These are trying and difficult times for many of us all over the world. As we are all in this together we felt the need to reach out to you our friends and supporters and send you strength to weather this crisis.

For the children of Jerusalem Hills these uncertain days are even more difficult as stability is a crucial factor in their rehabilitation. Many of our children do not have viable families to support them, as they are placed in our care due to court order, and all of our children are not allowed to leave the campus or attend extra curricular activities (which have been cancelled by government order). It is our job, now more than ever, to maintain daily routines (in accordance with government guidelines), to facilitate our children during these hard times, to minimize the unknown and to reassure them that everything is going to be OK. Now, more than ever, your concern and support are essential to our children’s futures. Donate now

We wish you only good health……….

Purim at Jerusalem Hills

The month of Adar is a joyous month at Jerusalem Hills. Following tradition, the Nitzan group went around the classrooms and offices singing and dancing, marking the 1st of Adar. In the following weeks, the children and staff were busy preparing costumes and decorating the cottages for the Purim celebrations. This year's events included a colorful costume parade, a short skit by each group, a Purim carnival, and wandering through the different decorated cottages where the children played games, took photos and had a great time. The Keshet group's cottage became the magic underwater world of SpongeBob where the group served all the other children hamburgers for dinner.

Active Science Day at the Clore Science Garden

The Jerusalem Hills special education school recently went on a field trip to the Clore Garden of Science at the Weizmann Institute. The trip, initiated by the Active Science group of Weizmann's Davidson Institute, was the first part of a collaboration with the institute aimed at making science accessible to everyone. This is a very special opportunity for our children to be exposed to the world of science, to the outdoors & nature, to science labs; things which are not as accessible on our school grounds.

The whole school went on the field trip along with the teaching staff, counselors, group coordinators, psychologists and social workers. We received a very warm welcome by the Clore Garden staff and the Davidson staff. They presented the children with fascinating activities; touring the science park, visiting the different exhibits and the ecosphere, observing a scientific demonstration of dry ice, liquid nitrogen and a van der graph, and preparing and eating scientifically prepared vanilla flavored ice cream. "The children had a great time, they were curios and intrigued by the activities, and the operating staff were very much in tune with the needs of our children, very patient and always smiling".

The whole visit, including the transportation and snacks, was thanks to the generosity of the Davidson Institute. The next part of the collaboration will take place after Passover at the Children's Home.

A Friendly Basketball Match

The "Hapoel Bnei Brith" (Jerusalem Hills) basketball team went to the nearby municipality of Mevaseret Zion to play against another Hapoel youth basketball team. The coach made sure that all 21 children from our team would have their shot at playing, and all the children were very excited. These children, who often have difficulty in social situations, were good spirited, and played competitively at a decent level. The outing was made even more special because of the sensitivity of the opposing team, who made sure our team felt like equal competitors, encouraged them and behaved wonderfully. At the end of the game, both teams enjoyed pizzas and drinks.

The experience was outstanding for JHTC's children who were able to conquer their fears and concerns, both on a personal and the group level. Such encounters are extremely meaningful for these children, as it allows them to leave the grounds, have contact with normative children and all that entails, and deal with their concerns and insecurities. They returned to the Home excited, empowered and stronger thanks to the successful experience. The opposing team was empowered by the experience as well and has already expressed a desire to have more friendly matches with "Hapoel Bnei Brith".

Thank you to the youth department of Hapoel Jerusalem and the children of the team from Mevaseret Zion. We are looking forward to the next match.

Volunteer corner- The connection with Cadence

For the past two years, Cadence has been looking to brighten the Chanukah holiday at the children's home. Employee volunteering is an integral part of Cadence's work routine and each year in December the company offers its employees a number of volunteer options. Much to our delight, even though it was Chanukah vacation, about 50 volunteers came to the Home for two days of work. This time, the company renovated the Lavi group's cottage. The Lavi group is a new group that just opened this year and their cottage was in great need of a facelift. Cadence gladly responded to our request, funding the renovation costs and working for two days so that the children returned from the Chanukah vacation to a beautiful and refurbished cottage. In addition to the renovation, the company's employees held a Chanukah party for the "vacation group" children who could not return home for vacation. The volunteers were very invested in the party, including dressing up as characters from the story of Chanukah. The children played different games and got lots of surprises.

Thank you very much to Cadence and their employees. We are greatly anticipating the next Chanukah holiday.

Re-inauguating the Computer Labs

A little over a decade ago, when the children's home moved from Jerusalem to its current location, RAD Data Communications donated two fully equipped computer labs to the school.
Last week, at a ceremony including Zohar Zisapel, Avi Wenger and the trustees of our school site (our students), we re-inaugurated the computer labs after the RAD foundation replaced all the computers with brand new, very advanced computers. The excitement of all the attendees was very great.

The computer teacher explained the computer-based learning that takes place at the school and the site trustees showed Zohar and Avi the school site, explained what their role was and even asked questions about the performance of the new computers.

Many thanks to Zohar Zisapel and Avi Wenger from the RAD Foundation for their significant contribution which enables the enables the children to use up-to-date computers from their studies and leisure.

Promoting Art and Culture Education

Arts and culture education is a very important part of our special education school at Jerusalem Hills. As an integral part of the curriculum, the school staff emphasizes exposing the children to knowledge and content of these worlds that were not previously available to the children. This is in order to help advance the children, help them obtain academic achievement, and arouse their curiosity. The children are exposed to a variety of arts fields that allow them to express themselves verbally as well as non-verbally, to heal and help raise their confidence and self-esteem and take them on a journey to different worlds.

The daily school schedule includes many topics that relate to the various arts and the school allocates many resources to the various arts: 4 art rooms, a well-equipped music room and a psychodrama classroom. The children are also exposed to cultural activities, such as visits to the Israel Museum, Yad Vashem, the Israeli Knesset, the Herzl Museum and more. There are cultural activities within the school such as meetings with authors, visits by musicians, theatrical performances and more. Exposing children to art and culture is a significant part of the school experience and it instills them with pride and inspires them to express and represent themselves.

On campus we have a variety of art programs:

1. Art Groups - Each child in the Home receives two weekly hours of art therapy with an art therapist with extensive training. During these classes the children are exposed to different artists, different media and techniques. Art is a tool for creating a successful and empowering experience for these children whose world is emotionally complex. Through art, they process content and emotions in a creative way. At the base of the art therapist's work is the recognition that art is a healing tool and the importance of creation, illustration and symbolization to the child's development. The children are invited to experiment and create out of their inner world in a well-equipped room with many and varied creative materials as well as view masterpieces and works by their friends.
2. Polymer Clay and Carpentry Art Workshops - The main goal of these workshops is to allow the children to experience various art fields around them, to allow them to experience success through art and to expose them to new fields. The workshops are optional for the junior unit children, and are done in small work groups.
3. Photography, Video and Cinema - Some of the boys and girls go to the Musrara school for a photography workshop once a week. They experiment with photo techniques, learn how to operate a camera with all its functionality, develop images in a darkroom and more.
   At the Home there are children who attend a video workshop where they are exposed to rich content and the importance of video as a tool through which different messages can be conveyed. The workshop allows for the children to express different capabilities; Shooting, editing, directing, acting production and more.
4. Music –
   The music lessons at the school are held in our music room rich with various musical instruments. The children learn to play the various instruments, sing, write songs and compose. The lessons open up a musical realm to the children in which they express their inner world and emotions.
   In addition, there is a school choir, which has been active for 10 years and is accompanied by the music teacher and a school teacher. The choir performs at various school ceremonies and participates in a yearly education choir convention. Through the choir, the children are exposed to many cultures as well as to famous Israeli writers and composers.
   Poems that address the emotional world of children are part of the curriculum in the education classes in the school. These poems were written by one of the school staff members, Gabi, who has been working at the school for 30 years and has published a number of poem collections which also present the educational work done at our school. His poem "Want to set an example" was even set to music and the school choir performs it at various events.
5. Dance - The school holds dance classes for boys and girls in two age groups. Through dancing, the children improve their body image and self-image. The children are exposed to different styles of music and dance, learn different dances and perform in front of the school.

Throughout the work with the children in the various fields of art, we occasionally discover special talents, children with an impressive voice, whether in photography, painting, written expression, etc. We endeavor to provide the best conditions for these children to express their talents, such as going to a drawing class at the Israel Museum, receiving excellence scholarships and more.