Spirit Day By: Debby Jacobson

What is Spirit Day? Spirit Days enhance school ruach and focus on monthly lessons. Spirit Day teaches our kids many vital lessons. (ie. middot, team building, working together) Very often the Spirit Day theme will relate to the Jewish Calendar. Spirit Day programs are multi-sensory and encompass all sorts of hands-on activities and crafts.

When is Spirit Day? Every Rosh Chodesh our students participate in a “Spirit Day” program. Throughout the month, in class activities will enhance these lessons.

How does it work? The program takes place in the Gym. The decorations in the Gym are connected to the theme of the month. The Gym is divided into different stations. Following a school wide schedule, students enter the Gym with their class and proceed from station to station. Approximately ten minutes is spent at each station.

Who participates in Spirit Day? Students in grade one through eight participate in this program. When appropriate, pre-school students will visit certain stations. Though the theme remains the same, the program is tweaked for the different age groups. Often students in the older grades will help run a program for younger students.

Why do we need Spirit Day? In an interesting article entitled, “Marbles Anyone? Traditional Games in the Classroom”, Casberge and Kieff (1998) discuss the importance of games in education. They analyze the benefits of introducing formal play in school, children can develop a more logical way of thinking and also promote better social skills and peer interactions. Spirit Day stations are fun, organized and encourage group work.

The importance of Spirit Day Each student has a different learning style. Spirit Day stations incorporate different modes of communication to serve a range of learners. Stations often integrate visual, aural, read/write, and kinesthetic elements.

Spirit Day gives students the ability to express themselves in ways that can’t be done during traditional education.

What is the goal of Spirit Day? The goal of Spirit Day is to reinforce the many important lessons we have begun to cultivate in our classrooms but don’t necessarily have time to dwell on. Spirit Day also also adds a tremendous amount of positive ruach to the school.

Examples of Spirit Day Themes and Stations Spirit Day Nissan Join us as we travel back in time to יציאת מצרים. Help us explore the גאולה from Egypt. Fast forward into the future. What can YOU do to bring the ultimate redemption???

Spirit Day Kislev: CHAG HASIGD Our students will hear the amazing tale of Shlomit's family as they traveled from the farmlands of Ethiopia to the holy land of Eretz Yisrael. Our students will celebrate Chag Hasigd, an Ethiopian Jewish Festival. They will enjoy a feast consisting of authentic food and learn to dance Ethiopian style. All students may come dressed in white, the color traditionally worn on this day.

Spirit Day Shevat The month we will be focusing on the middah of judging favorably. We had a wonderful program focusing on things that are not quite as they look. We made edible crayons, created optical illusions and played broken telephone. We look forward to developing this middah even more in the coming month.

Conclusion Spirit Day has turned into a very successful program. Students look forward to learning new things and are excited to participate. Teachers enjoy getting involved. Our students are positive and enthusiastic. Truly awesome!!