B'MORE INCLUSIVE WITH
MRS. YAEL ZELINGER
February was JDAIM, Jewish Disability Awareness and Inclusion Month, a great opportunity to start the conversation about people who look or behave differently than us. Morah Yael Zelinger of B'more Inclusive, visited our Kindergarten to lead a workshop on disability awareness. Morah Yael brought “friends” (dolls) with various disabilities. The girls gave them names and discussed what might or might not be easy for them. An experiment with a white and brown egg discovering that both have the same yolk inside helped emphasize that we all have a neshama created by Hashem, even if we look or behave differently on the outside. Lastly, she talked about what to do if you see someone with a disability in the park or in a store. It would not be nice to S-T-A-R-E, rather we can give a big S-M-I-L-E, just like we would want someone to smile at us.
This workshop complements the social-emotional skills that our teachers work on with the girls every day, as well as the Social Skills Second Step program taught each week by Mrs. Rachell Tajerstein, one of our school counselors. We understand that Hashem created each of us with feelings. We are working to recognize and respect each others feelings.