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JUNE 3, 2021 | The Jewish Home OCTOBER OCTOBER 29, 29, 2015 2015 || The The Jewish Jewish Home Home
Parenting Pearls
Keeping It Practical By Sara Rayvych, MSEd
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izarrely, I have both my husband and a teeny, tiny bug to thank for the inspiration behind this article. A few years ago, it occurred to me how it’s rather hard to live in a frum household and not learn about the daily life of a Torah observant Jew. Everything from daily halacha to the special minhagim of yomim tovim are quickly observed by interested, young eyes. Perhaps this is one reason why so much respect is given to both the formal mesorah and to the informal lessons passed down from our beloved ancestors. The practical lessons observed in the homes of previous generations can often serve as a previously undocumented lesson in halacha, hashkafa or proper middos. Stories of our gedolim are combed through to give us handson ways we too can serve Hashem properly. From these few examples we can see that practical experience and in-person observations have often played a pivotal role in teaching the next generation how to carry on our traditions. As important as classes, lectures and books can be, they will never replace the role of hands-on teaching. As you read through the pages of TJH, you will see the many ways each
local school brings education to life. The children observe, act out and manipulate their way through their lessons to get a better understanding of the topic. Not only is it an important educational tool – it’s also a lot of fun! Parents can also bring this powerful and exciting educational tool into their homes.
Recognizing a Practical Experience Judaism is a thriving and living belief system. There are so many ways you can bring this out in your home. Whenever there is an opportunity that falls in your lap to expose your children to practical halacha or a Jewish experience, it’s worth it. It’s so fun for the kids and makes Torah come alive. Often, kids tend to think that what they learn isn’t practical. They couldn’t be more wrong. I’ll try to include some examples of where you can bring this in. Remember that even if something seems gross to you, it may not be to the kids. I would even suggest an inverse proportional relationship – the grosser it is to you the more the kids will get excited. Bugs: This article was partially inspired by a bug that was so small I barely noticed it among the rice.
Credit goes to my husband who noted the bag didn’t look as it should and was meticulous when checking. Not only was there a bug in the bag of rice, but it was alive and moving. I am grateful to him for being so careful and making sure we didn’t have that extra protein in our cholent. I’ve often made a point of showing the kids when I’ve found bugs in produce. My kids have seen enough insects and insect droppings inside (and outside) dates to know that they need to bring each date to me before consuming. The halachos of bedikas tolaim (checking for bugs) are interesting and relevant when kids realize there really are bugs in food items. Blood in eggs: When checking eggs, you will, at some point, find a blood spot. Before tossing it in the garbage out of disgust you can make a point to show it to your children. Demonstrate how you saw it, particularly if it’s in a harder to notice area. They’ll take egg checking more seriously when they know that blood spots really do exist. It also can be the beginning of an interesting biology lesson, but that’s for another article. Pesach: It was a few years back that I was quickly checking rice (not for Pesach) and discovered a grain
of barley. While Ashkenazim don’t eat rice on Pesach, Sefardim do, but the rice requires strict checking first. With modern technology, you’d think you wouldn’t find such a crossover and that there’s no need to check before Pesach. I was excited for every Sefardi that had to meticulously check rice knowing they weren’t checking in vain. When you find chametz in an unexpected place before Pesach, it’s the perfect time to hold up your trophy and show your children why you spend all that time checking the house for chametz before Pesach. I could write a book of examples because every yom tov and part of our daily routines have practical lessons as to their applications. Throughout our daily life, we can see how even the most vague halachos have a practical application.
Creating a Practical Experience There are some areas that don’t come up practically in your own home. Some, because they’re not something we can easily do (i.e. shmitta or parah adumah), and others because they’re not a party of daily life (i.e. matza baking or pidyon haben). In those cases, there are nu-
