1. Build a zimriyah (song festival) around the songs on How Good.
Have the cantor, music director, or a talented madrich or madrichah teach students songs from the CD. Each grade learns one or two songs—there are fourteen songs in all. Invite families (grandparents too) to a joyful musical event in which their children perform these uplifting melodies. The audience will get such naches! You can even sell the CDs at the event or give as a gift to each family.
2. Weave the How Good songs into your Kol Yisrael curriculum.
Have students listen to and sing along with songs from How Good that are part of their Kol Yisrael curriculum. Teachers will delight as their students gain proficiency in reciting and understanding prayers, such as Modeh Ani, Barchu, and Mi Chamocha, while singing along with How Good. Provide a copy of How Good to each teacher of Kol Yisrael.
3. Sprinkle How Good songs into all of your family programs.
Pipe the music of How Good in your halls to set the mood for Jewish learning as parents enter the synagogue. To help build a sense of community and continuity, lead families in singing “The World is a Circle.” Begin or conclude a family program by singing a prayer, such as Mi Chamocha, which families will chant at your Shabbat morning service.
4. Engage your kinesthetic learners through the music of How Good.
Ask students to listen to the music and words of one of the compositions on How Good. Invite students to create hand movements and dance steps that express the mood of the song. As a class, choreograph and practice an original dance to the music of How Good.
5. Make How Good part of a Shabbat Box.
Prepare a box of Shabbat items to be taken home by a different student each week. Include a How Good CD along with Shabbat items, such as candlesticks, a hallah cover, and a Kiddush cup. Place a journal in the Shabbat box for families to write about their Shabbat experience and to list their favorite song from How Good. Encourage families to purchase their own copy of How Good to enhance their home celebration of Shabbat.
6. Perform a mitzvah using the music of How Good.
Begin class each day with a few songs from How Good. Once your students have mastered three or four songs, take them to a senior center where students can perform these new songs. The seniors will love seeing and hearing your students—and your students will uphold the mitzvah of hiddur p’nei zakein, honoring the elderly.
7. Use the songs of How Good to empower parents of early childhood students.
Ask the Family Educator or Preschool Director to include the music of How Good in programs designed for parents of young children. Provide opportunities for parents to hear and learn to sing these songs. Parents can then sing these songs with their children at home and at your family Shabbat services. Encourage parents to have their own CD that they and their children can sing along with at home and on the go.
8. Prepare your students to lead Shabbat morning prayers with How Good.
Teach, or have the cantor or music specialist teach your students several songs from How Good. Invite parents and grandparents to attend a Shabbat morning family service as their children lead them in a morning of prayer and celebration. Encourage each family to have their own copy of How Good. When parents and children listen to and sing along with How Good at home, they will feel confident and competent reciting prayers at your family service.
9. Offer a parent education program around Siddur Mah Tov and the music of How Good.
Design an adult education class that introduces parents to the liturgy of Shabbat morning. Provide each participant with a copy of Siddur Mah Tov (Reform or Conservative edition) and How Good. The music of How Good will help participants recite the prayers with greater fluency as well as gain a deeper understanding of the Shabbat morning prayers.
10. Include the music of How Good in class ceremonies and celebrations.
Add beauty and meaning to ceremonies such as an Aleph Class Consecration through the music of How Good. Teach, or have the cantor or music specialist teach, your students songs from How Good. Parents and grandparents will kvell as they listen to their children sing these wonderful, new, and spiritually moving songs.
