HSRS Announcements (Hodaahot הוֹדָוֹת) New Information Due to limited staffing, we have made the decision to cancel class on Sunday, May 12. Happy Mother's Day and CSU Graduation Week!
Previous Information Sent!
Drop Off Safety Reminder- When dropping off your student, we ask that you park the car before students exit. When a car drops off in front of the sanctuary, we are causing a safety concern as cars become backed up on Drake. Photography Reminder Just a reminder- We have many upcoming bar/bat mitzvahs as well as grade level services. Please remember that photography and videography are not allowed on Shabbat.
Recordings of various prayers Needing to practice one of the prayers? Take a listen using this website. https://soundcloud.com/heeb-1
Important Dates & Upcoming Events May 3- Kindergarten/1st grade Saturday Morning Shabbat Service at 9am May 4- NO SCHOOL FOR KINDERGARTEN AND 1ST GRADES May 12- NO SCHOOL (see above message) May 15- HSRS Yom Ha'atzmaut Celebration May 19- Final Shuk, Mitzvah Hour and End of the Year Carnival, Last Day of HSRS
BBYO & Teens Teen of the Week! Alexis is one of our 3rd grade Madrichim. She is incredibly organized and helpful and she is always up for any job we throw her way. She is kind and all of her students like to hear stories from her. We’re so grateful for Alexis and all her help this year :)
Synagogue & Community News
From Our Teachers
Highlights from Matzah Mania with Kitot Gan, Alef, and Bet Todah Rabah to Rachel and Seleste for volunteering. The students read "In the Teeny Tiny Matzah House" and then created their own matzah homes.
Kitah Gan (Kindergarten) From Morah JoJo- Hey everyone! We are almost to the end of this school year, that means it’s time for our year end Shabbat service. Last week, the class picked out the prayers they would like to be a part of and which song to sing. This week, we got to practice with Rabbi in the sanctuary. Everyone had a turn, they practiced their prayers and where to stand, they were very patient. We also had an amazing Matzah Mania morning! The kids were able to build their own houses out of matzah. Of course we had to also eat the matzah to make sure it was good! We headed back to the classroom to finish up our art display, it will be shown this Saturday. They all did great, see you for the Shabbat service.
Kitah Alef (First Grade) From Morah Laura- Wow! Our days keep getting more and more exciting and busy. After a wonderful Shirah, the students came to the classroom where we had a circle to discuss everyone's Passover experiences. So many of the students loved singing the four questions and finding the afikomen. I also heard that there were delicious matzah balls, charosets and cake. Next was an early snack so that we were ready for MATZAH MANIA. The students all enjoyed the story read to us by Hannah's mother and especially enjoyed trying to build and decorate Matzah houses. As you can imagine, there was frosting everywhere. We headed back to the sanctuary to practice for our service for Saturday. The students all read so well. They should have brought home their part on half a sheet of paper to practice. If it was lost or your child was absent, we will have a fresh set on Saturday. After a lot of sitting and listening, we headed outside to burn off the sugar and were able to play with some new friends. We finally made it back to our classroom where we learned about the people who work in our synagogue and the letter Pay. We are going to have to practice a few letters next time to finish the alphabet. I'm looking forward to seeing everyone on Saturday
Kitah Bet (Second Grade) From Morah Anne- Hello Families! Sunday's class flew by as we wrapped up our Pesach learning this week. After shira, we reviewed a bit of Hebrew and tied up a few loose ends in our workbooks. We played a quick trivia game before heading off to matzah mania. The kids had a great time building (and then eating) houses made of matzah and candy. Then, we made a 10 plague wheel before playing a few Pesach card games to end the morning. All in all an enjoyable day! I hope you all have a fabulous week and I will see you on Sunday.
Highlights from the 3rd-7th grade Chocolate Seder
Kitah Gimmel (Third Grade) Sunday from Morah Robin- Kitah Gimmel started their morning by viewing Hebrew letters, vowels, and words. The class split into two teams, first pronouncing made up Hebrew words, then translating real Hebrew words. The winning teams earned extra scheckels! After a snack and short break outside, the class got to play Passover board games, “Seder Slides” and “Let My People Go.” Finally, at the end of class, we discussed what we are going to do for our last class party (as a result of all the cotton balls the class earned again) and our agenda for the last school month of May.
Kitah Dalet (Fourth Grade) Sunday from Morah Sophie- This Sunday, we learned about the Dead Sea. We watched a video about the Dea Sea Scrolls, then made our own Dead Sea water. The kids experimented with how dense the water is by seeing what floats in it. We used things in nature and tested if they floated or sank.
Sunday from Morah Merav- Sunday we worked in our ‘Time To Read’ workbooks. We focused on the final letters (אותיות סופות ) in the Aleph Bet. We spent time finding words with final letters (sofi) on our word wall.
Kitah Hay (Fifth Grade) Sunday from Morah Lauren- We made thank you cards for Dr. Shamis and the hospice staff and learned about prophets including Deborah, Samuel, and David. This class has insightful questions and loves crafts.
Kitah Vav (Sixth Grade) Sunday from Morah Leah- Sunday was an intense, but good class. After a great Shira (song session), we moved into our Hebrew lesson focusing on the Mourner’s Kaddish. Then, followed our lesson about aging/death/mourning and grief. The whole class did very well with this challenging topic. This is a vast subject that can result in more questions than answers - please reach out if you need more context. Wednesday, there will be a substitute and class will center around a seder for Yom Hashoah - recognition and remembrance of the Holocaust, then next Sunday we will spend time reading White Bird. See the link for a preview. A beautiful story that creates dialogue with history and hope. Shavua Tov (A good week)
Kitah Zayin (Seventh Grade) Sunday from Morah Michelle- Students learned about Jews and the uniquely American art form of the musical. So many amazing musicals were written by Jewish people: Showboat, Porgy and Bess, West Side Story, Annie, Fiddler on the Roof, The Producers, and many more. We discussed why and how Jews are over represented on Broadway and we finished class by watching the beginning of Fiddler on the Roof. This coming Sunday will be our last trip to Starbucks.
From Our Specials News from the Sifriyah (Library)
Book Bingo Reading Challenge: Prizes were handed out in 1st, 2nd and 3rd grade. Congratulations to Merlin who has read enough books to fill in his entire bingo card and earn a $5.00 gift card to Target! Some students only need to read one or two more books to earn a prize, so keep reading!!
Adult Education: On Thursday, May 9th and Thursday, May 23rd from 7-9 p.m. I will be teaching a class on the "Ethnic Communities of Israel". Israel is one of the most multi-ethnic and multi-religious countries in the world. Join us as we explore some of the smaller and lesser known of these communities--their history and culture and how they fit in the mosaic of Israeli life. We will cover Muslim, Christian and Jewish-adjacent communities, as well as refugee groups and guest workers. People can participate in-person or over zoom. You can sign up here: The Ethnic Communities of Israel - Event - Har Shalom Center for Jewish Living I look forward to seeing you there!
Jewish American Heritage Month: May is Jewish American Heritage Month (JAHM)!!! The foyer check out and for sale bookcases as well as classroom bookracks will feature books about all aspects of American Jewish life.
News from Tefillah Our final Wednesdays will give us time to review the Kabbalat Shabbat Service (Friday evening) and the Saturday Morning Service.
