Jeffrey Kobrin

Looking to the Parasha to Inspire Our Parenting

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May 1, 2025, 9:23 AM

The Awkward Slider

“Sticks and stones will break my bones, but names will never hurt me,” was the mantra I was taught in elementary school as a defense against verbal bullying. Turns out, though, that name calling can actually hurt. A lot. ...

Feb 12, 2025, 2:16 PM

Feared and Loved

Our Torah reading of Yitro begins with a heartfelt reunion between Moshe and his father-in-law Yitro, who listened eagerly to all that had happened to the People of Israel and the Egyptians. The Torah describes Yitro’s reaction to the...

Jan 8, 2025, 11:36 PM

Who’d Have Thunk?

George Washington, Ben Franklin, and Thomas Jefferson didn’t go around saying how fascinating it was to live in the past. They just, well, lived. Historian David McCullough notes that the founders “were living in their present.” The Avot had...

Dec 26, 2024, 9:24 PM

The Perfect Gift

For years, the trope of needing to find the perfect present for your child/spouse/parent has fueled the imagination of authors and filmmakers, and has also filled the pockets of merchants cashing in on the “season of giving.” I’m a...

Dec 28, 2023, 4:11 PM

Back on the inside

I used to keep count of my visits to Israel, but after a while, thank God, I lost count. Every trip to Israel, though, still has its own personality, whether one comes for two days or for two years....

Dec 7, 2023, 9:19 PM

Everyone matters

Each year, in our corner of America, college admissions are a hot topic. People love to discuss which applicant was accepted to which school – and which ones were not. These conversations render judgment on the teens who have...

Nov 16, 2023, 3:15 AM

Raising Our Voice

Warning: Dr. Seuss spoilers follow. In 1954’s Horton Hears a Who, Horton the Elephant must save a flower containing an entire community of a tiny place called Whoville. But no one in the Jungle of Nool believes him; only Horton...

Sep 28, 2023, 4:26 PM

The Languages of Love

There’s a certain awkwardness to eating in the sukkah: the chairs don’t always fit the space under the folding table; the plastic silverware and plates can snap at unexpected moments; and the temperature is either too cold or too...

Sep 6, 2023, 7:11 PM

In the Mood for a Melody

Songs fill my mind’s ear this week. I had the good fortune to attend not one but two concerts at Madison Square Garden in the past ten days, both with their own power and magic. Billy Joel played his...

Apr 20, 2023, 6:35 AM

Being the Grown-Up

Sometimes our challenge is to maintain perspective in the face of the excitement (or the frustration) of the moment in which we find ourselves. One of the most difficult parts of parenting is resisting the urge to get caught...

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About Me

Jeffrey Kobrin is the Rosh HaYeshiva/Head of School at the North Shore Hebrew Academy in Great Neck, New York. He has bachelors and masters degrees in English literature from Columbia University, semikha from RIETS at Yeshiva University, and a PhD in English education from Columbia University’s Teachers College. He lives in Riverdale, New York, with his wife, Michelle Greenberg-Kobrin, and their daughters.

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