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.

by admin | Oct 15, 2021 | Newsletter

Dvar Torah

Hashem told Avraham, Lech Lecha. This translates as go for yourself, go for your own sake. What does this mean? Go for the sake of your own soul. In Charan you will not be able to become great. If you leave Charan, you will become the forefather of a great nation.
Hashem tested Avraham with a challenge he was able to handle. Hashem never asks a person to do more than they are capable of. We need to exert ourselves and put in maximum effort, but it is within our ability to do so. We are able to overcome any challenge Hashem sends our way.
Shlomo HaMelech tells us in Koheles, “Whatever you are able to do with your might, do it.” We need to do whatever we can, but we do not need to do anything beyond that.
R’ Zusha of Anipoli once told that when he gets to the world to come, he is not afraid of being asked why he wasn’t as great as Avraham Avinu or Moshe Rabbeinu. He said that he did not have their abilities or talents and so he was not expected to be like them. But he was very scared of a different question. He was afraid of being asked, “Why weren’t you Zusha? Why didn’t you accomplish what you were able to do?”
Our job is to do whatever we can. Avraham Avinu was tested 10 times. He clearly demonstrated his conviction to do his best, to the best of his abilities. We can do the same.
(Aleinu L’Shabei’ach, Rabbi Yitzchok Zilberstein)

Mrs. Rosskamm
Judaic Studies Supervisor

Judaics

Kindergarten and First Grade

Baruch Hashem, we had another great week in kindergarten and first grade Judaics!
In Kindergarten aleph-bet, we learned all about the letter “bet” with a bouncy ball in it! We then discussed the important mitzvah of bikur cholim (visiting the sick to help them feel better) and made our very own bikur cholim books. In first grade aleph-bet, we’re very busy reviewing the letters with fun stories and games.
We were also so excited to learn all about how much Hashem wants to hear our prayers about anything, anywhere, and in any language. The first graders had a great time decorating their very own siddurim (prayer books). We can’t wait to use them in school every day!
In parsha, we acted out the story of parshat lech lecha with funny costumes. The first graders then were able to draw out some scenes from the parsha story. The kindergarteners made an exciting project showing how each of us is a star, just like Hashem promised Avram Avinu!
Looking forward to another great week!
Morah Chavi

Second Grade

This week in 2nd grade we learned about Avrum and his wife Sorai. We acted out the Parsha in class pretending we were Avrum smashing down his fathers idols. Avrum at a young age realized the must be some purpose in the world, there must be a G-d in the world. The sun sets in the evenings therefore, the sun is not a G-d. The moon only shines at night therefore the moon is not a God. We learned that Avrum was so careful about not letting his sheep graze in any land that didn’t belong to him, but his nephew Lot did allow his sheep to graze in other fields. It was for this reason that Avrum and Lot separated and Lot went to Sdom to live. We learn from this to be careful not to touch or use anything that does not belong to us without permission. It was so exciting to start our new Kitva (Handwriting) book this week. Shabbat Shalom, Morah Spiegel

Terach, father of Avrum, comes back to his store and seeing all his idols smashed. Avrum told his father the idols had a fight and the biggest idol smashed all the others.

Third Grade

What a great week we had together in third grade. We are really getting to know our Aleph Bet and Nekudot.
The boys and girls catch on really quick with all the sounds.
Our Dikduk/Hebrew grammar skills are progressing as well. We are learning how to write our nouns properly. In Zachar and Nekaivah form.
We had a special visit from Rabbi Kuritsky who taught the class about the beautiful mitzvah of Tzitzit. The boys proudly put it on and made the Brachah.
Our Ella Hanuka showed us how we always have Hashem in front of us no matter where we are. We had such a fun time playing a game she prepared.
We love to learn the parsha. It comes alive as the boys and girls draw beautiful art.
We can’t wait to learn more and grow!
Morah Ferber

Mrs. Ferber invites Rabbi Kuritsky to give a Tzitzit presentation to the 3rd grade.
Rabbi Kuritsky came into the classroom wearing a Talit [gadol] = a large talit.
He also brought in two Talit katans for the boys to wear and say a Bracha on.
He explained to the class that every jewish male is obligated by the Torah, when wearing a 4 cornered article of clothing to attach to the corners, Tzitzit. The Rabbis, going back thousands of years, established that every male Jew should wear a four cornered article of clothing every day so as to obligate themselves in the mitzva and receive reward for wearing Tzitzit.
Every male student in third grade took a turn wearing a Talit katan aka Tzitzit.
The presentation was enjoyed by all 3rd grade students.

Fourth grade
As we end another super week of school, it is amazing to see our accomplishments.
Each day was filled with learning and excitement.
In Tefilla we spoke about the Prayer that discusses not to have a bad neighbor. We spoke about how important it is to have good neighbors. Many children had stories about bad neighbors that they have. Many of the stories involved dogs and it was so interesting hearing all the remarkable stories. Lia Amos had a great story about her neighbors and a dog which they have.
The Tefilla sounded very beautiful. The students got smiley face points for Davening. It was very inspiring. Mrs. Adams joined us a couple of days for part of Davening and enjoyed it as well.
We spent much time this week working on our beautiful Parsha notebooks. It was a big project for the children. The students were very busy cutting and gluing, making sure it looks in tip top shape.
In Kesiva we spent a lot of time writing the Hebrew letters in scrip. The students are mastering getting to really know their Kesiva.
We started practicing for our Chumash play. We practiced the songs. Mrs. Rosskamm came from the other side of the building just to hear the beautiful sounds of the children.
A happy Birthday to Mia Factor. We are very proud of you. May Hashem give you a long happy life with only good things.
The theme of this week in our class was Kindness. The students were helping each other out whether it was with the Parsha notebooks or getting to know the Hebrew letters in script.
Keep it up!!

5th and 6th Girls
Dear parents.
Thank G-d, we had a wonderful week!
We began many different subjects, including Jewish law – Mitzvot, Ani Maamin – the 13 Principles of Faith, Tefilah – prayer.
We began our exciting Shomrei Halashon program. The girls are working to speak positively about others and are building up their points.
We began our Tefilah – Davening contest. The girls have a yellow key with 8 circles on it. Every day at the end of Davening, I go around and the girls tell me whether they deserve a hole punch or not. (I’m truly impressed by the girls honesty – you brought your daughters up well!) When all 8 circles on their key are hole punched, they get the next color key on their key ring. When the class has 150 key rings, we will be celebrating with a very exciting party. When a girl has all 5 colors of keys on her key ring punched out, she will receive a special prize.
This is because Tefilah – prayer – is the key to open and bring on the blessing in our lives that G-d is waiting to give to us, as soon as He hears from us. He wants a relationship with us because we are His dear children.
We had a wonderful time on Friday decorating cupcakes in honor of Shabbat. We also enjoyed singing Shabbat songs.
Shabbat Shalom!
Looking forward to another incredible week.
Enjoy your weekend.

Best regards,
Miss Dershowitz

5th and 6th Boys
5th and 6th boys have begun reading and translating Mishna!
We began Sefer Shmot-Parasha Vayera.
We discussed a “life skill”:
When we want something from HAshem, even if it something we are deserving of, we should pray!
We saw this in Parashat Vayera,
Hashem tells Moshe that He heard the cries of B’nei Yisrael, and is now ready to redeem them from Egypt. It was already the time that Hashem had promised to our grandfather Avraham Avenu [in in this week’s Parasha-Parashat Lech L’cha] to take us out, we still needed to cry out = to daven.
We learned the same criteria in Parashat B’reishis, although HAshem had created the plants, grass etc. they did not grow out of the ground until Adam Hareeshon davened.
We, of course, learned a lot about the Parasha.
We are learning the “laws of getting up in the morning.
There is a daily raffle to help motivate the T’fila.
Some winners went home with smashed pennies from Rabbi Kuritsky.
The boys are scoring very high on their [Parasha] tests, so far.
Rabbi Kuritsky

7th and 8th Girls

7th and 8th grade girls are davening beautifully, with Ariella S. in the lead! Yaffa in show place.
Rabbi Kuritsky raffled off a prize to motivate the wonderful girls, even more.
To date, the girls have taken two Parasha tests and one Halacha test. The girls are acing the tests.
The Halacha was regarding the laws of girls’ obligations in the morning and about T’fila.
We began to learn about Yehoshua , which was apropos, especially since we recently read in shul on Simchat Torah about the passing of Moshe Rabbeinu, which is followed by Yehoshua taking over to lead B’nei Yisrael into Eretz Yisrael.
Mr. Kaufman is taking out a small group of girls, daily to help them with K’riah reading Hebrew.
They were tested, and did very well!
Rabbi Kuritsky

It was another terrific week in our class.
In Tefilla we started the explanation of the first Beracha of Shmona Esreh. There is a lot to learn about the Beracha and we had many interesting lessons on it. Jeffery knew the words of Shomoma Esreh really well.
In Gemara class we were learning about that “a Halacha that is in the Mishna is learnt from a Pasuk. A big thank you to Kobe for reading the Pasuk so beautifully. The noise level of the class of saying the Gemara was soo loud and beautiful and very inspiring. Rabbi Kuritsky told me that a Student came over by lunch break and asked him a good question on the Gemara.
We said over a Story about a Student who loved cooking. However, when it came to eating, he would make sure it was always Kosher even though it was not always easy.
In Halacha we spoke about when you make a Beracha you should concentrate on the Bracha and not be doing something else.

Topics from the Parsha:
Avrum and Sorai left Choron, and went to Eretz Ca’naan. Lot, and all of the people that they taught about Hashem, came along.
Another test: They finally reach Eretz Ca’naan and there is a famine. Avrum passed the test and didn’t complain or question Hashem. They then traveled to Egypt, with Soai hiding in the box.
The shepherds of Avrum and Lot argued about where to allow their sheep to eat. Lot chose to live near Sedom.
Avrum and Eliezer came to rescue Lot from the strong “4 Kings”. Hashem made a miracle and helped them win, and the dirt turned into arrows.
We heard the story of when dirt turned into arrows for Nachum Ish Gam Zo.
Avrum married Hagar and had a son named Yishmael.
Hashem changed the name of Avrum to Avraham and Sorai to Sorah.
Hashem gave Avraham Avinu the Mitzva of Bris Milah.

Lunch at SIHA

Lunch in SIHA is an enjoyable learning experience.
Every day, the children enjoy a delicious, nutritios meal, after which all classes (5-7) are responsible to clean their table and prepare for ברכת המזון Birkat Hamazon.
Each child holds a beautiful laminated Birkat Hamazon card and sings Birkat Hamazon along with rabbi Kuritsky.
Miss Ety Perez and Mr Kaufman give out raffle tickets for our daily raffle.
To date rabbi Kuritsky has awarded quite a few students with prizes ranging from “smashed pennies”, slime and led…. to brownie bars.
Thank you miss Ety, Mr Kaufman, Mrs Belli, miss Recaro and rabbi Kuritsky for running a fun, enjoyable and educational lunch.

Thoughts from Mrs. Hazen

Planning is the stuff weekdays are full of. As teachers, we create plans upon plans. There are curriculum plans, lesson plans, assessment plans, even plans for recess and dismissal. More mundanely, our days start and end with plans (what am I wearing today? What’s for dinner? Did I remember to take the laundry out?)
Of course, plans are important. They signify responsibility. Yet, in the classroom, the best stuff sometimes happens unplanned.
My current sixth grade is a class full of actors. It wasn’t planned. I do read-alouds with all of my classes; but this class took the idea of playing a role and ran with it. With the unabashed elan of youth, they do silly and serious voices, and imbue their reading with real character. Sometimes they are so into it, that I forget to stop on time and we end up reading a bit longer than we should.
It’s great fun, of course, but it also leads to some very deep class discussion on topics such as bullying, the desire to belong to a group, and even the desire to be apart from a group. These discussions translate into deep writing on the topic – so we got to where we wanted to be, even if the path we took wasn’t exactly planned.

So, this week’s thought is on the wonders of serendipity. It’s a big word that means something happy and unplanned, and I feel like those amazing small moments of serendipity happen when we let ourselves be spontaneous, even for just a little bit.

Imagination and fun aren’t just for kids, either. One of my favorite poems is Instructions, by the celebrated American author Neil Gaiman. It’s a poem about fairytales and myths, and a part of it goes like this:

From the back garden you will be able to see the wild wood.
The deep well you walk past leads to Winter’s realm;
There is another land at the bottom of it.

A cheer for serendipity, and for seeing the amazing in the everyday.

Mrs. Hazen

Elementary School

Kindergarten
This week kindergarten did an amazing job! I am so proud of them. They learned how to spell and read their first words. They even read their first book! They learned the letters T, S, C, D, and O. They were able to put those letters together to read and spell different words. They played games in groups and made the letters using monkey string. They also learned all about the parts of a book. In math they learned a fun song to help them learn how to identify and write the numbers 1-10. Through dancing they are now able to count to 20 and subitize within 5 super fast. They really enjoyed listening to the Shape Monster book and they loved finding different 2D shapes to feed our shape monster. In science they learned all about their sense of touch. They got to feel different types of objects and they decorated a hand with different types of textures. They also learned about their sense of smell. They smelled jars that contained different scents and they used their sense of smell to determine what was in each jar. In social studies they discussed what it means to be fair and what it means to be responsible. They realized that even though they are young they can help others and be responsible in school and at home.

This week in ELA students capitalize and punctuate sentences. Identified complete subject , complete predicate, simple sentence, and combined sentences with a compound subject. Wrote a personal narrative about favorite family story and what they have done to make their neighborhood, home, or school a better place.
In Math students were finding factors, multiples, common factors and common multiples of given numbers. Identifying prime and composite numbers.
In Social Studies students read about major landforms and bodies of water in the United States.
We are continuing to read our class chapter book Flora and Ulysses.
Please remember to read every day for 20 minutes and log it. Logs will be collected every Monday. Also please keep practicing the multiplication table!

Greetings and salutations!
Grammar this week was all about compound and complex sentences. In reading, we continued our novel study of Maniac Magee. We discussed characterization and focused on making good notes on where in the novel found examples.
In social studies we focused on lines of latitude and lines of longitude. We mapped the equator, prime meridian, tropic of cancer and tropic of Capricorn. We discussed how our location effects our climate.

Ms. Tatic would like to commend Izzy Hanuka for being a great student!

5B
Grammar this week was all about imperative and exclamatory sentences. In reading we continued our novel study of Holes. I am happy to see that the class is very excited about this novel!
We discussed the plot quite a bit and took turns reading.
In social studies we focused on lines of latitude and lines of longitude. We mapped the equator, prime meridian, tropic of cancer and tropic of Capricorn. We discussed how our location effects our climate.
Ms. Tatic would like to commend Ella Dery for being a diligent student!

Middle School

Middle School ELA and Social Studies

6th Grade

Sixth grade had a great week!
In ELA, we practiced identifying hard to find subjects in inverted sentences and imperative sentences. In reading, we continued our novel study of Fish in a Tree. Students discussed characterization, character motives, and did an activity on similes. In Social Studies, we wrapped up our lesson on ancient Mesopotamia by reading an excerpt from the laws of Hammurabi. Students wrote a journal comparing and contrasting the laws of Hammurabi to the Bill of Rights we studied earlier.
Mrs. Hazen would like to commend all of sixth grade, but especially Zev, Victoria, and Charles for their amazing job reading.

7th Grade

Seventh graders had a busy week!
In grammar, this week was all about the direct object. In reading, we continued our novel study of Fever, 1973. We discussed plot and characterization, and are starting our first journal!
In Social Studies, we wrapped up our unit on African trading kingdoms. We reviewed and are ready for our quiz on Monday. Mrs. Hazen would like to commend Noam Tisona for his awesome classwork!

8th Grade

Eighth graders had a busy week!
In grammar, this week was all about direct and indirect objects. Students practiced identifying direct and indirect object in sentences. In reading, we continued our novel study of Lord of the Flies. We characterized our four main characters and discussed the symbolism of the conch.
In Social Studies, we wrapped up our World War I unit with a test. Students answered an essay question, and wrote about the causes and the effects of World War I. Mrs. Hazen was particularly impressed with Lana’s writing on the test!

Middle School Math

This week, both fifth grade classes worked on creating factor trees, prime factorization, exponents, and prime power factorization.

The sixth-grade class is so close to finishing their first unit. This week they worked on classifying numbers, comparing rational numbers, converting decimals into fractions and vice versa!

The 7th grade class has been hard at work solving two-step equations. The 7th grade honors class also have been using their skills to solve real world problems that require defining a variable, writing an equation, then solving it.

The 8th grade class has been solving literal equations and solving for just one variable with respect to others. They have also started working with rates, ratios, and proportions.

Middle School Science

6th Grade

Students learned the earth’s major systems and how they interact; common tools used by Earth scientists;
Activity:Students created a layered book to help them organize the important steps of the Scientific Method.
During an experiment students were able to define and calculate the density of a solid using water displacement.

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 concluded our introduction to Jewish History. We then moved on to take a very strange quiz as an introduction to creation of the world! The students were quite curious about the quiz questions and are eagerly waiting to find out the answers next week!

8th grade learned about the reign of Shlomo HaMelech and his times. It was a time of peace and therefore, Shlomo HaMelech was able to build the Bais HaMikdash!