spiritualit
Preparing For
Passover
Hillel students enjoy pre-
holiday activities at schoo
p
arents, grandparents, educa-
tors and many guests celebrated
Passover early this year at Hillel
Day School in Farmington Hills.
The excitement began in the Early
Childhood Center where 2-year-olds
made charoset and created Elijah's
Cups; 3-year-olds created their
own Haggadot, stomped grape juice and
held their own seder; and 4-year-olds cre-
ated matzah covers and mixed salt water
in the science lab.
Families and loved ones enjoyed the
annual model seders in the elementary
division. The kindergartners rejoiced
in singing the Four Questions; first-
graders marveled at telling the story of
the Exodus while displaying their beauti-
ful handmade Kiddush cups and candle-
sticks created with local artist Gail
Kaplan; second-graders danced their way
through the Red Sea; and fourth-graders
read from the Haggadot without missing
a beat.
Third-grade families played Passover
trivia games on the Smart Boards, cre-
ated decoupage vases and sang holiday
songs with their parents and other loved
ones. Residents from Meer Apartments
in West Bloomfield were visited by fifth-
graders. It all was part of students prepar-
ing for Passover. ❑
Maya Aisner, All Feldman, Ethan Grey and Jacob Goodman place baby Moses in the basket.
Michael, Adena and Betsy Wolf
Isabel and Ira Zaltz
Kevin, Skylar, Zachary and Eden
Elbinger
Making Matzah
Annual JCC program allows children to learn about Passover firsthand.
n March 25, families flooded
into the Jewish Community
Center in West Bloomfield to
participate in the Barbara and Douglas
Bloom Matzah Factory.
In a pre-Passover community tradition,
children learned how to make matzah
for the holiday under the instruction
of Rabbi Shneur Silberberg of the Bais
Chabad Torah Center of West Bloomfield.
For this matzah, the children used special
flour called kemach shel matzah shamura
0
(flour watched from the moment of har-
vest to the moment of packing to make
sure it has not come into contact with any
moisture). And they had to make their
matzah in a timely fashion because there
must be no more than 18 minutes from
the time the water is mixed with the flour
until the time the matzah has been com-
pletely baked in the oven.
The children were able to take the mat-
zah they made home with them. The event
draws up to 1,500 people annually. ❑
Mathew Berkovich, 5, is shown the
proper way to make matzah by Roman
Ashley Morton, 7, of West Bloomfield
Berkovich of Commerce Township.
fountain.
46
April 5 . 2012
dips her matzah into a chocolate
Rabbi Shneur Silberberg asks children questions about Passover.