tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6003330.post4597807936318947786..comments2024-03-20T06:29:27.167-04:00Comments on The Rabbi with a Blog (Rabbi Jason Miller): Technology and Summer CampRabbi Jason Millerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07805550465729805847noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6003330.post-760553498142438422011-07-23T16:18:07.302-04:002011-07-23T16:18:07.302-04:00Personally, I think they should be unplugged. I ne...Personally, I think they should be unplugged. I never allow my kid to be online all the time. There are family activities that we do so they are encouraged to unplug. It always work.Ruby - Missouri Summer Camphttp://www.bearriverranch.com/missouri_summer_camp.htmlnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6003330.post-47932828833870354682010-07-29T18:07:58.284-04:002010-07-29T18:07:58.284-04:00Rachel Kapen's op-ed in the Oakland Press (GUE...<a href="http://www.theoaklandpress.com/articles/2010/07/25/opinion/doc4c4cd6436961a311972726.txt" rel="nofollow">Rachel Kapen's op-ed in the Oakland Press (GUEST OPINION: Camp helps teach a history lesson)</a>Rabbi Jason Millerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07805550465729805847noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6003330.post-26764372981233483452010-07-29T18:07:20.744-04:002010-07-29T18:07:20.744-04:00From Rachel Kapen's op-ed in the Oakland Press...From Rachel Kapen's op-ed in the Oakland Press:<br /><br />GUEST OPINION: Camp helps teach a history lesson<br />Published: Sunday, July 25, 2010<br /><br />By Rachel Kapen<br /><br />My eldest granddaughter, Kayla Sara, is 13 years old and in May we celebrated her bat mitzvah, which is a Jewish girl’s coming of age religiously.<br /><br />She attended Camp Tamarack in Ortonville this summer as she did in previous years. However, she surprised us when she declared that this summer she chose to be in the Pioneer program, which entails much harder outdoor activities, such as swimming and horse-riding. Most of all, it means going without the basics of the home conveniences that we take for granted, such as electricity.<br /><br />In her first letter to me her savta (Hebrew for grandma) and saba (Hebrew for grandfather), she mentioned the fact of no electricity saying it really doesn’t bother her. She also told us there is a limited number of showers and a limited time for warm ones and that so far she has had a warm shower, which also didn’t bother her. This is coming from a girl who is used to all the conveniences of a West Bloomfield home and who just recently became an enthusiastic user of Facebook.<br /><br />I used this camp experience to teach her of my own history, such as telling her that her saba raba (great-grandfather) in pre-State Eretz Israel — Land of Israel, used to use wood to enable us to have hot water for a shower and he did it once a week, on Friday afternoon. And speaking of electricity, I reminded her that I didn’t see a television set until I came to America in the early 1960s and that to keep warm in the winter we used a kerosene lamp.<br /><br />Her great-grandparents were real pioneers who came to their ancestral land, the Land of Israel to rebuild it. Yet, being in the Pioneer program, Kayla is a modern-day pioneer of sorts who duplicates their experiences.<br /><br />However, this Pioneer experience of our granddaughter is more than having a different camp experience. It teaches her what it means to live without all the conveniences they, and we all, take for granted.<br /><br />What a great opportunity it is for the summer camp when there is no school and homework to teach our children first-hand that there is life beyond instant-texting, Facebook and the like.<br /><br /><i>Rachel Kapen of West Bloomfield Township was born and raised in Israel. She has taught Hebrew in Israel and the United States and has written for New York’s Lamishpaha Hebrew Monthly.</i>Rabbi Jason Millerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07805550465729805847noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6003330.post-4514492677159579892010-07-29T18:07:07.676-04:002010-07-29T18:07:07.676-04:00From Rachel Kapen's op-ed in the Oakland Press...From Rachel Kapen's op-ed in the Oakland Press:<br /><br />GUEST OPINION: Camp helps teach a history lesson<br />Published: Sunday, July 25, 2010<br /><br />By Rachel Kapen<br /><br />My eldest granddaughter, Kayla Sara, is 13 years old and in May we celebrated her bat mitzvah, which is a Jewish girl’s coming of age religiously.<br /><br />She attended Camp Tamarack in Ortonville this summer as she did in previous years. However, she surprised us when she declared that this summer she chose to be in the Pioneer program, which entails much harder outdoor activities, such as swimming and horse-riding. Most of all, it means going without the basics of the home conveniences that we take for granted, such as electricity.<br /><br />In her first letter to me her savta (Hebrew for grandma) and saba (Hebrew for grandfather), she mentioned the fact of no electricity saying it really doesn’t bother her. She also told us there is a limited number of showers and a limited time for warm ones and that so far she has had a warm shower, which also didn’t bother her. This is coming from a girl who is used to all the conveniences of a West Bloomfield home and who just recently became an enthusiastic user of Facebook.<br /><br />I used this camp experience to teach her of my own history, such as telling her that her saba raba (great-grandfather) in pre-State Eretz Israel — Land of Israel, used to use wood to enable us to have hot water for a shower and he did it once a week, on Friday afternoon. And speaking of electricity, I reminded her that I didn’t see a television set until I came to America in the early 1960s and that to keep warm in the winter we used a kerosene lamp.<br /><br />Her great-grandparents were real pioneers who came to their ancestral land, the Land of Israel to rebuild it. Yet, being in the Pioneer program, Kayla is a modern-day pioneer of sorts who duplicates their experiences.<br /><br />However, this Pioneer experience of our granddaughter is more than having a different camp experience. It teaches her what it means to live without all the conveniences they, and we all, take for granted.<br /><br />What a great opportunity it is for the summer camp when there is no school and homework to teach our children first-hand that there is life beyond instant-texting, Facebook and the like.<br /><br /><i>Rachel Kapen of West Bloomfield Township was born and raised in Israel. She has taught Hebrew in Israel and the United States and has written for New York’s Lamishpaha Hebrew Monthly.</i>Rabbi Jason Millerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07805550465729805847noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6003330.post-26740804917222054882010-05-13T22:32:29.523-04:002010-05-13T22:32:29.523-04:00I think you're right on Mark. There's alwa...I think you're right on Mark. There's always going to be a period of "getting used to" new technology. There are always going to be people who feel that new technology is either intrusive or unnecessary. Think of all the people who held out on getting a cellphone because they didn't want to be <i>that</i> connected. <br /><br />There will be a time when all campers are allowed to bring their cellphone to camp, its use will just have to be reserved for certain times. <br /><br />There are already some summer camps that are employing such guidelines. It doesn't seem fitting for camp, but I'm sure the first electrical outlets that were installed in camp cabins were met with dissent.Rabbi Jason Millerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07805550465729805847noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6003330.post-58748650754972179212010-05-13T22:21:31.184-04:002010-05-13T22:21:31.184-04:00I think ya gotta leave the electronics at home. Pa...I think ya gotta leave the electronics at home. Part of the camping experience is being in nature, spending time with those you're with and getting away from one's everyday existence to experience something else.Stephen Sussmannoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6003330.post-86724644516534334162010-05-13T04:24:25.139-04:002010-05-13T04:24:25.139-04:00too Young
However, don’t you think that children ...too Young<br /><br />However, don’t you think that children are starting way too young in owning their first phone? Recent study shows that the average age of children receiving a cell phone from their parents is 5 years old.<br /><br />Actually, the right age to give these handsets to children is a debatable issue. Some parents will say that 5 is too young, and children should get their first phone only at age 11 or 12. While for others, the moment that children start to go to school or have friends, they should be tracked properly.penelopenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6003330.post-18181872908819297422010-05-12T20:40:48.164-04:002010-05-12T20:40:48.164-04:00I'm sure there was a time when it was thought ...I'm sure there was a time when it was thought to be inappropriate that we brought walkmen to camp. 20 years from now we will asking if other technologies are appropriate for camp such as pet robots and hologram communication devices, while ipads and iphones will be commonplace.Mark Blitzhttp://facebook.com/mblitznoreply@blogger.com