The Setting For Apple Days
At teacher joins children at eye level during a class meeting.
Throughout Apple Days, I tried to create a glimpse of Katy living within concentric circles of community - her family, her class, her school, her synagogue, her neighborhood. Surrounded by people who care about her, Katy feels known.
If Katy were a real child, she would attend nursery and religious school at Temple Sinai. The many school scenes and caring classroom environments in Apple Days were all inspired by my experience as a parent and teacher at Temple Sinai in Washington, DC.
Apple Days takes place in a fictional town inspired by the community of Chevy Chase, DC. This picturesque neighborhood with its well-travelled sidewalks conjures a community feeling that can be hard to find today. Children walk or bike to neighborhood schools and neighbors find time to connect with each other on their front lawns or porches. Connecticut Avenue runs north-south through the neighborhood with its beloved toy store, an old-fashioned movie theater, and restaurants and shops that draw relaxed foot-traffic.
The story is set in early fall just before Rosh Hashanah, so I included errands that children do at the beginning of the school year, like buying new school shoes and getting a haircut. In the story, Sam’s shoe store and Carla’s beauty salon were inspired by actual places: Ramer’s Shoes and Salon Familia. Katy goes apple picking at Homestead Farms, a popular destination for fruit-picking throughout the year in Montgomery County, MD, just outside of Washington, DC.
If Katy were a real child, she would attend nursery and religious school at Temple Sinai. The many school scenes and caring classroom environments in Apple Days were all inspired by my experience as a parent and teacher at Temple Sinai in Washington, DC.
Apple Days takes place in a fictional town inspired by the community of Chevy Chase, DC. This picturesque neighborhood with its well-travelled sidewalks conjures a community feeling that can be hard to find today. Children walk or bike to neighborhood schools and neighbors find time to connect with each other on their front lawns or porches. Connecticut Avenue runs north-south through the neighborhood with its beloved toy store, an old-fashioned movie theater, and restaurants and shops that draw relaxed foot-traffic.
The story is set in early fall just before Rosh Hashanah, so I included errands that children do at the beginning of the school year, like buying new school shoes and getting a haircut. In the story, Sam’s shoe store and Carla’s beauty salon were inspired by actual places: Ramer’s Shoes and Salon Familia. Katy goes apple picking at Homestead Farms, a popular destination for fruit-picking throughout the year in Montgomery County, MD, just outside of Washington, DC.
