ECC Weekly Newsletter 
April 20, 2018 - 5 Iyar 5778
Parashat Tazria-Metzora
ECC Highlights
Robin's Message
Dvar Torah
Thoughts of the Rav
Yom Orchim
2-Year-Old Class Newsletter
3-Year-Old Class Newsletter
4-Year-Old Class Newsletter
Thank You!
Day of Learning
Family Learning
Teacher Appreciation Week
Ayeka Workshop
Celebrate Israel
Social Time!
ES, MS, and US Newsletters
Reminders
Please check the Lost and Found table and coat rack outside the Elementary School office if you are looking for a missing item.
 
For the boys: Every day during davening, we say the bracha for tzitzit, so please make sure your son wears some or keeps in his backpack a pair of tzitzit and a kippah.

If you have any recyclable materials, please send them in for our classes to use. Examples are:
 
-Paper towel/toilet paper rolls
 
-Paint color samples
 
-Scraps of contact paper, wallpaper, or cloth
 
-Small pieces of tile
 
-Any other crafty loose parts!
 
Please send in dress-up clothes, especially authentic doctor clothes and supplies. Thank you!
 
Whether you are a parent, alumni or faculty member, your Maimo Moments are welcomed and appreciated.
How To Subscribe to the Calendar
For step-by-step instructions for subscribing to the Maimonides Early Childhood Center calendar on your mobile device or computer, CLICK HERE.
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From Robin Meyerowitz 
Dear Parents,
 
We had a very inspiring week! We davened on Yom HaZikaron, and we danced and sang with the whole school on Yom HaAtzmaut. It was a joy to watch our students happily celebrating with the entire Maimonides student body for Israel's 70th birthday. We also were lucky enough to have Reena Slovin, our Associate Principal in the Elementary School, teach the whole ECC some Israeli line dances. She had us all singing, dancing, and laughing. It really brought home the importance of inspiring our students with joy and enthusiasm for their yiddishkeit.
 
Speaking of inspiring children to yiddishkeit, we are very excited to be able to host Rabbi Aryeh Ben David, Founder and Director of Ayeka: The Center for Soulful Education. He is making an exclusive Boston-area visit to Maimonides on Monday, April 23, at 7:30 p.m. in the Saval library.
 
Rabbi Ben David will share his vision of a Jewish education that goes beyond the text to reach a student's soul and impact their everyday life. It's a method of teaching that promotes a personal and vibrant relationship with Hashem, Judaism, Jewish text, and spirituality. He  will also discuss how we can focus on soulful parenting despite the competing demands faced by today's families. We hope that you can join us!

Shabbat Shalom,

Robin

Dvar Torah
by Rabbi David Saltzman    
       
כִּי תָבֹאוּ אֶל־אֶרֶץ כְּנַעַן אֲשֶׁר אֲנִי נֹתֵן לָכֶם לַאֲחֻזָּה וְנָתַתִּי נֶגַע צָרַעַת בְּבֵית אֶרֶץ אֲחֻזַּתְכֶם׃
When you enter the land of Canaan that I give you as a possession, and I inflict an eruptive plague upon a house in the land you possess
Why would tzarrat appear on a house? Did the house speak lashon hara? Actually, lashon hara is not the only reason why Hashem would inflict tzarrat on a person or an object as a punishment. There are other reasons as well.
The Kli Yakar explains that one reason the house received tzarrat is that the person living in the house did not want to share their possessions or money with others. As he elaborates on this idea:
מן פסוק ובא אשר לו הבית, זה שייחד ביתו לו לעצמו ולא היה מהנה ממנו אחרים, כי לבעבור זה נתן ה' לו לאחזה בית מלא כל טוב, לנסותו אם ייטיב מביתו גם לאחרים, כי לי הכסף והזהב אמר ה' (חגי ב ח): וכל מה שהאדם נותן לאחרים, לא משלו הוא נותן, כי אם משלחן גבוה קא זכי ליה
From the pasuk we learn that someone who keeps his items for himself and does not share with others will receive tzarrat on the home. This is because the person failed to realize that the reason Hashem gave him so much good is in order to share with others. The person needs to realize that when he gives, he is really giving from Hashem and not from his own.
 
By not sharing, the person does not show hakarat hatov to Hashem and attribute all the good that they have to Hashem's benevolence. One possible lesson is that if we recognize that everything good comes from Hashem, then we will be more willing to share with others from the bounty that Hashem has provided.
 
It is interesting to note that this law is cited within the context of being in the Land of Israel, which is referred to here as the land "that I give you as a possession." Why is that an important detail to mention in the same verse as tzarrat?
 
Similar to the Kli Yakar, the Chida answers:
לכן אמר כי תבואו אל ארץ כנען אשר אני נותן לכם לאחיזה כי לא בחרבם ירשו ארץ ואין מקום לצרי עין לומר כחי ועוצם ידי עשה לי את החיל הזה שה' נותן לך כח ואחוזה
Hashem says when you inherit the Land of Israel, remember that it is I who granted it to you. Don't take the credit for yourself and deny My involvement. Recognize that it is I who gave you the strength to conquer the land.
 
As we celebrated Yom Ha'Atzmaut this week, we showed hakarat hatov to all the chayalim, and to Hashem who has preserved our presence for the past 70 years. We continue to pray for many more years of plenty and peace in Eretz Yisrael!
 
Thoughts of the Rav    
by Rabbi Dov Huff
The Rav in this week's parsha discusses the ritual prescribed for curing a metzora, someone afflicted with tzarat (leprosy). Part of the ritual involves tearing the clothing of the metzora and allowing their hair to grow. The Rav points out that this is similar to what an avel, a mourner, does upon losing a loved one. Not only that, but both are confined as well - the metzora to outside the city walls, and the avel to their home. 
 
The Rav says that although they seem the same, the two are fundamentally different. The metzora is taken from the camp and "badad yeisheiv" - must dwell alone. The metzora is isolated, removed from society. Not so the mourner. The avel, while confined, is not secluded. The avel receives visitors and is comforted by his friends. 
 
We see this difference also when it comes to a chag falling during these periods. For an avel, the chag interrupts the aveilut, because the avel, while mourning, is not meant to be disconnected. The chag does not, however, interrupt the period of seclusion for the metzora - he is isolated both from man and from G-d.
 
We can speculate as to what this says about the nature of the sin of the metzora. If the tzarat is brought on by lashon hara, we can certainly understand how this person has created their own isolation, given how their actions and speech have undermined the community. 
   
Yom Orchim is May 4! 
We Need Contact Information for Your Child's Special Guests 
We are gearing up for another wonderful Yom Orchim!  All Early Childhood Center and Elementary School students are encouraged to invite grandparents or another special guest to spend the morning of Friday, May 4th at Maimonides.  There will be singing, eating, and lots of fun!  But we need the contact information to invite your child's guests.  Please click on this link, and fill out the form TODAY!   
 
2-Year-Old Class Newsletter
Dear Parents,

We want to first wish a hearty mazel tov to Elisheva and Ezra Pinsky on the birth of their third beautiful daughter! Yakira was very excited to bring in a photo and the footprints of her new baby sister to show her morot and classmates.

We have been preparing a mountain to be our Har Sinai and making footprints to get to the top as a way to visually count the Omer . Our caterpillars have been transferred to a new, roomier home, and are safe inside their chrysalises.

We hope you enjoy this week's photos!
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Last Thursday, the children began stage one of creating Har Sinai.

 
Then we waited through the weekend for our mountain to dry. 



 
  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 On Friday, we joined the four-year-olds for a Shabbat party, and then made self-portraits with Ms. DiOrio in Art class.
 
 
 
    
 
On Monday, it was time for stage two on our mountain. Lovely fabric, tiny pinecones, and pieces of cardboard made a beautifully textured work of Har Sinai art. 


 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
On Tuesday, Morah Tzipi carefully transferred the chrysalises into a larger home. Let the metamorphosis begin! 
 
 
 
 
We even got to play with a caterpillar/butterfly puppet during Morah Linda's Music class. 
 
 
 
On Tuesday, we were getting ready to celebrate Israel's 70th birthday. 
 
 
 
 
On Wednesday, we had a short visit from Ezra Adelsky's little brother, Amitai. Here he is taking a break from playing some basketball. 
    
 

On Wednesday, we had three fifth graders and their teacher, Mrs. Zippy Portman, come into our classroom to read to the children during snack time.
 
 

 
Here we are on Wednesday getting ready to choose a color paint for our Omer footprints.

 
 
It sure does tickle getting your feet painted! 
 



Even Morah Laura got in on the fun! The next step is to cut out the footprints and count our way to 49 and Har Sinai!


Shabbat Shalom,
 
Morah Laura and Morah Tzipi
3-Year-Old Class Newsletter 
 
Dear Parents,

We have had a busy week celebrating and learning about Israel! On Wednesday, the ECC gathered together as we commemorated Yom Hazikaron (Remembrance Day) and listened to the siren that is heard in Israel. We explained to the students that this is a day to remember all the Israeli soldiers who protect the land of Israel. We also sang Hatikvah and Esah Einai .

On Thursday, we celebrated Yom HaAtzmaut (Israeli Independence Day) with the whole school. We started by going upstairs to the gym, where we joined the Elementary School and watched two videos about "Israel at 70: Hakarat Hatov LeMedinat Yisrael ." In continuing our focus on the culture that Israel has brought to the Jewish world, Associate Principal Reena Slovin taught the students a few Israeli dances. We had such a ball dancing with the first graders!

After dancing, we joined the rest of the school in the Saval gym, where we watched the seventh grade daglanut performance. It was amazing to see their beautiful performance! We had enthusiastic and joyous singing and dancing with the entire school! For lunch, the students enjoyed a delicious Israeli menu of falafel, pita, hummus, Israeli salad, pickles, and French fries. This was such a fun and meaningful day as we celebrated our love for Israel!

On Friday, Perri's parents came into our class. During our Shabbat party, we had a chance to say goodbye to Perri and her family. They will be moving to Chicago next week. The students each had a chance to tell Perri what they like about her, and what activities they like to do with her. We will miss Perri and her family. We wish them well on their new move.
For Parshat Tazria-Metzora , we talked about how it is important to speak kindly to others and not speak lashon hara . We did an activity where the students each said something nice about a classmate. We also discussed how it is important to share what we have with others, especially when someone asks to borrow something. It's also important to give tzedakah to people who don't have what they need.

Shabbat Shalom ,

Morot Leisa, Shayna, and Sara
 
 
        
Drawing with pencils one morning
 
 
 
Working on our fine motor skills by beading our own bracelets
 
 
 
 
Cutting paper increases our fine motor skills too!
 
 
 
 
The students had fun with Morah Linda welcoming each other and dancing.
 
 
 
 
 
We have been observing our caterpillars, which have now grown into chrysalises!
 
 
 
 

Amy Freedman came in to do another Social Thinking lesson with us.



 
Morah Robin came in to share in the lesson!
 
 
 
 
 
The playground was filled with laughter and smiles this week as the kids ran and played.  
 
 
 
 
In Science this week the children made "elephant toothpaste." Ask them what happened!
 

 
We love our 5th Grade Reading Buddies!
 
 
 
 
 
4-Year-Old Class Newsletter

Dear Parents,

This has been such a busy and exciting week! On Monday, as part of learning about Yom HaAtzmaut , we went on a "trip" to Israel. Every day we visited a different part of Israel. On Tuesday we made some fossils, then dug in the sand table for an archaeological dig at מכתש רמון . On Wednesday, we went to Yerushalayim and made our own kotel in which to put messages and prayers to Hashem . On Thursday, we went to the open market, or shuk , in Tel Aviv . The children took turns selling and buying items at different stands. On Friday, we went to צפת . We learned about the shul of the Ari, and the tefillah Lecha Dodi . Finally, we flew home to share our adventures with you!

This week we also did some schoolwide activities. On Yom HaZikaron , the whole ECC got together to listen to the siren they sound in Israel for a moment of silence. Then we sang Hatikvah and the psalm Esah Eynai from tehillim .

On Thursday, for Yom HaAtzmaut , we started the morning with the Elementary School and watched videos about Israel turning 70 and hakarat hatov . We had a super fun time learning some Israeli dances from Associate Principal Reena Slovin and dancing with the elementary school students. After that, we watched the seventh grade perform a daglanut ceremony in the Saval gym, and sang and danced with the entire school! For lunch, we enjoyed some yummy Israeli-style falafel sandwiches.

In this week's parsha, T azria-Metzora , we learned about the importance of speaking nicely to and about other people instead of speaking lashon hara .

Thank you to our Shabbat Ima, Liat Jotkowitz, for our yummy challah and Shabbat treat!

Shabbat Shalom ,

Morot Mimi, Nechi, Irit, Marggie, and Chera
 

 
Making our own flags for the Yom HaAtzmaut celebration
 
 
This week's letters were R and S
 
 
 
  

In Science this week, we made "Elephant Toothpaste." It was super fun!

 
 
 
The two-year-olds came to visit our classroom. We read books with them and played with them.
 
 
 
 

We also drew pictures together.  
 
 
 
  

 
We made our own passports for our trip to Israel
 


We added our faces, names, and information.


 
Here we are on the plane to Israel!
  
 
 
 
 
Making jewelry to sell in our Israeli shuk  
 
 
 
 
 
 
Ella represented the ECC in the Yom HaAtzmaut celebration!

Thank You! 
Thank you to all the PTA volunteers who helped out with this week's special lunch on Yom HaAtzmaut!

Special thanks to Claudine Grossman for organizing the lunch!
Many thanks to Geula Gellman, Risa Gewurz, Israela Kahan, Deb Milgram, Stef Mishkin, Ellen Pulda, Debbie Rothman, Shira Ruderman, and Karen Zar for enhancing Yom HaAtzmaut for our students and serving the Israeli-style lunch.
 
Day of Learning Sponsorship 

To learn more about sponsoring a Day of Learning, please click here.
 
Family Learning on Sunday 

Teacher Appreciation Week is Next Week!
Teacher Appreciation Week is next week (April 23-27)! The PTA is hosting breakfast on Tuesday and lunch on Thursday for all Maimonides teachers. 
 
How many times have you felt gratitude for your children's teachers?  Probably often, but we're all so busy that we can rarely take the time to let them know.  Now is the time!    
 
Please take a moment to send your child's teacher an email or note thanking them for all they do.  It's a wonderful opportunity to show hakarat hatov!  

  
Ayeka:  A Special Interactive Workshop on Spirituality and Connection
Join us on Monday, April 23 at 7:30 p.m. in Saval Auditorium for a special program featuring Rabbi Aryeh Ben David, Founder and Director of Ayeka: The Center for Soulful Education. Rabbi Ben David will be sharing his vision of Jewish education that promotes a personal and vibrant relationship with Jewish text, Judaism, G-d, and spirituality.  He will also discuss how we can focus on soulful parenting in today's busy and complicated world.  RSVP to msnyder@maimonides.org 

 
Celebrate Israel 

 
Social Time!
There's so much going on here at Maimo! Be sure to check out our social media to get the inside scoop (with lots of great photos) on happenings at school.  
 
 
Follow us on Twitter and Instagram
 
See what's happening in other divisions
Lots of wonderful things are happening at Maimonides School!

If you'd like to take a peek at what's happening in the other divisions, click to visit the Elementary School, Middle School, or Upper School newsletter pages.

If you would like to contact a specific school office, please use these emails:
ecc@maimonides.org