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ES Calendar
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Wednesday, Oct. 4
Erev Sukkot
12:00 p.m. Dismissal
Thursday, Oct. 5
Sukkot
No School
Friday, Oct. 6
Sukkot
No School
Wednesday, Oct. 11
Hashonah Rabbah
12:00 p.m. Dismissal
Thursday, Oct. 12
Shemini Atzeret
No School
Friday, Oct. 13
Simchat Torah
No School
As always, please see
the Kol Rambam Weekly for the all-school calendar, events and PTA notes.
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www.galim.org.il
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password: maimonides
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Soveya: Torah-based resources for healthy eating (subscribe to their e-newsletter)
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Send us your
Maimo Moments |
Whether you are a parent, alumni or faculty member, your Maimo Moments are welcomed and appreciated.
Please send your Maimo Moments to
maimomoments@
maimonides.org or call our Maimo Moments hotline 617-232-4452 x424 and record your moment in a voice message.
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Welcome!
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Dear Parents,
We had another great week at school!
Please read on for the latest Elementary School news and information about upcoming events.
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D'var Torah
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by Rabbi David Saltzman
כִּ֛י שֵׁ֥ם ה' אֶקְרָ֑א הָב֥וּ גֹ֖דֶל לֵאלֹקינוּ׃
For the name of the L-RD I proclaim: Give glory to our G-d!
In the parasha last week, Moshe instructed the people to give glory to G-d when His name is proclaimed. In practical terms, this verse applies to Yom Kippur, and it is the reason we bow down during the musaf service. As Rambam writes in the Mishna Torah:
כָּל הַכֹּהֲנִים וְהָעָם הָעוֹמְדִים בָּעֲזָרָה כְּשֶׁהֵם שׁוֹמְעִים אֶת הַשֵּׁם הַמְפֹרָשׁ יוֹצֵא מִפִּי כֹּהֵן גָּדוֹל בִּקְדֻשָּׁה וּבְטָהֳרָה. הָיוּ כּוֹרְעִים וּמִשְׁתַּחֲוִים וְנוֹפְלִים עַל פְּנֵיהֶם וְאוֹמְרִים בָּרוּךְ שֵׁם כָּבוֹד מַלְכוּתוֹ לְעוֹלָם וָעֵד שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר (
דבריםלבג
) "כִּי שֵׁם ה' אֶקְרָא הָבוּ גֹּדֶל לֵאלֹהֵינוּ".
When all the priests and the people standing in the Temple Courtyard would hear G-d's explicit name recited by the High Priest in holiness and purity, they would bow, prostrate themselves, and fall on their faces, saying: "Blessed be the name of His glorious kingdom forever and ever." The rationale is that
Deuteronomy 32:3 states: "When I call out the name of G-d, ascribe greatness to our L-rd."
We also recite this pasuk as an introduction to Shemona Esrei during mincha, musaf, and neila before we say Hashem sefati tiftach. What is the reason for opening Shemona Esrei with this sentence?
One answer suggested by Rabbi Shmuel Gelbard is:
יש להניח שהטעם שהנהיגו לומר פסוק זה לפני שמו"ע, כי מן הגמרא בכמה מקומות (ברכות כא, וכן מה) לומדים ממנו ענין הברכות בכלל, לפיכך לפני אמירתן של י"ט ברכות מצאו לנכון לאומרו.
Since many halachot concerning berachot are learned from this pasuk, it's appropriate to mention before we recite the ultimate of berachot, the Shemona Esrei.
Certainly the idea of praising G-d through our daily berachot and tefillot is learned from this verse, and we should be conscious of that idea to praise G-d before we begin.
Another possibility is extracted from the Rashbam. The Rashbam, in his chumash commentary, explains that Moshe was instructing the people as follows:
כי שם ה' אקרא - כאשר אספר לכם גבורות שעשה לכם הקב"ה והטובות שגמל לכם וגם שהוא צדיק במה שיעשה לכם, גם אתם הבו גודל לאלהינו - היו מודים על האמת.
when I will tell you about the great and wonderful things G-d has done for you, as well as that He is righteous in what He will do for you in the future, you too will want to render Him homage, proclaim His greatness, by proclaiming Him as our G-d. This will not be flattery, but recognition of what is a truth.
Using the idea of the Rashbam, perhaps the reason we begin the Amida with this verse is to remind ourselves about all the
טובות שגמל לכם
- all the wonderful things that G-d has done for us. As we prepare to recite the Shemona Esrei and ask G-d to fulfill all our wishes regarding health, sustenance, knowledge, Israel, and more, these petitions must be said in the context of recognizing all the good and benefits that Hashem has already performed for us, and that He will continue to provide whatever we need -
שהוא צדיק במה שיעשה לכם
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On Yom Kippur we will have multiple opportunities to demonstrate our hakarat hatov to Hashem when we hear His name, by bowing during the musaf service and by reciting the verse
כִּ֛י שֵׁ֥ם ה' אֶקְרָ֑א הָב֥וּ גֹ֖דֶל לֵאלֹקינוּ
before Shemona Esrei.
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Thoughts of the Rav
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by Rabbi David Saltzman
In the last newsletter, we explored the concept of mechila. Today, we will define the idea of kapara and slicha.
The Rav explains that when someone transgresses against Hashem, they are deserving of punishment, and mechila lessens the punishment's severity. A second deterrent which affects the transgressor is metaphysical. The person's nefesh (soul) is sullied when not following the word of G-d. A sin detaches us from our Father in heaven and places a hole in our soul.
Yom Kippur has the additional aspect of repairing our connection to G-d as He heals our spiritual wounds and brings our soul closer to being complete. As the pasuk states:
כִּי בַיּוֹם הַזֶּה יְכַפֵּר עֲלֵיכֶם לְטַהֵר אֶתְכֶם, מִכֹּל חַטֹּאתֵיכֶם לִפְנֵי ה' תִּטְהָרוּ.
For on this day atonement shall be made for you to cleanse you of all your sins; you shall be clean before the L-rd.
As the pasuk states, Yom Kippur brings kapara (slicha), which spiritually purifies the transgressor. Let's pray for a complete mechila and kapara for this coming Yom Kippur.
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| Shlichot Activities for Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur |
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The first program planned and run by our two fabulous new
shlichot - Avigail and Renana - occurred on Erev Rosh Hashanah. The activities took place in the gym for students in grades 3-5 and in the classrooms for grades 1-2.
The focus of the program was
hitchadshut (renewal), and it began with a reflection on our actions of the past year - what we would like to keep and take with us, and what we'd like to discard. The older students viewed an inspiring video about
tashlich (the afternoon ceremony on the first day of Rosh Hashanah when we symbolically cast off our sins at the banks of a river, stream, or lake). They were then given a piece of paper on which they wrote something they did this past year that they would like to get rid of and throw away. The students crumpled this up and threw it into a bucket of water, and then participated in the second activity.
The younger students viewed a video of the song "Shanah Tovah" before participating in the second activity. This involved decorating a card in the shape of an envelope and writing a Rosh Hashanah greeting to themselves. The greeting included the students' personal hopes and dreams for the coming year.
On Monday, in preparation for Yom Kippur, our
shlichot organized
slichot for the entire 3rd - 5th grade. In the morning, immediately following the Monday morning assembly, the 3rd - 5th grade recited the
al chait while beating their hearts, and then sang the
slicha adon haslichot together.
On Friday, the 5th graders led another activity for the 4th graders in preparation for Yom Kippur. The theme was
avodah she'belaev, davening with intention from the heart. The students saw a skit, learned a pasuk from
Tehilim, and then made bookmarks to use on Yom Kippur. This activity was repeated for grades 1 and 2.
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| Family Learning |
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Over 50 people participated in the first family learning before Rosh HaShanah. This year the theme will be the
chagim, and the first session focused on Rosh HaShanah, Yom Kippur, and Sukkot. There was learning and an activity for each one of these holidays.
For Rosh HaShanah, families
learned why we eat apples and honey and how honey is produced, and taste-tested different types of honey.
The Yom Kippur station focused on not wearing leather shoes and
learning the difference between leather and other materials.
For Sukkot, participants learned
mishnayot about various shapes, sizes, and forms of
sukkot, and assessed understanding through a
sukkah scavenger hunt.
We concluded with a group Kahoot review game which was a lot of fun.
Join us for the next Torah and STEM Family Learning on Sunday, October 22 (see flier below).
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| STEM at Maimo |
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This week we began a STEM activity period for our 3-5th graders. Some students have chosen to work on learning coding during this time. A group of students decided to try out the KIBO robot! They had a wonderful time working on the robot and figuring out how to make it work.
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| Next Family Learning on Sunday, October 22 |
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Directory Online
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The 2017-18 Directory with names and addresses is now online and can be accessed via the Parent Portal on our website at
http://www.maimonides.org/parents. Once you have logged in, click on "Family Directory" in the menu at left.
You will need your My BackPack information to log into the Parent Portal. If you need help, please contact
[email protected].
Individual class lists will be distributed in October.
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| Lost and Found - השבת אבידה |
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Below are the lost items we have collected. Please take a look to see if anything looks familiar and retrieve it. If you label lunchboxes, water bottles, and clothing, we will be sure to return them to your child directly.
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Social Time!
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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.
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See What's Happening in the Other Divisions
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 Lots of wonderful things are happening at Maimonides School!
If you'd like to take a peek at the other divisions' newsletters, please click here for the Early Childhood Center, or click here for the Middle and Upper Schools.
If you would like to contact a specific school office, please use these emails:
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!שבת שלום
Rabbi, Reena, and the Maimonides ES Faculty
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