By Jonah I., 6th Grade Student, Krieger Schechter Day School of Chizuk Amuno Congregation
Ever since he arrived at Krieger Schechter Day School in 2015, Rabbi Moshe Schwartz, KSDS head of school, has entertained our community with his comical and informative videos. The subjects of his videos vary from holidays, to school promotional videos, and even ones that honor retiring teachers.
Rabbi Schwartz’s videos are always clever, funny, and creative. He attributes his talent and knack for dreaming up these fun projects to his father. “My dad was always really funny, and he was a really funny rabbi, and so I think my dad lives in me,” Schwartz says. His dad passed away 15 years ago; the two shared a love for a good laugh.
This is not the first time Schwartz has made such videos. At both of his previous schools, he created similar videos to engage and entertain his school community. “My job is very serious most of the time, and running a school is a very stressful position. I found that spending 15 minutes every two weeks filming a humorous video was both enjoyable and therapeutic for me.”
Schwartz is always on the lookout for his next video idea. He explained that most of his ideas come to him in the middle of the night. Many concepts center around his extensive collection of costumes stored in his office closet. Schwartz’s collection includes costumes of Chinese food, Rubik’s cubes, pizza slices, grapes, and a pencil.
Creating fun videos over promotional or informational ones is Schwartz’s preference, but he always makes sure that each project includes an educational element. “Each of the fun videos is supposed to teach something. Even though it is a silly joke, like picking apples for Rosh Hashanah, becoming an eraser for Yom Kippur, or using the chicken which taught about kapparot, the goal is to teach people,” he explains.
Of all the videos, Schwartz’s favorite is the one about the Abominable Snowman that focuses on the excessive number of weather-related school closings and delays in the winter of 2018. In the video, an explorer (aka: a KSDS teacher) is searching for a Yeti, and when he finds the Yeti, he requests a snow closing but is disappointed when there is only a delay.
Schwartz always makes sure that the production process does not take too long. “Usually, we try to make sure the filming takes less than 30 minutes from start to finish,” he says. “The Rosh Hashanah video took less than 10 minutes to film.”
In addition, recruiting actors is never hard for Rabbi Schwartz. He often simply approaches students and asks if they want to participate in an upcoming video. Some students even ask to appear in a video.
Schwartz’s videos help students, faculty, and parents feel like they are part of a shared community by acting together, laughing together, and even learning together. The videos have become a highlight of the school year.
Jmore Juniors Noah S. and Eli S. take a look at the differences between the Jewish communities of Baltimore and Chicago.
Madeline L., a seventh grade student at Krieger Schechter Day School, writes about the phenomenon that has been Starbucks over the past half-century.
An eighth grade student at Krieger Schechter Day School, Jmore Juniors writer Micah B answers an array of questions from his peers.
Jmore Junior Eitan Beck writes about the pros and cons of having electric cars in the future.