27 Tevet 5776
Shabbat Parshat Vayera
Candle Lighting 4:26 PM
Havdalah 5:28 PM
Mazal tov to Morah Abra (first grade learning center teacher) and Yitz Mandel on the birth of a baby boy!
Mazal tov to BPY parents Shira and Rabbi Kenny Schiowitz and Dena and Natan Cohen on being honored at Congregation Shaare Tefillah's 13th Annual Dinner.
Mazal tov to Sam Lehrer (8), parents Ilana and Mikey Lehrer, and the entire family on Sam's bar mitzvah.
Mitzvah Cards:
If you would like to send a mitzvah card please contact Shani at
x10 or
[email protected]
Sunday (1/10)
9:30AM Matan Bat Mitzvah Session #3
Monday (1/11)
Rosh Chodesh Shevat (students in grades 1-8 should wear white tops and blue bottoms)
Wednesday (1/13)
4th Grade Trip to New York Hall of Science
Friday-Shabbat (1/15-16)
Junior High Shabbaton and Bowling Night
Sunday (1/17)
9:30AM First Grade Mesibat HaSiddur
Thursday-Friday (1/21-29)
Winter Break
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Parshat Hashavua Winner
Kol hakavod to this week's
parshat hashavua winner for collecting the most signed
parshat hashavua sheets!
THIS WEEK'S WINNING CLASS IS...
3C!!!!
Kol Hakavod!
We can't wait to see who next week's winner will be....
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Dedicated Days of Learning
If you would like to dedicate a day or week of learning, please contact Rachel at x35 or [email protected]
Sponsorships begin at $180
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Thank you to everyone who
has already joined our
ACHDUT ANNUAL CAMPAIGN!
Your generosity is essential to BPY's continued ability to provide innovative and enriching educational experiences for our nearly 500 students each day.
MAKE YOUR ONE TIME OR RECURRING GIFT TODAY AT:
**All recurring, automatic monthly donations are now being matched, dollar for dollar! Any new $10,000 gift will be matched at 50 cents to the dollar.**
To discuss a pledge or gift, inquire about sponsorship opportunities, or volunteer to help with the campaign, please contact Rachel Weiss, BPY's Director of Development
(201-845-5007 x35,
[email protected]) or Josh Drazen, Achdut Annual Campaign Chair (
[email protected]).
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Scan to download the NEW BPY APP!
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The NEW BPY App is now available for free download on Google Play and the App Store. Download it today for instant access to pictures/videos, the school calendar, lunch calendar, classroom blogs, daily homework, and more!
Available for iPhone and Android!
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If you love us, why not "like" us (on Facebook)?
Don't miss out!
Facebook friends...
- get all of our videos first
- see daily photos and updates about exciting school activities
- connect with other BPY families
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The BPY Store
Stay Warm This Winter With BPY Winter Gear!
- BPY pullover hoodie sweatshirt (navy with BPY on the sleeve in green): $25
- BPY Bling logo zip-up sweatshirt: $35
- BPY Logo zip-up hoodie sweatshirt: $30
- BPY Sweatpants: $20
- BPY Legwarmers: $15
- BPY Pajama Pants: $25
- BPY Winter Hat: $15
Show Your BPY Pride Any Time:
- BPY Polo Shirts: $15
- BPY Glitter Headbands: $8
- BPY Bling Headbands: $10
- BPY Phone Case: $5
Email [email protected] to order your BPY gear today!
$10 each
felt, corduroy, t-shirt, mesh
to order
The 2015-16 / 5776 BPY Discount Card is here!
Only $60 for 2 cards gets you great discounts at many area stores - this card will pay for itself!
Buy yours in the BPY office.
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CAMP KEF/
CAMP MA'ALOT
to register for CAMP KEF
to register for
CAMP MA'ALOT
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BPY Women's Book Club
The next book selection for the BPY Women's Book Club is
The Ambassador's Wife by Jennifer Steil
Meeting and discus
sion at the home of Shelley Fisher
449 Claremont Avenue in Teaneck
Saturday Night,
February 27th at 8PM
New (and old!) members are warmly invited to attend!
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Community Events and Announcements
Community event listings are included in this newsletter as a service to the community and to our BPY families. Inclusion of community events in this newsletter does not constitute an endorsement by Ben Porat Yosef.
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Shabbat Shalom
From Rav Tomer Ronen
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In this week's parsha, Va'eira, Hashem commands Moshe to go to Paro and tell him to let Bnei Yisrael go. As we know, Paro refuses so Hashem commands Moshe to tell Aharon to hit the Nile River with his staff, turning all the water in Egypt into blood.
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Rashi asks the question: Why didn't Hashem command Moshe to hit the water? After all, it is Moshe who initiates the rest of the ten plagues. He explains that because it was the water that saved Moshe from Paro's decree when he was a baby, it wouldn't be proper for Moshe to strike it.
When explaining this to the children this morning during
Kabbalat Shabbat, I asked them: Why would Hashem care if Moshe hits the water? Does the water have feelings? Of course not! I asked them to think about why Hashem might not have wanted Moshe to be the one to hit the water in this case.
After some discussion, we realized that the way we act doesn't only have an impact on others, but it has an impact on us as well. Our behavior affects our personalities and our
neshamot.
Therefore, by selecting Aharon to initiate this particular plague, Hashem is emphasizing to Moshe that He
didn't want this act to have a negative impact on him because of his special relationship with this particular body of water.
This is an important concept for all of us to keep in mind every day. The way we behave, the words we use, and the things we say all have incredible power, even though it may not be immediately evident. Just as there are times when it is better not to do or not to speak, there are many times when we do have a moral obligation to act and to make our voices heard. And even in cases where it seems that our words or actions are not being received by others, we cannot discount the power they can have on us as individuals.
Shabbat Shalom,
Rav Tomer Ronen
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Afternoon Adventures Trimester II Begins
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Afternoon Adventures Trimester II got off to a great start this week with Lego Robotics, Mad Science, Express Yourself, Chef It Up, Basketball Clinics, Zumba, and more!
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Second graders are propagating plants, cutting the stems and dipping them in rooting hormone. They even made their own greenhouses out of recycled plastic water bottles to maintain moisture levels for their growing plants. They will be observing their plantings in class to see how long it takes for the roots to grow.
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| Spotlight on...Art at BPY! |
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Fourth and fifth graders are experimenting with shading and architectural drawing in art class. Using parallel lines along with other elements, they created their own representations of one room schoolhouses or farmhouses that they saw in pictures and are incorporating light and dark elements into their work.
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Everyday Lessons From Pirkei Avot
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Kol hakavod to our third grade students who wrote, acted, directed, and produced this video to demonstrate how one of the lessons they learned from their study of Pirkei Avot - is relevant every day in their own lives. Enjoy!
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| First Graders Publish Nonfiction Works |
Congratulations to our first graders who published their own original works of nonfiction! To celebrate, they held publishing parties where they presented their work to their classmates. Each student dressed up as an "expert" in his or her topic of choice and made sure to speak slowly and clearly. The other students practiced being respectful audience members by being quiet during the presentations and clapping at the end of each one. Kol hakavod first grade!
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We are so happy to be participating in Yachad's wonderful employment and vocational training program. To find out more, click below to read a recent article from the Jewish Standard.
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| Around BPY Early Childhood |
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Thank you to BPY's very own mail carrier, Mail Carrier Bob, for visiting with our Gan Rina (PKB) students to help with their unit on the postal service. Mail Carrier Bob answered all of Gan Rina's questions and shared a lot of important information about how the mail gets sorted and delivered. Then he led everyone outside to see his mail truck! What an exciting and informative experience!
To complete their unit on sound, everyone in Gan Shira (PKA) created an original composition! The children painted their sheet music and then had the opportunity to perform their songs using corresponding colored glass jars. What a wonderful musical experience!
Gan Ilanot (KB) has been learning about symmetry. To help the children understand the concept and where it can be seen in the word, they created their own butterflies using plates and paint. They painted half the plate, then folded it so the paint would transfer to the other side. Beautiful!
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| Around BPY Elementary School |
As part of their unit on graphing, second graders are collecting data in tally charts. Each student thought of a survey question and 4-5 possible choices for the answer. They are surveying classmates and family members and recording the responses in tally charts. Next week, they will transfer their data onto bar graphs so they can visually represent the results of their surveys!
Third graders are working hard at multiplication. They are studying patterns and practicing facts by skip counting, playing games, and working on puzzles. They are also sharing strategies they can use when they aren't sure how to solve an equation. For example, they can draw arrays or break the equation into parts.
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Junior high students are becoming expert presenters - in Hebrew! Students are taking turns teaching the rest of the class about something that is important to them. True to BPY's educational approach, they are incorporating creative hands-on activities that are connected to the topic they want to share. What a fun way to practice their Hebrew language skills and learn more about each other!
Seventh graders have been studying some of the important macro-molecules that all cells need in order to survive. After learning about some of the major food sources that provide these macro-molecules, students did an experiment to see whether these molecules were present in milk. Using two different chemicals that change color in the presence of certain macro-molecules, they determined that milk contains both carbohydrates (in the form of the sugar lactose) and protein.
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Thank Your To Our Achdut Annual Campaign Donors!
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There is still time to give!
The Achdut Annual Campaign continues through the end of the 2015-16 / 5776 academic year.
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News From the BPY Library
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Thank you to our library volunteers, Gail Prystowsky, Adi Gabbay, and Yachad friends, Neenah Friedman and Rachel Ruchlamer for all their help making sure the library runs smoothly!
This week, third graders created book covers for some of their favorite books.
Please stop by to take a look at the results, displayed on the bulletin boards next to the computer room.
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Banished To The Furnace Room
by Stanley Fischman
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As an elementary school student, he was somewhat headstrong and vocal. This did not sit well with the tenor of the times and of the surroundings in which he lived. His teacher was a no-nonsense type who did not let infractions and misbehavior pass by without a response.
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When this child's behavior breached her point of intolerance, which was frequent, she meted out his punishment: she banished him to the furnace room. While cooling his heels, she told him to spend the time memorizing the Constitution of the United States.
Lest one be mistaken, this "punishment" was not the equivalent of writing "I must behave" 1,000 times on the chalkboard. This teacher was far more intuitive and way ahead of her time.
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| More Toy Drive Thank Yous |
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Thank you again to everyone who participated in our Chanukah toy drives!
Click here
to read the thank you letter from the Center for Jewish Life.
Click here
to read the thank you letter from the Friendship Circle.
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Click here
to read the thank you letter from Chai Lifeline.
Click here to read the thank you letter from Otsar.
Click here to read the thank you letter from Jewish Family Services, Inc.
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| Seeking More Auction Prizes! |
You can make this year's auction awesome by helping us offer the most incredible prizes!
- Do you have connections for concert tickets, hotel stays, or special experiences? Please use them - these prizes are in high demand!
- Do you have your own business with prizes or services you can offer? Please offer them!
- Do you have a special talent or product you can contribute? Please let us know!
- Are there businesses or service providers that you frequent (stores, salons, closet companies, tailors, etc.) - ask them to donate!
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Please let us know what prizes you can donate by clicking here. All prizes can be dropped off in the school office.
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Advertise and Support Our School!
Contact Shoshi at [email protected]
for more details.
Inclusion of any ads in this newsletter does not constitute an endorsement by Ben Porat Yosef. Ben Porat Yosef accepts no liability in connection with the use of any product, service, or technique advertised.
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