Every Parent is a Teacher

Day 185: Teach Your Child Torah

In 6th grade, I entered an essay competition that was required for all 6th graders in my school. The essay was about why I appreciated my Jewish day school education. Honestly, I remember virtually none of it, but I can tell you now why I do appreciate my Jewish education.

My paternal grandfather came to this country from Belarus. He was educated in a cheder, at home, and in supplemental schools as his Jewish education.

When the time came for my parents to decide where to send me to school, they thought about what they wanted me to know. They wanted me to know more than they did, so they sent me to Jewish day school.

I loved it. I loved the culture, the language, the familiarity of it all. And when it came time for me to personalize my Jewish courses, I chose rigorous text study. I was the only girl in my Talmud class (which made my promposal fun), I talked to my teachers after class and after school, I studied on my own outside of school. I thought of questions. I always wanted to learn more, and here I am. Appreciating the way my parents fulfilled the obligation of teaching your children Torah.

Day 186: Teach Your Child the Value of Human Life

If your dog and a person you didn't know was drowning, who would you save first?

If you answered your dog, I can't blame you. I'm sure you've been through a lot with your dog and I'm sure you love them very much, however, I think you might be disregarding the value of human life. Not necessarily because humans are more intelligent or because according to religion we have souls, but because we should feel empathy for other people.

Of course both humans and animals wish to survive, but first we should save those for which we feel empathy.