Newsletter

Week of Sunday, January 7th, 2024

Dear Parents,

I hope everyone had an enjoyable and relaxing winter break with family and friends. It was wonderful to see all of the students' smiling faces now that the Spring semester is underway. I personally enjoy getting back into a normal routine.

This past Sunday, our students began learning about social justice in preparation for MLK Day next week. The Ilanot class began learning the story of Passover, the Paparim students spoke about Dr. King, and the Devorim and Nesharim students started exploring the stories of the prophets. They will continue their learning next week with classes solely focused on social justice and some of them learning about Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel marching with Dr. King. It is a Sunday not to be missed!

Please note: On Sunday January 21st, Shul School will take place at Longue Vue Gardens in honor of Tu B'Shevat. Be sure to register so we know how many people will be in attendance.

B'Shalom,

Chaviva Sands

Classes

Gan

2s & 3s Class

Ilanot

PreK & Kindergarten

Parparim

1st & 2nd Grade

Devorim

3rd & 4th Grade

Nesharim

5th & 6th Grade

Ilanot Update

Teacher: Penina Berman

This week the Ilanot class learned the story of baby Moses, which was part of this past week's parashah. They spoke about how the Pharoah wanted to get rid of all the Jewish babies and Yocheved's bravery in hiding Moses. The students were enthralled by the idea of baby Moses making his way down the Nile in a basket and spoke about how in "The Prince of Egypt" there were all these animals that almost tipped the basket over. After, the students were super engaged while reading several stories about Passover and asked great questions pertaining to what they're learning about. In true Passover fashion, the Ilanot class played a version of "Hot Potato" they coined to be "Hot Matzah".

Parparim Update

Teacher: Scott Hart

This week the Parparim class learned about synagogues and watched a short clip about synagogues around the world. A special treat for them was a visit to Rabbi Hoffman's office where he told them a bit about what the rabbi does at the synagogue. They then visited morning minyan for about 10 minutes before going to recess. When class resumed, the Parparim students discussed Tikkun Olam related to Dr. King. Each of the students had an idea for an action or a project they want to do commemorate Dr. King- Zachary wants to pray, Isobel suggested giving tzedakah, Reeva wants to give toys to a charity, and Ezra thinks everyone should read books about Dr. King.

Devorim and Nesharim Update

Teacher: Ali Perez

"Justice, justice you shall pursue!"

This week the Nesharim and Devorim classes spoke about the world that the prophets found themselves living in and all of its injustices. Within this framework, they discussed some of the injustices they see in their world today. They spoke about how the prophets were the social justice advocates of their day and how they, the students, can continue their, the prophets, legacy in their own day.