New Information Calendar Changes!!! Attention K/1/2 parents- We have a plan to reschedule the havdalah that was, unfortunately, cancelled due to weather. And in exciting news, Morah JoJo has been chosen to go on a Birthright trip to Israel so we are moving the grade-level service, too. Here is our plan: March 1 at 10:15am- 2nd/3rd grade Shabbat-led service March 2- NO SCHOOL FOR GRADES 2nd/3rd March 29 at 9am- K/1st grade Shabbat-led service March 30- NO SCHOOL FOR GRADES K/1st May 3 at 5:30pm- K/1st/2nd Havdalah May 4- SCHOOL FOR ALL GRADES
Previous Sent Information
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!
Important Dates & Upcoming Events 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 March 1- 2nd/3rd grade Saturday morning Shabbat Service at 10:15am March 2- NO SCHOOL FOR GRADES Second and Third March 2- Beresheet Day 5 from 10:30-12pm March 7- Shabbat Jr at 5:30-7:30pm March 7- 5th and 6th Grade Friday evening Shabbat Service at 6:30pm March 9- Purim Celebrated at HSRS. COSTUMES ENCOURAGED!!!! March 29 at 9am- K/1st grade Shabbat-led service March 30- NO SCHOOL FOR GRADES K/1st March 30- Beresheet Day 6 from 10:30-12pm
BBYO & Teen Things BBYO at the Summer Camp Fair There will be a BBYO table at the summer camp fair that will be sharing summer involvement opportuities for our members. We hope you and your teen will join us!
Teen of the Week! Each week, we will be recognizing one of our amazing teen volunteers who went above and beyond to help. Cory is our madrich of the week. He has been a leader in HSRS for the past two years and we’re so grateful for his calm and welcoming demeanor. The third graders love to talk with him and make jokes together!
Synagogue & Community News
From Our Teachers Beresheet (Preschool) from Morah Kyla and Morah Joanie We had a fun day in Beresheet. Day 4 was all about the sun, moon, and stars and we had lots of neat projects. We made two different types of sun catchers, moon pictures, constellation lacing, and star catching. We had a great snack of Oreo moon phases, moon cheese and sun chips. See you in March for day 5!
Kitah Gan (Kindergarten) from Morah JoJo This week, we started our class with Hebrew Yoga, practicing the shapes and sounds of the Hebrew letters while working on our flexibility. After our fun and energizing warm-up, we spent time writing our letters on worksheets, focusing on memorizing them so that we can move on to reading small words next year. After a quick snack, we dove into the main lesson of the day: Bikur Cholim, the mitzvah of visiting the sick. The class discussed the importance of showing care and kindness to those who are unwell, not just by offering physical help, but also by providing emotional and spiritual support. The class talked about times when they’ve received care, and we talked about how simple acts, like visiting or sending a card, can really brighten someone's day. We practiced these concepts through role play and also created beautiful Kindness Cards to give to someone in need. During story time, we read The Caring Rabbit, where Rami the rabbit learns the value of friendship, and how a visit from Lila the squirrel helped him feel better. The class left with a kindness card that they can hold onto until there’s someone in their life who could use a little extra care. We wrapped up the day with a deeper understanding of how we can all practice Bikur Cholim and bring comfort to others when they need it most. See you next week!
Kitah Alef (First Grade) from Morah Laura Our lesson was about helping our synagogue community. We focus on learning about the different people that help make Har Shalom a wonderful place. The students listed and learned about the jobs of Nicki, the rabbi, Tal, Tara, Gretchen and Felix. The students then made cards and painted flower pots for these special members of our community. We read a great book about a rabbi that finds a lot of money in a used desk and how he returns it to the original owner and his whole community is very proud of him. We also looked at another book of pictures with Jewish objects found in synagogues. The students were able to describe the mezuzahs that are in their homes. The children all enjoyed the beautiful weather during recess and had fun reconnecting. Have a great week.
Kitah Bet (Second Grade) from Morah Anne Hello Kita Bet families! We had a very relaxing and enjoyable day at religious school this week. After a fantastic shira, we worked on our Hebrew for a bit, reviewing our letters, vowels and sounds. After a nice break enjoying the warmer spring weather, we settled in to watch our reward movie with popcorn and hot chocolate. We almost finished before the end of class, but didn't see the end- We will finish the last 10 minutes next week. I hope you have a great week!
Kitah Gimmel (Third Grade) from Morah Robin Wednesday- Continuing with our G’milut Chasadim studies, we started our evening reading “A Thread of Kindness: A Tzedakah Story” , a story about how generosity/mitzvahs leads to further mitzvahs. A truly beautiful story and also beautifully illustrated. After a short break inside, we played “Snowball Fight”, a kindness activity. On small sheets of square paper each student wrote their own name, then they crumbled it and threw it into the circle of students. Each student then retrieved a crumpled snowball and wrote something nice about that student and then again threw it back into the circle. This cycle was repeated a few times, so that by the end, each student received their own paper square back filled with compliments and kind words. Finally, we did a coloring activity. Each student chose a coloring page with an “I Can…” statement that they started to decorate. Overall, a fun evening focused on G’milut Chasadim in the classroom.
Sunday- We continued our discussion on G’milut Chasadim, specifically on Eilu D’varim - the list of 10 mitzvot focusing on the ways each of us can improve the world. Next the students split into two teams to play “Jewish Road Map Board Game”. Each team had to answer the associated tasks as they landed on each of the ten squares (10 mitzvot of Eilu D’varim) in the Board Game. The team that finished first received 15 shekels each, and the runner up team each received 7 shekels. The students had to really put their thinking caps on for this game and I am very proud of how each team worked together and the answers they provided. After a snack and break outside, the students continued their “Kindness” coloring pages.
Kitah Dalet (Fourth Grade) from Morah Merav Wednesday- After Pizza and T’filah, we started class with a quick share. Our time was spent practicing the Am Israel Chai song (by Elon ). We also practiced reading the English translation. We had time for a 4 minute dance party in the sanctuary.
Saturday- It was wonderful to be together with everyone on Shabbat morning. Thank you to all who were able to participate.
Remember we have our class party Sunday February 9. Come dressed in your comfy outfit of choice. Bring whatever you want to help you be cozy while watching a movie in class. (blankets, pillows, squish mellows, stuffies, whatever you want)
Kitah Hay (Fifth Grade) Wednesday from Morah Lauren- Kita Hay reviewed prayers and worked on our Devar for Saturday Shabbat service, which was beautiful. Wednesday from Safranit (Librarian) Judy, subbing for Morah Sophie- I had the privilege of subbing for Morah Sophie on Wednesday. The students finished up their projects for their Shabbat service. They finished writing up their summaries about the prophets they've been studying, and also made figures of their prophets with words and symbols representing character traits and historical objects connected to their prophet. We learned the Hebrew names of the prophets they'll be presenting, and what their names mean. Ask your student!!
Saturday from Morah Lauren- Thank you Kita Hay for sharing your Devar and leading our prayers with Kita Dalet at Shabbat. I look forward to beginning new prayers with you all on Wednesday HSRS.
Kitah Vav (Sixth Grade) from Morah Aviva Wednesday- On Wednesday, we did a worksheet and then played charades practicing the possive pronouns in hebrew. For chai, we began researching endangered animals and what we can do to help them for our Compassion for Animals in gimilut chasadim.
Sunday- On Sunday, the kids did a worksheet and then played a match-it game using our hebrew vocabulary. We then continued to learn the gvurot prayer, as well as working on our reading and pronounciation. For Chai, we learned about helping with world health issues. The kids read and performed a story about Rabbi Akiva. The kids then ranked different global health causes on importance and presented their rankings.
Kitah Zayin (Seventh Grade) Wednesday from Rabbi Finestone- During the first half of class we practiced our Hebrew reading with the Friday night prayer Lecha Dodi. The students worked both individually and in groups of two and three. After break, we continued the chapter of “accepting challenge and change” in the Topical Bible by looking at the example of King Saul. Saul, like Moses, was reluctant to accept the new position of king, but the support of his family and friends convinced him to take up the crown. We then talked about examples from the students lives where the support of family and friends helped them face a difficult challenge.
Sunday from Rabbi Finestone- We looked at the new version of the Israeli song Am Yisrael Chai, written after the October 7 attacks as a way to give hope to the country. We discussed the meaning of the lyrics, and practiced reading the Hebrew, even though it had no vowels!
Sunday from Morah Michelle- In honor of Black History Month, Kitah Zayin spent the day learning about Blacks and Jews and Black Jews. We watched a short video about the untold origins of Black Jews in America. I then shared a list of Black American Jews. Did you know that Drake, Doja Cat, Rashida Jones, Daveed Diggs, Maya Rudolph, and Lenny Kravitz are all Jewish? I then read the story The Singer and the Scientist by Lisa Rose. The story takes place in 1937, and Marian Anderson is one of the most famous singers in America. But after she gives a performance for an all-white audience, she learns that the nearby hotel is closed to African Americans. She doesn't know where she'll stay for the night. Until the famous scientist Albert Einstein invites her to stay at his house. Marian, who endures constant discrimination as a Black performer, learns that Albert faced prejudice as a Jew in Germany. She discovers their shared passion for music―and their shared hopes for a more just world. We ended class by starting the process of choosing a theme for our Hospitality Dinner, which takes place in May. We will hopefully vote on a theme next week so stay tuned. See everyone next week.
From our Specials (chuggim חגים)
News from the Sifriyah (Library) Todah Rabah to Madricha Zelda for helping out in the Sifriyah today!
Reading challenge: Lots of prizes given out! Many students have earned their $5 gift card, but are still reading and receiving prizes. It's never to late to start!
To commemorate International Holocaust Remembrance Day (January 27) the foyer checkout bookcase will contain Holocaust themed books appropriate for grade 3/4 and up through February 9th.
News from Teffillah (Prayer Session) with Deb Tefillah is going well, following the Shabbat Morning Service in order. We added the Hatzi Kaddish this past Wednesday.
News from Small Group with Deb Small Group Hebrew is also going smoothly, with students beginning to move into their regular 6th and 7th grade Hebrew classes!
