Tag: Uncategorized

First House of Worship to Receive Platinum LEED Certification

Posted on by Author Lisa Colton Leave a comment on First House of Worship to Receive Platinum LEED Certification

Mazel tov to the Jewish Reconstructionist Congregation in Evanston, Illinois, which recently became the first house of worship to receive the highest level of LEED certification for their new “green” building. JRC recently launched their new web site with Darim, and has dedicated a whole category of the site to their “green synagogue”, including information about Jewish values, the building, decision making, and other useful environmentally responsible resources and products.

During the project Rabbi Brant Rosen’s Blog frequently included posts about the project. In one, he discusses talking to Hebrew school kids about the “pillars” of the community, as the construction crew was preparing to construct 18 concrete pillars for the foundation of the building, reaching 55 feet into the ground.

I took Alans idea [of 18 symbolic pillars of the congregation] to our 4th and 7th grade religious school students. I did my best to explain the concept of caissons [concrete pillars] to them, then we read a classic Jewish text from Pirke Avot (The Chapters of the Fathers): Rabbi Shimon the Righteous said, the world stands on three things: study, worship and acts of lovingkindness. What, I asked our students, would you consider to be the eighteen pillars upon which our congregational community stands?

Then together we brainstormed eighteen spiritual values of our JRC community: God, Judaism, Joy, Prayer, Hope, Respect, Partnership, Song, Tikkun Olam, Community, Study, Freedom, Friendship, Spirit, Learning, Peace, Growth, and Love.

Afterwards, I wrote out the values on a separate pieces of paper and each one was placed by the construction crew into a separate caisson shaft to be mixed together with the concrete, becoming a permanent part of JRCs support structure.

What an amazing lesson. Mazel tov and kol hakavod to the Jewish Reconstructionist Congregation.

Learn more about their green building here!

More Jewish/Environmental resources:

Canfei Nesharim http://canfeinesharim.org/

The Coalition on the Environment and Jewish Life http://www.coejl.org

Hazon http://www.hazon.org/ (and their excellent blog, The Jew and the Carrot)

Teva Learning Center for Jewish environmental education http://www.tevacenter.org/

Jewish Education 3.0: Teaching and Learning in the Digital Age

Posted on by Author Lisa Colton Leave a comment on Jewish Education 3.0: Teaching and Learning in the Digital Age

Last year at the CAJE32 conference in St. Louis the Lippman Kanfer Institute convened a think tank of fantastic educators to think about the future of Jewish education. A strong theme throughout the 3 day sequence was technology, and in response, Jonathan Woocher and his incredible team have launched a new think tank called “JE3” (Jewish Education 3.0). The group has flexed its collective muscle to steer the conversation away from technology per se, and towards the implications of teaching and learning about Judaism in our current and rapidly evolving digital landscape.

The group hopes to publish a paper and many sub-papers on the topic in the coming year, and at CAJE 33 we invited additional voices to join the conversation and contribute to the wiki-based project. We strongly value the face-to-face discussion, and Monica Rozenfeld expertly captured the fruits of our labors and added them to the wiki. If you’d like to get involved in the project or want to learn more, contact Monica or visit the wiki, sign up and add your thoughts!

Jonathan Woocher, Esther Kustanowitz, Cheryl Weiner, Rabbi Joshua Hammerman, Iris Petroff and others discuss teaching and learning in a digital age at CAJE33
Jonathan Woocher, Esther Kustanowitz, Cheryl Weiner, Rabbi Joshua Hammerman, JT Waldman, Deborah Grayson-Riegal, Iris Petroff and others discuss teaching and learning in a digital age at CAJE33

Darim Educators Meet For the First Time

Posted on by Author Lisa Colton Leave a comment on Darim Educators Meet For the First Time

Darim hosted two sessions on Monday — Web 2.0 in Education with case studies from three congregations, and the first ever meeting of the Darim Online Educators. This group includes classroom teachers and Directors of Education from middle and high school supplementary school settings. You can learn more about the program on the Darim web site.

Those who are at CAJE33 gathered to share a bit about themselves, their work, their ideas, and where they would like support from the group. An ambitious and creative bunch, we had a great time getting to know one another and our work (why did one person decide NOT to put a computer lab in his school? And how did another get computers, networking, a server, a projector and a smartboard through a $4000 grant plus donations?).

In a world where much of our work here at Darim is virtual, it’s a real treat to meet members of our community face to face, and for them to meet each other! Over the coming months these 13 educators will develop projects incorporating technologies into the curriculum — stay tuned to learn what they’re up to, how it’s going, and to contribute your ideas to their work!

How To Use This Site

Posted on by Author Lisa Colton Leave a comment on How To Use This Site

Shalom and welcome to JewPoint0, the Darim Online blog. Were happy youre here! Here is an overview of how to use this blog:

What is a Post?

A blog is made up of a series/collection of posts listed chronologically with the most recent entry (post) at the top. Each single unit of writing that usually contains a title, maybe a photo, and some text is considered a post. Posts are written by Darim staff and guest bloggers. Comments on the posts (see below) can be added by anyone.

How do I add a Comment?

We want to hear from you and talk with you! Anyone can add a comment, you dont have to be registered, nor do you have to use your real name. To add a comment, click on the word comment or comments at the top right of each post. Any previous comments will be displayed and a text box appears where you can type your comment. At the left, you will need to enter your name and your email address (this will not be available to anyone else or displayed on the blog anywhere). Before you click Submit Comment you may want to proofread your comment as it is not editable.

Our comments are moderated, which means they need to be approved before they will appear on the site. We do this mainly to block SPAM and also to insure that comments are appropriate and do not violate our commenting policies. Please scroll down to the bottom of this page to view our Commenting Guidelines before you submit your comments.

What is Subscribe to Feed?

By subscribing to the Feed you will be notified, via an RSS Reader, when the blog has been updated. By subscribing to a feed you wont have to check the blog randomly; every time theres a new post, youll be notified.

What’s a Tag and a Tag Cloud?

A tag is a keyword used in association with the content for a post. For instance, in a Post about videos, the tags may be: YouTube, Vimeo, video. When you click on a tag, you will see all posts related to that tag keyword.

A tag cloud is visual that shows the keywords used on a blog and how often they are used. The most common tags are larger than the others. Selecting a tag within the cloud will lead to a results page showing entries associated with that tag.

What is a Category?

This is a method of organizing blog entries by assigning each entry to a predetermined topic. Each topic (category) will link to a list of entries, all with related content. When you click on a category name, you will be able to view all posts within that category. Some categories here on Jew.0 are Nuggets, Tech Tips, and Book Reviews.

Whats the Blogroll?

These are links to other blogs that we like and recommend. Check them out!

Jew.0s Comment/Commenter Guidelines:

The overall theme for our commenter guidelines is very simple: Be Friendly. Respect Others. Darim believes in the living room theory regarding comments; as if you are visiting someone’s home, e.g. sitting in their living room having a discussion. In essence our guideline follows the same practice as it does in our homes:

If you are a guest in my home and are rude to me or my other guests, I will ask you to be more polite. If you do not comply, I will force you to leave and you will not be allowed back in.

Basic guidelines:

  • No personal attacks, abusive or foul language. We will not moderate legitimate views being expressed but pornography, obscenity, racism, anti-Semitism, bigotry, harassment, personal attacks or the promotion of hate will not be permitted.
  • No solicitation. Its fine to link to other blogs or news articles, but please do not add a comment about selling something, trading something, or to promote a site or blog that is selling something.
  • Do not post trademarks or copyrighted material
  • Please use Netiquette (do not type in all caps, write complete sentences, limit use of abbreviations) when possible

Darim Onlines Statement of Liability and Users Agreement:

We do not vouch for or warrant the accuracy, completeness or usefulness of any comments on this blog, and are not responsible for the contents of any comment. The messages express the views of the author of the comment, not necessarily the views of Darim Online or any entity associated with Darim. Any user who feels that a posted message is objectionable is encouraged to contact us immediately by email. We have the ability to remove objectionable comments and we will make every effort to do so, within a reasonable time frame, if we determine that removal is necessary. This is a manual process, however, so please realize that we may not be able to remove or edit particular comments immediately. You agree, through your use of this blog, that you will not use this blog to post any material which is knowingly false and/or defamatory, inaccurate, abusive, vulgar, hateful, harassing, obscene, profane, sexually oriented, threatening, invasive of a person’s privacy, or otherwise violative of any law. You agree not to post any copyrighted material unless the copyrighted material is owned by you. We reserve the right to delete any message for any reason whatsoever. You remain solely responsible for the content of your comments, and you agree to indemnify and hold us harmless with respect to any claim based upon transmission of your message(s). We reserve the right to reveal your identity (or whatever information we know about you) in the event of a complaint or legal action arising from any message posted by you.