BH. Tevet
8, 5781 / December 23, 2020
ב“ה
Community Newsletter of the Maimonides Hebrew Day School of the Capital District Candle-Lighting: 404 Partridge Street Albany NY 12208 (518) 453-9363/3434 www.maimonidesschool.org 4:09 Shabbat Ends: produced by Rabbi Mendel Rubin & students in the TNT (Torah ‘n Technology) Program 5:15 Maimonides is accredited by the NYS Board of Regents & is a beneficiary of UJF-NENY
SHORT WEEK AT MAIMONIDES This week was a 3-day week at school, ending on Wednesday afternoon thanks to the extra long winter break Dec 24th through Jan 3rd this year. (Usually we do half-days for some of this stretch, but not this year during Covid).
maimonidesschool@gmail.com
MAIMONIDES 404 Partridge Street Albany NY 12208
This newsletter is dedicated in honor of
Bluma Rubin’s Bas-Mitzvah
19th of Tevet (Jan 3rd 2020) By her parents & siblings SERACH’S GOOD NEWS HARP We’re all waiting and hoping to hear good news these days, so its timely to learn in (the Midrash of) this week’s Parsha Vayigash how Serach the daughter of Asher gently and sweetly broke the good news to Jacob that his long-lost son (her uncle) Yosef was alive! In this spirit, Kindergarten made these popsicle-stick rubber-band harps this week. Good news to all!
FAREWELL MR. JUSTIN COHEN We are very grateful for the several months Justin Cohen taught English (as well as coding and other General Studies subjects) to our middle and high school students, and we bid him farewell as he returns to his graduate studies full time after the winter break. Much appreciation from our students and faculty with our best wishes for much success in all your future endeavors.
CLEARING THE WAY
Thanks to Simmy Rubin for making the path to learning is clear & free of snow with plenty of room for cars to park, even with 2 feet pile up of snow we got last week. Students got their big piles of snow to play on and tunnel FINDING YOUR WAY through. (Remember, these kids are equipped “YAD (HAND OF) AVSHALOM” Mrs. Mattice’s first graders are learning how to to play in snow with gloves/mittens, boots & Rabbi Rubin covered read (and draw their own) maps, so she made snowpants etc. With snow on the ground be Morah Rochel’s Navi them this one-dimensional map with 3D sure to send kids are prepared to play in it!) classes this week (as landmarks placed on it. she is home sitting BEST RAFFLE-AUCTION YET! Shiva - which ends MAZAL TOV CHAYA & AHARON Sadly, we were unable to have the annual intomorrow) and as Mazal Tov to MHDS alumna Chaya (Simon) person communal Chanukah event this year, they’re concluding and Aharon Mishulovin on the birth of a baby but despite all the many challenges this year’s the tragic saga of girl. Mazal Tov to grandparents Nachman and Raffle-Auction was the Avshalom’s rebellion Clara and to the whole Simon family. most successful yet! Thanks against his father to all who supported this King David in the school fundraiser from far Book of Samuel, so BIG KIDS HELPING OUT and near! Truly, a positive Today at school several classes emphasized Rabbi Rubin had spin! See page 2 for the list how older siblings can help make it fun for them look up this iconic “Yad (Hand of) of prize package winners. their younger siblings during this long break! Avshalom” his burial place in Jerusalem.
RAFFLE-AUCTION WINNERS
IMPACT OF THE CRUSADERS Ms. Ramsay’s 7/8 graders did a DBQ essay (document based questions) on the impact of the Crusaders during the Middle Ages. Even though it wasn’t the textbook main focus, they did touch on how the Cruaders decimated some of Europe’s Jewish communities.
PROPORTIONAL RELATIONSHIPS No, this is not about interpersonal and emotional matters. It is a math matter! 7/8 grade math is learning how to see numbers in a new light, what numbers bring two numbers together and in which ways. They graph it out and make charts & equations. This is useful in all kinds of real-world ways including how to increase recipe batches and how numbers all change once one variable changes.
PITGAM PASTRIES This week due to a change in circumstances, the Bake-Sale 7/8 graders did some of their bake-sale prep at school in “Nathan’s Kitchen” with Morah Raizy during her Pitgam-Poetry class, hence it became Pitgam-Pastries. They made cake-pops, peanut-crispy-chews etc.
DRINK SALE FIRST DAY BACK
One of the first grade Hebrew verbs this week THE EFFECT OF TRICKSTERS is the masculine Rabbi Shmuly’s Talmud class is learning about & feminine how communal trust is eroded even when a form of “drink” few people are dishonest, how it changes the Shoteh & Shotah. legal requirements what needs to be proven 7/8 Boys Drink once there’s concern for liars and Sale will be dishonest tricksters. Indeed, trust is back on the first day of school after break, at hard to rebuild once it is eroded. Monday morning recess on January 4th.
THE SCHMALTZ ISLAND VIDEO Morah Rivi and the 5th graders watched a fun video adaption of the famous parable (many years back Rabbi Moshe Chanowitz was fond of telling this parable in Albany) of the island so full of jewels that they were considered worthless… but that was a costly mistake!
PARSHA TERUMAH Rabbi Mathless’ 7/8 grade boys Chumash class is finishing Parsha Terumah just in time before the winter break. The last piece was about the fencing wall around the Mishkan perimeter, the courtyard within and the outer altar.
SEAL & POLAR BEARS, OH MY! Ms. Ramsay had 5/6 combined this week and they did a science film on the animals of the Arctic, from seals to penguins & polar bears… predators & prey, & the unique (& changing) conditions of that frozen part of the world!
NAZIR IN CHUMASH CLASS Morah Dini’s 7/8 grade Chumash class is now learning about the conditions & commitment of the Nazir, and rectification process needed DAHBEAR ON BIG SCREEN when the Nazirite oath is violated. Second graders are doing their “Dahbear” Chumash Vocab words on the big screen in their classroom. The word on the board is A CHASSAN’S DOG… What sound does such a dog make? Uf, Ruf! “Teshukataych” = your yearning. Odelia made up this joke over Chanukah in Halacha class as it came up in discussion about MECHANICS TO ELECTRICITY the laws of people doing mitzvoth and making Mr. Stark’s High School physics class finished blessings in overwhelming life situations (such their section on Mechanics and had a big test as a Chassan from a happy wedding occasion on basically everything they learned in science or an Onen mourner in a sad situation this year and after break will be moving onto a between death and burial). new unit on electricity in physics.
Of course, EVERYONE is a winner for investing in our children & supporting local Jewish education. Thanks to all for making this the most successful Raffle-Auction fundraiser for our school even during this most challenging & difficult time. The following is a listing of the winners who won prize packages at “Positive Spin” Maimonides Raffle-Auction 2020 (each ticket packages was drawn by a student in grades K-3 screened online on Facebook Live): A) Lucky Laptop: Mussie Rubin B) Amazing Amazon: Shayna Kudan C) Shopping Spree: Clifton Park Rubin D) Shabbos Package: Sandra Goldmeer E) Robotic Vacuum: Levin Family F) Enhance Your Home: Lilah Weisberg G) Stroller & More: Lisa Kellman H) Junior Shopping: Susannah Levin I) Sparkle & Shine: Joyce Teitleman J) Toveedo & Tablet: Raizel Rubin K) InstantPot Plus: Joyce Teitelman L) Games Galore: Clara Simon M) All Set with Lego: Ehrenpreis Family N) Kitchen Collection: Johanna Steper O) Music to our Ears: Morah Sara P) Playmobil Sets: Caras Family Q) Fun on Wheels: Mathless Family R) Uber Getaway: Moshe (Coral Springs) S) Arts & Crafts: Yitzchak Krimmer T) Active Family: Vicky O’Brien U) Breakfast & Lunch: Larry Teitelman V) Judaica Kids: Sharona Backman W) Apple Airpods: Miryam Piekarski X) Cook Up a Storm: Meir Ehrenpreis Y) Magnetic Play: Johanna Steper Z) Gizmos & Gadgets: Vicky O’Brien Mystery #1) Womens Perfume & Accessories: Larry Teitelman Mystery #2) HP Chromebook: Morah Devorah Leah SPECIAL) - Split-The-Pot: $1410* Prize money: Chaiki & Esther * This may have been our largest Split-The-Pot prize to winner ever at Maimonides Auction! Many thanks to all the vendors and donors, the school families, everyone who purchased tickets, with special thanks to Raizy Rubin and Sharona Backman for all their work on this!
CARPE DIEM & CHATOF ECHOL LESSONS FROM THE SHIVA Creative Parsha with Morah Chaya Bracha did Some classes went over to Morah Rochel’s house for a piece on grabbing opportunities even if they a short distanced Shiva call. Some came back with don’t seem always seem to be opportunities, to lessons and stories for TNT reporting. be able to see them for what they really are and Her brother Abi obm liked to speak to to grab it while we can & make the most of it. people. Friendly with all types of people, even strangers in the street or fellow shoppers in the market. He was genuinely RIGHTS WHILE AT SCHOOL interested in other people, making them the Ms. Ramsay and the HS Girls are exploring focus and not making it about himself. He more Supreme Court cases (they are really also often asked the Rubin kids about enjoying the issues and merits of these cases!) families he knew in Albany and how things and this week learned about and discussed were up here. (and debated!) Frederick Vs. Morris about first Morah Rochel shared with the HS Girls amendment rights of students in a school. about lessons learned from the laws of mourning, how learning is considered joyful THE MAKING OF A HALACHA and how a simple greeting is uplifting. Rabbi Rubin used a case High School girls One of our school parents had him as his recently studied in Gemorah Shabbos to show THE STICKER STORIES 5th grade teacher. He said he was a favorite how that evolves and develops in Halachic Mrs. Mattice’s first graders got stickers to make texts to finally come to a practical conclusion Rebbi, he taught Gemorah and Sefer a story-picture out of, some used it as accents Yehoshua, and had a special sing-song for in the Shulchan Aruch (Code of Jewish Law). to their drawings and others made almost the davening which they all remember. He liked whole story just out of the stickers. to hum & sing, and when they’d play chess by recess they could tell by his humming if it was a good move or a bad move! HEY TEVES & HARRY POTTER Instead of their usual Gemorah class this week, COLD SNOW Rabbi Mendel’s last two 7/8 grade boys did a Monday class on “Hey Teves” & the backstory Can you make out of the Chabad courtcase about the books and the Hebrew words his memories of the 1987 celebration, and on and sentences here a Tuesday did a part of a long detailed class about the cold and MISHNA POWERPOINTS (from Rabbi Mendel’s Torah-Tuesday for the the snow? Morah UAlbany college students) about lessons & Rabbi Shmuly’s 4th grade Mishna students are Devorah’s class is parables from Harry Potter in connection to it pictured here in the Computer Lab making using winter terms to being the theme of the Tri-Mitzvah of Jacob, visual powerpoints of the Mishna learn lots of everyday Max and Sophia this past weekend. Bava Kama they are learning about Hebrew words: trees different levels of responsibility for to houses & gardens, different types of damages and how expected men and women, or unexpected that type of damage would be. faces, hands & feet!
THE SWEET SOUND OF MUSIC Especially on cold or wet winter days a lot of time (some) classes are indoors for recess playing ball in the big room. The balls whacks back and forth, lots of jumping and yelling, and amidst all that, there’s the sweet, crisp sounds of the piano played so nicely by some of the students. It’s really nice to hear and adds a lot to the din of recess.
DEAR MORAH ROCHEL SNOW INSIDE AND OUT... Snow is a big theme this week, and not only outdoors. This snow wasn’t really the packing snow kind of snow, but that didn’t stop these first graders from making a snowman on the bulletin board of their classroom surrounded by symmetrical snowflakes (a math lesson hidden inside the crafty fun).
As Morah Rochel is sitting Shiva this week after the passing of her brother (sadly, of Covid) Morah Rivi’s art students are making a special presentation for her.
ABOUT THE PRESIDENTS 4th graders had a reading comprehension test on a piece they did in their Reading Street books with lots of trivia about the presidents.
JERUSALEM! Kindergarten made a beautiful Jerusalemthemed bulletin board for the 10th of Tevet (this Friday) and it also ties in with the letter Yud they are learning, which is the 10th letter of the Hebrew alphabet.
at Maimonides and in the Community 12/24-1/3: LONG WINTER BREAK
Motzai Shabbos Shemot, for take-out only. PreA Corona change this year is no half days at school, order at: tinyurl.com/MaimonidesPizzaNight so all scheduled half-days are full days off. That gives us an extra long winter vacation this year, Dec 24th thru Jan 3rd, school resumes 8am on Jan 4th. STAYCATION IDEAS?? Families are still on the lookout for Covid & family-friendly home-based activities and local or nearby outings to do during this extended break. Got ideas? Please share!
12/25: ASARAH (TENTH OF) TEVET This year the fast of the Tenth of Tevet (an short but important Jewish fast) falls on Friday, it begins 5:48am and we break our fast with Kiddush at the Friday night meal. This fast commemorates the start of the siege around Jerusalem that led to the later destruction of the Temple.
12/25-26: PARSHA VAYIGASH Judah confronts Joseph in defense of Benjamin at the start of this week’s Parsha which leads to Joseph revealing himself to his brothers and finally Jacob & family coming down and settling in Egypt.
1/4: RAMBAM’S YARTZEIT The day we return to school is the Rambam’s (our school’s namesake) Yartzeit on the 20th of Tevet.
1/8-9: PIZZA NIGHT III It’s coming back after break! Unbaked pizzas at Friday dismissal, baked pies and sushi etc on
ACCORDIAN OF WISHES & BLESSINGS! This is the finished product of what Morah Rivi’s art students did for Morah Rochel today at school, an accordion (that tucks together into itself to create an envelope) filled with cards of well-wishes and blessings from students in grades 2-4.
KEEPING UP WITH PESACHIM Tidbits of what Daf Yomi daily Talmud study came across this week. Numbers below correspond to the page of Talmud in tractate Pesachim to be completed just before Passover. 29 - how to legally consider a currently valueless item that will have value at a later date 30 - post-Passover not-disowned Chametz mixtures 31 - Chametz as collateral on loan to non-Jew during Passover and its status afterwards 32 - is Terumah repaid by value or measurement 33 - whether liquid inside grape has same status 34 - is “loss of focus” in Temple service a concern about what may have happened or inherent flaw? 35 - The status of “Rich Matzah” i.e. egg-matzah or matzah made with fruit juice in various issues
OVER THE LONG BREAK For everyone’s benefit it is important that all school families please exercise reasonable care and caution during the break to help ensure that we can remain open upon our return. We are very grateful that we have been able to keep open and in-person full-time for all of our students all this year thus far, even as cases are rising locally and in many communities. Students and families who may be away or exposed over break should consult with their own medical doctors AND the school’s Covid policy and health coordinator to determine what steps needs to be taken upon return should there be any reason for concern. We wish everyone a happy, healthy (Covid-wise, as well as good mental health and emotional wellbeing - all very important!) and enjoyable break. May it be refreshing and rejuvenating and a good healthy outlet for our students, teachers and families.
DRINK SALE & BAKE SALE Parents & Students! Thanks for your support and enjoyment of both these 7/8th grade weekly sales. It supports their year-end trips & extra-curricular and also helps them build skills like teamwork, responsibility, good service and responsiveness. The Pizza-Nites during winter supports our HS’s extra-curricular & year-end. And all get to enjoy!
MAIMONIDES SCHOOL & COMMUNITY (Nursery / Elementary / High School) 404 Partridge Street Albany NY 12208 (518) 453-9363/3434 maimonidesschool@gmail.com Founded in 1980, Maimonides is chartered by the NYS Board of Regents and is a JF-NENY Beneficiary “A Beautiful Blend: Torah & Worldly Experience!”