4th Grade Mud Brick Activity

In conjunction with their Humash (Bible) studies, our 4th graders had the opportunity to reenact “avodah b’farech” (hard labor).  The children made mud bricks and experienced a taste of how our ancestors felt when they were slaves in Egypt.  After a brief orientation, where Pharaoh (Morah Berman) introduced the activity, the children proceeded outside to begin their work.  Parents and teachers took on the role of Egyptian taskmasters.  The children traveled to four “stations” to gather the necessary supplies: clay, water (Nile River), straw, and sand.  They then took on the challenge of forming their own mud brick.  The fruits of their hard labor are now drying on the classroom windowsills.  In the spring when our 4th graders sit at their family seder and sing Avadim Hayyinu, (We were slaves in Egypt), the words of the Hagaddah will ring true!