MIDDLE SCHOOL MOMENTS-april 30

Chamber Theatre Productions at HOFSTRA

On December 7 the entire eighth grade saw a performance of six plays, many of which we read in class. Here are some reviews:

"My favorite play was "Tell-Tale Heart" by Edgar Allan Poe. It was amusing to watch the protagonist kill the innocent man with an axe after the old man kept asking who was there. Then, the murderer cunningly hid him under the floorboards until he gave himself up, thinking he heard the heart of the old man beating.

My favorite play was "The Necklace" by Guy DeMaupassant. I liked it because we read it in class and there was so much detail that it was amazing. Then, in the play, even though there wasn't as much detail, it was still very exciting. The sound effects added to the production.

My favorite play was by Mark Twain. It was so funny. I loved how the author wrote about a guy who loved making bets. He'd bet with anyone and didn't care what the bet was about. The frog was my favorite character.

"The Monkey's Paw" by WW Jacobs was my favorite play because the actors depicted details from the story very well on stage. It also helped me to understand some things I didn't know while reading the story. For example, I didn't know what the last wish really was, but in the play they said it straightforwardly."

OHEL Chanukah Toy Drive

Did you donate a toy or money for the Toy Drive? If so, you may be wondering what happened to your gift. It's pretty simple: the toys were given to needy children and, with the money, our committee went shopping, with Mrs. Schneider, to buy more toys, books, and crafts. We know we will bring joy to many children visiting OHEL. Thank you to the other committee members: Akiva Cohen, Aryeh Goldress, Olivia Peller, and Tiferet Weissman.

By: Jillian Moldovan and Yael Horowitz

CHANUKAH PARTIES

7TH GRADE

On Monday night December 7th The 7th grade girls had an AMAZING time celebrating Chanukah together at the home of Nili Kushner. They enjoyed "drawing who they are and not what they look like." It was entertaining to guess who each person was. We then moved on to a game of "Chanukah headbands" and "Chanukah Taboo." Dinner was delicious-we all enjoyed the pizza and sushi! But dessert was even better! We got to decorate cookies using frosting, chocolate chips, sprinkles, pretzel sticks etc. to represent a Chanukah them. Yasher Koach to the winners of the cookies contest as well as to Shoshana Levine for a thoughtful Dvar Torah. Thank you to the Kushners for hosting and to Morah Klein for coordinating the party.

On the night of December 9th, the HANC seventh grade boys had a blast at their Chanukah party. The celebration was held to commemorate the miracles of Chanukah as well as to have a great time. At 7:00

all the boys were invited to Mordechai Strauss' house. The party began with a delicious meal of pizza and soda. This was followed by an excellent D'var Torah given by Rabbi Harris about Jews who were ecstatic to light the menorah during the holocaust and about the true meaning of the blessing, Shehechiyanu.

When the D'var Torah was complete, the boys went outside to see the fire trucks, which came in honor of Chanukah. After a thorough visit with the firemen, the party continued with the game, Scattergories. Four rounds of this game were played (three of them were won by the same team) and then everyone went home, concluding a wonderful Chanukah Chagiga.

By: Yonatan Bench

8TH GRADE

Last Wednesday, the 8th grade boys went to the home of Rabbi Olshan for a Chanukah chaggiga. Everyone had a blast, especially because of the entertainment provided by the magical David Jason. He guessed the color, number, and letter everyone was thinking correctly! Also, the great food and the schmoozing with each other, Rabbi Hanson and Rabi Hecht, who joined us, and Rabbi Olshan's family was great. We again thank Rabbi Olshan for opening up his home to all of us for the spectacular Chanukah chaggiga!

We had a blast at the Oppenheim house during Chanukah! Kayla Stern came up with a great game of Chanukah-Hanc taboo which was then followed by a side-splitting game of charades. As the girls enjoyed sufganiyot and pizza, we enjoyed a visit from Rabbi Hecht and heard a phenomenal dvar Torah from Orah Massahesaelian. After, we sang Chanukah songs and played dreidel! Thank you so much to the Oppenheim's for opening up their home and being such a tremendous help!

CHANUKAH CHAGIGAH

On Tuesday, December 8, the HANC Middle School was treated to a festive chagigah. The chagigah was coordinated by Rav Yitz from HANC high school. The students played a very spirited game of TABOO. The game had some Jewish history words and some words like bbq foods and colors. The students had a great time guessing all of the different words. It was seventh grade against eighth grade in this friendly competition. Following the game, there was some spirited dancing in honor of Chanukah. It was so nice to see the students dancing with the faculty and each other. The chagigah concluded with what else but delicious doughnuts.

We thank Rav Yitz for coordinating the event and for everyone for participating!

BOWLATHON

During Chanukah the middle school students got the privilege of going on a bowling trip. A great time was had by all as we got to relax and spend time with our friends. It was made more meaningful knowing that we were raising money for an important cause. In memory of Ezra Schwartz we decided to donate the money to Chayal el Chayal. Ezra was on his way to donate food to the chayalim and was murdered by terrorists. Therefore we decided to raise money through a bowlathon for this organization which helps soldiers. The money raised will be going to support a cause that Ezra himself was very passionate about. Throughout all the fun we were having we never forgot the real reason we were there.

By: Shana Lefkowitz

***REMINDER: PLEASE BRING IN THE MONEY YOU RAISED ASAP AND PUT IT IN THE BOX ON RABBI HECHT'S DESK***

SCAVENGER HUNT

Chanuka fun continued throughout the week here in HANC MS as on Wednesday afternoon we ran our first ever school wide scavenger hunt culminating with a deluxe "make your own ice cream sundae" bash. The entire school was split up into groups of seven and sent to the hallways to decode clever clues leading to locations throughout the building. Each clue had something to do with the story of Chanuka and HANC as well! As each team finished their hunt we all met back in the BM for a truly top notch ice cream party. From every kind of topping imaginable to two choices of cones, you could feel the excitement in the air as the students waited online for their refreshing treat. It was certainly a week to remember!