AlefBiographies of The Bet Teachers
Judy Bier joins us this year to teach in the BET room. She brings a wealth of experience and dedication from her 15 years in the field of Jewish education. She has a veritable treasure trove of songs, games, and curriculum ideas that she can pull out at a moment's notice. Energetic and always moving, in mind or body, she is easily able to keep things interesting in the BET room. Cooking and baking are mainstays of weekly activities. But check first, it could be anything from Flubber or Playdough to Challah or Honey Cake. Throughout the day you can see Judy sharing a keen observation of the nuances of a child's interest, temperament or development. She is passionate about her work. One of our first tasks when she came to Alef-Bet was to find a place for her boxes of teaching materials.
Judy received her teaching certification from Jewish Teacher's Training College in Gateshead, England.
In addition to working with toddlers through elementary age children, she is also an instructor of enrichment classes for Hebrew language and cooking.
On several occasions, she has presented workshops at the Bureau of Jewish Education conferences.
Judy is the mother of six children.
She is intensely involved in the Jewish community of Allston-Brighton where she does much volunteer work, both formally and informally.
Judy is EEC Lead Teacher and Director Certified. (9/2/2003)
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Naomi Potash has a passion for learning. Her interests include Buddhism, meditation, child development, children's literature, Jewish religion and the history of Judaism. Her first degree was in art and her first teaching experiences included teaching sculpture to high school students and general art to junior high students in inner city schools. Many years later, she got a BFA in painting. This experience was gratifying to her soul. Naomi came of age in "The Sixties" and social change, always on her agenda, informs her teaching at Alef-Bet. Naomi's Jewish background was secular and she is enjoying the opportunity to learn about Jewish history and ceremonial life with the children. She participated in the Me'eh Program, a 2-year course on Jewish history, tradition and religion.
Naomi's dedication is easily seen in the early and late hours of preparation.
Her work with children is reflective and purposeful.
Children in her groups have extensive opportunities to explore a wide variety of art media, to garden, to bake, and to love the treasures of literature.
She's equally devoted to helping children understand their own emotions and nurturing their interactive skills.
Naomi suggests ways in which all the classes may extend the children's opportunities to "make art."
She has given workshops on children's art making to parents and teachers. These workshops have had both theoretical and practical orientation.
Naomi is EEC Lead Teacher Certified. (5/9/1997)
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