tried to consider all aspects of the birds' lives - social, physical, and emotional welfare as well as their cognitive development. 

1. The plastic tray in the centre is a bath as well as a drinking well. Playing in water not only cleans the birds so that they are less likely to leave footprints on your clean laundry hanging out to dry, but it also gives them confidence in water. This is especially important if they have to land over the English Channel on their way back to the UK for the summer.

2. Place seeds and nuts on either side of the water bath. Please don't give them any sugary treats as this is not good for their beaks. In time the birds will learn that if one of them sits on one side of the tray, the whole thing tips over. They will use this knowledge to devise a system of pair-work, whereby two birds of similar mass balance each other on either side of the bath. Maths is the basis of all science you know.  

3. The ribbon and hook allow the feeding tray to sway in the breeze. This helps to develop the birds' sense of balance. The brighter birds might even learn to use it as a swing thereby strengthening their little muscles and improving co-ordination.

4. I didn't decorate the tray in bright colours on purpose. Rather we want the birds to rely on word of mouth in order to find it. Social skills are essential for little birds about to embark on a long journey. Learning to be part of the flock - giving as well as receiving help from each other - could be the very thing to keep them away from the TVs in the electrical shop windows. You know how too much screen time is destroying communication. 

Please could you give my grade to DD to pass on to me when she gets home. 

Thank you
Rachel (DD's Mother)