Yet Another First Day of School

This particular first day of school had four classes (the most, I think, one can have in a day here), two hours each. It was a pretty full day. However, I do think that it was a good one, at least so far.

My first class was my "special studies track" codes class, the one where I'm the only first year. It seemed like it would be a substantial amount of work, but I felt like I certainly understood what was going on in the first class. If I work, I think it should be fine. The only thing is that everyone else has taken the basic halakha lema'aseh class last year, or at least one or the other semester of it. It, of course, conflicts with this course on Thursdays, but I'm very much thinking about seeing if I can at least sit in on it on Mondays and go over as much of the material as I can on my own. (Yes, I'm crazy- this would be in addition to my 7 other classes. But it needs to happen: this course is going to be much more scattered in topic. Or maybe I can do it as an independent study next semester or next year with a more intensive focus or something.)

We had a full-class meeting for seminar, rather than meeting in our sections, and it was cute at the very least, and reasonably worthwhile, and I at least now know the faces (if probably not quite all of the names) of everyone in my class. And I now have my schedule (acquired from the registrar after this class), and I'm in the section with the teacher whom I prefer for this seminar, and with a teacher I want to learn with for my integrating seminar.

I did do the retreat to my room thing for lunch, which I should do less while it's still lovely out, and people are out in the courtyard, and I can even bring lunch down there and be social without having to buy lunch.

My Hebrew class was a dramatic surprise after Hebrew here last year. My teacher had us talk, in Hebrew, was patient, corrected our grammar while still drawing us out, and I actually felt comfortable enough to put together at least half of my sentences in a vaguely fluid way. I was really impressed. The course is going to focus on the dilemmas of Israeli society, but I think this one may really be worthwhile. At least, the first day was an awful lot of fun.

Miqraot Gdolot, my last class of the day, is divided up into two sections- one with one of the usual teachers for first year Miqraot Gdolot, and the other with the teacher we had all of last year for the subject- a beloved teacher, but I was beginning to feel like I needed a break from his teaching style in order to really get any more benefit from learning from him. Conveniently, the powers that be put those of us who were in mechina in the "new" teacher's class, and the "new" first years into the other class, with the teacher we learned with last year. So unfortunately it divides us up along the mechina/no mechina line, but at least for my sake, I'm glad to learn with a different teacher, whose style, at least on the first day, I found very sympatico and quite funny. He's intending to focus more on the parshanim than on the fundamental torah text, which I find to be a really fascinating idea- I'm looking forward to it.

And now that I've had about an hour off, I'm going to go and go to a study session focused on preparation for the High Holy Days, maybe will have a bit of time after that, and then ma'ariv and some preparation time. And I need to decide what days and times I'm working and let the folks in the library know. All I know is- Tuesday won't be a day for library work.

Yet Another First Day of School

This particular first day of school had four classes (the most, I think, one can have in a day here), two hours each. It was a pretty full day. However, I do think that it was a good one, at least so far.

My first class was my "special studies track" codes class, the one where I'm the only first year. It seemed like it would be a substantial amount of work, but I felt like I certainly understood what was going on in the first class. If I work, I think it should be fine. The only thing is that everyone else has taken the basic halakha lema'aseh class last year, or at least one or the other semester of it. It, of course, conflicts with this course on Thursdays, but I'm very much thinking about seeing if I can at least sit in on it on Mondays and go over as much of the material as I can on my own. (Yes, I'm crazy- this would be in addition to my 7 other classes. But it needs to happen: this course is going to be much more scattered in topic. Or maybe I can do it as an independent study next semester or next year with a more intensive focus or something.)

We had a full-class meeting for seminar, rather than meeting in our sections, and it was cute at the very least, and reasonably worthwhile, and I at least now know the faces (if probably not quite all of the names) of everyone in my class. And I now have my schedule (acquired from the registrar after this class), and I'm in the section with the teacher whom I prefer for this seminar, and with a teacher I want to learn with for my integrating seminar.

I did do the retreat to my room thing for lunch, which I should do less while it's still lovely out, and people are out in the courtyard, and I can even bring lunch down there and be social without having to buy lunch.

My Hebrew class was a dramatic surprise after Hebrew here last year. My teacher had us talk, in Hebrew, was patient, corrected our grammar while still drawing us out, and I actually felt comfortable enough to put together at least half of my sentences in a vaguely fluid way. I was really impressed. The course is going to focus on the dilemmas of Israeli society, but I think this one may really be worthwhile. At least, the first day was an awful lot of fun.

Miqraot Gdolot, my last class of the day, is divided up into two sections- one with one of the usual teachers for first year Miqraot Gdolot, and the other with the teacher we had all of last year for the subject- a beloved teacher, but I was beginning to feel like I needed a break from his teaching style in order to really get any more benefit from learning from him. Conveniently, the powers that be put those of us who were in mechina in the "new" teacher's class, and the "new" first years into the other class, with the teacher we learned with last year. So unfortunately it divides us up along the mechina/no mechina line, but at least for my sake, I'm glad to learn with a different teacher, whose style, at least on the first day, I found very sympatico and quite funny. He's intending to focus more on the parshanim than on the fundamental torah text, which I find to be a really fascinating idea- I'm looking forward to it.

And now that I've had about an hour off, I'm going to go and go to a study session focused on preparation for the High Holy Days, maybe will have a bit of time after that, and then ma'ariv and some preparation time. And I need to decide what days and times I'm working and let the folks in the library know. All I know is- Tuesday won't be a day for library work.