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Friday LetterFriday Letter Archive | Friday Letter AlertsFriday, March 5, 2010
5th Grade “Schechter News” makes it debut – The 5th Grade Newspaper and Ambassador Committee have published their first edition of the year. Click HERE to read and enjoy!
3rd Grade Bikkur Holim Baskets given to those in need of healing – Back in February, the 3rd graders and their parents participated in a PA Sponsored family education workshop at which they explored Mitzvot that Jews practice which emanate from the chapters of B’Reishit that the 3rd graders are learning this year. One of the stations was focused on Bikkur Holim, the mitzvah of visiting and caring for the sick. The families made 4 Bikkur Holim baskets to have in the ready, just in case parents or students had surgery or became seriously ill, full of adult or child appropriate goodies. Two of the baskets have been delivered so far: one to a student who had surgery and one to a parent who had surgery. We will everyone good health, and we hope we don’t have need to distribute the remaining 2 baskets, but if the need should arise, the 3rd graders are ready to send love and healing to those in need. Community Events: Wed. March 10 – UJA Parenting 201 Workshop. See attached flyer Sun March 14 – UJA Federation Family Mitzvah Day. See attached flyer for details _____________________________ Dear Parents and Friends of the SSDS Nassau Elementary School, It is amazing how much havoc a little snow can cause. So much rescheduling has taken place due to the recent snow storms. Last week’s snow storm caused a delay and dividing of the in-school Purim festivities, it also caused another delay in a favorite elementary school event: The 100th Day of School! We finally celebrated the first part of Purim this week on Monday, the 100th Day on Tuesday, and Part II will take place next Friday. Here is the Purim Update – Wouldn’t every child be happy to have a snow day and miss school for a day? Not when your child is a student at Solomon Schechter Day School of Nassau County, and not when the snow day is when PURIM is being celebrated in school! Despite the snow day, “Purim – Part I” was celebrated at the Jericho campus on Monday, March 1st, which coincided with Shushan Purim on the Jewish calendar. Shushan Purim is only celebrated in “walled cities,” such as Jerusalem, Sefad, and… Jericho! Who cares that “our Jericho” is 3,000 miles from the “real Jericho?” We celebrated anyway, with a beautiful Megillah reading by the 5th graders, followed by our very own student-written Purim Schpiel, known as “Schechter is a Class Act.” Visit our school’s photo gallery to see pictures of Purim Part I, the megillah reading and annual “Schechter Is A Class Act” Purim Schpiel. Here is the direct link to David Lobel’s photos from Purim at the elementary school: PURIM PART II SCHEDULE - Friday, March 12th: 8:15 - 8:50 Kabbalat Shabbat – in Auditorium 8:50 - 9:30 Class Time 9:30 - 10:00 OKLAHOMA – Preview of the High School Musical 10:10 – 10:50 Bagel Brunch in Classrooms – Served by Parent 11:00 – 12:00 Purim Carnival for Gan-2nd grades (Class time for 3- 12:00 – 1:00 Purim Carnival for 3rd – 5th grades (Class time for K- The 100th day of school was celebrated on Tuesday, with grand events focused heavily on mathematics in the lower elementary school. For example, in Gan, the children counted on the abacus, ten frame, and with tally marks to 100- by fives and tens. The Gansters also flipped a coin 100 times and tallied how many heads and tails they got. The children counted out 100 pennies on a 100 square mat- then they had to figure out how to balance them on a scale so each side had an even amount. We made 100 day glasses, "I am 100 days smarter" badges, and "I am a big fan of the 100th day" fans. We read a poem and the children had to figure out how many letters it had in it (100, of course!) Each child had a mat with 100 squares. They had to fill up each square with snacks- (marshmallows, cereal, party mix, M & M's) and then we put it all together in a bowl and ate it. We also had ice cream cups in honor of the special day (we ate it in the morning (oye) because the 100th day turned out to be a meat day!) The children sang some 100 day songs and visited first grade to see their collections of 100 objects. (Thanks to Mrs. Shampan and Mrs. Lichter!) 1st grade was busy the whole week before, preparing their personal collections of 100 objects and making gorgeous 100th Day tee-shirts. Each child’s tee-shirt was decorated with symbols and equations that represent “100,” such as 50 + 50, 200 – 100, and 70 + 30. There were collections of 100 paperclips, 100 kippot, and 100 of everything! (Thanks to Ms. Wolozin and Mrs. Barr!) Here is an update from 2nd grade: for the 100th day, we came dressed as we might look in 100 years. (We had a lot of powered hair and walking canes!) We measured 100 pieces of various candies to see how much they weighed in grams and we also measured how many pieces of candy make 100 grams. We laid 100 footsteps on the floor starting at our classroom to see how far they went. We made lists of different things: 100 cities in Israel, 100 cities in America, 100 names of people, 100 names of foods. We went on a shopping spree to Toys R Us with $100.00 We worked collaboratively to create a picture with 100 miniature tiles. (Thanks to Mrs. Marrache and Mrs. Stern!) Throughout the day, we had 200 reasons to smile on the 100th day of school, because every child is unique and special and loved at Schechter! Purim and the 100th day were not the only “special events” dominating our week. This morning, around the time that the Friday Letter will be delivered to your inbox, the 4th graders will be performing an original production for parents and loved ones. We all love the Schechter plays and they have a long and strong history of showcasing student learning in our school. As a parent of 2 Schechter students, I remember being completely overwhelmed by the beauty of these productions. But this year’s 4th grade play is something different, an experiment you might say. You see, the 4th graders actually wrote their own play this year, based on the theme, “Coming Home,” or in Hebrew “Kibbutz Galuyot,” the ingathering of the exiles. Back in the fall, the new 4th grade teaching team (Mrs. Seidman and Mrs. Goldsmith) met with Mrs. Fields, Mrs. Sokoler Mrs. Elana Stern, Mrs. Swerdloff and I, to begin planning something new and different that would truly integrate student learning across disciplines. Through amazing, mind-opening brainstorming of an open-minded team, and relying on the best of educational theory, the teachers sought to create a multi-faceted learning experience that would emanate from our people’s millennia-long connection to the land of Israel and culminate in a new kind of Class Play. These brave, daring and experienced teachers chose not to impose a script on the students, rather, they were looking to facilitate students’ explorations across academic disciplines and truly give them an opportunity to make personal connections, conduct historical and sociological research, explore deeper meanings in the daily prayers recited from the siddur, learn to use online resources, create computer-generated displays, write like historians, write like screenwriters, express themselves artistically, musically and kinesthetically, develop stronger interpersonal skills, and create an experience that the students would never forget. And of course, at the end of the process, a play would have to be performed. How scary is that, to not have any idea what the end product would be, but to trust children (with the scaffolding of teachers) to pull it off! Beginning in early January, six teams of students researched the various regions of the earth from which Jews poured into the Land of Israel in the mid 20th century. Individually, they used various books and online archives, then worked in teams to turn their research into six original scripts about what they had learned. Music in Hebrew, English, Yiddish, Persian and Ladino and computer visuals were then selected to support their stories in the performance. Work on the design and implementation of a giant Mosaic, representing the Journey Home of the Jewish people began, and when completed, it will be hung in the hallway of the elementary school. This morning, the 4th grade parents will be treated to the fruits of their children’s labor. Next week, the 4th graders will write some more, in English and in Hebrew, as they reflect on what they have learned, and further develop their intrapersonal intelligence and metacognitive skills. This, I believe is the most noble, thorough and meaningful kind of education a Jewish child can experience. It leaves me breathless, and so very, very pleased. Shabbat Shalom, Dr. Cindy Dolgin Elementary School Principal Dvar Torah for Parashat Ki Tisa by Rabbi Moshe Schwartz The Man Who Couldn’t Say No I’ve been listening to our High School students rehearsing for their forthcoming play “Oklahoma.” There is a well known song from the musical whose words are “I’m just a girl who can’t say no.” This reminds me of the disturbing conduct of Aaron, brother of Moses in the Torah portion this week. While there is great debate amongst the sages about what exactly was the sin of Aaron (I wrote about the technicalities of the sin in my Dvar Torah for this parasha last year), one has to wonder how Aaron could consent to such idolatrous behavior on the part of the Israelites without even taking a stand against it. Many commentators argue that it was the very wonderful character trait of Aaron, namely being ohev shalom, loving peace, that caused him to become “a man who couldn’t say no” –even to idolatry. Aaron allowed his love and pursuit of peace to become his greatest weakness, a passion that kept him from saying no at the most critical of moments for the Israelite nation. This message is certainly relevant today. Our ancestral homeland, the State of Israel, struggles with whether to pursue peace at any price or whether such pursuit will only lead to further trouble. One could also argue that our current economic climate was caused by credit hungry consumers and lender happy banks who just couldn’t say no. We also see this in the recent articles (led by The Jewish Week) who have brought to light the situation of parents who simply can’t say no to one-day-a-week Hebrew School offered for nearly one-third the price of established local synagogues. Some families will say yes to any easy, inexpensive and fast resolution. It often follows that these same families then say yes to end their formal Jewish education after the Bar/Bat Mitzvah. The reasons we, as humans, can’t say no are wide-ranging and well-known. When it comes to why parents can’t say no to children, Ann Landers, once wrote “parents who try to win a popularity contest wind up with irresponsible, disrespectful kids who are problems to themselves and to everyone else. Children want discipline [to hear “no”] –even though they resist it.” Aaron was a leader who couldn’t say no. The result was a Golden Calf and a great disaster for the Children of Israel. May each of us have the strength to say “NO” when “NO” should be said and may each of us have the strength to say “YES” when our action will enrich ourselves and the community. This week, I join so many Schechter families and invite those who haven’t done so already to say YES to Oklahoma. Shabbat Shalom, Rabbi Moshe Schwartz PDF filesUJA Parenting WorkshopFamily Mitzvah Day Transportation Reminder Sluggers' 2010 Opening Day is Just Two Weeks Away! Chesed Corner |
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