Ruth Youth Wing

During Sukkot, we turned back the clock to the 1950s, with costumed actors representing famous figures of the period such as Prime Ministers Golda Meir and David Ben-Gurion, and such noted singers as Shoshana Damari and Yaffa Yarkoni. Families joined in folk dancing, sing-alongs, and creating Sukkah decorations.		Making Hanukkah Miracles: The wonders of art came to life through Hanukkah workshops, with children creating bead paintings, Hanukkah lamps, oil lamps, and more. Surprises, riddles, and story-telling provided hours of fun for the entire family.		Toy Story: Israel’s Children in the Early Years: In celebration of the 60th anniversary of the State of Israel, this special display, supported by our British Friends (BFAMI), featured Israeli children’s toys and games from the early years of the State, serving as a focus of attraction for special activities.
During the festivals of Purim and Passover, hundreds of children and their families enjoyed creative workshops, with entertainment provided by actors, musicians, magicians, story-tellers, jugglers, and clowns.
Participants in the Triptychon high school art matriculation program spent an art marathon weekend at the nature reservation of Ein Gedi, the start of a period of concentrated work culminating in their final exhibition in April 2009. The program is supported by the Winnick family, Los Angeles, and Stella Fischbach, New York.		In December and January, during the Gaza conflict, the Museum, assisted by the Joshua Family Fund – Israel, hosted over 1,000 children and their families from Sderot and other towns in the southern conflict zone, providing them with a day of fun activities at the Museum, a welcome respite from the hostilities in their region.		Kindergarten Teachers from East Jerusalem: Our Umm el-Fahm project has motivated other Arab teachers to utilize the Museum’s training facilities. Here, a group of kindergarten teachers participate in a training seminar and workshop in the Youth Wing library as part of a special program supported by our German Friends.
“Open Window Dialogue” Project: By the end of the current school year, 2,500 school children from the Israeli Arab city of Umm el-Fahm will have visited the Museum for a full day of programming in the Youth Wing as part of a special project made possible through the generosity of the Fine Foundation, Pittsburgh. This exciting twoyear initiative to bring thousands of Umm el-Fahm’s students and their teachers to the Museum will culminate in June 2009 with the creation of a series of hilltop sculptures in the town, designed jointly by Umm el- Fahm students and teachers, and Youth Wing artists and teachers.		In the Youth Wing Library, On The Map, an exhibition of maps of Israel, featured a wide variety of maps printed in children’s books, as well as on everyday objects, such as pocket knives, pencil cases and erasers, and cookie tins. As visual symbols of the nation, the maps in this exhibition, which was generously supported by the estate of the late Marcella Louis Brenner, stimulated renewed appreciation of this familiar aspect of Israeli culture.
		Free entrance for all children on Tuesdays and Saturdays is provided courtesy of Canadian Friends of the Israel Museum and the David and Inez Myers Foundation, Cleveland, Ohio. Free entry for children is provided during Sukkot, by Ernst and the late Jacqueline Weil, Zurich; during Hanukkah, in memory of Bessie Rose Guberman, Winnipeg, Canada; during Purim, by Malcolm Thomson, New York; and during Passover, by Sandy Batkin in loving memory of his wife Ruth Batkin. Free entrance on Yom Ha’atzmaut was provided courtesy of Joyce and Edward Strauss, Solana Beach, California.