January 8, 2026 | 20 Tevet 5786 | שמות | | The Pre-K children of Yavneh and Gan Yavneh gathered together for a fun and festive Havdallah night this past Motzai Shabbat. During Havdallah we use many of our senses - we listen to the beautiful singing of Havdallah, smell the fragrant b’samim, and taste delicious grape juice. The children used their senses as they made their own b’samim boxes, made interesting creations using wikki sticks and played a “Name that Smell” game. They played a fun and interactive game related to shabbat and Havdallah. The highlight of the evening was the musical Havdallah and beautiful singing and dancing. The energy and ruach were palpable. Thank you to Yavneh’s Yoni Stokar for leading the singing and dancing. It was a night to remember! | | |
Chazak, Chazak v’Nitchazek! The ECD celebrated the completion of Parashat Bereishit. During the week leading up to the kiddush, the children reviewed highlights from the parshiot in Sefer Bereishit. Each class then chose a parasha or story to focus on and created a poster to represent it. It was wonderful to see how much the children remembered and how deeply connected they felt to the parshiot, our Avot and Imahot, and the stories they tell.
Mr. Yoni visited each classroom and led the children in songs related to the parshiot. Together, we sang and danced to “Chazak, Chazak v’Nitchazek!,” filling the classrooms with excitement and positive energy.
To mark this special occasion, the ECD hosted its very own kiddush. The ECD hallway was transformed into a festive space where the children enjoyed a delicious celebration. The treats were thoughtfully connected to the parshiot; for example, Oreo cookies represented the first day of creation, flatbread crackers symbolized Avraham and Sarah welcoming guests, and cupcakes commemorated the wedding of Yitzchak and Rivka, among many others.
It was a meaningful, delicious and memorable kiddush!
| | This week, Gan Bet students engaged in a 5 senses unit through winter-themed activities. They explored touch by making and describing different types of kinetic sand and by creating textured snowmen with glue and shaving cream after reading the story “Sneezy the Snowman,” by Maureen Wright. In our sight word groups, the students used textured materials like felt, cloth, sand paper and beans to write a sight word. The students enjoyed integrating sensory experiences into their learning. | | |
In Kitah Aleph, we welcome Shabbat each week with joy and intention. The students sing Shabbat songs, our Ima shel Shabbat lights the candles, and our Abba shel Shabbat leads Kiddush. These special moments help create a warm and meaningful Shabbat atmosphere in the classroom. We are also very excited as we prepare for our upcoming Siddur celebration after winter break and are counting down with great excitement.
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Students in first grade learned the Hebrew words connected to winter
and then tried on Morah Neta's winter garb!
| | Throughout the halls, there has been great excitement as students learn about the cardinal directions—north, south, east, and west. They practiced using these directions to read simple maps and follow paths. Working in groups, students solved map challenges and discussed which directions to take. Working collaboratively, second graders were able strengthen their teamwork skills while deepening their understanding of directions. | | This week 3A welcomed Elana and Seth Perlmutter, Jonah's parents, and NORAH - their family dog who is a certified service dog! We learned all about Norah, the differences between a service dog and a therapy dog, watched videos about the role of each dog, and played a game to test our knowledge. Norah was exceptionally behaved, calm, and comfortable around the children and in the classroom. The students also participated thoughtfully and were so respectful. We were ecstatic to be able to pet Norah and even feed her treats after the presentation! | | As part of their unit on the Age of Explorers, fifth grade students learned about the early technology that explorers used to brave their transatlantic travels. In class, students made their own sextants, which they used to determine our latitude in New Jersey. Through this hands-on activity, students connected history with math and science, gaining a deeper understanding of how navigation tools helped explorers map the world long before modern technology. | | The Yavneh Academy Opera Club attended the final dress rehearsal of “Madama Butterfly” at the Metropolitan Opera. Two fifth graders, Gabriel Levine and Michaela Strauss, got to meet Maestro Marco Armiliato, who warmly welcomed them to the Met and graciously posed for a picture. | | SEL UPDATE: This week, students wrapped up our SEL unit on perseverance and “The Power of Yet” with a fun, hands-on challenge class. In small groups, students worked through activities such as stacking cups, an egg race, writing their name without using their thumb, and answering questions in five seconds. While the challenges were tricky, students practiced learning from mistakes, encouraging one another, and not giving up when things felt hard. We talked about using our “inner coach” to stay positive and keep trying, even when success didn’t come right away. It was wonderful to see students cheering each other on, building confidence, and having fun while strengthening important life skills. | | |
This past Motzai Shabbat, the Yavneh Academy 7th grade boys had a Bar-Mitzvah themed celebration. The students and their guests joined for a Dougie’s dinner with entertainment from the Shnitzel Guys. They enjoyed spending time together, delicious food, and some words of Torah from Rabbi Knapp.
After dinner, everyone learned new dance moves with the Shnitzel Guys followed by hands-on learning with Rabbi Grossbaum about the process of making tefillin. The evening ended with chavruta learning about the source for there being 613 Mitzvot. Students each received a Chumash, a gift from YPAA, that included an inscription (written by the student) about a Mitzvah he will be focusing on this year. A fun and educational time was had by all!
| | This past week, the YPAA kicked off our very first Book Club meeting! A big thank you to Sivan Greenspan for hosting and leading a great discussion. We had an engaging conversation about “The Hebrew Teacher” by Maya Arad and loved sharing our thoughts together. If you’d like to join the Book Club WhatsApp group, please email ypaa@yavnehacademy.org. Stay tuned for emails about the next meet up! | | Yavneh Academy is a beneficiary agency of the Jewish Federation of Northern New Jersey. | | | | | |
