Interviews: Primary school students Ya’ara Zer and Aya Hamdan (and Yoni Zer)

On the day of her interview, Ya’ara was in quarantine due to a positive COVID test. She was already feeling fine, and ready to talk about school, her friends, her plans and the benefits of binational education. Her little brother Yoni, who is finishing first grade, insisted on getting in on the interview. Aya is a busy girl, and she only found time to talk on Friday at noon. She shyly explained why it is that she likes school, her teachers and friends.

What grade are you in and who is your teacher?

Yaara: I’m 9 ½, finishing third grade. My homeroom teacher was Noa. My family moved to Wahat al-Salam/Neve Shalom from Karme Yosef, but I was in the primary school from first grade.

Aya: I’m finishing fourth grade. I’ll turn ten at the beginning of next year. My teacher was Ilanit.

Yoni: I am finishing first grade. My teacher is Nadwa. She’s pretty fun.

What do you like about school?

Yaara: I really like learning languages. Now we are learning English as a third language. I learned a little Arabic in kindergarten and more since I got here. This year we learned all the English letters, and I can read a little. (Language is, of course, a crucial part of the school curriculum. Starting next year, the school will be opening a language center, to make learning language even more fun and more interesting to the students.)

I like music lessons. I’m in the school choir. We sing songs that have verses in both Hebrew and Arabic, which is great. I have a lot of friends – Arab and Jewish. We like to play card games during breaks. Our favorite is one called speed; you have to play really fast.

Aya: There are nice teachers. I love them – at least most of them. I like that we have the chance to learn a lot of things, especially since the school is bilingual, and sometimes English, as well. We have art, too.

I love HOTAM: We talk about all sorts of holidays for Arabs and Jews, we learn about our religions, and we do all kinds of art projects that are related to the holidays. Every month or two we change subjects. (The HOTAM Education, Culture, Tradition curriculum, which includes subjects, lesson plans and guidance for each grade level, has been taught for the past few years in the primary school. In addition to learning about one’s own religion and traditions and that of others, the curriculum leaves room for teachers to develop their own lesson plans.)

I love Arabic and Hebrew, math is fun, and I like art. We draw, make things from clay. I like to draw and paint.

During breaks, we play on the equipment, and the girls like to dance; sometimes we play board games in the classroom, or I read a book.

Yoni: I like everything!

What else do you like to do?

Ya’ara: There are horses in Wahat al Salam/Neve Shalom, and I discovered I really love horse riding. I did a riding camp last year, and I hope to do it again this summer. I really love to read. Really, really love to read. Sometimes I read on the computer, or look things up on Google, and sometimes my mom lets me use her E-reader. I really love animals.

My favorite holiday is Hanukkah, partly because it’s my birthday. But we get and give presents, and I like to feel warm and cheerful when it’s raining outside.

Aya: I do after-school classes in hip-hop, chess and playing the oud. I’m pretty good at chess, and it’s fun. But I don’t have a lot of extra time, with all of my after-school classes. I get home by six, and I go to bed early on school nights. When my parents go out for a bit, I watch my little brother, who is three (I have an older brother who is almost 13; he’s already out of primary school). When I have a bit of time, I like to watch videos on the computer or phone.

Yoni: I do tricking (a form of acrobatics), soccer, theater and play the recorder. They are all fun, but I really like tricking. Don’t worry, it’s safe. We do it with mats. I am looking forward to next week, when there will be a year-end pool party, right on my birthday. We are going to celebrate a few birthdays together.

(The extracurricular classes are an important part of the school day, and children can pick up to four. These classes, from sports to nature to photography and theater, are as important to the children’s development as they are to the development of friendship groups of Arab and Jewish children, and to the continuation of their bilingual education in informal, specialized settings.)

What will you do over summer?

Ya’ara: I’ll do the school’s summer program and a dance camp. Then we get “Grandma camp” – a week with my grandmother.

Aya: I am going to be in a summer program at the Open House in Ramla. I also will be doing dance at Tal Shahar (a moshav nearby). I do acrobatics, ballet and hip-hop. Hip-hop was always my dream, so if I have to choose, that’s what I go with.

You all live at Wahat al-Salam/Neve Shalom. What do you like about living here?

Ya’ara: Besides the horses, I like that my girlfriends live nearby – my friend lives right across from me. I have a lot of friends – Jewish and Arab.

Aya: It is fun to go to the pool. It’s nice that it is a small village, so even at the pool, I know almost everyone there. And I like that I don’t need to get into a car to visit my friends. The only thing that’s missing is a store. There is only a tiny one, so I have to ask my parents to buy me what I want when they go out.

Yoni: I have a lot of friends – even ones in third grade!

What do you think is special about learning in a school with Arabs and Jews together?

Yoni: I love making peace!

Ya’ara: I really love our school, because I love peace. I think it is really nice that we Arabs and Jews learn all together.

I can tell you, a lot of people try to make peace, but they do it the wrong way. You can’t use force to make peace; you have to be sensitive and ask first. Should I be prime minister, you ask? A lot of people have told me that. I think I would like to try to be prime minister one day, and to make peace.

Aya: In our school, you can make more friends, get to know a bit more about the world. I get along with just about everyone. We learn that people have all kinds of religions – it is not just ours. And some of the things we learn are outside the regular lessons. We learn how to behave around other people, for example, ones who speak a different language and stuff like that.

When I am big, I want to be a teacher – to work with children – or to be prime minister, so I can make peace.