Modiinfo December 2003

M o d i I n f oServicing the English speaking community of Modiin and the surrounding neighborhoods

December 2003

K i s l e v 5 7 6 4

Outdoor Store

Ski outfits for sale and rentArmy conscription equipmentBar/Bat mitzva presents

Modiin Center, Tel:

Harel Mall, Mevasseret Zion, Tel:

08-972-814602-579-0554

Modiin, The City of the PastModiin, the "City of the Future," is destined to

be the fourth largest city in Israel. New homes arebuilt by the dozen. Thousands of people move inevery year. Yet Modiin is anything but new. Itshistory dots the hills surrounding the new city.Wander up the hill of Givat Hatitora and you willfind yourself transported to another world, a worldof Crusaders and Hasmoneans, winepresses andritual baths.

Those who moved to Modiin in its early days(mid-late 1990s) will recall the battle over GivatHatitora, a hill that borders with the 443 road to thenorth and the Maccabim-Reut road to the east. Thathill alone abounds with ancient archeologicalartifacts and was enough to stir up the originalresidents of Modiin who petitioned theMunicipality in order to prevent any building on thesite.

The hill itself was originally surveyed by thePalestine Exploration Fund. With the onset ofbuilding Modiin in 1992, the antiquities departmentconducted some basic excavations in order to learnmore about the area and decide if it should bedeveloped. Immediately upon the beginning of thesurveys it became apparent that Givat Hatitora was acentral archaeological site for all of the Modiin area.Could it be that this was the ancient city of Modiin,the home to Judah the Maccabee and the story ofChanuka?

There are a few different paths one can use toreach the top of Givat Hatitora. I prefer the flowerpath which is marked by small stones on either side

The Hebrew Will ComeThere is a widespread belief among parents who

raise their kids in predominantly Anglo-Saxoncommunities that goes as follows: “We will providea rich educational and cultural environment for ourchildren in English in our homes, and they will getthe necessary background in Hebrew from schooland from their general surroundings. After all, allkids eventually obtain a reasonable spoken Hebrew;having a high level of English proficiency will beextremely helpful at the university level and in thejob market.” Sound familiar?

In my view, this is a critically flawed theory thathas serious ramifications for a large percentage ofour children. Imagine hearing a parent say, “I don'tspeak to my children at all, they'll learn to speakonce they get to kindergarten; let the teacher takecare of that.”

The acquisition and development of language isessential for a child's growth - in both the formationof a positive self-image and in the development ofthe child's cognition.

From the time our children enter kindergarten,too often, they do not participate in class due tolanguage issues. Whether because they did notunderstand the words, or because it took them toolong to process the question due to the extensivemental resources absorbed in comprehending it, orbecause of a general lack of confidence in their ownverbal skills - they are inhibited from raising theirhand. If children cannot answer the questions thatthe teacher asks, how can they feel smart? At homewe tell them that they are brilliant, but at school they

cont. on page 5 cont. on page 8

Volume 1

Issue 1

Dalia's Designs

* Professional Dressmaker

* Alterations on men's and

women's clothing

* Evening and bridal wear

* 15 years experience

Dalia Zack 08-972-7194

By appointment, not on Shabbat

Additional electrical pointsInstallation of Shabbat clocks

Repair / reconditioning of circuit boardsUpgrading to three-phase system

Installation of telephone and TV points

Over 20 years experienceFor the service you expect and deserve call:

Shimon's ServicesQualified Electrician For All Your Electrical Needs

Shimon Zack057-353-717, 052-953-717, 08-972-7194

lic.no 056560

Not on Shabbat 24 hours

Sales and installation of central and split systems.

Free in home estimates.

Clean, professional, and reliable.

.Hundreds of references from satisfied customersHundreds of references from satisfied customers

H e a t i n g & A i r C o n d i t i o n i n g

052-405-063 08-976-1140

Dear Readers,

Welcome to the first issue of ModiInfo, the onlypublication servicing the English speakingcommunity of Modiin and the surroundingneighborhoods. We are pleased to feature a varietyof interesting articles on a monthly basis. Topicswill include parenting, education, entertainment,health, history and much more. In addition,ModiInfo features a kids' fun page, a children'screative writing contest and a recipe corner. We lookforward to being your source of information inEnglish about issues of interest to you.

Best wishes for a joyous Chanukah,

Daniella Hellerstein and Caryn MeltzCo-publishers and editors064-665-881, 053-868-768;

ModiInfo is an independently owned, advertiser supportedpublication distributed monthly to Modiin and thesurrounding neighborhoods. ModiInfo welcomes all articlesand ads but reserves the right to edit or reject submissions. Theviews expressed by writers and contributors are notnecessarily those of ModiInfo. ModiInfo is not responsible forfacts or claims made by ads or authors, nor for anytypographical errors. Work produced by ModiInfo is theproperty of ModiInfo and may not be reproduced withoutconsent.

[email protected]

To advertise Please call 064-665-881 053-868-768 e-mail: modiinfo 013.net.il@

M o d i I n f o Kislev 5764December 2003 Volume 1, Issue 1

Polly Hyams Sherman

Registered Midwife

Community Midwifery Services

Home Birthing

Doula ( )Birthing Coach

Tel: 08-972-2120 Cell: 054-506-370

ParKafeParKafe

Kosher dairy under the supervision

of Rabbanut Modiin

Open Sunday through Thursday 9:00 am till midnight

Friday 8:15-14:00

1 1/2 hours after Shabbat until midnight

Cafe and Restaurant

08-973-9970Country Center, 76 Emek Hahula, Modiinecond floorS

Breakfast * Soups * Salads * Sandwiches * Pasta * Pizza * Dessert


Fabulous selection of fresh fruits and vegetables

Best prices, best service, best quality

Certified kosher by Rabbanut Modiin, Beit Yosef and Yerushalayim

Free delivery: to place an order call

Country Center, Emek Hahula, Modiin

08-973-3394/2

Country Shuk

of the path. Each stone was placed byschoolchildren from the Ofek School as part of theirSociety for Protection of Nature program.Along thepaths are purple cyclamen, red anemones anddozens of other wildflowers. Two hundred watercisterns have been found on this hill alone. They arepossibly thousands of years old though they havebeen added to and changed over the centuries. Thecisterns provided water for drinking and householduse throughout the ages. This was the only wayvillages could thrive in this area as there were nowater sources in the immediate vicinity. Thecisterns collected rainwater from the hill and therooftops of the homes. Today, the plaster protectingthe cisterns is cracked so that the water seeps out tothe hill. This has created a sponge effect allowing anenormous array of flowers to flourish on the site.

On the slopes of the hill are Sabras growing instraight lines - one of the signs that an Arab villageexisted here. The Sabra was and is used as a naturalfence to define the borders of private fields. Thesewere the fields of the residents of El Burg' who livedhere until the War of Independence. Remains of thestone houses and pieces of pottery are found alongthe path. In 1948 a fierce battle was fought herewhich left the hill of Titora on the Israeli side of theborder until 1967.

At the top of the hill lies the remains of acrusader fortress which dates to the 12 century C.E.and gave the hill its name. The fortress was calledTarante. Because the hill resembled the shape of ahat, the Arab villagers who lived here hundreds ofyears later called it Kalaat-A-Tantura, the fortress ofthe hat. The Israeli government named it Titora, theHebrew translation. The fortress sits strategicallyhigh above the ancient road to Jerusalem. Thestones at the base of the fortress are quite different to

th

the Crusader stones. They are larger and are chiseledin the style that we recognize from Hasmoneanbuildings in other parts of Israel. We can assume thatthe Hasmonean stones were used by the Crusadersas the base for their fortress over a thousand yearslater. Could they possibly be part of the originalHasmonean fortress that protected the ancient cityof Modiin? Could Judah the Maccabee haveplanned his battles from inside its very walls?

To the side of the tower is a large pit which leadsto underground passageways from the period of BarKochba.Apparently Bar Kochba's men hid from theRomans in underground tunnels right here, inModiin. In one of these underground tunnels agroup of boys from the area found ancient artifactsdating to the Calcolithic era (approx. 3500 B.C.E.).Some of the vessels were found in perfect conditiondespite their age.

Further down the hill close to the water towerlies an ancient mikveh, or ritual bath from theSecond Temple period. Next to the mikveh areremains of Byzantine mosaics, possibly theremnants of an ancient winepress. Nearby areremains of a burial site from that same period. Acolumbarium, a place for raising pigeons, dating tothe Roman Era is situated on the other side of thetower.

The hill is rich with history and nature. Whetherthe Maccabees really called this hill the city ofModiin, only proper archaeological excavationswill tell. In the meantime, I like to imagine Judah theMaccabee as my former neighbor. Not too bad for anew city. Not bad at all.

Elizabeth Kay has been a licensed tour guidefor the past 12 years and is currently teachingenvironmental programs to schoolchildrenthroughout Modiin.

cont. from page 1

Catalogues, posters, books, folders, product pages, business cards, Web design

and many other graphically designed products to fit customers' demands.

Graphic design and printing - Konos 08-976-6465








cont. on page 7

Have you ever complained about bad drivers,bad roads, lack of police or poor signposting inModiin? Rather than wait for others to rectify thenumerous problems on our roads, you can play anintegral role in accident prevention.

Unfortunately, there is only one trafficpoliceman on active duty on the roads for theModiin area Shoham. Clearly this is not nearlyenough to prevent the many traffic violations we allsee every day on our roads. Would you like to help?You can simply by joining the police as a volunteerpoliceman under the Mishmar Ezrahi programme.You can join any branch of the police forceincluding the traffic division as a volunteerpoliceman. Fancy putting on a uniform and givingtickets to all the poor drivers you see every day?Contact Mishmar Ezrahi in Modiin and startmaking a difference today.

Joining the police force isn't the only way toinfluence road safety. Kehila Betucha was set upunder the auspices of the Matnas to help keep ussafe on the roads. There are currently 18 volunteersin the programme.

A group of volunteers are trained as car safetyseat consultants. They are actively involved inmaking sure all car drivers and passengers are

and

What YOU Can Do About the Traffic Problems in Modiinsafely restrained on car journeys - whether byseatbelts or child car seats, however long thejourney and whatever the ages of the occupants ofthe car. If you would like free advice on car safety orif you would like to join this growing band ofvolunteers, please contact Karen Isaacs on 972-7582 or Ilana Cohen on 972-3299. Every family thattravels safely is another family protected on thiscountry's dangerous roads. You can make adifference.

Another group of volunteers under the KehilaBetucha umbrella works with the Modiin TrafficEngineer in the city council. They report onproblems resulting from the road layout in the city.We can all name problematic junctions and roadsigns around Modiin. But did you know thatordinary citizens have actually made a differenceand improved many of the dangerous areas on ourroads? The process is not easy. The Traffic Engineerreports to the Traffic Committee in the Council thatmeets two or three times a year. These reports aresent to the Government Transport Office and onceapproved the implementations are returned to theCouncil's Traffic Committee. Even then, budgetsand beaurocracy mean that implementation is


lengthy. The volunteers have been responsible forcorrecting many problems to support safer driving;including the addition of stop signs and trafficmirrors at dangerous junctions. Many other life-saving measures are approved for implementation,but unfortunately the outgoing Council blockedthem due to a lack of funds. If you would you like tojoin this influential team of volunteers whose effortsstarted anew following the election of the new CityCouncil, please contact Dina Rozen on 972-1711.You can make a difference.

A growing group of gannanot have becomevolunteers and are working with their children onroad safety with the help of Kehila Betucha. If yourun a gan or mishpachton and would like to make

this issue a priority or if your child's gannenet isinterested, please contact Anat Helen-Tamari on972-1024.You can make a difference.

Kehila Betucha also works in schools withyouth groups and with the elderly. It organises theannual bicycle event with an emphasis on bicyclesafety. If you would like to become involved in anyaspect of road safety in Modiin or would like tosponsor a road safety campaign in Modiin, pleasecontact Miryam Shafir (Kehila BetuchaCoordinator) at the Matnas on 971-2210.

You can make a difference. Now you know how,pick up the phone and get involved. This is our city,help us keep it safe.

Karen Isaacs, Volunteer, Kehila Betucha

cont. from page 6

The Matnas welcomes everyone to join the Chanuka activities:

Thursday, December 18:

Monday, December 22:

Thursday, December 25:

Friday, December 26:

Ichud Forum (Unity of Secular and Religious) - series of lectures in Hebrew,

including Rabbi Warren Kay. 20:30 at the Moadon HaNoar.

Chanuka family tiyul - Mercaz HaMevakrim Bnei Dorom. Reservations and

details through the Matnas.

Book fair and Happening for pre-school teachers, parents and children.

Mercaz Legil Harach 17-19:00.

Ichud Forum (Unity of Secular and Religious) - Treasure Hunt around Modiin.


Huge selection of colors and styles for every occasion

A variety of festive Chanukah styles for sale now

Open: Sunday through Thursday 9:00-20:00 (straight)

Friday 9:00-14:00

Located in the Shilat shopping center next to Home Center

08-976-1872

Unique Assortment

of Plastic and Paper Goods

see that they aren't. We, ourselves, know howdifficult it is to speak in front of a room full of peoplein a language in which we are not completelycomfortable. This can be extremely difficult for us,the parents - the immigrants - despite the fact that wehave already arrived at a fully-formed concept ofourselves. Plus, we can be reasonably sure, asadults, that our peers will not laugh at us; forchildren this is not the case. Imagine how difficult itis for our kids.

Cognitively, a low level of verbal comprehensionwill impede a child's development. In the youngeryears, a child with poor verbal comprehension willnot pick up the basic concepts that serve as buildingblocks for future learning. Ask your children toname their body parts (names of specific fingers,wrist, elbow, ankle) or the names of specific animals(peacock, puppy, rhinoceros), you will likely besurprised at how much they do not know. As peopledevelop, a well-formed vocabulary is a prerequisitefor higher-order thinking. The way in which weunderstand and file away the subtle nuances of theworld around us is generally through vocabulary.Words serve as cognitive tools: The more specific aword we can find for a concept, the more effectivewe can be at dealing with it. For example, weencourage our children to be aware of their specificemotions. Part of the way that we do this is byhelping name their emotions. This enables childrento properly define the way they are feeling therebyputting the emotion in its proper proportion.

Language is acquired and developed throughdirect instruction and through frequent exposure.Parents and teachers, in a single-languageenvironment, work in collaboration to continuouslyteach children the meaning of many words. In thisway, children have the opportunity to hear wordsused many times in a variety of contexts until theycan accurately define them and eventually feelcomfortable using them.

Many of our children are not being provided thiscritical instruction or exposure to the Hebrew

language. As a result, they often reach a low level of

understanding of many words but do not achieve a

complete grasp of them. To compensate, they

become experts at picking things up from their

surroundings: young children simply copy what

they see the other kids doing. As they grow, they

develop great skill at gleaning the meaning of the

more complex words that they hear or read from the

words' context. This is a positive adaptive skill.

Nevertheless, the more effort children need to

expend in order to understand the words, the less

mental energy they retain for understanding the

more subtle implications of what is being said.

I don't recommend that we should be talking to

our children in Hebrew. Firstly, we are more

effective both as parents and educators in English

and it is essential that our kids see us at our best.

Secondly, speaking in Hebrew would deprive our

children of a valuable gift that we are naturally able

to impart - the gift of English. However, we must

appreciate that this gift is liable to come at a great

cost and we must do whatever is within our power to

reduce this cost.

Unless the

goal is for your children to return to your native,

English speaking country, there is no real need for

them to be on par with children their age abroad. The

rich environment that we provide at home will give

them a leg up on their Israeli peers at the university

level and in the job market. We need to provide them

with the self -concept , th inking ski l ls ,

comprehension ability, and expressive skills that

will get them there.

Our children need chugim

targeted at Hebrew enrichment a lot more than

they need English enrichment chugim.

Rashi Kuhr, an Educational Psychologist, has

worked extensively with the Efrat, Chashmonaim,

and Beit Shemesh communities. He runs a private

practise out of his home in Modiin. Tel: 08-9731156

cont. from page 1

Equipment for ganim

Creative center

Toys galore

Computer games

Dan-Gal Center, Kfar Rut, next to Bonnofait

08-976-1333

My ComputerFactory outlet of leading brand high quality computers

Repairs and network installation

Authorized distributor of Intel

Half price on ink heads and toner

for printers and fax machines

[email protected]

Dan-Gal Center, Kfar Rut, next to Bonnofait

Best prices - most convenient -

when your ink is finished call and we'll

replace it for you

08-976-0166, 068-224-660

@


Sarale's BakeryBorekas, rugelach, cakes, cookies, challot, rolls

Special for Shabbat - tasty sweet noodle kugel

We are taking orders for ganim and schools

Certified kosher under the supervision of the Modiin Rabbinate

Parve and milk products

Sunday-Thursday from 5:00-13:00 and 16:00-20:00

Fridays from 5:00 until one hour before Shabbat

Country Center, Emek Hahula, Modiin

Choose from a delicious assortment of sufganiot for Chanuka:

chocolate, butterscotch, strawberry or just plain

------- 08-972-5405 ----------

Chanukah - Is It All Potatoes?The potato latkes that we eat on Chanukah are

fried in oil. They are symbolic of the miracle thathappened with oil that lasted eight days after theMaccabees rededicated the Beth Hamikdash inJerusalem.

In actuality, one doesn't have to make thepancakes out of potatoes. There weren't even anypotatoes available to any Jewish cook until theSpanish conquest of Peru, some 1700 years after theMaccabean era approximately 165 B.C. Therefore,it is definitely the oil that connects thesescrumptious pancakes to Chanukah and notnecessarily the potatoes.

For those whom fried food is taboo, you can cutdown on the oil by frying the latkes with Pam spray.These pancakes can be made from almost any typeof vegetable such as zucchini, carrot or any othercombination. In some parts of the world peoplemake cheese pancakes to commemorate the story ofJudith. With her wisdom she saved the Jewishpeople from the enemy leader by giving him lots ofsalty cheese to eat which made him quite thirsty. Hethen drank too much wine and became drunk. Judithseized the opportunity and decapitated him.

In Israel, the fried sufgania is a classic treat, filledwith jelly, cream, chocolate - anything you canimagineor justplain sprinkledwithpowderedsugar.

Shoshana Weiss Epicure Catering,

Royal Hungarian Restaurant

, the owner ofreceived her formal training in nutrition right here inIsrael. She honed her practical skills in therestaurant business in Miami Beach, Florida andeventually branched out and opened her own healthfood restaurant in Miami. Below she shares with usone of the valuable recipes from her family's famous

from over 60 years.

6 big potatoes peeled1 large onion3 eggs1 teaspoon salt¼ teaspoon black pepper3 tablespoons flourVegetable oil or light olive oil

Grate the potatoes and the onion. Transfer thegrated potatoes and onion to a sieve, press out theexcess liquid, and beat the eggs into the potatoes.Add just enough flour to make a light batter and thenseason. In a heavy skillet heat about ¼ inch of oil,drop about 2 tablespoons of batter into the oil andflatten with a wooden spoon. Fry for about twominutes and then turn and fry them on the other side.Don't crowd the pan with too many pancakes or theywill become soggy. Remove the pancakes with aspatula, drain and place on paper towels. (You can

Potato Latkes

cont. on page 10


08-976-1839

Shilat ButcherKosher under the supervision of the Hevel Modiin Rabbinate

Fresh chicken, fish and meat

Special order whole turkey

We also carry your favorite American products:

Duncan Hines mixes

Graham cracker crusts

Ocean Spray cranberry sauce

Apple Snax apple sauces

Bosco chocolate syrup

Meal Mart gefilta fish loaf and chopped liver and much more!

Order in person or by phone

Delivery free for purchase over 150

Located in Shilat next to Wendy's Nursery

NIS

keep the latkes in a pan in a warm oven.)Serve hot with applesauce or sour cream. The

recipe makes about 40 latkes.

Another authentic recipe used on Chanukah bythe North Africa Jews is called Zalabia. It's easy tomake and does not require all the steps in making asufgania.

3-4 cups flour1 teaspoon dry yeast (or 25 grams fresh yeast)1 teaspoon sugar, pinch of salt1 tablespoon whiskyWater as neededSift the flour into a bowl, add the yeast and

sugar, and mix. Add enough water and mix it with a

Zalabia

wooden spoon to make a sticky dough (resemblessour cream). Cover and let it sit in a warm place torise double its size. In a small pot heat up the oil.When it's hot enough, wet your hands with oil andtake a small amount of dough, open it a little withyour fingers and drop it carefully into the oil - it willmake different shapes of Zalabia. (It's a very fluffyand light kind of sufgania.) Drain on a paper toweland sprinkle with powdered sugar or honey - somepeople like it with salt.**After the dough bubbles, it will makethe dough tougher.

do not mix,

Shoshana Weiss, Epicure Kosher Catering,Kosher LeMehadrin under the Modiin Rabbinate,08-972-8152 or 052-595-577.

cont. from page 9

Luciano's Italian Restaurant

Fresh pizza, pasta, vegetable calzones and moreKosher Lemehadrin

Open daily from 16:00-23:00 and motzai shabbatMevo Modiin

08-926-2526 / 066-374-514


Attention creative writers of all ages!

January 1, [email protected],

Want to win a free game of bowling?in Ligad Center (08-971-9286) is

sponsoring three games to the winner of our creativewriting contest.Now it's up to you to come up with a short story orpoem about Tu B'shvat (up to 200 words in English).All submissions must be received byJust e-mail us at write "contest"in the subject box. The winner's story will be printed inour next issue.

Cosmic Ball


Decorating Chanuka CandlesMaterials:

Instructions:

Chanukah candles and colourful wax strips (smallpackages are sold at most art supply shops).

Cut little bits of wax and kneed them until soft.Make any shapes you want. Use pressure to stickthe colourful shapes onto the Chanukah candles.You're all set. These candles are not only fun tomake but also fun to burn!Adina Yagod Morris is a registered art therapist andprofessional storyteller. Adina works in Jerusalem and ishoping to begin chugim at her studio in Modiin.Tel: 973-0455; 053-714-642

Sunday, December 21:Join AMIT Women for a musical storyhour in English for children ages 3-6.

45/1 Emek HaHula (Spitzer family) at 10:00.5 per child or 15 per family.NIS NIS

*

Eaten on Chanuka.I'm fried in oil

But I'm not a latka.I'm round and golden

Filled with jelly*.I'm a sufgania

Pop me in your belly.

jelly=jam

W or d J u m b l e

nkcauah _______________

katla __________________

gufasani _______________

reldide ________________

emasabcce ____________

Chanuka,latka,sufgania,dreidel,Maccabees

At Face to Face you can enjoy

profess ional treatments

in a quiet environment.

Do you want to looka n d f e e l b e t t e r ?

We invite you to become a part of the Face to Face family.

The treatments at Face to Face are:

Professional facial for all skin types

Deep cosmetic peeling

Biotechnolocigal lifting

Hair removal by Record-5

Epilation by all methods

Electrolysis

Cellulite treatments - excellent after birth

Professional sun bed - for safe tanning

Permanent make-up

Pedicure, manicure, nail add-ons

Professional make-up for special occasions

Our address is:

22/2 Nahal Hever Street, Modiin

Tel: 08-97-33-007

Treat a friend to:

Body peeling with exotic oils

Body massage

Documents

Modiinfo December 2003