At Machon “Chaya-Mushka,” the leading educational institution for girls of the Dnipro Jewish Community, the Tu BiShvat celebration took place in a special format that combined traditions, learning, and creative work. On this day, programs were held directly in the classrooms, and each homeroom teacher prepared a rich thematic lesson for her students. These lessons included watching videos of the Rebbe, studying his talks on the significance of Tu BiShvat, enjoying fruit treats, and various games related to the theme of trees and fruits.
A feature of this academic year at the Machon is that it has been declared the “year of projects,” and Tu BiShvat became a natural milestone on this path. The 7th-grade students, together with their biology teacher, presented the “Seven Species of Israel Plants” project. Each girl prepared a story about one of the plants, and the topic of the creation of the world, specifically the third day when plants were created, was also addressed. Students from grades 1-3 were invited to the project presentation, and the practical part involved planting in pots, in which everyone, younger and older, participated with great pleasure.
Another major project, also related to Tu BiShvat and the plant world, was implemented under the guidance of Rivka Lazareva, and girls from grades 5-11, who actively joined the work, were invited to its presentation. Fifth-grade students prepared and presented their family trees; the 7th grade wrote and designed creative essays and stories about plants and trees; and tenth-grade students, using artificial intelligence, created poems from the perspective of fruits and prepared posters with good wishes for the classes.
Presentations made by former Machon students in previous years were also showcased. Current students translated these into Ukrainian and presented them to their classmates.
However, the celebration was not confined to the walls of the Machon, as participants of the “Shura Rishona” project, as part of the Tu BiShvat celebration, visited the “Beit leBanot” boarding school. There, under the guidance of the program coordinator for girls in grades 7-11, Morah Chana Stambler, they studied the Rebbe’s sicha on Tu BiShvat together, enjoyed fruit treats, and made wonderful crafts.
“Education is not only knowledge from textbooks, not just classes, but also independent exploration, creative work, and active participation in good deeds under the guidance of wise mentors,” noted the Machon’s director, Rachel Milman. “The projects for Tu BiShvat helped the students feel the beauty of the world created by Hashem and their personal role in caring for this world. All the projects were very interesting and meaningful and represented us worthily as an important part of the united and cohesive Dnipro Jewish Community under the leadership of Chief Rabbi Shmuel Kaminezki.”
