HSRS Announcements (Hodaahot הודעות) New Information December 18 Hanukkah Play Showcase We hope you will join us for a showcase of Hanukkah plays on Wednesday, December 18 at 6:30pm. While the 3rd, 4th, and 5th graders are our performers, all are invited to attend. Doors will open at 6:20pm
Previous Sent Information
Summer Camp Are you looking for an overnight camp or specialty experience for your children? With more than 150 traditional and specialty overnight camps to choose from, you can make this summer a perfect adventure for your first-time camper! And... Did you know that first-time campers may be eligible for a One Happy Camper Grant? Campers attending 12-19 days receive $700 and those attending 19+ days receive $1,000. If you have any questions or need additional information, please reach out to Heather Flowers, OHC Professional at JEWISHcolorado, at hflowers@JEWISHcolorado.org for further details. Adventure Awaits! Har Shalom will be hosting a Jewish Summer Camp fair on February 9 after HSRS. Attending Services It was absolutely wonderful seeing so many students at High Holiday services. Don't forget that we have "Service Attendance Recommendations". One of the best ways to feel confident and prepared for leading Saturday morning services is by watching others lead. It is suggested that our Kinder/1st graders attend 1 service over the course of the year, 2nd grade attends 2 services, 3rd grade attends 3 services, and so on. These can be attended virtually, at other synagogues, at a classmate's bar/bat mitzvah, at one of our grade level Shabbats, etc. High Holiday services count towards this goal!
Har Shalom's Phones! Har Shalom has a new phone system. To call the religious school, please dial 970-223-5191, ext. 103.
Important Dates & Upcoming Events December 18- 3rd, 4th, 5th grade Hanukkah plays from 6:30-7:30pm, all families are invited to watch December 22-January 7- NO HSRS January 10- Shabbat Jr at 5:30pm January 12- Beresheet Day 3 from 10:30am-12pm January 25- Kinder/1st/2nd grade Havdalah from 5:30-7:30pm January 26- NO SCHOOL FOR GRADES Kinder, First, and Second February 1- 4th/5th grade Saturday morning Shabbat Service at 10:15am February 2- NO SCHOOL FOR GRADES Fourth and Fifth February 2- Beresheet Day 4 from 10:30am-12pm February 7- PJs and Pancakes Shabbat Jr at 5:30pm February 15- 3rd/4th/5th grade Havdalah from 5:30-7:30pm February 16- NO SCHOOL FOR GRADES Third, Fourth and Fifth
BBYO & Teen Things Teen of the Week! Each week, we will be recognizing one of our amazing teen volunteers who went above and beyond to help. Norah is our Madricha of the week! She is one of our 4th grade madrichim, and is always willing to jump in and help, even when it involves dressing up for a theater performance. We’re so lucky to have her in our program
Synagogue & Community News
HSRS Hanukkah Celebration! What a wonderful Sunday morning. We celebrating the miracle of Hanukkah by playing dreidel (some of our friends used Israeli dreidels!), Hanukkah bingo, making our own beeswax candles, and having delicious donuts while Rabbi Finestone read Hanukkah stories to us. We ended the morning by joining the community for a special Hanukkah Shira. Who has "I'm a Latke" stuck in their head?!?!Take a listen to TWO of our Hanukkah favorites! I am a Latke
From Our Teachers Beresheet (Preschool) from Morah Kyla and Morah Joanie Morah Kyla and Morah Joanie will see you in January!
Kitah Gan (Kindergarten) from Morah JoJo We kicked off the day by reflecting on what the class learned while I was away last week. They remembered our lesson about listening and keeping our hands to ourselves. We reviewed the three key ways to be great listeners: looking at the speaker, staying still, and thinking about what they’re saying. We also talked about using our hands for kind actions, like hugging or playing. Next, we switched gears and dove right into Hanukkah! We discussed the story behind Hanukkah and the miracle of the oil that lasted for eight days. To celebrate, each child made their own menorah art using their thumbs as the Shamash candle. While the children painted, we watched Shalom Sesame as a special reward for their great behavior last week. Shalom Sesame taught us how oil is made in Israel, the same kind the Maccabees used for their miracle. Finally, we had a full Hanukkah celebration! We made candles, played Dreidel, enjoyed Bingo, and even had donuts while listening to a fun story. Everyone had a fantastic time! Have a wonderful break, and I can’t wait to see you all next year!
Kitah Alef (First Grade) from Morah Laura It was a quick morning of finishing up our Hanukkah project, menorah drip trays! We hope you enjoy them. Then it was on to our party where we enjoyed our time together playing dreidel and bingo and making candles. Have a great break and we will see you next year!
Kitah Bet (Second Grade) from Morah Anne We had another great week at religious school! Before we kicked off our Hanukkah Holiday Celebration, we played a great game of Kahoot. (It’s like a computer game show.) We tested our basic Hanukkah knowledge and I even added some tricky and obscure questions to the mix. The kids did awesome! After our game, we broke into center activities for our celebration. A great day all around. Wishing you all a very happy holiday season. I’ll see you next year!
Kitah Gimmel (Third Grade) from Morah Robin Wednesday- Kitah Gimmel worked very hard on preparing all the props for their upcoming Chanukah play. From masks, to dreidels, to backdrops and pickle jars, they got it all done. The students even sacrificed their break time to finish on time.
Sunday- Kitah Gimmel was very busy. We did a dress rehearsal for our upcoming play two times! First with Lana in the Sanctuary, and then in the classroom. Thank you for helping your kiddos remember to bring their costumes. We then joined the school in various Chanukah activities: candle making, dreidel games, Chanukah bingo, etc. Finally, we all gathered back in the sanctuary for Shira with Josh and Deb and the CHS community. Please remember to have your kiddos dressed in costume again this coming Wednesday, December 18, for their live performance. Kitah Gimmel will be performing at 6:30pm, please join us.
Kitah Dalet (Fourth Grade) from Morah Merav Wednesday and Sunday- We were very busy getting ready for the Hanukkah play. We finished our costumes, we worked on our set, and we rehearsed our lines. Thank you Lana for your help with this fun project! Families we can’t wait to share it all with you Wednesday at 6:30. We found a little time to read words in Hebrew and a lot of time to celebrate Hanukkah on Sunday morning.
Kitah Hay (Fifth Grade) Wednesday from Morah Lauren and Morah Karri (subbing for Morah Sophie)- we started by practicing some blessings and prayers with Teffilah Deb. Next we read through our play, then acted it out from start to finish. We spent some time practicing projecting our voices and remembering to face the audience. After adding some finishing touches to the backdrop for the play, we practiced the Hanukkah blessings.
Sunday from Morah Lauren and Morah Sophie- Kitah Hay studied who, what, where sentences before practicing our Hannukah play, making candles, playing bingo, and dreidel, and joining Shira Josh and Teffilah Deb for Hannukah songs before our community Hannukah party. Look forward to our play Wednesday at 6:30!
Kitah Vav (Sixth Grade) from Morah Aviva Wednesday- On Wednesday, we played Headbandz to continue our learning of "I have/dont have/you have/you dont have", then all together, discussed the differences between the traditional and liberal version of the givurot prayer and which one they agree with most. For Chai, we learned about jews in the past, present, and future, and what this means individually and communally.
Sunday- On Sunday, we illustrated new hebrew vocabulary, then began working on reading the givurot prayer. Before the chanukah festivities, the students worked on a chanukah activity reflecting on a miracle they experienced in the year.
Kitah Zayin (Seventh Grade) Wednesday from Rabbi Finestone- In Kita Zayin, we examined the Maoz Tzur song and prayer. We first practiced reading the Hebrew, and then we looked at both the literal translation, and the more modern translation of this Hanukkah prayer. There are several differences, and we had a great discussion about why they were different and the meaning of the differences.
Sunday from Morah Michelle- we started class by making Hanukkah-themed wrapping paper. Most students chose to display their wrapping paper in our classroom instead of bringing it home. As students decorated, we learned that many Christmas songs were written by Jews! I don't know how "kosher" it is to listen to Christmas music during Hebrew school but we all sang along to "Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer", "Rocking Around the Christmas Tree", "White Christmas", "Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire" "Let it Snow", "Santa Baby" and "It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year"...all songs written by Jewish immigrants. We discussed how the music industry was one of the few industries open to Jews during the first half of the 20th century and that many of these popular songs are relatively secular in nature. After the lesson, we had fun rotating through all of the Hanukkah Party stations. I'll see everyone in January!
From our Specials (chuggim חגים) News from Drama! We hope you will join us for a showcase of Hanukkah plays on Wednesday, December 18 at 6:30pm. While the 3rd, 4th, and 5th graders are our performers, all are invited to attend. Doors will open at 6:20pm. Performers need to bring their costumes or wear their costumes to HSRS. We have cookies, cocoa, and cider to enjoy after the 3 Hanukkah performances.
News from the Sifriyah (Library) Thank you to madricha Zelda for helping with several projects in the library today!
Reading challenge: Hanukkah books were available in all the classrooms today, so check them out!! There are also Hanukkah and Jewish heroes books on the checkout bookcase in the foyer.
Wishing everyone a chag Hanukkah sameach (a happy Hanukkah) and a Happy New Year!
News from Shira (Sunday Morning Song Session) We ended our morning with wonderful energy as we gathered together and sang songs about Hanukkah. It was a packed house with great energy and participation from our students.! A giant todah rabah to Shira Josh and Tefillah Deb for our Hanukkah shira!
News from Teffillah (Prayer Session) with Deb In Tefillah we added the Baruchu to the Tefillot the students now know, and reviewed the Hannukah blessings and Maoz Tzur in anticipation of the Hannukah Shira on Sunday.
News from Small Group with Deb In Small Group Hebrew we worked on the Gimmel and Pei consonants, and reviewed all the vowels.
