PTA Family-Friendly Megillah Reading and Breakfast Seudah Brings Purim Joy to All

The fact that Purim occurred on Friday this year made Mercaz Academy’s annual PTA-sponsored Family-Friendly Megillah Reading and Breakfast Seudah more popular than ever this year! Mercaz families and friends enjoyed the lively reading by parent Adam Farber, whose sense of fun kept the young audience engaged and ready to shake their ra’ashanim at the sound of Haman’s name. The crowd, young and old, was clad in beautiful and creative costumes, with lots of families in themed costumes (Bluey and the Heeler family, the Incredibles, and the cast of the Magic School Bus were all spotted in the audience).

Robots Invade Math Lesson in Second Grade

Robots took over the second grade classroom once again as students enjoyed another innovative interdisciplinary activity. Second graders have been learning to describe and compare using measurement with standard and metric units, as well as estimation. Mrs. Kirschenbaum’s worksheet challenged students to do tasks like draw and measure a line, draw a line of estimated length and see how it measures up, as well as draw quadrilaterals, measure the lines, and add the numbers for a total per shape. 

Then came a surprise twist: All lines would be drawn using an iPad to pilot a Dash robot holding a magic marker.

After breaking into small groups and securing their markers to the robots, the second graders had a wonderful time learning to use this new technology. While measurement was provided the old-fashioned way via students armed with tape measures, the novelty of navigating the robot to draw the required shapes made the exercise so much more fun and engaging for the second graders. Kudos to Mrs. Kirschenbaum and Mrs. Last for transforming traditional classroom subjects into dynamic learning experiences that develop critical 21st-century skills.

Can a Plant Navigate a Maze? Fifth Graders Plan to Find Out

The bean plants that resulted from a fifth grade experiment comparing hydroponically grown plants with those grown in soil are continuing to lead a surprisingly exciting life. Having learned about phototropism, processes that direct how a plant grows towards the sun, fifth graders were challenged to prove this scientific fact by designing and building mazes for their plants. 

Each student team was issued a cardboard box, and then sketched their design ideas. To prove that plants grow towards the sun, the maze had to have only one place for the sun to enter, and obstacles for the plant to overcome by growing around them. Each maze had to have at least two floors. Students will observe the plants as they grow, comparing them to the control plant growing outside the boxes on the windowsill. As a final challenge, students were also asked to predict how long it will take before their plants pass through the hole at the top of the box.

Fifth grade scientists are looking forward to watching their plants compete and tabulating the results in this very slow-motion marathon to find the sun.

Kitah Gimel Celebrates Marriage of Yitzchak and Rivka With Reenactments, Feasting

Students in Kitah Gimel celebrated the marriage of our ancestors, Yitzchak and Rivka, with a gala reenactment followed by a wedding feast. Students directed and produced the entirety, tasked with finding and/or creating all the props they would need (they even built their own wells!), costumes, and catering for the feast–everything but the dialogue, which was provided by the text of the Torah and was delivered in the original Hebrew. The class was divided into small groups to maximize opportunities to play the bride and groom, which was done by methods that included not only acting but, in one group, some innovative puppetry.

After the ceremony was complete, students feasted on Cheez-Its, Cheese Balls, popcorn, and candy–anachronistic but delicious–and, while there was no traditional wine served, grape juice flowed freely and a good time was had by all. Mazel tov!

Fourth Grade Prepares Film Festival for Women's History Month

In celebration of Women's History Month, fourth grade students created their own educational movies about influential women throughout history. Using BrainPOP, an educational platform designed to support independent study, students researched remarkable female figures like astronaut Sally Ride, aviation pioneer Amelia Earhart, beloved author Judy Blume, and disability rights advocate Helen Keller. Mrs. DeMeo’s young filmmakers began by watching existing BrainPOP videos about their chosen historical women, diligently taking notes on key achievements and biographical details. Working in collaborative pairs, students then transformed their research into informative and engaging short BrainPOP films under the guidance of Mrs. Last. These completed films will be screened for the entire class at a movie premiere celebration featuring popcorn and other classic movie snacks.

The fourth graders are excited for this opportunity to showcase their knowledge and technological expertise while simultaneously honoring the important contributions of women in history through the students’ own creative storytelling. 

Pesach and Chag Ha'Aviv in the GrowTorah Garden

Most of the names for Pesach are self-explanatory, referring to the end of slavery, the Passover offering to Hashem, and the matzah consumed on the holiday. But students were invited to examine the fourth name for Pesach, Chag Ha’Aviv, the spring festival. What connections can be made between the holiday and springtime in the GrowTorah garden? 

Farmer Menuchah explained that, before there was a fixed Jewish calendar, our sages determined leap years based on signs of spring—especially on whether the barley in Israel had ripened for the omer offering. The students connected this idea to the season’s themes of renewal and freedom, just like the renewal and freedom experienced by B’nei Yisrael as they emerged from slavery. Students then set out to search the garden for signs of aviv (spring) renewal. They found garlic shoots, wheat grass, and chives, leading to a discussion on how just as the Jewish calendar follows a set cycle to keep Pesach anchored in the correct season, perennial plants like chives follow their own natural cycle, disappearing in winter and re-emerging in spring.

To prepare for spring, students loosened the winter-compacted soil and planted pink shelling peas and sugar snap peas, discussing Ashkenazi and Sephardi customs around eating kitniyot (legumes) on Pesach as they worked. The hands-on planting reinforced Pesach’s themes of renewal and growth—just as B’nei Yisrael began a new chapter in their history, so too does the earth in spring. Finally, students pruned some overgrown sage to keep the plant healthy, and earmarked the leafy herb’s cuttings for donation to a food pantry.