A Long-Awaited Update!
Dear Everyone-I-Should-Have-Been-In-Touch-With-Much-More-Frequently,
I know I haven't written to you guys in a very long time, and I don't know if I'm going to be able to start writing regularly again, but if nothing else I thought I could just give everyone a brief update on my life.
Yes, I'm still living in Israel. I'm currently in my fourth apartment in Jerusalem but I'm not planning on leaving this one until I move back to the States in the summer. My apartment is beautiful and I share it with two other girls who I rarely see as I'm almost never home. I moved in almost two months ago and there are still a few boxes that have not been unpacked yet. Which is to say, I've been quite busy.
I'm still learning at Pardes, in my third and final year of the Educators Program. This means three significant things.
1. I'm constantly busy with school work.
2. Next year, I will be working as a teacher somewhere in North America.
3. I'm starting to get very nervous about the applying, interviewing, and getting-hired process.
But since you haven't waited months since my last update to hear about my fear-of-the-future inanity, I may as well tell you a bit about school this year. Right now I'm taking a mix of Jewish-text focused classes and education focused classes. [This makes sense because my goal is to have a masters in Jewish education by the end of the school year.] In the mornings, I have a three-hour class on either the book of Exodus or the books of Kings. We read the texts and their commentaries in Hebrew and the classes are also conducted in Hebrew, though we often switch into English for heated discussions. Next, I have a short class, either a survey course on the early books of the prophets, or a one based on the biographical sketches of personalities in the Talmud. In the afternoons, I either having class on pedagogy ("the art of teaching"), or one on teaching the holidays from a text-based model. This class is neat because we take a holiday and trace it from its biblical roots slowly throughout rabbinic literature until how it is practiced today, while at the same time also learning lots about how we would teach similar material in our futures classrooms. In the evenings I'm taking another class on the theory and psychology of education along with a class on how to chant from the book/scroll of Esther. Oh, and I also have three additional chevrutas (partner study sessions) in the evenings with two friends during which I'm learning some Talmud and the laws of prayer.
I know that all may sound quite boring to you, but I'm having loads of fun with it and am very much enjoying all of my classes, teachers, and classmates. And yes, I have some free time, too. I still enjoy going out with friends to bars and parties, having guests over in the evenings, and hosting large and small Shabbat meals. Oh, and I decided to start teaching myself guitar!
Not much else is new in my life. I still walk around barefoot. I still have blue (and pink and purple) hair, though it's getting long! I had a fun time wandering around Central Europe for a week and a half this summer and I also enjoyed seeing my aunt and uncle and cousin when they visited last month.
Hopefully you'll hear from me again soon, but just to cover my bases, Happy Fall, Happy Winter, and Happy Spring!
Wishing you only the best,
Sarah
I know I haven't written to you guys in a very long time, and I don't know if I'm going to be able to start writing regularly again, but if nothing else I thought I could just give everyone a brief update on my life.
Yes, I'm still living in Israel. I'm currently in my fourth apartment in Jerusalem but I'm not planning on leaving this one until I move back to the States in the summer. My apartment is beautiful and I share it with two other girls who I rarely see as I'm almost never home. I moved in almost two months ago and there are still a few boxes that have not been unpacked yet. Which is to say, I've been quite busy.
I'm still learning at Pardes, in my third and final year of the Educators Program. This means three significant things.
1. I'm constantly busy with school work.
2. Next year, I will be working as a teacher somewhere in North America.
3. I'm starting to get very nervous about the applying, interviewing, and getting-hired process.
But since you haven't waited months since my last update to hear about my fear-of-the-future inanity, I may as well tell you a bit about school this year. Right now I'm taking a mix of Jewish-text focused classes and education focused classes. [This makes sense because my goal is to have a masters in Jewish education by the end of the school year.] In the mornings, I have a three-hour class on either the book of Exodus or the books of Kings. We read the texts and their commentaries in Hebrew and the classes are also conducted in Hebrew, though we often switch into English for heated discussions. Next, I have a short class, either a survey course on the early books of the prophets, or a one based on the biographical sketches of personalities in the Talmud. In the afternoons, I either having class on pedagogy ("the art of teaching"), or one on teaching the holidays from a text-based model. This class is neat because we take a holiday and trace it from its biblical roots slowly throughout rabbinic literature until how it is practiced today, while at the same time also learning lots about how we would teach similar material in our futures classrooms. In the evenings I'm taking another class on the theory and psychology of education along with a class on how to chant from the book/scroll of Esther. Oh, and I also have three additional chevrutas (partner study sessions) in the evenings with two friends during which I'm learning some Talmud and the laws of prayer.
I know that all may sound quite boring to you, but I'm having loads of fun with it and am very much enjoying all of my classes, teachers, and classmates. And yes, I have some free time, too. I still enjoy going out with friends to bars and parties, having guests over in the evenings, and hosting large and small Shabbat meals. Oh, and I decided to start teaching myself guitar!
Not much else is new in my life. I still walk around barefoot. I still have blue (and pink and purple) hair, though it's getting long! I had a fun time wandering around Central Europe for a week and a half this summer and I also enjoyed seeing my aunt and uncle and cousin when they visited last month.
Hopefully you'll hear from me again soon, but just to cover my bases, Happy Fall, Happy Winter, and Happy Spring!
Wishing you only the best,
Sarah
posted by sarah @ 12:20 AM
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