This year, the Jewish calendar creates an oddity in that the first month or so of school is the month of Elul rather than Tishrei. We can glean an educational message from this unusual turn of the calendar.

We generally consider Elul as the time to begin internal preparations for the High Holidays, dedicating time to ruminating on our lives and reflecting on how to live more intentionally and treat people with greater kindness. A classic midrash connects this idea to the start of school.

In several places, the midrash points out that during the month of Elul, Noah sent out the dove to find dry land (Midrash Lekach Tov 8:6:1); Moses’s parents reconnected leading to Moses’s birth six months later (Mekhilta de-Rabbi Simeon bar Yohai; Pesikta Rabbati 43); and King David and Batsheva married leading to Solomon’s birth (Zohar Hakdama 1:8; Midrash). Each of these primary events in and of itself did not change the course of the world. Rather, they each set the groundwork for changes which brought the world closer to God.

• When the ark came to rest, God enacted the Covenant of the Rainbow with Noah. This covenant includes the Seven Noahide Laws, the first to define morality for the human race.

• Building on that, Moses grew into his role as representative of both God and Israel to bring the wisdom of the Torah to the people of Israel, the moral leaders of the world.

• Even further, Solomon built the First Temple, a place to encounter the Divine and reconnect with the Creator and the Source of all morality.

Elul plays the role of creating the space for preparation, and for gathering the right materials, the right people, and the right plans for future success.

The same rings true for Jewish day schools, especially this year. Elul serves the purpose of getting the students in the right space, both physically and mentally, so that they can develop positive work habits and plans for their year-long success. The first week of school holds much promise and potential while the teachers bring out months of planning, and shower the children with their friendship and support (see here for a great article on this topic). As veteran teachers know, when things in the classroom feel right in Kislev, it is a result of things going right in the preparation and execution of Elul.

Elul Sameach and Shanah Tovah.