The Moriah kindergarten children entered their classroom this week and noticed that something was different. An area of the room was transformed into Gan Eden, with many beautiful plants. Next to each plant was a tray of food, i.e., carrots, pickles, olives and raisins. In the center of the garden was a tall plant, with a tempting tray of candy right next to it. The children were told that they may eat anything in the garden. There was, however, one plant from which they could NOT eat; that was the candy (the eitz ha’daat- Tree of Knowledge). The children could begin to relate to Adam and Chava and how they must have felt as they were sorely tempted to eat from the forbidden fruit.

A discussion about temptation ensued. Teachers and students discussed what it feels like to want something that one can’t have. Should a person take it, even though they know they’re not allowed to? What will happen if they take it anyway? The children shared some of their personal experiences with temptation. The children concluded that it does not feel good to “do the wrong thing;” they would rather feel proud of their behavior. Also, there can sometimes be negative consequences when they don’t do the right thing.

The morot were so proud of the self control displayed by all of the children, who refrained from taking any candy; the students were also so proud of themselves. While the story of Gan Eden may have resulted in negative consequences, the experience in the Moriah classroom ended positively, with each child receiving a piece of the eitz ha’daat.