Learning from the Kibbutz

Publication Date: January 2008

Publisher: Coalition for the Advancement of Jewish Education

Author(s): Shira Ackerman Simchovitz

Research Area: Culture and religion; Education

Keywords: Children; Education; Pre-schools

Type: Brief

Abstract:

The author shares three of the most significant childhood education memories of kibbutz raised young adults: the daily field trip around the kibbutz; playing in the junkyard playground; and the communal festival celebrations. She notes that these, and many other aspects of kibbutz early childhood education, are rooted in an image of the child who is competent and able, who can and does fully participate in the life that goes on around him, but in ways that are suited to his needs and development. She challenges the reader to consider how this way of thinking and being may be adapted to a Diaspora early childhood setting.