June 2022   Keeping Connected

We did it! We have reached the end of another successful school year. No words can express my gratitude and pride for all the students, teachers and families that have worked together this year to allow us the joy of the school year. You will have a chance to express your gratitude at the Teacher Appreciation Shabbat which is scheduled for June 10 at 7pm! It is also our Graduation service, in which we will be hearing from some of our 12^th graders before they continue on with their own journeys and all that lies ahead for them. Please plan to attend this special Shabbat and please consider bringing a nut-free food to share for the oneg.

I am also so excited and proud to let everyone know that we surpassed our tzedakah goal for this year. As of this writing, we collected $1009.50 in cash and another $1665 in gift cards, all of which will support the refugees from Afghanistan through the work of the International Institute of New England. Check out the truck full of goods in the photo!

The last day of Sunday school brought with it great joy and enthusiasm in the building. Families joined in on their children’s classes for lots of end of the year wrap ups. It was a spirited atmosphere in the building. You could hear the K-2 class singing out loud and strong to “Do a Mitzvah.” The 3^rd graders celebrated their completion of their first year of Hebrew with the Siyyum HaSefer service and the receiving their own personalized prayer book. The 4^th graders recreated the many bible stories that they explored this year by creating an awesome timeline mural. The 5^th graders hosted an awesome prophet museum, showcasing some of the information they learned this year.The 6^th graders recalled 10 things they learned this year and also had the Torah passed down to them. For the 7^th graders, it was bittersweet, as they passed the Torah down to the rising 7^th graders for next year, shared their ketubah gallery and had their last Sunday morning class in the building! (7^th graders can come back on Sundays as madrichim!)

The last day of Hebrew School included teachers and students wrapping up the year with different games, activities and treats! All well-deserved after a year of lots of Hebrew learning.

The 7^th graders did offer some advice to the incoming 7^th graders, as the rising 7^th graders begin their year of becoming B’nai Mitzvah. Here is their advice for practicing Hebrew:

• When you practice, have a goal set for your practice session.
• Don’t wait until the last minute to learn your Hebrew.
• Study, study, study.
• When you are reviewing, review the spots you messed up.
• Pace yourself so you don’t get overwhelmed.
• Do extra practice on the prayers you don’t know.
• Review old prayers.
• Try to have fun during all this Hebrew practicing. It is worth it!

Thank you to everyone for working together this year to create an environment of learning and laughter, community and care, and friendship and fun.

I hope to see you all on June 10 for the Teacher Appreciation Shabbat.

With gratitude,

Deborah

June Schedule

Remember to practice Hebrew several times a week during the summer months.

Friday, June 10 – Teacher Appreciation/Graduation Shabbat

• 7pm
• Please bring a nut-free oneg item to share

Saturday, June 18 – Temple Parking Lot Party

• Children’s activities begin at 4:30pm
• RSVP if you are planning on attending – http://evite.me/9htk3uGgnC

April 2022. Keeping Connected

We have rounded the corner and the end is in sight! Time flies when you are having fun and we have been having lots of fun this year, but we are getting closer to the end of the year. The last two months are just as important as the rest of the year so please support your students to finish out the year strong.  It is tempting as the weather gets nicer and sports and other events kick in to easily skip Religious or Hebrew School. Please think about the decisions you are choosing and do not forget about the importance of your students’ Jewish education and Jewish experiences.

We are already thinking about plans for next year and would love your input. As of now, it looks like Religious School on Sundays will be back fully in person, without remote links. During these last few weeks, all the teachers have been embracing the in-person opportunities to explore more hands on and experiential learning with the students, something that is very difficult to do virtually. In addition, it has been a good few months really working to reconnect as whole class communities. We have some work to make up in that area due to the pandemic, but the teachers have been creating various experiences to engage the whole class together and we have seen some really positive results.More

March  2022   Keeping Connected

At the end of January (right after I wrote last month’s article,) the Religious School gathered (on Zoom) for two exciting programs centered around the idea of tzedakah. Kindergarten through 4^th grade students gathered for a morning of TZEDAKAH! The students talked about the meaning of the word tzedakah (justice and fairness,) watched a short video about giving, heard a story about filling up the tzedakah box and sang songs. Each student found a tzedakah box, or something that can work like a tzedakah box from their home and were given the challenge to fill up their home tzedakah box. The second session students (grades 5^th -7^th) were given the opportunity to hear from a member from the International Institute of New England, to learn more about the refugee resettlement program and to get a better understanding of how the money we collect this year will be used to help the refugees from Afghanistan to resettle in our local communities. They thought about the experiences of refugees and considered what things would be essential to have as one resettles, what would be nice to have and what would be special to have. The older students also grabbed a tzedakah box from their home and were given the same challenge to fill it up.  On March 6, all the students are being asked to bring their home tzedakah boxes (hopefully filled up) to Religious School in the morning for the Tzedakah Challenge, a little friendly competition between the first and second sessions, to see who can bring in the most money! One of the students asked what the winner will receive. The answer was that the refugees are the winners in this challenge! (That answer actually satisfied the questioning student!) I encourage you to support your student with this fun Tzedakah Challenge and continue supporting the tzedakah project for the rest of the year.More

February 2022   Keeping Connected

January leads us around the corner into the second half of the school year. By this time, families with students in Kitah Bet, Gimel and Dalet (4^th, 5^th and 6^th grade) should have already received a quick progress write up of your student and their Hebrew progress. Families in Kitah Hey (7^th grade) can continue to reach out to Rabbi Perry at any time. Families with students in grades Kindergarten through 7^th grade have also had the opportunity to conference with your students’ teachers on Zoom to hear about how they are doing in Religious School on Sundays (and in Kitah Aleph!) Preschool families can continue to communicate with Morah Lauren at any time. If you were unable to conference on Zoom with your teacher and you would still like to, please reach out to either me or the teacher to set up a time to talk.More

January 2022   Keeping Connected

This year, due to covid restrictions, we are not having a lot of people in our temple building while school is in session. We all miss the hubbub of families dropping off and picking up, milling about in the lobby and peeking into classes to see what is going on each morning. Since you can’t be in the building, this month’s article will bring the action and excitement to you!

Our morning begins with students being dropped off along the curb for school. Many students stop and add money to the tzedakah collection before heading into the building.  I hear parents shouting “Have a good morning,” “I love you,” and “See you soon.” I heard one parent ask their child, through the car window, if they had their snack and the student responded “I ate it on the way to school!” (We hooked her up with another snack to eat outside during class time.) Students eagerly enter the building, meet up with their classmates and begin a morning of learning, laughter and energy.

Our preschool class meets several times a month. The class of our youngest students is fast paced and full of activity. There is always book reading, song singing, crafting and often a creative food component (sometimes made and always eaten outside!)   On one particular day recently, the children were gathered around Morah Lauren and her madricha on the rug all looking at and listening to a story of Jonah and the Whale.  One child noticed a very big boat and a connection to Noah’s Ark was made. The class had a fun time making Jonah and the Whale out of graham crackers, blue frosting and goldfish. You had to look at them quickly before they were gobbled up, just like Jonah!More