1.
During one of the morning prayers this week, I thought to myself that perhaps we should introduce a rule that, just as we announce "The New Year will be on..." in the blessing of the month, we should also do the same just before the song of the day on the morning of a weekday. The gabbai will knock on the bimah and announce "Today is Tuesday on Shabbat!" or "Today is Thursday on Shabbat!" and so on. Simply to make it easier for the congregation of worshippers.
I see people who really stop to think about this part of the prayer.
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And in fact, in this rolling event called Corona – every few days is a different era, a completely new period with completely different challenges. So, it's true, we don't really know what day it is today, but we know very well that we have passed the Corona era between Purim and Passover, and we have passed the Corona era of Seder Night, and we have entered the Corona of after Passover with the easing, and we were in the Corona of Holocaust Remembrance Day, and we have started the Corona of school, and next week the Corona era of Memorial Day will arrive and immediately after it the Corona era of Independence Day will begin (I'm already waiting to see Dr. Avshalom Kor speak on the Bible Quiz about "the 'Close-up' app, or 'Zoom' as the Gentiles say, through which we will watch here the contestants from the four corners of the world").
2.
And back to the era of schooling during the Corona pandemic that opened this week: What a wonderful thing Zoom classes are, eh? The kids don't go to school, they just stay in a room at home and listen to every word the teacher says. And what a terrible thing Zoom classes are, eh? The kids don't go to school, they just stay in a room at home and listen to every word the teacher says.
And how fun it is that the children receive exactly the material they need, without spending their time on all sorts of distractions.
And how terrible that the children receive only the material they need, without spending their time on all sorts of distractions.
Yes, you may have noticed, I also have a hard time deciding what I think about these studies.
Every day I find myself silently praying that they will last a long time and stop immediately. My opinion changes from minute to minute and is influenced by a variety of variables: the child's concentration at that moment, the quality of the Wi-Fi in the air, the quality of the lesson, the level of stupidity of the virtual background the child chooses, my need for a free computer, and a host of other parameters.
3.
But I know one thing for sure. I have no doubts about it: We must not let this period destroy our children's world. And I'm not talking about keeping a schedule, bedtimes and wake-ups, and the other challenges of this difficult period.
These are all important educational matters, but in reality they only have implications for these abnormal days, days that will sooner or later pass. Don't worry, boys and girls will still go to bed on time.
I'm talking about serious danger, about fear of long-term damage, long after we've forgotten about Corona. I'm talking about the Internet. Never before have there been so many children, exposed in such an increased way, to such a dangerous substance. And if you look at me like some dark fanatic, it simply shows that you're out of touch. I mean, I'm not the primitive one, it's you, excuse me.
Any professional will say that there are all the risk factors here: the child is with a personal computer or a small cell phone, locked in his room, in his corner, during a period of great boredom and lack of boundaries where everything is loose. And most dangerous: his long sitting in front of the computer has the most educational and noble justification. He's actually in the middle of studying now.
Abolishing the Torah to disturb it. This is not just a computer game. This is not even the website of the Meir Children's Channel, but a real lesson in the Torah. What could be more pure and holy than that?
True, it is truly pure and holy. And we are blessed to live in a generation in which so much Torah can be spread so easily. From the mouths of infants and babies, you founded Zoom. But the distance between this pure and holy and the dirty and impure is at the touch of a button.
Actually, forget it, I don't want to talk in high-sounding words about holiness and purity. I'll leave that to those who deserve to talk about holiness and purity. Let's talk in terms of parental responsibility and the child's well-being. And let's talk in general: These days, more than ever, it's a must-must-must filter the Internet. Choose a company, but do it today. A parent who lets their children surf the Internet unfiltered is not a less godly parent. He is. But he is first and foremost a less good parent.
4.
I am following with concern the data that shows a sharp increase in the number of people connecting to the Internet during the Corona period. Are all the new joiners aware of the dangers? And even those who have had the Internet in their homes for a long time – there has been a change for them too: they have moved from one computer located in a central and supervised place at home to a policy of "a computer for every child.".
Do they know what happens with each computer and each child? I look at the sweet children who study with my children in the virtual classroom. Each with their own computer, with their own iPad. What happens when the wonderful lesson is over? Are their parents watching over them?
God forbid what happened with the Corona virus in the United States happens here. Lack of awareness in the first few days that comes to a person's life a few weeks later. I don't know if you're following the terrible numbers coming from there. I personally know families that are not ours who are in the second seven in the family.
A week ago it was the maternal grandfather and now the paternal grandmother has also passed away. And all because of what? Because of a lack of awareness. A lack of understanding of the new situation and its dangers.
So I'm not equating death with educational harm. But I am equating ignorance with ignorance. Let's prevent the fall now and not wake up when it's too late and the situation gets out of control. These days we all take care of our elders, which is lovely, but there is a risk group at a completely different age. It's our future. We must protect it.
5.
And finally: a big thank you to the dear teachers and investors. I know it's trendy to attack teachers' organizations right now, and I have my criticisms too (don't you think the summer break should be drastically shortened this year?), but let's talk about the people on the ground.
Tens of thousands of kindergarten teachers, teachers, principals and administrators who invest days and nights (look at what time of night they send the content for the next day!). Thank you for your special dedication these days. After all, you too have children of your own, who just received homework on the account.
We always knew you were working hard, now we hear it loudly from every corner of our house. Ugh, we have to buy more headphones this week. We can't keep going like this.
