Bais Yaakov e-Newsletter

1 Adar Sheini 5782 | March 3, 2022

Middle School

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MIDDLE SCHOOL ROBOTICS COMPETITION

The Middle School held its first Robotics Tournament directed by the CIJE company of New York. Our students programmed robots to push pieces into designated squares on a playing field. Extra points were given for lifting the pieces and piling them onto each other. The robot competition was followed by a drone competition. In this competition, the girls programmed drones to fly through obstacles, using critical thinking skills, teamwork, analysis of measures, and trial and error. The students had a great time and learned so much in the process. Thank you to Mrs. Rochelle Goldberg for her relentless efforts to see this program to the end.

MIDDLE SCHOOL MOTHER AND STAFF MELAVA MALKA

On February 19^th, Bais Yaakov and the PTA hosted a beautiful melava malka for Middle School mothers and staff. Approximately 200 ladies joined together for an elegant evening with beautiful décor and delectable food. A heartfelt thank you to the event chairs, Mrs. Chana Ciment, Mrs. Danielle Ellenberg, Mrs. Faigy Loeb, and Mrs. Yedida Orlofsky for doing an outstanding job. The highlight of the event was the riveting and lively panel of esteemed mechanchos who responded to questions submitted in advance by our mothers. Thank you to our panelists, Mrs. Raizy Kulik, Mrs. Blumy Berkowitz, and Mrs. Yehudis Feldman for preparing such thoughtful responses.

DOLPHIN CLUB CARNIVAL

The Sixth Grade Dolphin Club transformed the gym into an indoor Carnival ﬁlled with all kinds of games, contests, an auction and classic carnival food for the community. The proceeds of the carnival will benefit Bayit Lepletot, an orphanage in Eretz Yisroel. Under the leadership of Mrs. Leeba Braun, the girls worked as a team while utilizing their unique talents. The carnival was the culmination of months of planning while the girls were challenged to design and implement a chessed project that would have a positive impact on others.

SIXTH GRADE BAS MITZVAH DINNER

Approximately 400 grandmothers, mothers and students gathered to celebrate our Annual Bas Mitzvah Dinner. We are so proud of each of our 138 young ladies in the Sixth Grade. The audience was treated to an original video performance entitled, "Adjusting your Focus," produced by Mrs. Rivka Hammelburger. Our students did a fantastic job highlighting the beautiful outcomes that are a result of adjusting our focus and having middos tovos and derech eretz. The students chose to participate in drama, choir or decor. The melodious choir was directed by Miss Michal Spigleman and the artistic centerpieces were arranged under the direction of Mrs. Chana Malka Horowitz. The guests and our bnos mitzvah enjoyed an evening full of meaningful memories and true pride in their heritage.

FIFTH GRADE MATH FACT FLUENCY PROGRAM

The Fifth Grade has implemented an exciting new math program, Floating Toward Fluency. The purpose of this program is to help each student become more fluent in their multiplication and division facts while showing understanding, flexibility and efficiency. Over the last two months, all the girls in Fifth Grade were assessed on their multiplication facts fluency. Stay tuned for a grade-wide celebration to celebrate the effort and achievements of our girls!

SIXTH GRADE SIYUM ON PARSHAS YISRO

Our Sixth Grade classes joined together in celebration of completing their first parsha this year. The siyum focused on the mitzvah of Shabbos which is found in the Aseres Hadibros in Parshas Yisro. Our guest speaker, Mrs. Devoiry Saull, spoke about using Shabbos as a day to connect to Hashem and recognize the hashgacha pratis that happens to you throughout the week. The girls made a beautiful lucite project where they can write the z'man of Shabbos each week. A delicious waffle breakfast was served and enjoyed by all.

SEVENTH GRADE BIOLOGY CELL PROJECTS

The cell is one of the most amazing miracles of creation; a symbol of life itself. Mrs. Judy Zapinsky’s Seventh Grade students each made a cell model with all the different organelles properly labeled. Mrs. Sossie Ansbacher’s, Miss Aviva Graber’s, and Miss Bassie Shaw’s classes, created lap books that include a timeline of when cells were first discovered, the 3 parts of cell theory, and an animal and plant cell picture. Incorporating multi-sensory learning in the classroom enables the girls to better grasp the concepts they are learning. These projects are a small sampling of the enjoyable learning that goes on in each classroom.

EIGHTH GRADE MECHANCHOS MELAVEI MALKA

We are deeply grateful to our Eighth Grade Mechanchos for inviting their students to their homes for melavei malka. It was a wonderful opportunity for our students to connect with their teachers outside of school in a different “landscape.”

ROSH CHODESH GLOW IN THE DARK ACTIVITY

G.O. led a special Rosh Chodesh activity in honor of Rosh Chodesh Adar Alef for the entire Middle School. The girls were treated to glow in the dark dancing led by ladies who joined us all the way from New York. The activity engendered a lot of ruach and joyful energy of Adar. A special thanks to Mrs. Miriam Mellman and the Eighth Grade Rosh Chodesh Committee for planning this event. A heartfelt thank you to the Bais Yaakov PTA for sponsoring the Upper Middle School sessions.

MIDDLE SCHOOL GIRLS GIVE BACK

Rabbi Boruch Brull, Executive Director of Ahavas Yisroel Charity Fund, came to the Upper Middle School to show his appreciation to the girls for raising $1700 for Ahavas Yisroel. Rabbi Brull shared many stories about the important work that Ahavas Yisroel does to help so many families in our community. Our girls felt uplifted that they were able to directly contribute to this incredible organization and give back to the Baltimore Community.