Meet the 6th Graders of the Hand in Hand Kfar Saba "Alif-Beit" School

Meet Nay, Hadir, Sahara, Yotam, Evyatar and Hamudi—6th grade students at the Hand in Hand Kfar Saba “Alif-Beit” school. They met in preschool 7 years ago, and this June they will be graduating from elementary school. We sat down and asked them some big questions—about what it’s like studying in a bilingual school, how they have experienced the past year of war, and how they think peace can be created.

“We always made up.”

“Yotam, do you remember how you and I fought during soccer practice—and then we made up?” asked Hamudi, a 6th grade student at the HIH Kfar Saba school. “That happened a lot, but we always made up.” This small interaction exemplifies a core pillar of Hand in Hand’s education—fostering mutual understanding and compassion in students’ daily interactions.

The students agreed that learning in an inclusive bilingual environment has shaped who they are. “Here we learn about Jewish and Arab culture, and how to speak both languages,” shared Evyatar.

“It’s a good feeling,” shared Hadir, “going into a store with a Jewish seller and knowing I can speak with them. Or when I meet someone Jewish at the mall, and I can speak freely with them, and move between the different languages spoken there.”

Sahara added, “People look at me like I’m strange when I respond in Arabic.”

“I’m proud of myself for speaking Hebrew at a high level. My Hebrew is at a native level, like my Arabic,” Hamudi shared.

“At the end of the day, we’re all one people—and we need to accept one another.” — Hamudi, HIH 6th Grader

They also shared their favorites words: “Bideesh—I don’t want—is my favorite word in Arabic,” said Yotam. “The funniest word in Hebrew is ‘mazalist’—someone lucky,” Hadir shared.

“That was the first time I heard a siren.”

When asked about the war, students responded candidly. “Have you noticed that during this war, there’s never been a rocket siren during physical education?” said Yotam. Nay added, “I remember one time in class, we were speaking about rocket sirens—and then there was an actual siren.”

“The first time we heard a siren was when Iran attached,” Hadir shared. “I was very afraid. It was the first time I heard a siren, and the first time I went into a bomb shelter.”

What are their main takeaways from their years at “Alif-Beit”?

“The Iftar (the school’s post-Ramadan feast) was one of the best events of the year,” remarked Yotam.

“My main takeaway is self-confidence,” shared Nay, while Evyatar said his biggest takeaway from school is learning “how to behave, how to talk to other people—teachers and also friends.” Others mentioned language skills, and their knowledge of Arabic.

“Respect what’s different.”

And when it comes to peace?

Sahara said, “to make peace, you have to respect what’s different, and listen to both sides of the story.”

“I think we can make peace if both sides reconcile and make up,” said Hamudi. “Nothing justifies this conflict. At the end of the day, we’re all one people—and we need to accept one another.”

Yotam highlighted the complexity of the issue, “It’s not like when we use the ‘dialogue chair’ at school. It’s more complicated. I have no way of doing it—but I hope it happens.”

“Both sides need to compromise, and in the end, both sides need to feel like they got what they wanted—but not all the way,” said Evyatar.