“Being a Mensch in the World”—a Powerful Theme for Second Graders’ Community Celebration

This morning the second graders led a community celebration at Beth Israel Judea for their families and grades one through four. The program elaborated a social and emotional learning theme that integrated many aspects of the curriculum in the exploration of what it means to be a mensch—a Yiddish word whose connotation means “a person of integrity and honor.” “According to our friends in second grade,” one student offered, “a mensch is a person who helps others, is a kind and caring person, is respectful, does what must be done, stands up for his or her rights, is selfless, and makes a good leader.”

 

For the past several months, in both general and Judaic studies, the students have identified the qualities requisite to becoming a mensch, both in historic times and in current daily life. From the bimah (platform), students took turns recounting how various study areas contributed to the concept. In their Torah studies, they learned about two female mensches, Queen Esther and Miriam. In their social studies units on India and Japan, they learned about Mahatma Gandhi and Naoto Matsumara, a modern Japanese hero who stayed behind to take care of abandoned pets and animals in the wake of the 2011 Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant disaster. In Writer’s Workshop, students had created mensch-related poems and dialogues for original comic strips. They also wrote letters to people in their own lives “who have been mensches to us.”

 

Most notably on display beside the students was the “Mensch Bench”—a wooden bench that the class had painted and decorated and will install in their outdoor play area. One of the presenting students told the community, “At Brandeis, kindness is one of our core values.  One way we show kindness is by making sure everyone feels safe and included at recess time.” Another said, “Sometimes kids feel lonely, left out, or they need help with a problem. A Mensch Bench is a safe place on the playground where kids can go to make a friend or find someone to talk to about a problem.” And a third: “When children and teachers see someone on the bench, they will take this as a sign that someone needs help or support. They will make their way to the child and invite them to play or offer to listen if they need a friend.”

Orit Solomon, Judaic studies and Hebrew teacher, commented after the celebration, “Seeing the students lead the service so beautifully, and hearing their deep understanding of what it takes to be a mensch in our world—the power in our words and our responsibility to speak up for what is right—was very rewarding to us teachers, and inspiring to all the students and parents in attendance.” MORE PHOTOS