Newsletter for November 19, 2021

by admin | Nov 19, 2021 | Newsletter

Dvar Torah

In this week’s Parsha, Yaakov fought with AIsav’s angel. While he won the fight, he was injured in his thigh. Because of this, the Torah commands us to refrain from eating the “Gid HaNasheh”, the sciatic nerve of an animal.

The Hebrew word, Nasheh, comes from the root of forgetting. During the times of Chanukah, the Greeks worked hard to make us forget the Torah. They did not object to the Jews as a people, but objected to Judaism, which made the Jews unique.

After Yaakov was injured, the Torah tells us that the sun shone, Lo, for him. The Hebrew word, Lo, has a numeric value of 36. Over the 8 nights of Chanukah, we light 36 candles (plus the Shamesh).

Yaakov Avinu was healed by the sun. The Jewish people are restored by the light of the Chanukah candles.

In every generation, the non-Jews try to hit us, the Jewish people, in the Gid HaNasheh. They try to make us forget the Torah, forget what makes us unique, different from the non-Jews. We keep ourselves separate from the non-Jews. We do not eat the Gid HaNasheh. We remind ourselves of who we are and keep that light burning, through the 36 Chanuka candles that we light over the 8 nights of Chanukah.

(Rav Moshe Wolfson, Meaningful Minute)

Mrs. Rosskamm
Judaic Studies Coordinator

Special Announcement

Dear parents.
Thank G-d, we had a wonderful week at Siha! We definitely feel the Chanukah atmosphere and are excitedly looking forward. The students are working hard to create beautiful Menorahs which will be presented at the Chanukah party on December 6th.
The spectacular Chanukah packages and beautiful silver plated Menorahs for each student will be given out on Wednesday, before Thanksgiving break. The 1st Chanukah Menorah lighting is on Sunday night, November 28.
The school-wide Menorah-lighting contest is for each student to light their Menorah each night of Chanukah with the berachot (blessings.)
The contest sheet will be included in the Chanukah package this Wednesday. There will be great prizes for each student who gives it in to their Judaics teacher after Chanukah as well as an entry an exciting raffle.
Shabbat Shalom!
Have a wonderful and relaxing weekend.

Best regards,
Miss Dershowitz & Mrs Ferber
Programming Coordinators

Judaics

Kindergarten and First Grade
We baruch Hashem had another great week in kindergarten and first grade Judaics!
In kriah, the first graders are learning to read longer kamatz words and are really doing a great job! They played a fun game of kamatz hangman and kamatz matching with real words! They can’t wait to learn the new nekuda next week. The kindergarteners welcomed in the VAV visitor this week and know how vav is partnered with vet. They also learned about the important mitzvah of “unishmartem es nafshoseichem” (staying safe) and are all super careful to buckle up in the car and wear helmets while bike riding.
The first grade learned a new kesiva letter – the letter vav!
Both classes continued learning the story of the upcoming holiday of Chanuka. They had such fun acting out the scene of the brave Jews ignoring the king Antiochus’s terrible decrees and learning Torah in secret, playing dreidel when the Greek soldiers (Morah:)) came to search for the rule breakers. They were amazed how, despite the harsh decrees, the Jews continued serving Hashem and the children made their very own “Mi laHashem alay” badges showing how they listen to Hashem even when it’s hard.
In parsha, they heard how Yaakov went to great lengths to get some small jars because everything Hashem gives us is very important and must be taken care of. They made their very own small jars with pictures of the small items they own that should be important to them.
It was lovely seeing everyone by PTA. I’m looking forward to another great week!
Morah Chavi

Second Grade
We are having a busy and exciting week preparing for Chanukah. We hope you will enjoy and use our homemade project over the holiday. We learned about the mitzva of not wasting in this weeks Parsha our ancestor Yaakov went back to the other side of the river to locate some small jars he left there. We talked about what we do with clothes that don’t fit us anymore. Zechariah (Zak) and Bryna (Brianna) both said they would donate the clothes. We also talked about not wasting food. We hope all our mothers enjoy the special gift we made and will use it weekly. Shabbat Shalom

Third Grade

This week in 3rd grade was an outstanding week of learning and growing together.
Firstly, I’d like to mention how proud I am of my 3rd grade. They have all completed the first davening contest!
Yes! Their Davening is really so special to Hashem!
We continued learning Hebrew prefixes. We learned this week that “Lamed” means TO or FOR.
We practiced our Zachar and Nekaivah numbers 1-19! it could get confusing but they are doing it beautifully.
Our Dikduk skills are getting better every day and I am so proud of the way they catch onto the Hebrew language.
In Pitgam we learned the wonderful Mitzvah of Tzedakah.
Thank you Gal Zadok for the fun game.
Chanukah is in the air and 3rd grade is learning about the miracle and Mitzvot of Chanukah. We can’t wait to see what’s in store for next week!

Shabbat Shalom!
Morah Ferber

Fourth Grade

Dear Parents,

This week we covered many topics.
Our Tefilla once again was terrific. Children Davening beautifully, it was really a pleasure to see. We spoke about the explanations of parts of Davening.
We were excited to speak about the Chanuka story … worksheets that have letters with nekudos! We really got the feeling of Chanuka.
We are getting ready for the Play we hope to have about 2 weeks after Chanuka. We enjoy the practice each day.
Congratulations to Zohar and Josh for being this week’s raffle winners.

In the Parsha יעקב אבינו returned to the other side of the river by himself, in the middle of the night, to get a few jugs that he forgot there. He had many reasons not to go back and get them: he was by himself, it was in the middle of the night, he was very rich and could get new ones… The lesson we learn is that we have care for what Hashem us.

Have a great Shabbos,
Rabbi Berelowitz

5th and 6th Girls
Dear parents.
Thank G-d, we had a wonderful week!
We began learning all about chanukah. Throughout the entire week, we learned in depth the history of the story of Chanukah. The girls made a book, adding new chapters for every new tale in the chanukah story. They chose the titles they thought were befitting for each story and summarized the stories; decorating, drawing and coloring as we went along.
We are looking forward to learning about the holiday celebrations and costums next week, now that we have a full understanding on the chanukah story.
We continued on in Chumash Shemot, learning about the multiplication of the Jewish nation in Egypt and Pharaoh’s plan to destroy them.
We learned the 3rd blessing of Shemoneh Esrei about the holiness of Hashem.
We learned all about this week’s Parsha, Parshat Vayishlach.
We enjoyed singing Shabbat songs and getting a special Shabbat treat to save for Shabbat.
Shabbat Shalom!
Have a nice weekend.
Best regards,
Miss Dershowitz

5th and 6th Boys

This week we continued onwards in Mishna.
We learned about a case where there were two “finders”. One riding on an animal and one leading the animal.
The law is the same as in the case where two came in holding a lost/found object. They must swear and then they may split it.
If they admit or produce witnesses, we divide it without anyone swearing.
In Parashat Va’eira, we learned about the maka of dam blood.
In Parasha we covered many details, including but not limited to;
Yaakov preparing to meet brother Eisav by,
Praying,
Preparing a Doron = a gift [a very large one]
Preparing for war.
We read a few Chanuka plays, and we are going to take a vote to see which one we will perform.
Can’t wait
We studied Navi Yehoshua, and completed Perek Vav,with our beautiful workbook. We learned about the Jews conquering the land of Israel, and sparing Rachav and her family, as per the promise of the “spies”.
There is really more in store.

7th and 8th Girls

This week we continued onwards in Mishna.
We learned about a case where there were two “finders”. One riding on an animal and one leading the animal.
The law is the same as in the case where two came in holding a lost/found object. They must swear and then they may split it.
If they admit or produce witnesses, we divide it without anyone swearing.
In Parashat Va’eira, we learned about the maka of dam blood.
In Parasha we covered many details, including but not limited to;
Yaakov preparing to meet brother Eisav by,
Praying,
Preparing a Doron = a gift [a very large one]
Preparing for war.
We sudied and were quizzed on a lot of info on Be’ur T’fila.
We went further in Halacha- Hilchot Hashkamat Haboker.
We learned alot about the translation of the morning Brachot.
We read a few Chanuka plays and we will have a vote about which one we will use to perform.
there is more
in store

7th and 8th Boys

Dear Parents,
This week we covered many topics.
In explaining the Davening, we spoke about the Berochos of Teshuva. We spoke about how special it is, to be able to ask for forgiveness.
In Gemara we started a brand-new topic. It is the topic of, if someone throws a stone, is he obligated to go to Galus. Mikai did a great job acting out the Gemara.
In Halacha we started learning about Chanuka. We are excited for the Holiday.

Congratulations to Jeffrey and Noam for winning the week’s raffle.
Topics from the Parsha:
יעקב sent messengers to find out if עשו (after 34 years) was still mad at him for taking the ברכות.
The messengers told יעקב that עשו was marching towards him, to fight, with 400 men!
יעקב did 3 things to prepare himself:
1) תפילה.
He sent presents (a lot of small ones to make it look like more).
3) He divided his family into 2 so that at least one group would be able to run away.
When יעקב returned to get the jugs, he met the מלאך of עשו. They fought the rest of the night, and the מלאך was only able to hurt his thigh.
יעקב let the מלאך go only after he agreed that יעקב really deserved the ברכות.
יעקב led his family towards עשו, and he bowed 7 times to show respect to עשו.
עשו hugged יעקב and didn’t hurt him at all.
After עשו told יעקב that he wanted to travel together, יעקב (not wanting to travel with a רשע) told עשו to travel ahead, because he has little children and animals and can’t travel so fast.
רבקה died before יעקב returned home.
רחל died right after she gave birth to her second son-בנימין, the twelfth שבט. She is buried on the side of the road in קבר רחל, that is still there today. It’s a special place for davening.

Have a Good Shabbos!

Rabbi Berelowitz

Thoughts from Mrs. Hazen

Firstly, Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!
Next week is a short week; so the next Newsletter won’t come out until the week after, and that one will be about a much bigger celebration at SIHA: Chanukah.

Thanksgiving is an odd holiday. It was created as a holiday after the Civil War; and it grew out of a need to have a holiday that would unite a nation divided. Its roots are wholly secular, and it was created a national holiday by President Abraham Lincoln (Inspired by an editorial writing campaign by Sarah Josepha Hale). How people celebrate this holiday varied from place to place, until eventually settling into a familiar form by the latter 20th century, when the familiar ‘Pilgrims and Indians’ story got adopted as well.

My family are immigrants to this country, so for us, it is an adopted holiday. As such, we had no family traditions regarding this time. It was nice to have the time off from work and school and be together as a family, so we would cook a big meal, and hang out.

The weather, of course, is turning colder, but it is still warm enough for walks. I absolutely love this part of fall. There are many leaf piles to run through still, and the parks are just cool enough to be bug-free and warm enough to play in. I’m looking forward to that this year – going out on the day of, enjoying the leaves and the cool autumn sun, and rediscovering the joy of running through piles of leaves with my little one.

I hope that my students and their families find a moment next week to enjoy the outside, too. Most of them carry the world in their pockets, and to quote William Wordsworth, “The world is too much with us.”

There is a kind of magic of living in one of the biggest cities in the world, and still getting to enjoy fall leaves and ponds and fuzzy caterpillars. Take a walk or ride your bike, I tell my students; adulthood these days involves way too much staring at screens already.
I leave off with a memorable poem about fog, by Carl Sandburg, quoted below in its entirety:

The fog comes
on little cat feet.

It sits looking
over harbor and city
on silent haunches
and then moves on.

Elementary School

Kindergarten
This week kindergarten worked super hard on their writing skills! They are practicing writing a sentence beginning with a capital letter, putting spaces between their words, and ending with a punctuation mark. They listened to many read alouds of predictable books and they started to write their own predictable book. In math they continued to review for their math test on patterns that they will take next week.
They made pattern bracelets, did pattern dot painting, and played pattern games. In science they continued to learn about the water cycle. They did two really fun experiments to learn about the water cycle, rain, and snow. They recreated the water cycle in a cup and then they made snow. In social studies they learned about Thanksgiving and why we celebrate Thanksgiving. They were really interested in a video they watched about real Native American children and how they live and play.

First grade learned that veterans protect our country and help other countries when needed. We discussed family members who served in the United States armed forces, and wrote letters to thank them for their service. The first graders enjoyed reading “Kitten’s First Full Moon” wherein we learned about cause and effect. We created addition stories in Math. In Science, we discussed ways to combat water pollution. Finally, for Social Studies the first graders made Thankful projects in honor of the Thanksgiving holiday.

Second Grade
2nd grade took a quiz on subtraction with borrowing this week! We are also working on solving word problems, and identifying key words in word problems to help us figure out what steps/operations are required to solve them. In the picture you can see Aaron Kadymir solving a word problem on the board. In ELA we are learning about nouns, what they are, and how to identify them in sentences. In social studies we are learning about weather, climate, and different kinds of landforms. In science, students learned what is a habitat and how animals meet their needs; Students describe the animals and plants they live and adapt in the Woodland forest.

Third Grade
This week Grade 3 students learned how to identify and correct run on sentences. During our Math lessons, students practiced solving addition equations vertically and through number bonding. They also continued to develop their skills in solving word problems and rounding. During our Reading lessons, students continued reading their class novel – Love That Dog. Students saw Jack use more and more literary devices such as imagery to continue his journey of writing poetry. Students were also introduced to Aesop’s fables through a play called The Ants and the Grasshoppers. They were able to analyze and identify the elements of the play with the concentration towards the play’s theme. During our Social Studies lessons, students compared and contrasted the three types of communities. They reviewed everything we learned through our research and are ready to take the quiz on Monday.
Miss Sasha

In science, students learned and were able to explain the path of the respiratory system; explain the differences between lungs and gills; gave examples of the ways that animals respond to the environment.

In science, students started a new chapter: “Organization of Living Things”
During a mini-lab: Students were able to dissect and illustrate the structure of a flower. Observing and illustrating the parts of a flower was so exciting.

Fifth Grade
Fifth Graders welcomed their new ELA and Social Studies teacher, Mr. Kestenbaum. Mr. Kestenbaum comes with 35 years of experience and is very excited to be joining SIHA. Fifth graders wrote introductory letters to Mr. Kestenbaum. In grammar, students reviewed for their Vocabulary Test. Everyone did a good job! In reading, 5B continued their novel study of Holes while 5A continued their novel study of Maniac Magee. In Social Studies, the students finished their chapter on Native Americans and started learning about the Age of Exploration.

In gym, Rabbi Kuritsky showed up and helped the 5th grade work out!

In science, students learned and compared characteristics of plants that improve their ability to survive in a specific environment. Describe how food is transported in plants.

Students performed a Mini-Lab: How does water flow through the celery stem? During the lab students were able to make an observation on the plant’s stem.

Middle School

Middle School ELA and Social Studies

6th Grade

Sixth grade had a busy week!
Ms. Tatic joined our classroom as the new 6th grade teacher. Mrs. Hazen was there every day to smooth out the transition. In grammar, students learned about and practiced identifying Subject Complements. In reading, students started their literary analysis essay by making an outline and populating it with textual evidence.
In Social Studies, the class started their next unit on Ancient India.

7th Grade

Seventh grade had a busy week!
Ms. Tatic joined the 7th grade as the new ELA and Social Studies teacher. Mrs. Hazen was still in the classroom every day to help smooth out the transition. Students learned a new method of annotating nonfiction texts to help finding meaning easier. We annotated and discussed the Gettysburg Address, and later on in the week, did the same for JFK’s Inaugural Address.
In reading, we continued our novel study and had great class discussion.
Students also reviewed for and took their Unit 1 Vocabulary Test. Ilan got a 100%!
In Social Studies, students learned about the Age of Exploration and made a poster identifying the causes, the technological advances, and the results of European Exploration.

8th Grade
Eighth Grade had a good week!
This week was all about wrapping up our novel study of Lord of the Flies. We did close reading of key passages and analysis in terms of characterization and allegorical meaning. Students also answered reading comprehension questions.
Students also reviewed for and took their Unit 1 Vocabulary Test. Everyone studied hard!
In Social Studies, we started our unit on the Great Depression and the New Deal. Students had wonderful class discussions over the causes and effects of the Great Depression.

Middle School Math
5A and 5B grade worked on adding and subtracting mixed numbers.
6th grade worked on multiplying and dividing fractions.
7th grade learned how to calculate the area of composite shapes and surface area of prisms.
8th grade learned how to convert equations to standard form.

Middle School Science

6th gr.

Students learned and understood how tectonic plate motions have resulted in global changes in geography, climate, and the patterns of organic evolution. During an activity students were able to understand the different plate boundaries when they completed the informational chart.

7th Grade

7th grade is discovering the ways in which we identify the characteristics of physical properties, the difference between a physical and chemical change and how we determine the various characteristics of matter. Students will watch various videos and conduct hands-on investigations to determine the density of an object.

8th Grade

Students are discovering what it means to be alive! Students will be completing a Scientific Explanation answering the essential question “What does an organism need to be deemed alive?” They are investigating various articles and will watch a few videos to begin their investigation, so they can determine a position and make a claim. Once their investigation is complete, students will make their claim and support it with evidence from the sources they used to complete their investigation.

8th gr. Science Nachas

Mrs. Belli was so proud of Lana, Leora and Yisroel. Students were able to present their work in an amazing presentation: “Plants as Medicine ” Keep it up!! Great job!!

Jewish History
7th grade continued exploring the first 10 generations of this world. We learned the 6 commandments that apply to all people and we saw how the lack of following those commandments lead to discord and destruction. Each student wrote for me their own example based on what we learned. I got some very interesting answers that I enjoyed very much. Congratulations to Eva and Gabby for surprising me with something I never thought of before!

8th grade continued our journey into the Babalonian exile. We learned about the end of Nevechadnetzar’s reign, the peaceful times of Evil Merodach and the upheaval of Balshatzar, complete with hands writing on the wall!.

Newsletter for 11/12/2021

by admin | Nov 12, 2021 | Newsletter

Dvar Torah

“To try, to fall, to fear, and yet to keep going: that is what it takes to be a leader.” Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks

What is it that made Yaakov – not Avraham or Yitzchak, or Moshe– the true father of the Jewish people? We are called “Bnei Yisrael,” “the Children of Israel. And bear Yaakov/Yisrael’s name. Yet Yaakov did not begin the Jewish journey; Avraham did. Yaakov faced no trial like that of Yitzchak at the Akeida. He did not lead the people out of Mitzrayim or bring them the Torah. To be sure, all his children stayed within the faith, unlike Avraham or Yitzchak, so how did he succeed where Avraham and Yitzchak failed?

It seems that the answer lies in parshat Vayetze and parshat Vayishlach. Yaakov was the man whose greatest visions came to him when he was alone at night, far from home, fleeing from one danger to the next. In parshat Vayetze, escaping from Esav, he stops and rests for the night with only stones to lie on, and has an epiphany:

He had a dream in which he saw a stairway resting on the earth, with its top reaching to heaven, and the angels of G-d were ascending and descending on it…. When Yaakov awoke from his sleep, he thought, “Surely that Hashem is in this place, and I was not aware of it.” He was afraid and said, “How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of G-d; this is the gate of heaven.” (Gen. 28:12–17)

In parshat Vayishlach, fleeing from Lavan and terrified at the prospect of meeting Esav again, he wrestles alone at night with an unnamed stranger.

Then the man said, “Your name will no longer be Yaakov, but Yisrael, because you have struggled with God and with humans and have overcome.”…So Yaakov called the place Peniel, saying, “It is because I saw God face to face, and yet my life was spared.” (Gen. 32:29–31)

These are the decisive spiritual encounters of Yaakov’s life, yet they happen in liminal space (the space between, neither a starting point nor a destination), at a time when Yaakov is at risk in both directions – where he comes from and where he is going to. Yet it is at these points of maximal vulnerability that he encounters Hashem and finds the courage to continue despite all the hazards of the journey; with his family bearing witness.

That is the strength Yaakov bequeathed to the Jewish people. What is remarkable is not merely that this one tiny people survived tragedies that would have spelled the end of any other people but that after each cataclysm, Judaism renewed itself, scaling new heights of achievement.

We can be defeated by the suffering or tests that trap us or we can endure, experience G-d’s salvation and find its meaning. Our children bear witness to our actions. To them, our struggles must only be recalled as our trophies of achievement. Our battle scars, responses to life should inspire them and to keep moving forward and walk in our ways, path of Torah and good deeds.

Shabbat Shalom

Dr. Chana Uzhansky

Judaics

Kindergarten and First Grade

We baruch Hashem had another great week in Kindergarten and first grade Judaics!
In kriah, the kindergarteners learned all about how HEY hurt his foot and has to hop, but he’s still always happy! Hat day and a special hat game in honor of the letter hey was lots of fun. They also learned from hey about the mitzvah of hakaras hatov- being appreciative and saying thank you. They even made a special card to thank their wonderful mothers! The first graders are really mastering the nekudah kamatz. They already know how to read real two-letter words!
In kesiva, the first graders learned with their friend Akiva how to write the letter yud in script! It’s really easy and fun!
In yahadut, both classes began learning about the upcoming holiday of Chanuka! They learned how different the Jewish people were from the Greek people and how lucky we are to be part of the Jewish nation! They also heard about the mean Greek king Antiyochus who made five terrible decrees against the Jewish people. They are doing a great job writing the Chanuka story in their special booklets!
In parsha, they couldn’t believe the story of Rochel giving up her marriage partner to save her sister Leah from embarrassment! What self-sacrifice! They also know a fun song that lists all the 12 shevatim (Yaakov’s children).
The yom iyun on Veterans Day was a huge success! It was great learning all about the mitzvah of thanking Hashem and others (especially our parents…) together with the wonderful parents and students! Thank you to all the parents who made the effort to join us.
Looking forward to another great week,
Morah Chavi

Second Grade

We had another busy week in 2nd grade. We began learning about Chanukah and can’t believe Chanukah is only a little over two weeks away. We spent time talking about speaking respectfully to our parents,teachers and each other. We learn from our ancestor Yaakov that even though his father in law tricked him, he remained calm and always spoke in a respectful way. Parent/Child Learning Day worked out beautifully, and the concept of “Hacarat Hatov” gratitude was discussed. The children thought of different ways they can help their parents and filled in the flower with various reasons they appreciate their mommy. A special thanks to Mrs. Rosskamm and Mrs. Ferber for working so hard on for this special day. Shabbat Shalom.

Third Grade

Third grade is growing higher every day with the beautiful work they show.
Their Davening is beautiful! We even started saying Baruch Sheamar. They can even say it in English as well.
We continued learning Hebrew Prefix words. Like -Hey before a word means “the”.
In Chayainu we now are practicing numbers 11-19 in Hebrew, And in Pitgam we learned the beautiful lesson of when Shabbat comes, peace comes to the world. Daniella Usobuv displayed it very well.
Third grade truly enjoyed a special visit from our parents on Thursday. We were all so amazed by the way they understood the concept of how we should be appreciative for what we have in this world.
This week’s Parshah the boys and girls remembered beautifully! The story was brought to life in the classroom by the amazing excitement and creative drawing.
They amaze me!
Keep it up!

Shabbat Shalom!
Morah Ferber

Fourth Grade

Dear Parents,
What a fun filled week it was. There is a lot to talk about.
In class we discussed how important it is to look inside a Siddur when we Daven, even though we may know the Davening by heart. Zohar and Tanya really Davened well.
We retold a great story how a person went the hospital on Rosh Hashanah because he wanted to blow Shofar for the people that needed it. He gave up Davening at his own Shul in order to help the people out. We asked in class, why is it important to care for others? The students had great answers.
In writing the numbers in Ivrit, we did from 11 – 20. It was terrific.

Shabbat Shalom,
Rabbi Berelowitz

5th and 6th Girls
Dear parents,
Thank G-d, we had a wonderful week!
Thank you to all the parents who joined us this week. (I appreciate those of you who finally took my advice to quit their jobs and join us in our classroom!)
We learned many wonderful things this week. We learned Chumash Parshat Shemot about the Jewish people going down to Egypt. We were wondering why Hashem counted the Jewish people again, if He just counted them. But we’ve learned that it’s because He loves us so much. Just as a person would constantly count a treasured collection (i.e coins, stamps, antiques, cards, etc.), we’re G-d’s treasured collection.
We learned the 2nd Ani Maamin about Hashem’s Oneness. We learned how important it is to say the Shema, as well as how powerful that prayer is. There was once a Jewish man, an atheist, who was hunting with a friend in the African jungles, when a venomous python (snake) approached and coiled around him. As he was being squeezed to death, he suddenly screamed “Shema Yisroel Hashem Elokeinu Hashem Echad!” (“Listen Israel, Hashem is our G-d, Hashem is One.”) The python uncoiled from upon him and walked away.
Like they say, there are no atheists in a foxholes.
(He ended up learning more about Torah and Mitzvot and becoming religious.)
We continued on in Shemoneh Esrei, learning the 3rd Beracha of Kedusha, the holiness of Hashem.
Looking forward to another wonderful week!
Shabbat Shalom! Enjoy your weekend.

Best Regards,
Miss Dershowitz

5th and 6th Boys

This week we began and delved into the subject of Beur T’fila The explanation of prayers. The boys are learning, in groups with eachother, the meaning of the morning B’rachot-Blessings.
The boys did well and actually enjoyed exploring the meanings of the blessings.
Rabbi Kuritsky was away for one day to go to a best friend’s son’s wedding in Chicago. Miss Etty taught the boys about the Parasha and special Y’diot Klaliot that Rabbi Kuritsky provided, and davened with the boys. Thank Miss Etty!
The boys greeted Rabbi Kuritsky very warmly upon his return.
Rabbi Berelowitz gave a fantastic presentation about Thanking Hashem on Thursday, Yom Iyun day.
We are excited about the school’s Menorah contest. Let’s see who can be really creative with their project

Doron Eliyahu Saying the Havdala

7th and 8th Boys

Dear Parents,
What a fun filled week it was. There is a lot to talk about.
In Tefilla we spoke about that the fourth Beracha of Shmone Esreh. We discussed the greatness, that Hashem gave us that we have knowledge.
In our Gemara class, it is amazing at see that the children are mastering the words of the Gemara.
In our Halacha class we learnt about the great Mitzvah of Mezuza. We discussed many different scenarios.

Thoughts from Mrs. Hazen

Happy Veteran’s Day!
SIHA hosted a special parent-child learning day this week in honor of our veterans. In addition to that, many classes had a special assignment that explained or celebrated this special day in some way. The 5th grade class created a special board with poppies – and they learned about history of Veteran’s Day as Armistice Day, and why poppies are still used for remembrance in some places.

Of course, our veterans deserve our support every day of the week, and there is no better way to show that than to be the best citizens we can be. There is no small amount of poetry written about patriotism and veterans, but my favorite is A Nation’s Strength. The final two stanzas read:

Not gold but only men can make
A people great and strong;
Men who for truth and honor’s sake
Stand fast and suffer long.

Brave men who work while others sleep,
Who dare while others fly…
They build a nation’s pillars deep
And lift them to the sky.

The strength of a nation is in its people; similarly, the strength of a school is in its students. Our students come here every day and strive, achieve, and build themselves up to be the amazing leaders and makers that I know they will be.

Have a great weekend, everyone!

Elementary School

Kindergarten
This week kindergarten finished learning all of the letters of the alphabet! To celebrate all their hard work they had an alphabet party. They had a super fun and busy day full of alphabet activities. They popped balloons to find lowercase letters and matched them to the capital letters, they made alphabet hats and bracelets, went on an alphabet scavenger hunt, played alphabet bingo, found the letters in their names and colored them in to decorate the classroom, and they watched an alphabet movie. They also learned this week how to write a sentence. They did an amazing job writing their first sentences independently. In math they continued to learn about patterns. They finished making their pattern book and they made many interesting patterns using blocks. They played one of their favorite games to learn how to count by tens to help them practice counting to 100. In science they continued to learn about the water cycle. The learned a water cycle song and cut and glued the water cycle in sequential order. In social studies they learned about Veterans Day and why we celebrate Veterans Day.

First Grade
First grade learned that veterans protect our country and help other countries when needed. We discussed family members who served in the United States armed forces, and wrote letters to thank them for their service. The first graders enjoyed reading “Kitten’s First Full Moon” wherein we learned about cause and effect. We created addition stories in Math. In Science, we discussed ways to combat water pollution. Finally, for Social Studies the first graders made Thankful projects in honor of the Thanksgiving holiday.

Second Grade
This week 2nd grade finished up our personal narratives, and presented them to the class! We are also finishing up our first book, “The Chocolate Touch.” In math we are continuing to master the skill of borrowing in subtraction. We also started a new unit in social studies. We are learning what state, country, and continent we live on.

In science, students learned and understand that reproduction is essential to the continued existence of every kind of organism. Animals have unique and diverse life cycles. Students learned the stages of the butterfly life cycle and compared that with a bear life cycle; reviewed chapter concepts.

Third Grade
This week Grade 3 students completed their review of the grammar concepts that they had learned this year (so far). They were able to display their awesome skills through their very first grammar test. During our Math lessons, students developed their understanding and abilities to round numbers to the nearest ten and hundred. They also continued to work on solving word problems using comprehension skills learned during their reading classes along with C.U.B.E.S. During our Reading lessons, students continued to read our class novel – Love That Dog. This week Jack was able to introduce the class to another one of Robert Frost’s poems called The Pasture. Through Jack’s journey, students were able to explore literary devices such as imagery and alliteration. During our Social Studies lessons, students continued their exploration of urban and suburban communities. They were also able to learn the history and importance of Veterans Day and complete their gratitude projects.
Miss Sasha

In science, students learned the needs of an animal; explain why an animal needs food, water and shelter. Quick Lab: Food is a Fuel
Students created a table and will record the food that they eat every day. 3rd graders were so excited to take home their experimental “green onion” growing from cutting.

This week in ELA students identified plural and proper nouns. Changed singular nouns to plural nouns and capitalized proper nouns. In math this week kids multiplied 4-digit number by 1-digit number, solved multistep word problems, and started to work on long division. In Social Studies we took a test on chapter 2 understanding regions.
In Reading we finished our first chapter book Flora and Ulysses and kids wrote amazing book reports/reviews.

In science, students were able to describe the skeletal and muscular System; explain how the skeletal and Muscular systems interact. Chapter concepts were reviewed.

Fifth graders had a good week!
In ELA, both 5A and 5B learned about nouns. They practiced identifying types of nouns. They continued reading their class novels and discussing them.
Students also had a special project for Veteran’s day. They learned about the history of Veteran’s day as Armistice Day, and created a display with poppies.
In Social Studies, students learned about different Native American cultures and the roles of men, women and children in those cultures.

In science, students learned and understood; Inheritance of Traits; variation of traits Individuals of the same kind of plant or animal are recognizable as similar but can also vary in many ways. Students reviewed chapter concepts.

Middle School

Middle School ELA and Social Studies

6th grade

Sixth graders had a great week! We learned about poetry analysis, and analyzed poems for Structure, Language, Mood and Meaning. We also wrapped up our novel study of Fish in a Tree, and will start on our essay next week!
In Social Studies, we finished our unit on Ancient Egypt. Students took a quiz, and everyone did a great job!

7th Grade
Seventh graders had a busy week! In ELA, we continued our novel study of Feve, 1793 by examining character motivation. We also wrapped up our first vocabulary unit, and are preparing for a test next week.
In Social Studies, students completed their expository essay on the world before 1493. Everyone did a great job! Mrs. Hazen is particularly impressed with the amount of work Oren Bilik put into his essay. Keep it up!
8th Grade
Eight graders had a great week! They created maps of the island from Lord of the Flies, and continued our novel study of that book. We discussed character development and plot.
In Social Studies, students completed their essay on the changes to American culture during the 1920s. Everyone did a great job!

Middle School Math

This week has been a busy one for the fifth graders. In math, they been working on converting mixed numbers into improper fractions and vice versa. They also have been finding the least common denominator to add and subtract fractions with unlike denominators. 5A has creatively called the strategy of multiplying two unlike denominators together when you can’t find the least common denominator the “emergency button.” Ms. Bronstein would like to commend them for being so engaged and having fun in math!

The 6th graders have been hard at work with adding and subtracting decimals. They also have been doing a great job at multiplying decimals which can be tricky since it is so different from adding and subtracting!

The 7th grade class has been finishing up their unit on inequalities by applying their skills to word problems. The 7th grade honors class has been working on finding the circumference and area of circles.

The 8th graders finished their unit on equations and inequalities. They took their first test and did great!

Middle School Science
6th grade

Students were able to understand that Earth’s interior is composed of layers that differ in composition and states of matter.Students described the steps and the action of convection currents and placed them in the correct order of the corresponding diagram. The “Convection Currents” experiment was performed during science class.

7th Grade

Welcome Back to SIHA’s finest form of communication regarding the progress of all SIHA students. 7th grade is discovering the ways in which we identify the characteristics of physical properties, the difference between a physical and chemical change and how we determine the various characteristics of matter. Students will watch various videos and conduct hands-on investigations to determine the density of an object.

8th Grade

Students are discovering what it means to be alive! Students will be completing a Scientific Explanation answering the essential question “What does an organism need to be deemed alive?” They are investigating various articles and will watch a few videos to begin their investigation, so they can determine a position and make a claim. Once their investigation is complete, students will make their claim and support it with evidence from the sources they used to complete their investigation.

Jewish History

7th grade took a test on what we covered in the first term and did a fantastic job. They also continued learning about Adam, his job, and his place in the world.

8th grade is beginning to explore the Babylonian exile and its impact on the Jewish people.

Siha Newsletter 11/5/2021

by admin | Nov 5, 2021 | Newsletter

Dvar Torah

Our forefather, Yaakov is described in this week’s portion as a “simple man, a tent dweller.” The word the Torah uses is “Tam.” Tam means simple and innocent but is also related to the word “Tamim,” which means complete. The two definitions are interrelated and complement each other.
What made Yaakov so great? What made him become the “Be’Cheir Ha’Avos,” the greatest of the forefathers?
The Torah explains this by using the word “Tam” to characterize Yaakov. He was a simple man. He stayed in his tent. He did not go out into the world to see what was out there. He did not allow himself to be distracted by noises or excitement outside. He kept his environment simple, simple and effective, without outside distractions. By keeping himself simple, he made himself complete! He concentrated solely on his goal, his Torah learning, and he earned the position of being one of the forefathers of the Jewish nation, the father of the 12 Tribes of Yisroel.

The same applies to us today. If we stick to our path, keep our eyes on the goal, and do not allow ourselves to be distracted by outside influences, we will find ourselves on the path to success. We need to learn this lesson from Yaakov Avinu and take it with us into the future.

Mrs. Rosskamm
Judaic Studies Supervisor

Special Announcement

Dear parents.
Happy Rosh Chodesh Kislev!
We are definitely feeling the exciting atmosphere of Chanukah at Siha already.
Thank G-d, we had a wonderful week!

We are so proud of all the students who completed their Netilat Yadayim charts. Keep it up!

We had a great time at our Rosh Chodesh Kislev assembly where we did candle making and received chanukah chocolate coins.

We introduced our exciting Menorah-thon to students in grades 5th – 8th grade (see attached flyer for details.) We are very much looking forward to seeing our students’ incredible Menorah creations!

Have a wonderful relaxed weekend!

Shabbat Shalom!

Best regards,
Miss Dershowitz

Judaics

Kindergarten and First Grade

We baruch Hashem had another great week in Kindergarten and first grade Judaics!
In kriah, the kindergarteners mastered the letter daled. They also learned about the midah of derech eretz (respecting our elders) and were able to give such good examples of practicing derech eretz! The first graders were so excited to begin learning the first nekuda, kamatz! They had fun singing about how kamatz got out of bed and even learned to read a single letter with a kamatz!
In tefilla, the kindergarteners learned little torah and torah tziva beautifully and are making Hashem so proud! Mazel tov to the first graders upon completing ma tovu! They daven like real grown ups with their special siddurim!
The first graders get another mazel tov for beginning to learn kesiva (Hebrew script alphabet) with their friend Akiva!
In parsha, both kindergarten and first grade learned from our matriarch Rivka how important it is to ask a Rabbi their questions when they don’t know what to do. They also learned about how different Yaakov and Eisav were and know to act nicely and always tell the truth, just like Yaakov (they definitely don’t want to be like Eisav!). The kindergarteners also made a fun Yaakov and Eisav puppet!
Friday was Rosh Chodesh Kisleiv! We can’t wait to begin learning about Chanuka next week!
Looking forward to another great week!

Morah Chavi

Second Grade

We had a busy week as we completed our unit on Shabbat and will begin learning about Chanukah next week iy”H. In Parsha we discussed the birth of Eisov and Yaakov, Eisov was very careful about honoring his parents. We discussed different ways of honoring our parents in class. Happy Birthday to Tzion Rebibo who is celebrating his Hebrew Birthday today. Shabbat Shalom, Morah Spiegel

Third Grade
Another wonderful week flew just by us!
We continued practicing Handwriting, Dikduk, and Kriah.
The boys and girls can read really well!
In Pitgam, Amit Amos taught us how we should always serve Hashem with happiness. This class can really show you how to do that. The learning in third grade is so wonderful, they all make Hashem very proud!
Parshat Toldos we all enjoyed learning and collecting tickets. I always enjoy seeing the creative drawings of the class.
We ended off with a wonderful assembly for Rosh Chodesh Kislev!
That means that Chanukah is coming! I cant wait to see the different and exciting things we will do in third grade

Chodesh Tov!
Shabbat Shalom!
Morah Ferber

Fourth Grade

Dear Parents,
It was another super week in fourth grade. The Davening, the learning, the fun, it was a sight to see. Each day, each lesson, learning and accomplishing, the students are really doing well. We spoke in class about how fortunate it is to live in this country. A country that is blessed with so much good.
During our Tefilla periods we discussed about how you have to seek Hashem, Dirshu Hashem. Our job in Judaism is to try. If you have a caterer that tries hard to do his job,and does not do the job well, he does not get paid. Our job of serving Hashem is to try our best. We have to realize the great benefit of Serving Hashem. Sarina, Zohar, Josh, and Matthew were our super Daveners of the week.
We spent much time on the Nekudot. Making sure each child does their best, is what we aim for. The children are really understanding them. You must see how nicely Lia and Abigail really know how to draw them well.
We are covering numbers in Hebrew from 11 thru 20 in Zachor and Nikeiva. We even have a special song to remember them. Mia and Ethan know their numbers and can tell you them in a flash.
Yes, our play practice is under way. We are giving out the parts and it is sounding beautiful.
I am excited to tell you about the great news of a new baby girl in my family. May we only always hear in great news, Amen.
Happy Birthday to Avi. We are very proud of you Avi. May Hashem give you a long and happy life.
Shabbat Shalom,
Rabbi Berelowitz

5th and 6th Girls

Dear parents.
Thank G-d, we had an incredible week!
We learned so much; we had a great time; what could be better? 🙂
Every girl got a new beautiful Chumash. We are really looking forward to learning Chumash this year.
We finished learning the 2nd blessing in Shemoneh Esrei – Birkat Gevurah, which talks about the strength of Hashem.
We wrapped up the first Ani Maamin (principle of faith), with group presentations of our bulletin board projects. The girls all did a wonderful job.
We are looking forward to learning the 2nd Ani Maamin next week.
We learned all about this week’s Parsha (Torah portion), Parshat Toldot; which talks about Yaakov (Jacob) and Esav and the blessings Yaakov received.
We learned about making Kiddush on Shabbat and every girl got a beautiful Kiddush card so they can make Kiddush at home, along with a kiddush cup and plate, and a small grape juice bottle. They wrapped it up beautifully and are excited to use it for Kiddush on Shabbat!
Please email me after Shabbat if your family (a parent or your daughter) made Kiddush this week for extra credit on our Monday Shemoneh Esrei test.
Have a relaxing weekend!
Shabbat Shalom!
Best Regards,
Miss Dershowitz

5th and 6th Boys

5th and 6th grade boys are “getting into” Mishna!
It was really nice to see the boys work together in groups and figure out the translation, on their own.
The boys are going further in Hilchot Hashkamat Haboker and will have a quiz on the new material in the near future.I am confident that they will ace their quizzes, as usual.
We are moving along with our enjoyable weekly Parasha lessons and quizzes.
The boys are practicing K’seva-Hebreew writing and they are getting better and better.
There are Always more and more exciting lessons coming up.

7th and 8th grade marvelous girls daven beautifully!
We have a daily “marking” and raffle, to help motivate the girls to pray even nicer.
We are continuing our interesting Parasha lessons and we are excelling on our weekly quizzes.
We recently had our second quiz on Hilchot Hashkamat Haboker, and we all did very well.
We are moving right along, and as you read this we are finishing the FOURTH Perek-chapter in sefer Yehoshua. The jewish people just crossed the Yarden-Jordan river, which Hashem miraculously split for our forefathers on their way into Eretz Yisrael. Each girl was challenged to write the speech that Yehoshua gave as he told the Jews to erect 12 stones as a memorial to the miracle.
We are filling in our workbook a s we learn further in the chapter. On wednesday, girls were given the opportunity/challenge to read sefer Yehoshua inside the sefer-book, written in Hebrew. The girls did very well.
More next week.

Dear Parents,

I wish you could have been in our classroom as we learnt our Gemara with such excitement. The question of the Gemara, is it considered going up or down. We spent much time on the question, and the boys are really understanding it. Our students are really good learners. Noah, Jeffrey, Noam, Kobe, and Oren really picked up on a lot of Aramaic words.
In Halacha we learnt fascinating laws about Mezuzot. Where are they placed, what happens if you think it might get stolen, and many more laws.
We discussed the many differences between Yaakov and Eisav, as we know that Yakkov loved to learn, and Eisav loved to hunt. We also discussed the importance of learning Torah, and the protection it gives to those that learn it.

Topics from the Parsha:
Yitzchok and Rivka davened to Hashem to be bentched with children. Hashem answered their Tefilos, and they had twin boys Yaakov and Eisav.
Even though they were twins, they looked very different. Eisav was born first and his skin was red and he had a lot of hair. Yaakov had smooth skin like a baby usually does.
When they turned 13, yaakov spent his time learning while Eisav enjoyed hunting.
Yaakov bought all the rights that a first born has from Eisav for some lentil soup.
Eisav was very careful to do the Mitzva of Honoring Parents in the very best way possible.
There was another famine in Eretz Cananan, but Hashem told Yitzchok that he shouldn’t go down to Mitzrayim like Avraham did.
Towards the end of his life, Yitzchok became blind. He told Eisav to bring him a special meat meal and he would bless him afterwards.
Rivka overheard and told Yaakov to quickly get 2 goats to prepare a meal for Yitzchok, and to put the skins on his arms and neck so that he will feel hairy like Eisav. Yaakov also put on a special hunting shirt that Rivka kept for Eisav .
Yaakov went to Yitzchok pretending to be Eisav. Yitzchok asked him, “Who are you?” Yaakov answered, “I am (Yaakov), Eisav (is) your First-born.”
Yitzchok was confused: The voice sounded like Yaakov, talking with good manners and thanking Hashem, but his hands felt like the hands of Eisav. Yitzchok ate the meat, and then gave Yaakov the Blessing to have lots of grain and wine, and that he should be stronger than his brother.
When Eisav came back to bring the meal and receive the Blessing, Yaakov hid behind the door.
Yitzchok realized that he gave the Blessings to Yakkov, but once Eisav told him that Yaakov had bought the rights of the first-born, he was happy that he had given them to Yaakov.
Eisav was mad at Yaakov for ‘stealing’ his Blessings and wanted to kill him.
Rivka sent Yaakov to Charon get married and to be away until עשו calmed down.

Happy Birthday to Ilan. May Hashem give you a long happy life.

Thoughts from Mrs. Hazen

It’s November, and grades K-6 are participating in a Thanksgiving Contest! I am always excited about what students come up with for this contest, particularly my 6th graders. Middle Schoolers are at an age when their thoughts tend to deepen. They want their writing to be meaningful, and it is no longer enough to just cut out a paper in the shape of a pumpkin and write on it how thankful we are for turkey and family.
I had an illuminating conversation in class today about thankfulness, and tangentially, about books. I’m going to share an experience of mine, and then the experience of my student – and what I love about it is that regardless of how different the world may be for our students compared to what we grew up with, certain greater truths stay the same.

Growing up, going to the library was my favorite pastime. We moved around a lot, and wherever we went I would look for the local public library first. My most memorable one was the tiny, one-floor library in Plav; and the world’s most ornery librarian until he realized I would not destroy his books. No matter how chaotic the world outside, the library was an oasis of peace. Each book was an escape into a different world.
My students, as a whole, tend not to go to the library. Even the ones who love reading either get all of their books at home, courtesy of Amazon, or they go to Barnes & Noble.

My student shared with me how much she loved going to Barnes & Noble at the mall. Going there is an exercise in independence, because she can do so with friends and without direct parental or teacher involvement. For her, like the library was for me, the bookstore is a comforting oasis of peace and predictability. She looks forward to discovering new books and makes plans; she has a series she follows and can’t wait to read the next installment; she saves up her money to buy her own copies.

She wrote about being thankful for having such an experience. It was refreshingly similar to mine own with libraries, and it made me think of Emily Dickinson’s poem about books.

Emily Dickinson was a famous recluse. She rarely left her home, and traveled outside her home town only a handful of times. She had a rich intellectual life which survives in her letters and poems. Her poem about books shows why reading and books survive and even thrive despite all the iphones and xboxes our students have access to.

There is no Frigate like a Book
By Emily Dickinson

There is no Frigate like a Book
To take us Lands away
Nor any Coursers like a Page
Of prancing Poetry –
This Traverse may the poorest take
Without oppress of Toll –
How frugal is the Chariot
That bears the Human Soul –

Elementary School

Kindergarten

This week kindergarten learned the letters K, X, V, and Y. They are very excited that they almost finished learning the entire alphabet and they will be having an alphabet party next week. In math they took a test and the entire class did a fantastic job showing how well they can sort and classify objects. This week they learned all about patterns. They made patterns with everything! They made patterns with toys, numbers, shapes, blocks, and they even made a pattern song. In science they learned about the water cycle. They listened to a story about a rain drop named Drippy. In the story he evaporates from the ocean, condenses into a cloud, and then falls back down to the ground as precipitation. In social studies they continued to learn and share things the students do and do not have in common with each other. This week they focused on adding their favorite things to their All About Me book.

First Grade

The first graders really enjoyed exploring addition this week. We learned about the associative property wherein you could switch the position of addends and still get the same answer. We also wrote about animal teams. Students were fascinated to learn that animals, like the wildebeest and zebra, work together for protection and to find food. Some of them created great illustrations of their teams as well.
Mrs. Adams

Second Grade

This week 2nd grade is continuing to master the skill of carrying in addition. We also finished our personal narratives this week! In the pictures, you can see Seth Maslov and his personal narrative. We will be presenting our personal narratives to the class! The students are so excited to tell their stories to the class!

In science, studying different types of animals was an interesting chapter for 2nd graders.
Students learned what are the needs of animals and how they are adapted to the environment.

This week Grade 3 students had their first Math test. During our Grammar lessons we began to construct compound sentences using the conjunction and. During our Reading lessons, students began to analyze a narrative nonfiction article called The Grandpa and the Penguin. We worked on identifying non-fiction text features, main idea, and supporting details. During our Social Studies lessons, students had the opportunity to present their projects. They did a fantastic job on their reports, poems, and poster boards about what makes their community special to them. We also continued to explore the three different types of communities. This week we concentrated on urban communities and their characteristics.

In science, students reviewed the chapter concepts about Plants; They’re so excited to write the 2nd Lab Report: Reproduction of plants from cutting.

Miss Sasha

This week in ELA kids completed their first personal narrative essay. Identified noun and plural nouns. Students worked on reading comprehension.
In math students continued to work on different methods of adding and subtracting numbers. Estimating and then adding and subtracting. Kids also worked on addition and subtraction word problems.
This week in Social Studies we are reviewing for our upcoming test on Understanding Regions.

In science, students learned and understood how the respiratory and circulatory systems interact; explained how bones, muscles and joints work together to allow movement into your body.

Fifth Grade

Greetings and salutations!

ELA this week has been all about reviewing for our Unit 1 grammar test. We practiced, practiced, and practiced some more! I am certain that they will do just fine on the test.
We continued reading our novel and discussing it as a class. We also wrote our first big journal- something that challenged the class quite wonderfully.

In Social Studies, we continued to learn about the Native Americans and how their cultures reflected their surroundings. We also learned about the importance of having a welcome community. The 5th grade students also prepared their contest entries. I am looking forward to seeing what amazing pictures the 5th graders will come up with.

Lastly, we talked about our Thanksgiving mini-essay. I am looking forward to seeing what the 5th graders bring to the table for our mini-essay next week!
This week in math, 5A continued to work on order of operations. In class, they all did an amazing job at working together in groups to figure out a mystery by solving problems. Oren, Liam, and Talia were the first group to solve the mystery with Noilee, Adiel, and Evelina were a close second!

In math, 5B worked on order of operations. They also continued to work on mastering multiplication and division facts.

In science, 5th graders started a new chapter: “Animal Growth and Reproduction”
Students learned and described the role of mitosis in the growth of an organism.
Mrs. Belli wants to mention 5B class for the excellent grades that students got on the “Human Body” test.

A very happy birthday to Oren Hecht from 5A!

Middle School

Middle School ELA and Social Studies
6th
Sixth graders had a great week! In grammar, we learned about direct object and practiced both out of our textbook and on the board. In reading, we continued our study of Fish in a Tree. 6th grade has been wonderful about reading; and we may finish the book soon!
In social studies, we continued our unit on Ancient Egypt by learning about the society of Ancient Egypt. Mrs. Hazen is particularly impressed with Zev and his enthusiastic participation in class!

7th
Seventh graders had a busy week! In ELA, we reviewed for our grammar test which took place Friday. Students worked very hard! In reading, we continued our novel study of Fever, 1793. Students discussed characterization and did independent reading!
In Social Studies, we wrapped up our unit on the World before 1492. As part of our whole-unit assessment, students are writing an essay about what they learned. Mrs. Hazen is particularly impressed with Noam Tisona and his writing!

8th
Eighth graders had a busy week! In ELA, we reviewed for our first grammar test which took place on Thursday. Everyone worked very hard! I was particularly impressed with Ariella, who got the highest score!
In reading, we continued our novel study of Lord of the Flies.
In social studies, we wrapped up our unit on the 1920s. The 8th graders are writing an essay on how American culture changed during the 1920s, and learning about MLA formatting. I can’t wait to see what they come up with!

Middle School Math

The 6th grade class worked on operations with fractions. They reviewed how to add, subtract, multiply, and divide fractions. Then they applied those skills to figure out tricky word problems.

The 7th grade class continued working on solving and graphing inequalities. The 7th grade honors class finished their first unit and took their first test of the year!

The 8th grade class worked on solving multi-step inequalities, compound inequalities, and using inequalities to solve word problems.

Middle School Science

6th grade
This week students learned and understood how geologists have used evidence to learn about Earth’s interior; During an activity students created a flap-book of Earth where they need to describe each layer of the Earth.

Jewish History

7th grade began the second unit for the year. We began to learn about joys and boundaries as we explore our world. Ilan, Mia, Noam and Koby had some great answers to interesting questions.

8th grade started our journey through the kingdom of Yisroel and learned through the time of Achav with a focus on how peace protects us.

SIHA Newsletter for 10/29/2021

by admin | Oct 29, 2021 | Newsletter

Dvar Torah

Every word of the Torah is precious and meaningful. Reams of laws and lessons can be learned from only one word. All the intricate laws of keeping Kosher are referenced in the Torah by only a few words.

Yet, in this week’s Parsha, Parshas Chaya Sara, we see an usual event. The Torah tells us in detail about Eliezer’s travels to Charan and his mission. The Torah then repeats the events in detail when Eliezer tells over to Besuel about his mission.

This is an usual occurrence and many commentators discuss why the Torah repeats this story when the Torah is usually very concise.

One explanation explains that the Torah repeats the story in detail because Eliezer overcame his personal interest in order to faithfully fulfill his mission. Eliezer was sent by Avraham Avinu to find a wife for Yitzchok from Avraham’s hometown, Charan. Eliezer was instructed to look for a girl from Avraham’s family. He was also told that if the girl does not want to return to Canaan with him, he could then find a worthy girl from Canaan. Eliezer’s own daughter was a special girl and Eliezer wanted her to marry Yitzchok. He had a strong motivation not to do his best to complete his mission because then his own daughter would have a chance.

Even so, Eliezer did not allow his personal feelings to influence his actions. He did his job to the best of his ability and completed his mission with bringing Rivka back to Eretz Canaan.
In the merit of his actions, the Torah repeats the story for us so we can learn this vital lesson. We need to do our best, without letting personal interests dictate our actions. The Torah emphasizes the greatness of overcoming one’s personal motivations by going into extensive detail and repeating it. We see the greatness of even one act of overcoming one’s personal motivations.

(Sefer Madreigas HaAdam, Alter of Navardok)

Mrs. Rosskamm
Judaic Studies Supervisor

Special Announcements

A great big SIHA congratulations to our students of the Month for October! 

K – Emma Garber
1 – Ethan Michelson
2 – Brianna Sanders
3 – Ryan Yakobzon
4 – Leah Yakobzon
5-A – Diane Ashraf
5-B – Ella Dery
5-A – Liam Zbarsky (Judaic Studies)
6-8 – Charles Grego

Programming News

Dear parents.
Thank G-d, we had a wonderful week at Siha!
We are all very much looking forward to Chodesh Kislev and Chanukah at Siha – renowned for it’s spirited and exciting program!
The students are working to wash Netilat Yadayim in the morning and each time they eat bread. We are so proud of them!
Netilat Yadayim contest charts are due November 3rd. Looking forward to giving out lots of exciting prizes to our wonderful students as well as choosing our raffle winners.
Have a wonderful and relaxing weekend.
Shabbat Shalom!
Best regards,

Miss Dershowitz
Mrs Ferber

Judaics

Kindergarten and First Grade
We baruch Hashem had another great week in Kindergarten and first grade Judaics!
In aleph bet, the kindergarteners really mastered the letter gimmel! Ask them to tell you how his snoring sounds and how his foot sticks out because he’s always ready to go! The first graders were busy reviewing all the letters until they know them inside out! Next week, we’ll hopefully begin learning nekudot.
In tefilla, the kindergarteners are continuing to learn the shema prayer and are getting really good at it. Remember to keep filling in their shema charts at home to receive a special prize! The first graders can now almost say the entire ma tovu prayer all by themselves! They’re really great at saying it in all sorts of interesting voices.
In parsha, we heard the fascinating story of Eliezer finding a wife for Yitzchok and how he was looking for a girl who was really kind to others. When a girl Rivka offered to draw water not only for Yitzchok, but also for all his camels, he knew that she would make a great wife for Yitzchok. In class, we made a well to depict the scene of Rivka drawing water! When learning about Yitzchok and Rivka getting married, we got to see how a real Jewish wedding looks!
We also learned about what a Torah is and where we received it. It was so exciting to see a real-looking Torah and hold it!
Looking forward to another great week!
Morah Chavi

Second Grade
We had another wonderful week as we continued to learn about Shabbat, the holiest most special day of the week. We learned about the Chesed of our matriarch Rivka who when Avrohom’s servant Eliezer asked for a drink, Rivka didn’t just give him a drink,rather she went back and forth giving water to all the camels as well. We discussed what Chesed is and different ways we can do Chesed. Shabbat Shalom

Third Grade
What a week that flew right by us before we can sayI love Siha!
Third grade keeps on growing and learning.
Davening this week was so beautiful, they really are making Hashem proud. Keep it up!
We continued practicing our script Aleph Bet, which is looking beautiful.
MS. Klahr visited the class and taught us a wonderful lesson on how we should be a bucket filler. The boys and girls were able to show examples in their daily lives when and how to do that.
In Pitgam, we all got to imagine how our palace will look one day. We have to build it by doing the right thing and earning reward from Hashem. Thank you Lielle Garber for the fun game.
In Dikduk we really know how to make a singular word into plural depending if it’s Zachar or Nekaivah. I’m so proud of how they all did their work to perfection.
Our Hebrew numbers keep getting more fluent, which we sing so nicely.
Once again we all enjoyed learning about the Parsha this week, with listening, coloring, and saying some wonderful lessons we can learn from.

Shabbat Shalom!
Morah Ferber

Fourth Grade

Dear Parents,

What an amazing week we had. We were busy talking about how 4th grade is soo much fun. We have a unique song “Fourth Grade is fun.” We also wrote on a paper why do we love school. There were many different answers, and it was fun hearing them.
The students are really doing beautifully in many areas. In our Chayainu book we spent much time knowing the Hebrew numbers from 1-10 and if it is used for a boy or girl. Josh knows it well and it was amazing to see how he helped others with practice worksheets. We practice Kriah and we are moving right along nicely.
The children started to play with slime. The way they play with it with such friendship, is really inspiring.

Rabbi Berelowitz

Dear parents.
Thank G-d, we had an incredible week at 5th and 6th grade Judaics! You may want to consider quitting your jobs and joining us here.
We continued on in our introduction to Chumash, learning all about the power of learning Torah and keeping Mitzvot. We watched amazing videos of men and boys studying Torah in Yeshiva (universities for Torah study.) We watched their spirited debates trying to understand the truth of Torah, their joy, their excitement and love for Torah.
We are very much looking forward to starting to learn Chumash ourselves this week!
We started actually saying Shemoneh Esrei, toward the Mizrach (West) direction, standing with our feet together. We finished learning the first blessing and G-d-willing, we’re starting the 2nd blessing this week.
We finished the 1st principle of faith – Hashem created and controls everything. The girls did a spectacular job decorating our Ani Ma’amin bulletin board.
We had a wonderful time decorating napkins rings in honor of Shabbat. We did this because we understand how the two Shabbat angels walk into our homes at the start of Shabbat. They look around and see if our homes are set and decorated and we’re dressed and ready for Shabbat. Then, when they see that we are, they give our home and family a special blessing for our week.
We are all going to try to dress up and set up for Shabbat, with our beautiful napkin rings!
We learned Shalom Aleichem, a beautiful traditional song, welcoming in the Shabbat angels.
Shabbat Shalom!
Looking forward to another wonderful week.
Enjoy a relaxing weekend!
Best Regards,
Miss Dershowitz

5th and 6th Boys

5th and 6th grade boys had their first Mishna quiz.
The boys did really well!
We began the second part of the Mishna, with Oren Yitzchak Hecht, hypothesizing correcty about how the Mishna would deal with the following case:
Two men come into Beis Din holding a TAlit. One claiming that it was totally his and the other claiming that is was 50% his.
Oren correctly said that the one claiming that it was totally his would receive 3/4 and the one claiminmg 50% would receive 1/4.
We learned a lot about PArashat Chaye SAra and more Halachot about a Jew’s requirements in the am.

5 Th and 6 Th had the privilege of having rabbi Berlowitz come into our class and give a ציצית demonstration.
He showed how to make ציצית and he even worked on repairing some of the boys Tzitzit.
He told a beautiful story as well.

Last week Rabbi Kuritsky did a ציצית demonstration in the 3 rd grade. Rabbi Kuritsky explained to the students that just as we can identify a police officer, soldier, fireman by their uniform, so too we can recognize a Jewish male by his ציצית, as that is part of his/our uniform.
It is showing that we are officers in Hashem’s service.

7th and 8th grade girls have already completed the first few P’rakim/Chapters in NAvi Yehoshua-The book of Joshua.
We learned about Yehoshua taking the place of Moshe Rabeinu, as leader of B’nei Yisrael. We just crossed the Yarden-Jordan river behind the Kohanim-Priests carrying the Aron and saw the great miracle of Hashem splitting it and us walking through the dry river bed.
We completed and reviewed the first 3 Ani Ma’amin’s.
We learned about which T’filot a girl is obligated to pray daily and which a girl should say.
Of course we also learned about the fantastic Parasha. PArashat Chaye Sara.
Lana Mednick has been marking davening points for our daily raffle.
Yaffa has proven to be a Navi wizard.
Yisrael Friedman said HAvdalah, this week for the girls.
ᐧ
7th and 8th Boys

Our Mitzvah we discussed this week, is the Miztva of redeeming a first born. We asked who is a first born in their family and there were many boys that said they are.
We had a great review on the Gemara that we learned followed with a quiz and many students did very well. We learnt the Gemara that discusses the concept of pulling something up to push it down. We had a vote if an upward motion that a person does, is an act of going up or rather it is to just put something down.
In Halacha we are learning about a Mezuza. We learned a lot of Halachot about it.

Let us all keep up the great learning and accomplishing!!

Topics from the Parsha:
Sarah Passed away at the age of 127. The 3 miracles that came in her merit – candles always lit, cloud over the tent, bracha in the dough – all stopped.
Avraham bought the Cave (the place where Adam and Chava were buried) from Efron to bury Sarah there. Once he insisted on paying for it, Efron asked for 400 silver coins.
Avraham sent Eliezer to his family in Charan to find a wife for Yitzchok.
Eliezer davened to Hashem, asking for help in finding the right wife for Yitzchok. As soon as he finished davening, Rivka came to the well, and after Eliezer asked for water for himself, Rivka offered to give his camels also.
Eliezer saw that Rivka was a Kind person, so he knew that she was the right one. He gave her special jewelry, and thanked Hashem for helping him so quickly.
Eliezer spoke to Besuel and Lavan. He told them that Avraham sent him and asked them to send Rivka with him.
Yitzchok married Rivka, and the 3 Miracles came back.
Avraham passed away at the age of 175. He was also buried in the cave, by his 2 sons, Yitzchok and Yishmael.

Have a Shabbat Shalom!
Rabbi Berelowitz

Thoughts from Mrs. Hazen

The official start date of the fall season for 2021 was September 22.
However, September never feels like fall. It is more of an extended summer; days are bright, sunny, and hot.
If I had to pick a more appropriate start for the fall season, it really would be the end of October/beginning of November. It’s never really the fall until trees change colors, and until the days get cool enough to wear a sweater or at least a long-sleeve shirt.

For a good amount of time, I lived in an apartment close to Wagner College. Driving to SIHA meant passing straight through the Greenbelt, down the stretch of Manor Road that bisects one of the parks. It was my favorite part of the morning commute in all seasons, but especially in the fall. Watching the trees blossom with color was like a beautiful gift every morning during the fall season.

Last year, in 7th grade, we studied transcendentalism. As part of our unit, I invited my students to take a walk in a green space near them, and just watch, listen, and maybe take some pictures of nature. It was a homework assignment that all of my students quite appreciated. They put together presentations of surprising depth and meaning. There is something about natural beauty that is truly transcendent; that is to say, something exceptional, beyond human experience. The most awe-inspiring part of natural beauty is that it doesn’t need to be grand. Seeing the waves wash against the beach; a spider web in the backyard; fall leaves; fiddler crabs in the parks – all of these things are very ordinary, and we have the fortune to see them and be amazed by them even though we live in one of the biggest cities on the planet.

There is no shortage of poets that wrote about nature, but one of my favorites is Emily Dickinson’s description of the sunset :

She sweeps with many-colored brooms,
And leaves the shreds behind;
Oh, housewife in the evening west,
Come back, and dust the pond!

Elementary School

Kindergarten
This week kindergarten learned the letters U, F, E, and L. They used their heart words to make funny sentences. Then they determined which punctuation marks to put at the end of their sentences. They did an amazing job reading and spelling plural CVC words. They really enjoyed using whisper phones to practice independently reading books on their phonetic skill level. They enjoyed it so much that they wanted to read extra books so they could listen to how they sound on the phone when reading. In math they continued learning how to classify and sort different objects to review for their test. They loved playing different games and dancing to the Hokey Pokey to practice identifying different positions and directions. In science they learned all about clouds. They used puffy paint to make their own cumulus clouds in the shape of different objects. In social studies they began making an All About Me book. This week they focused on making self portraits in their books.

First Grade
This week the first grade continues to be amazing. We examined the findings of an air pollution experiment and found that indeed there is pollution just outside of SIHA! Students recommended using electric cars and solar panels as a means to lesson particles in our air. Students also enjoyed painting fall trees. We practiced the skill of blotting the paintbrush. Students were very creative in making these tertiary colored trees. The artwork will be on display in our classroom for the next few weeks.

Second Grade
2nd grade had an exciting week! We had an unexpected day off due to inclement weather, which we were so devastated about, because we love to be in school! We had a math quiz on addition with three digit numbers, as well as a social studies test on our first unit of study, “People and Places.” We also began writing our personal narratives this week! The students are enjoying writing about a personal experience that is special to them. In the pictures, you can see Sloane Garber and Brianna Sanders working on addition problems with three digit numbers, in preparation for our quiz.
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In science, Students learned groups of animals and their characteristics. Students learned about comparing mammals, birds, amphibians, reptiles and fish according to their characteristics and their adaptations.

This week in Math, Grade 3 students reviewed the concepts we have been learning thus far in the year. They had also practiced identifying patterns and comparing three and four digit numbers. During our Grammar lessons, students practiced locating the complete predicate within a sentence. During our Reading lessons, we read an article Shelter Buddies and worked on our comprehension skills and non – fiction elements. We also continued to read our class novel where Jack is finally getting a hang of poetry. After completing their quiz on map elements and skills, students were introduced to different types of communities. During our Social Studies lessons, students analyzed and took independent notes on a book called The City Kid and the Suburban Kid by Deb Pilutty.

In science, during a lab, students were able to identify ways that plants can reproduce without seeds. 3rd graders were so excited when they saw a green onion grow from cutting.

Lab reports were so well written and organized with beautiful pictures. Way to go 3rd grade!!

Fourth Grade
This week in math kids had their first test on Whole Numbers. We are continuing to master multiplication table. This week we started out new unit Operations of Whole Numbers. We are using different strategies to add and subtract numbers to one million.
In ELA kids completed their first grammar test. They started to organize and draft their first personal narrative essay. In Social Studies we read, discussed, and answered questions about how people use natural and human features to divide the United States into regions.

4th graders started a new chapter: Human Body Systems”.

Students learned and understood that to function properly, living things need the nutrients found in food. Students will understand that the digestive system breaks down food and how food is digested.

Fifth Grade
5A

In science, students have been learning and understanding how your body works and functions was the most exciting chapter from all 5th graders. Students enjoyed working on their “Digestive System” ,”Skeleton”, “Heart”, “Brain Hat” projects.

ELA this week was all about fixing sentences, compound subjects, and compound predicates. We also continued our close reading of the class novel. I am very happy with how well the 5th graders participated in the class discussions.

Social Studies was all about learning how the environment of North America shaped the lives of the first Native Americans. We learned about how the Native Americans used the resources at their disposal in order to thrive in the many and varied environments of North America.

5B
In science, students have been learning and understanding how your body works and functions was the most exciting chapter from all 5th graders. Students enjoyed working on their “Digestive System” ,”Skeleton”, “Heart”, “Brain Hat” projects.

ELA this week was all about fixing sentences, compound subjects, and compound predicates. We also continued our close reading of the class novel. I am very happy with how well the 5th graders participated in the class discussions.

Social Studies was all about learning how the environment of North America shaped the lives of the first Native Americans. We learned about how the Native Americans used the resources at their disposal in order to thrive in the many and varied environments of North America.

Middle School

Middle School ELA and Social Studies

6th Grade

Sixth graders had great week! In reading, we continued our study of Fish in a Tree. We discussed conflict, and started working on our journal on word choice. In Grammar, we learned about the direct object.
In Social Studies, we wrapped up our unit on Mesopotamia with a project. Students made cuneiform tablets out of air-dry clay. The tablets are still drying, but please look forward to them going home with the students next week!

7th Grade

Seventh graders had a good week! In reading, we continued our study of Fever, 1793. In writing, we practiced making inferences and using textual evidence. In grammar, this week was all about reviewing for our upcoming grammar test.
In Social Studies, we wrapped up our study of Europe before 1492 with a review for our upcoming essay.

8th Grade

Eighth graders had a busy week! In reading, we continued our novel study of Lord of The Flies. Students did in-class reading and discussed characterization and the importance of setting. In grammar, this week was all about review for our grammar test next week!
In Social Studies, we started our unit on the 1920s and the Great Depression. We discussed the changes in United States following World War I in terms of society, economy, and politics. We had a great discussion and wrote a journal on the literature of the Lost Generation. Mrs. Hazen is very impressed with Ariella’s writing!

Middle School Math
In math, both fifth grade classes worked on Order of Operations. Students used mnemonic devices to help them remember and apply the order of operations so that they could solve tough problems.

The 6th graders reviewed how to add, subtract, multiply, and divide fractions. They also presented their Unit 1 Projects. They all did an amazing job!

The 8th grade class has solving multi-step inequalities, compound inequalities, and have been hard at work solving questions from previous years’ algebra regents.

Middle School Science

6th Grade
Students learned chemical composition and physical properties to determine how minerals are used by humans; Learned and described the types of rocks; the different processes occurring in the rock cycle. Students were able to understand the great variety and complexity of Earth materials; the importance of their availability and properties.

7th Grade

Welcome Back to SIHA’s finest form of communication regarding the progress of all SIHA students. 7th grade is discovering the ways in which we identify the characteristics of physical properties, the difference between a physical and chemical change and how we determine the various characteristics of matter. Students will watch various videos and conduct hands-on investigations to determine the density of an object.

8th Grade

Students are discovering what it means to be alive! Students will be completing a Scientific Explanation answering the essential question “What does an organism need to be deemed alive?” They are investigating various articles and will watch a few videos to begin their investigation, so they can determine a position and make a claim. Once their investigation is complete, students will make their claim and support it with evidence from the sources they used to complete their investigation.

Jewish History

7th grade is continuing our study into creation, time, and where we come into the picture.

8th grade completed the first unit for the year! We will be taking our first test next week and moving on to learn about the events of the Kingdom of Yisroel. Donkeys and Lions coming up next week!

Mrs. Rosskamm

SIHA Newsletter for 10/22/2021

by admin | Oct 22, 2021 | Newsletter

Dvar Torah

“And God appeared to him in the plains of Mamre.” (Genesis 18:1)

The Midrash relates that when God commanded Avraham to circumcise himself and his entire household, Avraham sought the advice of his three confederates – Aner, Eshkol and Mamre. Aner told him that the bris would weaken him and render him vulnerable to attack from relatives of the four kings he had just vanquished. Eshkol stressed that the operation itself, with the obvious loss of blood, was life threatening. Mamre, however, told Avraham that having experienced God’s deliverance from Nimrod’s furnace and the miraculous victory over four mighty kings, he should trust in God and follow His command. For this advice, Mamre was rewarded by God appearing to Avraham on his estate – “in the plains of Mamre.”

There are several difficulties with this Midrash. Most importantly, why did Avraham feel the necessity to seek advice whether or not to fulfill God’s command? And if he needed advice, why did he not go to the illustrious Yeshiva of Shem or Ever, where Torah was learned daily? Additionally, why was Mamre rewarded for giving Avraham obvious advice, rather than Aner and Eshkol punished for attempting to dissuade him?

To answer these questions, we must first understand the essence of friendship and the value of a friend. The Sages teach that before God created man, He first consulted with the angels. From this we learn that one should seek advice even from those on a seemingly lower spiritual/religious level and can still view them and respect them as friends.

Everyone’s personal perspective is highly subjective and biased. Therefore, one needs the perspective of someone who is removed from all the subjective biases that cloud one’s vision, and could offer advice without having to contend with a similar strong desires. The purpose of a friend’s advice is to provide an objective view of the issue at hand. Therefore the friend must not introduce his own biases, emotions and subjectivity. His task is not to imagine himself with the same dilemma, but rather to ask himself, “If I were he, without his subjective bias, what would I do?”

Aner and Eshkol did not give him bad advice. In fact, the Midrash never says explicitly that they advised him not to perform the mitzvah. Rather, they considered what they would do if faced with a similar command and advised Avraham accordingly. Mamre, by contrast, projected himself into Avraham’s place and advised him on the basis of Avraham’s frame of reference and experience of Divine protection. For freeing himself from his own subjective perspective, Mamre was rewarded by God’s appearing in his portion. Objectivity is the precondition for recognition of the truth, i.e. the recognition of God Himself. (Rabbi Zev Leff)

This Dvar Torah is inspired by my awesome SIHA Team! Collaborating with all of you daily is my greatest honor and privilege.
Thank you so much for being a part of the modeling and searching of truth!

Shabbat Shalom,

Chana Uzhansky Ed.D.
Head Of School
SIHA

Programming News

Dear parents.
Thank G-d, we had a wonderful week at Siha!
Students are working on washing Netilat Yadayim in the morning as well as each time they eat any kind of bread.
Contest charts will be due on Nov 3rd.
Looking forward to seeing many filled out Netilat Yadayim charts!
There will be prizes for every child who fills out their chart, as well as exciting raffle prizes.

Shabbat Shalom!
Enjoy your weekend.

Best Regards,
Miss Dershowitz
Mrs Ferber

Judaics

Kindergarten and First Grade
We baruch Hashem had another great week in Kindergarten and first grade judaics!
In aleph-bet, the kindergarteners really mastered the letter “vet” and learned how vet vacuumed the bouncy balls out of the letter bet! They also had lots of fun making the letter with playdough and macaroni and playing a funny game of “pin the ball on the vet to turn it into a bet”!
The first graders finished reviewing all the letters of the aleph-bet. Once they know all the letters inside out, they’ll begin to learn how to read!
Monday was the yahrtzeit of our matriarch Rachel. We learned how she is the mother of all of us and is constantly praying for us. We also made a delicious food project depicting the place where she is buried, Kever Rachel.
In tefilla, the kindergarteners are learning the words of the shema prayer which we say at night and in the morning. We made a shema sign to hang near our beds and have an exciting contest for when we say shema at home! The first graders are busy making their very own siddurim! They’re learning the words of the ma tovu prayer and are doing a great job!
In parsha, we learned how Avraham Avinu loved to do the mitzvah of hachnasas orchim – inviting guests. We learned from him the correct way to host, and that “the guest gets the best”!
Looking forward to another great week!
Morah Chavi

Second Grade
We had a wonderful week in 2nd grade as we discussed our Hebrew names. We did a worksheet where we had to fill in the missing letter of our classmates Hebrew name. We are excited to be learning all about the special day of Shabbat and of course we learned Parsha. In this weeks Parsha we learned about two fundamental Jewish traits. Bikur Cholim-visiting and calling our friends who are sick and the mitzva of Hachnasat Orichim, the mitzva of inviting guests to your home. Talia told the class how she shares her games when her friends and cousins come over and other students shared how they and their families invite guests over. Shabbat Shalom! Morah Spiegel

Third Grade
My thoughts of this past week keep making me smile! Third grade is really learning and growing.
Our davening is so pleasant and beautiful to Hashem. It makes me so proud.
We are working on our handwriting of the script Aleph Bet. It can be tricky but third grade is writing really neatly.
Our dikduk quiz was such a delight to mark. The boys and girls really know how to differentiate a Zacha or Nekaivah word. We are moving right along with plurals- Rabim and Rabot. They are really catching on quickly. We are also learning the Ivrit numbers for Zachar and Nekaivah which they can sing and tell you the numbers really well! Keep it up!
Sarit Lunger taught a wonderful and practical middah that we should practice. “Don’t get angry easily”.
This Pisgam the third graders can sing as well! It’s truly amazing how well they learn.

Have a restful Shabbat!
Morah Ferber

Fourth Grade
Dear Parents,
What a fun filled week it was. There is a lot to talk about.
In our beautiful Tefilla, we spoke about an escalator. We spoke how an escalator bring us up high, so too our Tefilla lifts us up. The Tefilla the children are doing is really inspiring. The way Josh and Ariella Daven is surely remarkable.

In our Chayeinu lessons we are really mastering the Nekudot. We had different lessons and the children are really understanding them. Today we had “catch the Nekodah in the fish. It was really fun. Matthew and Ethan really know the Nekodot and can say them really clearly.

One day we divided the class and had two teams. One team was the Yankees and the other was the Mets. The teams got points by Davening and learning well. Do you know who won? It was a tie.
Happy Birthday to Mia Factor. May Hashem, give you have a long happy with loads of good things.
We spent time this week talking about how much fun School is. We started our famous song “fourth grade is fun”. It is so much fun in school with all our friends. Let’s all keep up the great work.
Shabbat Shalom,
Rabbi Berelowitz

5th and 6th Girls
Dear parents.
Thank G-d, we had an incredible week at Judaics!
We continued learning the first blessing in Shemoneh Esrei. This is the prayer where we ask Hashem to help us in the merit of our forefathers Avrohom (Abraham), Yitzchok (Isaac), and Yaakov (Jacob.)
We spoke about following in their footsteps by being kind; by being strong and doing the right thing no matter how tough it is; and by recognizing G-d’s love for us and accepting His plan during difficult times.
We also spoke about our special privileges. Every Jew has a spark of Hashem inside of them, no matter where they are or how religious they are. (Ella definitely thinks it is rainbow colored, but that is debatable:) )
Every Jew can also reach out to Hashem no matter where they are or what they’re doing, in any language and at any time. And G-d listens to us!
We also continued on in our Chumash – Torah – lesson. We learned about the power of learning Torah and the tremendous joy of following the Torah.
It is the sweetest and happiest life!
We began Megillat Esther, which is the story of Purim. We will be learning it twice a week.
We continued learning the first Ani Maamin – Principal of Faith. G-d created everything and controls the world each second.
We learned Parshat Vayeira. Remind your daughter to tell you the Shabbat story – it is amazing!
We watched an unbelievable Shabbat video about Sam the Cyclist and Jacobo Sharim and the earthquake. Your daughters can clarify for you.
One thing we’re all clear about is ..
“Ki Eshmera Shabbat Kel Yishmereini.
If I watch the Shabbat, G-d will watch over me.
“A symbol of His love for us it will always be…”
The girls had a great time singing (and dancing) the Shabbat songs. Make sure you have them sing for you on Shabbat.
Shabbat Shalom!
Have a wonderful and relaxing weekend!
Best Regards,
Miss Dershowitz

5th and 6th Boys
Every day the boys are getting better and better at remembering to wash Netilat yadayim properly on their own
The boys took a test on Hashkamat Haboker-Laws upon awakening in the morning
We delved into Parashat VaEIra in Shmot [not to be confused with Parashat VaYera, this week;s Parasha
which we covered in much detail.
We have completed the first segment in Mishna, with words, translation and notes on the subject.
Mazal tov to;Brandon Sanders and Lenny Koza upon their new Tzitzit .
The boys were inspired by our demonstration and discussion thereof.
There is always more
in store.

7th and 8th Girls
What an accomplished week!
We davened beautifully.
We learned a lot about this week’s fact filled Parasha.
We finished our first segment in Yehoshua
We learned a new look on Tzniut
We are in middle of an interesting Holocaust book titled Mengele’s 301st
We celebrated Maddy’s Bat Mitzvah c/o Miss Dershowitz Mazal Tov Maddy!

7th and 8th Boys
Dear Parents,
What a fun filled week it was. There is a lot to talk about. We start our day talking about a Mitzva. This week we started a new Miztvah. It is the Mitzvah of Tzedakah-Charity. We started collecting money. We learnt that there are priorities who to give the money to. One of the priorities is poor people of your town. We decided we will give the money to poor people in Staten Island. We already have a nice sum of money.
In Gemara we are Shteiging all about when the Pasuk says something what is the Pasuk coming to exclude. The students do their notes and say the Gemara with such enthusiasm. There are people in the school that come, watch, and enjoy the class learn with such enthusiasm.
In Halacha we started learning about the Mitzva of Mezuza. We had questions about what happens if you have 2 doors to a room do they both need a Mezuza.
We had a competitive row game this week. The winners were Kobe Shabat, David Papirov, Ilan Abramov and Oren Dery.
7th and 8th grade boys are really excelling,

Topics from the Parsha:
Hashem came to visit Avraham on the third day after his Bris.
Hashem made it a very hot day so that no guests would be able to travel. Avraham was sad that he couldn’t invite guests, so Hashem sent 3 Angles to be his guests.
1 Angel was to tell Sarah that she would have a baby boy. The third Angel came to destroy Sedom.
Hashem told Avraham that Sedom would be destroyed because of their terrible Middot and sins. Avraham started to daven right away to ask Hashem not to destroy Sedom.
2 of the Angles went to Sedom and were greeted by Lot who insisted that they come eat and sleep in his house, even though it was against the rules of Sedom. Lot had learned about the Mitzva of inviting guests from Avraham.
Lot, his wife and 2 daughters followed the Angles out of Sedom. They were warned not to look back and see the wicked getting punished. Lot’s wife was very curious and didn’t listen. As soon as she looked back, she turned into a pile of salt. (Why salt?)
Yitzchok was born to his mother Sorah (90 years old) and his father Avraham (100 years old) just like the Angle had promised.
Akeidat Yitzchok – the tenth and final test. Hashem told Avraham to bring his only son Yitzchak to Har Hamoriah and bring him as an offering. Even though he didn’t understand why, Avraham began quickly with excitement, and didn’t listen to his evil inclination who was telling him not to go. At the last second, an Angle called out, “Avraham Avraham” Don’t hurt your son at all, you passed the test since you were ready to do it.
The Angle told Avraham to bring a ram as an offering instead. This is the reason we blow a Shofer from a ram on Rosh Hashanah, to remember this great Mitzva that Avraham and Yitzchak did.

Keep it up,
Shabbat Shalom
Rabbi Berelowitz

Thoughts from Mrs. Hazen

“Well, it’s been one of those weeks–”
I think that I am luckier than most people, in that I get to do what I love. I don’t usually get to say the above phrase, but I know it is frequently said. Even here, sometimes, we have one of those weeks.
The best part of teaching is that no two students, no two classes, and no two weeks are alike. That’s also the worst part of teaching. What worked great for one class may not work for another. Some weeks are stellar, and some weeks have their challenges.
I see it in the students, too, at all levels. It’s not easy being a fifth grader, or an eighth grader. Of course, they are shielded from all the various adult problems by their loving parents, their caring community, and even us. Despite that, it’s not easy growing up. It’s not easy discovering oneself and one’s own abilities, and most importantly, it’s not easy discovering the limits of one’s abilities.
Students have ‘those weeks’ too, frequently for reasons not under their control. They don’t have the benefit of adult experience that can tell them what is less important and what is more important. A stumble may feel to a kid like a fall they will never recover from. A skill they have to work on can seem like an irredeemable flaw.
Of course, it’s precisely in these moments that students grow. They do overcome their challenges, every day – in school, at home, and personally. They learn and they grow, and all of them want very much to grow into good people and to make their families and community proud.
I wish I could tell them that they will make their families and communities proud. They don’t always believe these things, especially when adults tell them.

The poem this most makes me think of is Invictus, by William Ernest Henley. It ends on a very memorable pair of lines:

I am the master of my fate,
I am the captain of my soul.

Have a wonderful weekend everyone!
Mrs. Hazen

Elementary School

Kindergarten
This week kindergarten learned the letters P, I, J, and W. Some students were excited to try writing a sentence using the letter of the day and they did an amazing job. They continued to practice spelling and reading cvc words and this week they learned how to read and spell plural cvc words. In math they learned how to sort and classify objects and the difference between left and right. They thought it was really funny to take their shoes off and sort and classify their shoes by different attributes. They took their first math test this week and I am so proud of the students and how well they did on the test. In science they reviewed the five senses by doing a fun experiment with popcorn. They also learned about weather and how to measure temperature. They were fascinated to see how a thermometer works by experimenting with reading the thermometer in hot and cold water. In social studies they talked about how to recognize and express different emotions. They picked one of the emotions they learned about and then they made a mask showing that emotion.

First Grade
The first grade continues to be amazing. This week we discovered different types of sentences. Students enjoyed creating statements, questions, and exclamations about their classmates. They also had fun playing a Grammar game wherein they added punctuation marks to the ends of sentences.
In Social Studies, students discussed the importance of leaders and rules. Our first graders created posters about the people they most admire. (Most of them chose mom and dad!) Finally, we began a Science experiment to see if there is air pollution near SIHA. Students smeared cards with petroleum jelly and placed them both outside and inside the classroom to see if we can “catch” any particles in the air. The first graders predict that it is much dirtier outside than inside. Let’s hope they are right! We will see on Monday.

Second Grade
This week 2nd grade had our first grammar test. It was on types of sentences, the subject and predicate of a sentence, and other parts of a sentence. The class did very well over all! In math we are learning how to add and subtract with 3 digit numbers, and we are also learning how to solve word problems. In the pictures, you can see Sophie Braun working on a word problem at the board, as well as Talia Abramov working on a subtraction problem. In social studies, we wrapped up our first unit on people and places.
In science, students learned about the life cycle of a plant; what do we get from plants and how important they are in our daily life.
During science class students were able to look under the microscope at the mushroom that they collected outside after a rainy day.

In science, students explored how water travel through the stem’s plants during a “Celery Experiment”. A lab report will follow up next week.

Students also were able to explain the food-making process in the leaf’s plant and explained the process of photosynthesis.

Fifth Grade

5A

5A and 5B finished their first chapter. They have been working hard on finding factors of numbers, prime factorization, exponents, and multiplying & dividing numbers by 10s, 100s, and 1000s. The students took their first test of the year and they all did amazing! 

In ELA we learned all about complete subjects and predicates as well as simple subjects and predicates. We read non-fiction texts and we practiced finding the central idea and key details to support our central idea. We also continued to read our class novel, Maniac Magee. We had some amazing class discussions over our novel!

In social studies we learned about how the earliest people came to the Americas. We learned about the challenges they faced when they first settled the land and about how agriculture changed their lives.

Students learned and analyzed the parts of the respiratory system functions. Students were able to model both systems on hands-on activity. Mrs. Belli wants to mention Ella Dery, Noilee Oz for doing such a great job on describing and modeling Circulatory and Digestive systems.

5B

5A and 5B finished their first chapter. They have been working hard on finding factors of numbers, prime factorization, exponents, and multiplying & dividing numbers by 10s, 100s, and 1000s. The students took their first test of the year and they all did amazing! 

In ELA we learned all about complete subjects and predicates as well as simple subjects and predicates. We read non-fiction texts and we practiced finding the central idea and key details to support our central idea. We also continued to read our class novel, Holes. We had some amazing class discussions over our novel!

In social studies we learned about how the earliest people came to the Americas. We learned about the challenges they faced when they first settled the land and about how agriculture changed their lives.

Students learned and analyzed the parts of the respiratory system functions. Students were able to model both systems on hands-on activity. Mrs. Belli wants to mention Ella Dery, Noilee Oz for doing such a great job on describing and modeling Circulatory and Digestive systems.

Middle School

Middle School ELA and Social Studies
6th Grade
6th Graders had a good week! In reading, we continued our novel study of Fish in a Tree. We discussed characterization. Students did a great job discussing in class! In grammar, we learned about compound subjects and predicates.
In Social studies, we wrapped up our unit on ancient Mesopotamia. Students wrote a summary paragraph and watched a video on the Assyrian Empire. Mrs. Hazen is impressed with all of her students, but she wants to commend Ruti for being an amazing student!

7th Grade

7th graders had a busy week! In reading, we continued our novel study of Fever, 1793. We discussed imagery and plot, and even got to make some doodles of what we read about. Mrs. Hazen is particularly impressed with Naomi’s drawings and in-class participation!
In grammar, we learned about subject complements. Mrs. Hazen was impressed with Kobe Shabat’s hard work and the 101% he got on his grammar and vocabulary quiz!
In social studies, we started our lesson on Europe before 1492. We learned about the Middle Ages and the Renaissance. Mrs. Hazen wants to commend Eva for her excellent contributions to our class discussion!

8th Grade

8th graders had a great week! In reading, we continued our novel study of Lord of the Flies. We delved further into the book and discussed setting and character motivation. In grammar, this week was all about subject complements. We reviewed subject complements and practiced with predicate nominatives and predicate adjectives.
In Social Studies, we learned about the causes and the effects of the Russian Revolution. Mrs. Hazen would like to commend Jeffrey, who is a diligent student and always awesome in class discussion!
Middle School Math
6th Grade
The sixth graders finished their first unit. They have become masters at creating number lines, identifying opposites and absolute values, classifying numbers, converting decimals to fractions, converting fractions to decimals, and converting mixed numbers to improper fractions and vice versa. They took their first test and did a great job!

7th Grade
The 7th grade class has been working on solving word problems requiring them to write and solve two-step equations. The 7th grade honors class has been working on solving word problems that require them to write and solve one-step inequalities.
8th grade
The 8th grade class has been applying their knowledge of ratios and proportions to solve word problems. They also have been working on solving inequalities.

Middle School Science
6th Grade

Students learned features formed by processes that shape Earth’s surface; they created a pop-up landform diagram that allows them to see elevation and relief of each main landform; Students learned, understood, and were familiar with maps.

7th Grade

Welcome Back to SIHA’s finest form of communication regarding the progress of all SIHA students. 7th grade is discovering the ways in which we identify the characteristics of physical properties, the difference between a physical and chemical change and how we determine the various characteristics of matter. Students will watch various videos and conduct hands-on investigations to determine the density of an object.

8th Grade

Students are discovering what it means to be alive! Students will be completing a Scientific Explanation answering the essential question “What does an organism need to be deemed alive?” They are investigating various articles and will watch a few videos to begin their investigation, so they can determine a position and make a claim. Once their investigation is complete, students will make their claim and support it with evidence from the sources they used to complete their investigation.

Jewish History
7th grade Jewish history is getting very exciting and thought provoking as we grapple with questions like what was there before time existed and how exactly did Hashem create the world. We spent some time exploring how our world changed over time as well. Kobi and Ilan had some amazing questions and Asher’s question sent me off to do some research and call my Rabbi for more information! Keep it up!

8th grade is learning in detail about the split in the kingdom of the Jewish people and the events that took place in the kingdom of Yehuda and the kingdom of Yisroel.