My very first discussion with SOS International was learning about their mission and vision, which strives to enrich next-generation Jewish identity and values through international exchanges so next-generation Jews will embrace their Jewish identities and revitalize Jewish communities around the world. My initial thought was, how am I going to do this as I am not Jewish? When I looked at this mission and vision through the education lens and how we educators at the Adelson Educational Campus could bring with us new tools, strategies and pedagogy in teaching in order to engage students in finding their voice, the voice of their personal identity, their voice as a Hungarian, and their voice as a Hungarian Jew, I mistakenly came with the perception that we had so much to give, that maybe we could help fill in holes and gaps for teachers and students in Hungary.
As I was sitting outside on the beautiful outdoors grounds of Lauder, I was mesmerized by the young grade school children. They were playing, exploring, using their imagination and interacting with one another. I saw teams of girls grabbing armfuls of leaves to make the pile of leaves higher and higher. I saw boys on the big disk swing working together to make the swing go faster and faster, and I even watched a completely organic game of throwing a ball to one another get bigger and bigger. In all of this, there was not one time 
that I saw these young students bicker, argue, fight over the ball, or whose rules to play by. There was no yelling or tattling because someone was not playing fair, nor did I have to see a teacher step in to redirect behavior, or coach a student to apologize to another student. Now, this is not to say that Hungarian students are perfect. As I mentioned in an earlier blog post, kids are kids, they make mistakes, they push the bounds and they are impulsive, this is their job as a kid. It did make me question though, why could they interact so well together, so effectively that a game of catch went on and on with smiles and laughter? Why is it that I see my students have difficulty compromising, negotiating rules, becoming upset when things may not go their way or butt heads with another student? Watch video here
As I sat there observing, I began to think that maybe we, in America, have missed the boat. Has American education been so focused on academics at a young age that our children can read and write by age 3 but have not learned or had time to practice how to have reciprocal conversations? Have we skipped a whole chunk of developmental learning about how we treat and show respect to one another? The Lauder school students discover their world outside playing, learning and interacting. The time and opportunity they have to develop relationships and learn to interact with one another in an open area that inspires curiosity, imagination and social interaction seems to be working. When I look through this lens, I see that I am the receiver, not the giver of an educational gift. What a gift I have been given to understand that what I do in the schools as a counselor is so important. That social-emotional education and soft skills development is key to having a successful up and coming generation. That there is value to teaching children respect, being of good character, learning to make moral decisions, develop empathy and show that kindness, communication, working together and encouraging others is how we will be able to peacefully move forward together for a positive future.
