Shalom and Chag Sameach to all,
Kaveret has been bustling along at a fast pace, with the intense realization to all that the Workshop end date is creeping closer and closer. Messimot have been in full swing and as Michael mentioned, many of the workshoppers were involved in special Pesach day camps the whole week prior (more of that to follow later).
A few weeks ago, the kvutsa from Acco went on tiyul (hiking) for 2 days in the Golan heights region. On the Thursday they walked from Nimrod's fortress all the way to the Banias waterfall. Nimrod's fortress was built in the crusades period and is 1 of 3 fortresses in the region (one of which is Beaufort, known to many after the contemporary Israeli film) and is the largest in Israel. From the top, you have a view of much of the Eastern Golan heights, together with the Hula Valley and the Naftali mountains. Suffice to say, on a clear day the view is spectacular. The workshoppers basically walked down the mountain to the area of the Banias and then along the Banias (Hermon) River to the stunning waterfall at the end. The hike was relatively comfortable and painless for all! That night, the group slept on Dugit beach, on the eastern shores of the Kinneret, after a sumptuous barbeque feast on the sand. On the Friday, the group walked in Susita - from above Kibbutz Ein Gev, all the way down, practically to the beach. It was also a comfortable hike, except for the end part which involved a very steep decline, requiring many workshoppers to sit down and slide part of the way!
Last week all the workshoppers went on a siyur (excursion) to the old Ein Harod cemetery. Ein Harod is famed as being the "1st big kibbutz" and was central to the development of the Kibbutz movement as a whole. It is crucial to hear some of the stories of those buried in the cemetery, in order to learn from history and important events that occurred. Through those stories we discussed many different aspects of leadership, particularly leadership from within a group; and also the concept of "paying a price" for a deed, as opposed to making a "sacrifice". We also had really excellent views of the Yizrael and Harod Valleys from the top of the Gilboa mountain ridge.
With only a few weeks left of programming, most of the supplementary Thursday classes (Israeli Society & Judaism) have finished. There are many upcoming 'chaggim' in Israel - Yom Hashoa, Yom HaZikaron, Yom Ha'atzamut together with May Day which will prove to be a very busy last few weeks of workshop. The schedule for the last few weeks roughly remains the same (bar the special events for the aforementioned days) with the final concluding seminar of workshop starting on May 15th.
Wishing you all chag sameach
Monday, April 21, 2008
Friday, April 18, 2008
Pesach Break
As we approach the final month of Workshop, it is time to reflect on much of what has taken place this year and what is still to come. Most recently this week the Workshoppers took part in Pesach camps that are run by Hanoar Haoved where they got to take part in leading the chanichim(campers) in various aspects of programming. A more detailed update will come soon, but it is a very special and important opportunity for them to give back and is very much related to their messimot. The camps took place in different parts of the country and as such the Workshoppers were spread out for much of this week.
Pesach has arrived and the break begins tomorrow for the Workshoppers. All the Workshoppers will either be attending Seders with their family or friends or through arrangements we have made available to them. During the break which goes until the 27th, they will have the opportunity to rest, relax, and perhaps have some excursions around the country. As is always our policy during breaks, we have a schedule of where every Workshopper will be staying and at least a rough itinerary of what they will be doing every day. Additionally they will need to check in daily to make sure they are fine and sticking to their pre-arranged plans. We also of course review the safety and security guidelines for their travel during the break.
If you have not already filled out an evaluation of the program I would encourage you to either email me or fill out the online form I have setup. I am trying to gather as many opinions and perspectives as possible to enable myself to better evaluate the strengths and weakness of the program and how to move forward to improve Workshop. Of course the program is not over and perhaps more insight will come to light after the program, but I would like the evaluation process to start before then.
As such I will be traveling to Israel for two weeks starting April 26th. I will be there until May 10th and I will have the opportunity to spend some time first hand meeting with the Workshoppers, speaking with the madrichim/Rakazim(coordinators), and observing the daily running of the program. During that time I will have a cell phone that I can be reached at any time should an urgent or emergency situation arise. I will post that number on the blog before I leave for Israel. I will also be out of the office from Friday until Wednesday for the Pesach holiday. Of course if there are any urgent issues I can be contacted via email or the Habonim Dror cell phone.
I hope you all have a wonderful Passover seder, despite the empty chairs that you will all be thinking about. Rest assured your Workshopper will miss your family traditions and will be excited to return home next year for your seder.
Chag Sameach and Happy Passover to all.
Michael
Pesach has arrived and the break begins tomorrow for the Workshoppers. All the Workshoppers will either be attending Seders with their family or friends or through arrangements we have made available to them. During the break which goes until the 27th, they will have the opportunity to rest, relax, and perhaps have some excursions around the country. As is always our policy during breaks, we have a schedule of where every Workshopper will be staying and at least a rough itinerary of what they will be doing every day. Additionally they will need to check in daily to make sure they are fine and sticking to their pre-arranged plans. We also of course review the safety and security guidelines for their travel during the break.
If you have not already filled out an evaluation of the program I would encourage you to either email me or fill out the online form I have setup. I am trying to gather as many opinions and perspectives as possible to enable myself to better evaluate the strengths and weakness of the program and how to move forward to improve Workshop. Of course the program is not over and perhaps more insight will come to light after the program, but I would like the evaluation process to start before then.
As such I will be traveling to Israel for two weeks starting April 26th. I will be there until May 10th and I will have the opportunity to spend some time first hand meeting with the Workshoppers, speaking with the madrichim/Rakazim(coordinators), and observing the daily running of the program. During that time I will have a cell phone that I can be reached at any time should an urgent or emergency situation arise. I will post that number on the blog before I leave for Israel. I will also be out of the office from Friday until Wednesday for the Pesach holiday. Of course if there are any urgent issues I can be contacted via email or the Habonim Dror cell phone.
I hope you all have a wonderful Passover seder, despite the empty chairs that you will all be thinking about. Rest assured your Workshopper will miss your family traditions and will be excited to return home next year for your seder.
Chag Sameach and Happy Passover to all.
Michael
Friday, April 4, 2008
Weekend Seminar
Last weekend, March 28+29, a World Habonim Dror Seminar was held on Kibbutz Afikim. Participants included workshoppers and shnatties from English-speaking countries such as North America, England, Holland, South Africa, Australia & New Zealand. This was the first formal opportunity the workshoppers had to meet the "new" participants from the southern hemisphere, who arrived early in February.
The seminar was a lot of fun, with programming partially built by different participant groups themselves. The workshoppers were responsible for some chuggim (small interest groups) with creative themes such as : Russian Literature in the 18th century; Rikud (dance); Music; teaching basic Arabic; Health education in Canada; and a supposed Na'aleh favourite - Shoegolf.
There was a lot of games, skits and a wonderful Kabbalat Shabbat involving performances by mixed mishpachot (families) from amongst all the countries participating.
On Saturday we had chuggim on various issues facing children across the world, such as child exploitation; child soldiers; child sex-trafficking; child refugees and more. This was followed by a screening of the movie "Newsies"based on the true story of the Newsboys strike of 1899 in New York City (a youth-led campaign to force change in the compensation given to the child-labour force).
Following the movie we had a wonderful barbeque lunch in the sunshine, and one more peula which looked at the UN Declaration of Human Rights and other examples of how a unification comes through an expression of responsibility for the other and finding a partnership of building the same society.
Thursday, April 3, 2008
Workshop 57: 6 weeks to go
I just sent out an email to you the parents. I have been experiencing issues with comcast users receiving emails I have written so please check your spam filter and let me know if you have not received the email I sent out today. The content of the email is below:
Dear Workshop Parents,
I hope this email finds you doing well. I am sure many of you have a countdown until the end of Workshop or at least have May 18th marked in your calendars. With about 6 weeks to go on Workshop 57, there is still a lot to happen on the program from tiyulim, seminars, Pesach in Israel, to experiencing Israel's 60th birthday. I will be heading to Israel at the end of April for two weeks to spend sometime first hand with the Workshoppers and the coordinators of the program.
The running of Workshop and the evaluation of the program is an ongoing process that involves the feedback of coordinators, participants and their families. While there are many aspects of this year's Workshop that I am most proud, there is always room for improvement. Of course Workshop is not over and your opinions on many things can change, but I would like to start getting more focused feedback from you the parents.
One of the strengths of the Workshop program is its ability to grow and adapt to the changing needs of our participants, and as such we are a very flexible and agile program. Every year our program changes based on the experience and feedback of the previous groups. As such your feedback really matters and can have a direct impact on this and future Workshops.
It is my hope that most, if not all, of you will fill out the attached evaluation of the program. You can also fill it out online at the following link: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=SRCr8UtNifkmfMkPKjvguw_3d_3d
I hope you will take some time out of your busy schedules to seriously consider the questions contained in the evaluation and answer it in a constructive manner.
Talk to you all soon,
Michael
Lastly as I have pointed out the Workshoppers are coming home soon. They leave on Continental Flight #85 on May 18th from Tel-Aviv at 11:40 am and arrive to Newark at 4:50pm, also on the May 18th. For those of you who have connecting flights you should have already received your e-ticket long ago. If you need another copy please let me know.
Michael
Dear Workshop Parents,
I hope this email finds you doing well. I am sure many of you have a countdown until the end of Workshop or at least have May 18th marked in your calendars. With about 6 weeks to go on Workshop 57, there is still a lot to happen on the program from tiyulim, seminars, Pesach in Israel, to experiencing Israel's 60th birthday. I will be heading to Israel at the end of April for two weeks to spend sometime first hand with the Workshoppers and the coordinators of the program.
The running of Workshop and the evaluation of the program is an ongoing process that involves the feedback of coordinators, participants and their families. While there are many aspects of this year's Workshop that I am most proud, there is always room for improvement. Of course Workshop is not over and your opinions on many things can change, but I would like to start getting more focused feedback from you the parents.
One of the strengths of the Workshop program is its ability to grow and adapt to the changing needs of our participants, and as such we are a very flexible and agile program. Every year our program changes based on the experience and feedback of the previous groups. As such your feedback really matters and can have a direct impact on this and future Workshops.
It is my hope that most, if not all, of you will fill out the attached evaluation of the program. You can also fill it out online at the following link: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=SRCr8UtNifkmfMkPKjvguw_3d_3d
I hope you will take some time out of your busy schedules to seriously consider the questions contained in the evaluation and answer it in a constructive manner.
Talk to you all soon,
Michael
Lastly as I have pointed out the Workshoppers are coming home soon. They leave on Continental Flight #85 on May 18th from Tel-Aviv at 11:40 am and arrive to Newark at 4:50pm, also on the May 18th. For those of you who have connecting flights you should have already received your e-ticket long ago. If you need another copy please let me know.
Michael
Monday, March 10, 2008
Tzevet Kabul
Names: Noah Blumenthal and Marni Falk
Messima: "Kabul"
Kvutsa: Acco
Schedules: On Sundays, the tzevet goes to the high school at Kabul. Kabul is a predominantly Muslim village of about 11,000 residents. It is about 20 minutes out of Acco. The tzevet works with both the 10th and 11th graders, for about an hour each, running a fairly standard peulah, following a set program by "Makom B'Galil" (Makom B'galil -Shorashim Educational Center focuses on Arab-Israel coexistence education and has been running programming in many Arab villages in the Galil for numerous years). At the moment, the tzevet is teaching English and identity. Soon they will move onto Leadership and Israeli Society.
Tuesday: Tuesday morning is Yom Tzevet. Every tzevet has time devoted to planning and learning together as a tzevet. The Yom Tzevet is run by the melavim (guides) of the messima. The Kabul tzevet has 2 HDNA homegrown melavim - Jake Passel and Nadav Barzelai. An important part of Yom tzevet for this messima, is a current events update, particularly with the situation in Gaza. It is likely to be something on the minds of the chanichim, so its important for the tzevet to deal with it.
In the afternoon, the tzevet goes to 2 villages - Dir El-Assad and Majd el-Krum. These 2 villages along with Bi'ina were officially merged a few years ago into one city - Shaghur - although they are still recognized as 3 distinct components. In Dir El-Assad, the tzevet goes to an afterschool high school program; and in Majd el-Krum they go to an Arab community center. This is a time to run informal peulot and spend a lot of one on one time with individual chanichim. The majority of the chanichim are teenagers, primarily 15-16 year olds.
Wednesday: On Wednesdays the tzevet goes to a different Arab village - Sakhnin, which is a short drive from Carmiel; about 25 minutes from Acco. Here the tzevet is involved in an optional afterschool program for mainly high school students. This is for students who have a lot of trouble in English and need a lot of extra help.
Both Noah and Marni have appreciated the opportunity to learn hands on about Arab culture in Israel. It has been a very eye opening and honest experience for them. Most of the students have been really interested in learning about American culture. They both relate to an experience in Majd el-Krum where they had asked Arab students to put themselves on a scale between how Arab vs Palestinian they felt. The students turned the peula onto the workshoppers, and demanded to know how Jewish vs American they felt. The discussion following was fascinating, with everyone relating to how they felt about their mixed identities.
Monday, February 25, 2008
Socio-Economic Tour
Last week the workshoppers had a mini-seminar over the course of Monday, Thursday and Friday, where they looked at the Socio-Economic status in Israel today.
The seminar started at looking at Herzl's vision of a utopian society in his book - Altnueland; and examining what the vision for Israel each of the workshoppers had. A number of 'concepts' including - Im Tirzu (if you will it); Private Ownership; Cooperatives; Labour; Education; Care for the elderly and Universalism were looked at from Herzl's vision. This followed with an exhibition on the Histadrut (Trade Labour Federation), which was the organization that eventually helped found and create many of the institutions Herzl wrote about before his death.
The following part of the seminar looked at the dismantling of the Israeli welfare state and how privitisation has progressed in Israel today. This culminated in a siyur (excursion) on Friday to various Tel Aviv neighbourhoods - HaTikva (The Hope); Ha'argazim (The Crates); Neve She'anan (Oasis of Tranquility) and Kikar HaMedina (State Square), each of which are unique its in makeup.
HaTikva is a poor southern Tel Aviv neighbourhood, made up of a mainly elderly, North African population, which has recently become more popular with young trendy Israelis. Just next to HaTikva, is Ha'Argazim which is an unrecognized suburb in Tel Aviv - despite that it has existed since the 1940's. It is remarkable to see this suburb, where the houses literally look like crates (argaz = crates) and much-needed infrastructure such as roads, is missing. 
Next stop was Neve She'anan, near the Central Bus Station, a 'workers' suburb founded in the 1920's after the Arab riots in Jaffa. Today the suburb is populated almost exclusively with foreign workers from Africa and Eastern Europe. The final stop of the day was at Kikar HaMedina, an upmarket, North Tel Aviv area well known for its expensive shopping. 
Finally, the seminar conclusion looked at the 'privitization' of Aliya in Israel today, and the workshoppers role through their Kaveret messimot in taking an active part in the Israeli society today.
The seminar started at looking at Herzl's vision of a utopian society in his book - Altnueland; and examining what the vision for Israel each of the workshoppers had. A number of 'concepts' including - Im Tirzu (if you will it); Private Ownership; Cooperatives; Labour; Education; Care for the elderly and Universalism were looked at from Herzl's vision. This followed with an exhibition on the Histadrut (Trade Labour Federation), which was the organization that eventually helped found and create many of the institutions Herzl wrote about before his death.
The following part of the seminar looked at the dismantling of the Israeli welfare state and how privitisation has progressed in Israel today. This culminated in a siyur (excursion) on Friday to various Tel Aviv neighbourhoods - HaTikva (The Hope); Ha'argazim (The Crates); Neve She'anan (Oasis of Tranquility) and Kikar HaMedina (State Square), each of which are unique its in makeup.
HaTikva is a poor southern Tel Aviv neighbourhood, made up of a mainly elderly, North African population, which has recently become more popular with young trendy Israelis. Just next to HaTikva, is Ha'Argazim which is an unrecognized suburb in Tel Aviv - despite that it has existed since the 1940's. It is remarkable to see this suburb, where the houses literally look like crates (argaz = crates) and much-needed infrastructure such as roads, is missing. 
Next stop was Neve She'anan, near the Central Bus Station, a 'workers' suburb founded in the 1920's after the Arab riots in Jaffa. Today the suburb is populated almost exclusively with foreign workers from Africa and Eastern Europe. The final stop of the day was at Kikar HaMedina, an upmarket, North Tel Aviv area well known for its expensive shopping. 
Finally, the seminar conclusion looked at the 'privitization' of Aliya in Israel today, and the workshoppers role through their Kaveret messimot in taking an active part in the Israeli society today.
Thursday, February 14, 2008
UPDATE!!
Hi everyone,
I know it has been a while since last updating the blog - since Kaveret has started, it is proving much harder to update as both kvutsot and individual tzvatim often have very different days.
I will try to give a brief overview of activities, and hopefully, some of the workshoppers themselves will begin to 'guest blog' and share some of their experiences with you [hint hint to all workshoppers].
The Carmiel kvutsa are living in a large house together, and are split into a number of messima tzvatim - Carmiel, Tsfat, Tiberias, Kiyum Meshutaf. The Acco kvutsa are living into 2 houses, a short 3 minute walk between them, and are split into the tzvatim -Acco, Hadar (Haifa), Kiyum Meshutaf, and Kabul.
All of the tzvatim work with different schools (of different ages) and different after-school educational frameworks such as youth movement kenim or after-school clubs. They work various sectors of the community - some Arab Israeli, some Israeli, and within that some large immigrant populations. Their days vary, with some workshoppers needing to travel quite far (roughly an hour each way) to get to their messima. Most tzvatim are in the schools between 2-2.5 days a week, with extra time set aside each week for the Yom Tzevet - planning future activities and learning together as a tzevet.
Aside from messima, the workshoppers also are studying 2 courses altogether - Israeli History & Society; and Judaism. These take place alternatively on Thursday mornings. On Sunday evenings, each kvutsa has Hebrew Ulpan, they are split into 3 learning levels, and the focus is more informal - giving them extra tools and skills in order to integrate into their messimot and their lives in Israel.
Mondays and Thursday afternoons are kvutsa days - the madrichim come and run peulot, or sometimes the workshoppers run peulot for themselves too. Some Thursdays have siyurim (excursions) and there also seminars held throughout Kaveret - next week is the first, and the topic is Israeli Society and Economics, which includes a walking tour throughout Tel Aviv.
If you have any questions at anytime - please be in touch via email to either myself or Michael Kanter. Next posting, I hope to bring some more in-depth stories from specific tzvatim.
Shabbat Shalom
I know it has been a while since last updating the blog - since Kaveret has started, it is proving much harder to update as both kvutsot and individual tzvatim often have very different days.
I will try to give a brief overview of activities, and hopefully, some of the workshoppers themselves will begin to 'guest blog' and share some of their experiences with you [hint hint to all workshoppers].
The Carmiel kvutsa are living in a large house together, and are split into a number of messima tzvatim - Carmiel, Tsfat, Tiberias, Kiyum Meshutaf. The Acco kvutsa are living into 2 houses, a short 3 minute walk between them, and are split into the tzvatim -Acco, Hadar (Haifa), Kiyum Meshutaf, and Kabul.
All of the tzvatim work with different schools (of different ages) and different after-school educational frameworks such as youth movement kenim or after-school clubs. They work various sectors of the community - some Arab Israeli, some Israeli, and within that some large immigrant populations. Their days vary, with some workshoppers needing to travel quite far (roughly an hour each way) to get to their messima. Most tzvatim are in the schools between 2-2.5 days a week, with extra time set aside each week for the Yom Tzevet - planning future activities and learning together as a tzevet.
Aside from messima, the workshoppers also are studying 2 courses altogether - Israeli History & Society; and Judaism. These take place alternatively on Thursday mornings. On Sunday evenings, each kvutsa has Hebrew Ulpan, they are split into 3 learning levels, and the focus is more informal - giving them extra tools and skills in order to integrate into their messimot and their lives in Israel.
Mondays and Thursday afternoons are kvutsa days - the madrichim come and run peulot, or sometimes the workshoppers run peulot for themselves too. Some Thursdays have siyurim (excursions) and there also seminars held throughout Kaveret - next week is the first, and the topic is Israeli Society and Economics, which includes a walking tour throughout Tel Aviv.
If you have any questions at anytime - please be in touch via email to either myself or Michael Kanter. Next posting, I hope to bring some more in-depth stories from specific tzvatim.
Shabbat Shalom
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