On Nov. 13, representatives from the Jewish Federation of Greater Washington, Shelly Kupfer and Mandy Kaiser-Blueth, were presented with a check for $3,125 for the Jewish Federation Israel Emergency Fund by JPDS-NC sixth-graders.
This event was the culmination of a unique student-run campaign to show support for Israel at Washington, D.C.’s only Jewish day school. Earlier that week, Lihi Shavit-Sagui, JPDS-NC parent and cultural attache at the Israeli Embassy, came as a representative of the embassy to address the sixth-graders and thank them for their efforts.
JPDS-NC’s sixth-grade students ran the Shuk for Shalom campaign to engage students, show the school’s support for Israel, and raise money as part of their Tikkun Olam Project. The event was held in concert with JPDS-NC’s Rabin Curriculum, school-wide educational programming that teaches students about the legacy of Yitzhak Rabin and focuses on conflict resolution.
On Nov. 12, students transformed the Gottesman Auditorium on JPDS-NC’s North Campus into a mini-shuk that resembled the large markets in Israel. Sixth-grade vendors sold donated, kid-oriented items to students in grades pre-K to 6, and students used Hebrew to purchase, sell and negotiate prices. Shuk organizers also made a playlist of Hebrew songs to help recreate the ruach, or atmosphere, of an Israeli public space.
The shuk included additional opportunities for students to show their support of Israel; sixth-graders worked with younger students to make “I support Israel” campaign pins and there were stations for students to write letters and draw pictures that will be sent to IDF soldiers, as well as snack booths featuring Israeli-made treats.
