Congratulations to Kitah Bet on Successful Chag HaChumash

Students in Kitah Bet took their first step on a lifelong journey–their text-based study of Torah. To mark the occasion, Kitah Bet presented a program of songs and recitations directed by Morah Tikva Goldberg and accompanied by music teacher Craig Resmovits, delighting their audience of family, teachers, and friends. The students clearly conveyed not only their knowledge of the Torah they are learning, but the joy they find in Torah study. 

After presenting each student with a Chumash of his or her very own, Rabbi Fogel noted that, on Chanukah, one’s religious obligation is only to light one candle per night, but that the Jews observing the mitzvah treasure it so much that they add more candles, lighting two the second night, three the third, and so on. Just so, he said, Kitah Bet’s shining enthusiasm will lead them to study the Torah not just once, but over and over again. “Every week, I study parshat hashavua, even though I’ve learned it many times before,” he told Kitah Bet, “but I still learn it, and every time I see new and exciting things that I’ve never noticed before.” 

Rabbi Fogel credited the parents and grandparents who had brought the students to this milestone. Class parent and PTA representative Jillian Beroza-Nekhanevich thanked the teachers and administration for the “love, happiness, excitement, and warmth” they bring to the students’ learning.

Having taken their place in the continuous chain of Torah transmission, students and their guests enjoyed the sweetness of Torah study as embodied in delicious cake, fruit, and other snacks provided by the PTA. Congratulations, Kitah Bet and Morah Tikva, on this momentous occasion!

Sixth Grade Competes in CIJE Robotics Tournament at Middle School Level

Mercaz Academy is not a newcomer to the CIJE VEX Robotics League; in fact, fourth and fifth graders took third place in the Robotics Tournament at the elementary level last March. However, the middle school tournament seemed out of reach for us with our highest grade being sixth.

“We are an elementary school rather than a middle school,” explained Mrs. Last, Director of Educational Technology. “This puts our sixth graders at a competitive disadvantage at the middle school tournament, which is designed for sixth through eighth grade students. With no seventh and eighth graders on our teams, I was concerned that our sixth graders would find themselves outclassed.”

But the sixth graders were not deterred. Eager to continue developing their robotics skills, they asked Mrs. Last to coach them to compete in the school’s first middle school tournament 

“They were determined, so I registered Mercaz Academy in the Middle School Robotics League and they got right to work,” said Mrs. Last.

The seven students formed two teams and built a model of the competition rink and their team robots. The robots would be required to throw soft rubber balls through targets, with extra points for more complex moves. Over the course of many recess periods, the sixth graders tested their robots, modifying them as problems arose. When Tournament Day arrived, they were excited, energized, and ready to compete.

The Mercaz Academy teams did surprisingly well at the tournament, which attracted teams from schools as far away as Texas and Florida. In a field of 107 teams, one of the two Mercaz teams of sixth graders placed in the top third and the other Mercaz team earned a spot in the top half of the field. Encouraged, the sixth grade robotics team has already started robot modifications with the intent to fare even better at the next tournament in March. 

Chanukah Chemistry Brings Together Cold and Dairy For a Chanukah Treat

What do chemistry and Chanukah have in common? More than we realized!

Students in Nursery Bet, Kindergarten, and first through sixth grades were treated to an amazing science demonstration from Dr. Miriam Rafailovich, a professor at Stony Brook University. With the assistance of her colleague, Dr. Aaron Sloutski of Jerusalem, and two canisters of liquid nitrogen, Dr. Rafailovich taught students about the importance of observation in science and that chemistry is everywhere–even in food preparation!

After reviewing how a substance is transformed from solid to liquid to gas, Dr. Rafailovich showed students how material properties change with the extreme cold (minus 320℉) of liquid nitrogen. A balloon placed over the canister shrank in the cold. Dr. Rafailovich and a student volunteer demonstrated the bouncy properties of a rubber ball via a quick game of catch. After a quick bath in liquid nitrogen, it looked exactly the same–save some smoking upon removal. However, Dr. Rafailovich made it clear that the ball had changed by tossing it to the floor, where it shattered into pieces. A soft marshmallow dipped in liquid nitrogen and then hit with a hammer, the students discovered, cracks and breaks like rock.

However, Mercaz students were most impressed by the simple ingredients Dr. Rafailovich combined in a bowl: milk, sugar, chocolate or strawberry syrup, and liquid nitrogen. The result, they discovered, was delicious ice cream that they all eagerly sampled. With the addition of the leftover marshmallows, the resulting snack–dairy, so part of the tradition to eat milk-based foods on Chanukah–made this chemistry lesson even more exciting and holiday-appropriate.

Nursery Bet Learns About Chanukah...And Ordinal Numbers, Too

Chanukah is a wonderful learning opportunity for Nursery Bet students, and for more than the obvious reasons. Of course, our three-year olds are learning the Chanukah story and the accompanying mitzvot; however, this eight-day holiday is the perfect time to introduce some important math concepts, too!

Using their felt-board chanukiah (Chanukah menorah) as a starting point, Nursery Bet learned about ordinal numbers (first, second, third…). They also practiced one-to-one correspondence. These concepts easily find real-world application during Chanukah, when another candle is added to the chanukiah for each night of the holiday. 

A little technology reinforced their study of ordinal numbers and Chanukah when Mrs. Last brought Beebots–small, programmable robots shaped like bees–to the Nursery Bet classroom. Students took turns programming the Beebots by pressing direction buttons corresponding to squares on a grid. Their mission: to guide the Beebot through various right and left turns to the chanukiah with the correct number of candles for each night of Chanukah. 

Nursery Bet students are now prepared to instruct their families on correct chanukiah lighting from all angles, and ready for ever-increasing mathematical discoveries.

The Return of the Chanukah Pinball Hackathon

As Mercaz Academy students geared up for Chanukah, the sixth grade invited students from the fourth and fifth grades to play the pinball machines they created at the CIJE Chanukah Pinball Hackathon (as reported in an earlier issue of Mivaseret Mercaz). The younger students strolled around the technology lab, playing the pinball machines set up at each station, with a sixth grader accompanying each group to explain the point system and how each machine worked. An additional area allowed fourth and fifth graders to operate the robots created by the sixth graders who recently competed in the CIJE Robotics Competition. 

Students had nothing but rave reviews for the experience. One fourth grader was particularly complimentary about the pinball action, noting that “there was a thing to pull and something popped up, and there were extra points…” A fifth grader, inspired by the activity, hoped that she might be able to design her own in future CIJE competitions. And, of course, Mercaz students promise that they will always be standing by, ready to try them out.

Playing With Fire Pays Off for Kitah Hay

Students in Kitah Hay have been using a variety of techniques to deepen their understanding of Chanukah, and one of the more popular methods was a Hebrew riddle book. Students were asked to guess the answers in a booklet of Chanukah riddles, which were written so that they reviewed Hebrew numbers in addition to Chanukah information. 

Additionally, while candle-lighting is one of the oldest technologies around, Kitah Hay incorporated some very new technology into practicing for it. As they studied the rules and customs pertaining to lighting Chanukah candles, students in Kitah Hay wanted a little more of a hands-on experience, and Rabbi Kramer did not want open flames in the classroom. Instead, he provided the students of Kitah Hay with an interactive whiteboard version of a chanukiah. Students practiced “lighting” in the correct way by using their fingers to drag “flames” to the candles in the appropriate order, and are ready to answer any questions about the necessary halachot of lighting as it takes place.

Toddlers Learn About Parshat Miketz

The youngest grade of Mercaz students, the Toddlers, are only two years old–so they have a long way to go until they receive their first Chumashim in second grade. But they still learn Torah! Every week, Morah Tikva teaches them a fact or two from the Parshat Hashavua, the Torah reading for that week, and they make a project to reinforce the lesson.

“Even though they’re so young, they really enjoy these stories, and they are capable of absorbing so much,” Morah Tikva explains. “Those with older siblings love having something to contribute to discussions at the Shabbat table, just like the big kids!” 

This week, using their coloring projects to prompt their memories, the Toddlers can tell you that Yaakov’s sons went to Mitzrayim to buy food for their families. Yaakov’s sons didn’t know it, but they bought the food from their brother Yosef, who had a magic cup (very intriguing, and not just for toddlers). As these young students relearn Parshat Miketz through their years at Mercaz, they will add more details, the opinions of commentators, and their own Torah insights–but this first baby step into Torah study may be the sweetest of them all.