In a bid to infuse creativity and strengthen ties to Judaism, the Teacher Institute for the Arts has been training school teams from North American day schools to integrate visual arts into formal Jewish education. Allyson Israel, the interim head of school of Kinneret Day School, and Marjorie Hirsch, mentor teacher, who were participants in the summer 2023 cohort, recently showcased the “Mentsch Maker” activity during a school-wide in-service on November 10. This initiative delves into midot, moral virtues or character traits, using chevruta learning, poetry and collage art to explore values like compassion, truth, humility and justice. The program, ideally, encourages participants to create their own poetry and collages. This was a way to enhance the teaching community and build connections with teachers who often do have the opportunity to interact.