November 2021 В  Keeping Connected

Have you seen the awesome Tzedakah Chart that sits outside the temple at drop off and pick up?В  Due to continued restrictions of Covid19, we have moved the weekly tzedakah collection outside each week!

This year’s goal is to fill up the truck with various items needed for Afghan refugees to settle into our community. As you may know, through amazing efforts from the International Institute of New England (IINE), many families from Afghanistan are resettling in our surrounding communities. Working with the IINE, we are collecting money this year that will help purchase various items needed to resettle into a new community. This topic has been discussed with many of the students and we will continue exploring ideas around being refugees and resettling throughout the year. Some of the students have shared some of their own thoughts and ideas and have begun to create a list of items that people would need to resettle into a community when they come from a different place without anything. I have been blown away by the student’s empathy and understanding of this situation. They have given it serious thought when creating the list of items. The items that they have thought up will be the basis for our collection this year and will help us fill up the truck. Images of the different items will be added to our tzedakah chart and when enough money is donated, the item will be moved into the truck. For example, once we collect $25, we will be able to put a bag of groceries in the truck. Our goal is to collect $1000 this year and to fill the truck up with many different necessities. This year, we are collecting both money and gift cards that will help the refugees settle into their new homes.More

October 2021 В  Keeping Connected

Whew! What a whirlwind it has been getting the school up and running this year. Thank you to everyone for your patience and flexibility as we continue to iron out somethings and make changes as they arise.

It has been a really wonderful start to the new school year at Congregation Shalom.It was lovely to see everyone for the parking lot meet and greet in September and then to welcome everyone back into the building on Sundays and remotely or in-person for Hebrew School on Wednesdays. There is an energetic tone in the air and a lot of joyous laughter and spirit as we all reconnect this year. I know that the teachers are thrilled to be back this year and are enjoying getting to know their new classes.

A little bit of housekeeping reminders:More

September 2021 В  Keeping Connected

The beginning of September has us looking forward to the new school year. I am excited for the year ahead as we approach another unique year for our temple school. The summer months have allowed me to meet some new families that will be joining our school. I invite you to reach out to people you may not know in the coming months and share a friendly hello and welcome.В  In addition, I am thrilled to welcome Kristin Morris to our teaching team. Morah Kristin is an involved member of Congregation Shalom. She will be teaching our 5^th grade class this year.В  Morah Kristin will be joined by the familiar faces of Morah Lauren (preschool and 6^th grade,) Moreh Rob (4th grade, Hebrew and Chai,) Moreh Rich (3^rd grade and Kitah Aleph,) Morah Amy (Hebrew and Chai School,) Morah Tymon (Hebrew) and myself (K-2) to create a dynamic and awesome teaching staff!More

JULY В 2021 В  В KEEPING CONNECTED

Summer is here and I hope you are all enjoying a little rest, relaxation and family time. It is well deserved for all!

Summer Hebrew Practice

It is really importance to have your students practice Hebrew a little bit this summer. Research shows that children’s reading ability will decline during the summer months without continued practice.

ClickВ hereВ to access a fun Summer Hebrew Bingo Board. The activities suggested on the board should take no more than 10 minutes each. Encourage your student to complete the entire Bingo board and bring it back to temple for a little prize.

As always, please feel free to reach out to me with any questions.

School Registration

Thank you to all the families who submitted their registrations! We truly appreciate your promptness.

As we move into summer, we are beginning to make plans for the next school year. We are buying books and supplies, creating class lists and figuring out what the school will look like this coming year. It is important that we have an accurate count of how many students we will have.В PleaseВ submit your forms as soon as possible. After July 1, the late fee increases to $50. (If you have difficulties paying the deposit or late fees, please contact me atВ eddirector@congregationshalom.orgВ to discuss your options.)

Cover Letter

Form A

Form B

Form C

Form D

Form E

Form F

Finally, please be on the lookout for a School Survey that will be coming out soon. We are interested in gathering information from you to help us make plans for the coming school year. Your participation in the survey will be important in helping us move forward in developing these plans. Thank you.

Enjoy the summer,

Deborah

JUNE 2021 В  В KEEPING CONNECTED

As we approach June, we reflect upon the year behind us and look ahead to the next school year!В  We had some exciting end of the year activities as we wrapped up an exciting, challenging, unique and successful school year.

I could list many great things about the year but I thought I would let the students share some of their thoughts.

• K-2 student – “I liked when we made Israel wind socks.”
• 3^rd grade student – “I like learning about the Dead Sea and making the egg float.”
• 4^th grade student – “I liked making the Tower of Babel.”
• 5^th grade student – “I like learning about King David.”
• 6^th grade student – “I liked the tenement museum tour.”
• 7^th grade student – “I enjoyed acting out life cycle events.”
• Kitah Aleph student – “I learned all the letters of the aleph-bet.”
• Kitah Bet student – “I enjoyed learning new words.”
• Kitah Gimel student – I liked reading and chanting.”
• Kitah Dalet student – “Learning Hebrew vocabulary was my favorite.”
• Kitah Hey student – “I enjoyed learning more about the torah.”

More

May 2021 В  В Keeping Connected

It is May and what a beautiful time of the year. The grass is green. The flowers are in colorful bloom. I wake each morning to the songs of the birds. My resident groundhog (aptly named Phil) makes many appearances a day. Wildlife is everywhere. It is hard to not just sit and stare as nature takes its course during this time of the year! As I look at the calendar for May, I realize that there will not be a lot of time for sitting and staring as we all begin the end of the school year, with lots of milestones for so many students in our community. I really encourage you all to tune in to as many of the events and programs that you are able to as we finish up the school year this month.

In a beautiful cycle of Jewish life, we have the 3^rd graders leading the Friday night Shabbat and celebrating the wonderful accomplishment of having completed their first year of Hebrew with their Siyyum Ha’Sefer celebration, followed the very next week by Confirmation Shabbat, in which a dedicated and spirited group of our 10^th graders will stand before the congregation and confirm their connection to Judaism. Two weeks after that will be the Graduation Shabbat in which our 12^th grader gets to celebrate his Congregation Shalom journey before heading out to more adventures and experiences. In between all of these celebrations, we will mark the end of the school year for everyone, as students complete this year and begin to look forward to being a grade older next year!More