Jewish Summer Camp Fair

From sports and arts to outdoor adventures and cultural experiences, Jewish camps offer something for everyone, all within the rich traditions and values of the Jewish community.

The Minneapolis Jewish Federation is hosting a Jewish Summer Camp Fair 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Sunday, September 22, in the Manny Fingerhut Auditorium. Registration is appreciated.

The Jewish Summer Camp Fair is a great opportunity for you to meet with camp directors and staff from a selection of Jewish day camps and overnight camps. You'll be able to gather information about the summer camps as well as scholarships available through the federation. The event will offer camp activities, like friendship bracelet making and camp games; camp swag; and lemonade and cookies.

1. This summer camp fair also offers an opportunity for some of our middle school students to volunteer. If your student is interested in helping teach simple friendship bracelet making at the event, please contact Judie Rothschild. Heilicher volunteers should wear a Heilicher shirt!

2. If you know of any families with kids ages 3-7 who are attending the fair, please encourage them to attend Heilicher admissions' Rosh Hashanah-themed Sunday Family Fun Day in the kindergarten classroom right before the fair, from 10 to 11:30 a.m.

Mark Your Calendars!

• Thursday, September 12 - Back-to-School Night, 6:30-8 p.m., Manny Fingerhut Auditorium and Heilicher Classrooms
• New parents: Come to the library at 6 p.m. to meet with other new families and school leadership.
• All parents: Join the PTO afterward at Punch Bowl Social!
• Thursday, September 26 - EARLY DISMISSAL 2:45 p.m.: Conferences
• Friday, September 27 - NO SCHOOL: Conferences
• Monday, September 30 - Heilicher Homecoming, 4:30 p.m., Soccer Field
• Wednesday, October 2 - EARLY DISMISSAL 12:30 p.m.: Erev Rosh Hashanah
• Thursday, October 3-Friday, October 4 - NO SCHOOL: Rosh Hashanah
• Friday, October 11 - EARLY DISMISSAL 12:30 p.m.: Erev Yom Kippur

View the full Heilicher calendar online

Key Dates for 2024-2025

Torah Thoughts With Doc

Read a brief message about this week’s Torah portion, Ki Teitzei. The rabbinic response to Ki Teitzei's case of the ben sorer umoreh (the wayward and rebellious son) provides a foundation for Heilicher’s approach to Jewish living and learning.

TONIGHT: Back-to-School Night

Back-to-School Night is today, Thursday, September 12, 6:30 to 8 p.m. New parents are invited to come to the library at 6 p.m. for a nosh, meet and greet, and time for some questions. All parents are invited to join the PTO at Punch Bowl Social after the program. This is a parent-only event. You must have your parent access badge or government ID to enter the campus.

Back-to-School Night is an opportunity for you to hear from your child's teachers about their grade-level curricula and educational goals and to build relationships with faculty members and fellow parents. The schedule is as follows:

Grades K-3

6:30-7:10 p.m. Meet with general and Jewish studies teachers in classrooms.

7:10-7:30 p.m. Meet with specialists and the resource team in the auditorium.

Grades 4-8

6:50-7:15 p.m. Meet with specialists and the resource team in the auditorium.

7:20-8 p.m. Meet with general and Jewish studies teachers in classrooms.

If you have questions about how to best split your time with multiple children, please reach out directly to their homeroom teachers.  

Join the Heilicher Grades 2-5 Choir

Students in Grades 2-5 are invited to join the Heilicher choir. Practices will be once a week during recess beginning the week of September 23. If your child is interested in participating in the choir, please email Mr. Shaw by TOMORROW, Friday, September 13 — be sure to include your child's first and last name, along with the name of their general studies teacher.

In choir, students in second through fifth grade have the opportunity to study choral music and explore a variety of musical styles. Your email acknowledges that you have read the Choir Group Guidelines. Early morning rehearsal dates are listed in the guidelines.

Fall Conferences

Fall conferences are coming up on Thursday, September 26, 5-8 p.m., and Friday, September 27, 8 a.m.-3 p.m.

Sign up for fall conference times by Monday, September 23. To sign up or change times after September 23, contact the teachers you want to meet with directly.

If you have students in grades K-5, please make sure to sign up for a 20-minute block with your child(ren)'s general studies teacher and 10-minute blocks with their Hebrew and Jewish studies teachers. Those with students in grades 6-8 should sign up for a 10-minute block with each of their child(ren)’s teachers. The Student and Teacher Resource Team is also offering 20-minute blocks, available to all grade levels. Specialists will be available for drop-in conferences in the Manny Fingerhut Auditorium on both days.

Reminder: To sign up for conferences with more than one teacher or for multiple children, click the “Register for multiple time slots” button to help coordinate your times.

IMPORTANT:

Grades K-3 conferences are PARENTS ONLY.

Grades 4-8 conferences should involve both parents and children.

Please note the early dismissal at 2:45 p.m. on Thursday, September 26, and NO SCHOOL on Friday, September 27. There will be no after-school activities Thursday, but HaBonim will be available. School's Out is available for Friday.

Heilicher Homecoming

Join us for a homecoming cookout as we cheer on the Heilicher middle school soccer team Monday, September 30, at 4:30 p.m. on the Minnesota JCC Sabes Center Soccer Field. Hot dogs will be glatt kosher.

Know any alumni? Invite them to the game! We will have a special alumni acknowledgement at halftime.

Get Your Heilicher Sweatshirts in Royal Blue

Our popular Heilicher sweatshirt with distressed embroidery is back — now in royal blue! Kid and adult sizes are available so you can get for your student(s) and yourself. Place your order by Monday, September 30. (Color will be different from the picture.)

Order Gesher Challah

Heilicher is collaborating with the JCC's Adult Inclusion Program to sell our homemade Gesher Challah. Gesher is the Hebrew word for bridge, symbolic of this program bridging (or braiding!) the Heilicher and Inclusion communities together. Place your orders to receive challah for Friday, September 27*, Friday, October 11**, and/or Friday, November 1. Proceeds will be shared between Heilicher and Inclusion to support programming.

*Usually challah orders are sent home with your student. However for September 27, you must pick up your order at conferences on either Thursday, September 26, or Friday, September 27.

**For Erev Yom Kippur, we will offer both plain and raisin round challot.

Paint Donations

Heilicher is looking for donations of leftover interior paint for the 7-8 play. All colors are welcome. Please drop off any paint outside the art rooms. 

Kashrut Practices at Heilicher

Kashrut is a Jewish food discipline based on a reverence for life. Specific food-related behaviors are commanded (or forbidden) in the Torah (the Five Books of Moses) and interpreted over time by the rabbinic authorities of the Jewish community.

Food customs play an important role in every culture, and eating together is a way of building community. Heilicher recognizes the diversity of the school community and the wide range of kashrut practices in individual homes. It acknowledges its standard of kashrut will seem stringent to some and lax to others. Regardless, its goal is to allow the school to eat together respectfully while learning about a millenia-old Jewish practice.  

To help Heilicher maintain its standard of kashrut, please remember: Students who bring lunch from home need to bring their own cutlery and must keep their lunch within their personal space at the lunch table. Students who participate in the school’s lunch program may not add snack items brought from home to the school’s lunch trays. Thank you in advance for your help.

The laws of kashrut can be confusing and/or overwhelming upon first encounter. Understanding reverence for life as the original reason for the kashrut system is helpful in navigating all the “dos and don’ts.” For a more detailed overview of the laws of kashrut, see An Introduction to the Practice of Kashrut.

Volunteer Opportunities

Heilicher is proud to have an active community of parents and grandparents. Please consider getting involved with one of our many volunteer opportunities:

• All-School Lunch: We are looking for volunteers to help set up and clean up before and after all-school lunch on Wednesdays. During lunch, volunteers may help bring milk and other items to tables. Helpers get to enjoy the community atmosphere of all-school lunch. This is open to parents, grandparents, or others you may know looking to volunteer.
• Art Adventure: If you enjoy good conversation and art or want to learn more about art, Art Adventure may be a great opportunity for you. Art Adventure is an art appreciation and art history program provided in conjunction with the Minneapolis Institute of Art for students in Grades K-4, with parent/grandparent volunteers as "Picture People." Picture people share six works of art from the museum's collection with the class — the year's collection theme is "How People Lived." View the art and learn more about volunteering for Art Adventure.
• Art Room: Ms. Orkin is looking for volunteers to assist in art class for Grades K-3. Volunteering in the art room can be fun, inspiring and interactive. We are looking for volunteers to assist in your child's art class this year.
• Thursday Lunch: We need a consistent lunch server for Thursdays from 11:30 a.m. to 1:15 p.m.
• PTO Volunteer Opportunities: Check out our other opportunities through the Parent Teacher Organization. You can host a grade-level Sukkah party, join a committee, and more.
• We still need sukkah party hosts for seventh grade! These parties are about an hour and a half long on Sunday, October 20.
• Welcome Desk: We are looking for friendly faces to help volunteer to staff the Heilicher welcome desk. Please sign up for as many slots as you can. This is open to parents, grandparents, or others you may know looking to volunteer. The position entails welcoming guests and helping them sign in, helping gather students who may be leaving early, and helping with little projects.