Greetings From The Head Of School
What a wonderful way to start the week with our annual Father-Daughter Learning Program. Consistent with our theme of Happiness, fathers and daughters enjoyed working together happily to discover the deeper meaning of "Ivdu et Hashem B'simcha." How appropriate is it that this program takes place adjacent to the parsha readings of the trials, tribulations and triumph of Yosef Hatzadik. We are reminded that what kept Yosef from falling into temptation, was that he recalled דיוקונו של אביו-the image of his father. It is so terrific for our girls to be inspired by their fathers, (and/or male relatives) who in turn support their daughter's desire to learn Torah. This mutual respect will help safeguard our girls as they grow in their educational achievements, both General and Kodesh, and as they are prepared for their future as strong community and family minded women.
Thank you to all the men who joined us on Monday morning and thank you to the Bokor family for sponsoring the learning and lavish breakfast in memory of Mr. leonard Bokor, A"H.
Have a Shabbat Shalom.
Dr. Rochelle Brand
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Calendar News
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shaareibina.org
January 1 - New years Day - No School
January 5 - Period 2 ( right after davening) Sari Kahn of NCSY to address students. Production Practice in full swing. Regular classes for students NOT in production
January 8 and 9
- Students NOT in production will have regular classes. Teachers (unless you have been spoken to directly by a member of the administration) should report to school as usual.
January 10
- All students and teachers will go to the Littman auditorium - dismissal at 1:20
January 10
- PRODUCTION -KINDNESS IN THE KINGDOM
January 15
- Better Together
January 15-17
- Names Not Numbers interviews
January 18-2
- Winter break - no sessions
January 29
- school resumes
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D'var Torah Parshat Vayechi
Rabbi Sheinkopf
Yosef arranged his two sons in front of Yaakov to receive a
bracha; He placed his older son
Menashe by the right hand of Yaakov to have him receive the stronger
bracha, and Efraim, the younger son, to the left of Yaakov in the less important position. But Yaakov, meant to give the stronger blessing to Efraim, so he switched his hands to place his right on the head of Efraim and the left on the head of Menashe. The Torah relates this (in Perek מ"ח Possuk י"ד) as follows: "שִׂכֵּל אֶת־יָדָיו כִּי מְנַשֶּׁה הַבְּכוֹר" - "He guided (crossed) his hands because Menashe was the first born".
These words are quite difficult. The fact that Menashe was the first born would be the reason for Yaakov to give him the greater blessing. Yaakov switched his hands NOT because Menashe was the first born but rather IN SPITE of his being the first born. Why does it say he guided his hands and crossed them BECAUSE Menashe was the first born?
Many explanations are given. I would like to share the following explanation. When the
passuk
says "He guided (crossed) his hands because Menashe was the first born", the word "because" is not coming to explain why he gave the stronger blessing to Efraim. It is coming to explain why
Yaakov,
an elderly man on his deathbed, crossed his arms instead of having the two grandchildren switch places. To this the Torah explains "He guided his hands, instead of moving the boys, because Menashe was the first born", and deserved to be standing in that elevated position.
This teaches us that even in his weakened state, with weighty issues on his mind, and even at the moment that he needed to establish that Efraim had higher status than his older brother, Yaakov was careful not to insult Menashe unnecessarily. This is the type of behavior that we should all try to emulate.
Have a wonderful Shabbos!
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The annual Father/Daughter Learning program is dedicated to, חיים שעיה בן זאב הלוי, ע"ה Mr. Leonard Bokor, of blessed memory. This year's topic, consistent with our theme for the school year, was "עבדו את השם בשמחה"- worship Hashem with joy. Mrs. Tobi Wolf, SBTAG's principal, researched and prepared extensive source sheets. The participants were welcomed by Dr. Brand, who spoke about the importance of Torah studies for girls. Mrs. Wolf, then introduced the study packets, posing the dichotomous question that arose from Kohelet on the value of
Simcha. The Men and Girls enjoyed a lavish breakfast as they studied
b'chavruta. The session was concluded with a friendly competition using Kahoot technology which everyone found fun and engaging. Mrs. Wolf summarized the learning session and ended with the wish "May we all merit to be עובדים את השם בשמחה and to build בתים נאמנים בישראל and to experience the
Bayit Ne-eman of
Bait David".
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English 11 & 12
Ms. Monica Vera
Students in 11th and 12th grade English are reading William Shakespeare's Macbeth - one of the playwright's most well-known and phantasmagoric works - which explores the limits of ambition, power, and evil. Perhaps one of the most compelling aspects of the play is the mysterious and eerie mood that Shakespeare so firmly establishes through the characters of the Three Witches.
Card Sort in 7th Grade Math
Mrs. Englard
Students in grade 7 completed a card sort activity where they matched different representations of proportional relationships. The relationships, representing increases and decreases of one quantity in relation to another, were explored in preparation for studying percent increase and decrease in contexts such as taxes, tips, discount, markups, commissions, and interest. Students prepared for this work by studying the distributive property to show, for example, that an increase of 25% in a quantity x can be represented as x + 0.25x = (1 + 0.25)x = 1.25x, while a decrease of 25% would be x - 0.25x = (1 - 0.25)x = .75x. Students matched verbal descriptions, equations with both fractions and their decimal equivalents, and tables of values for different examples of increase and decrease.
Art
Mrs C. Brody
This week the students started their second oil pastel paintings focusing on creating texture and blending colors and values. Their skills are developing dramatically and it is very impressive to see their progress. We are excited with learning new things and working with these different techniques and mediums.
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Visiting the local Fire and rescue Station on Hollywood Boulevard
Mrs. Rivkah Bodkins, Student Activities Director and Dr. Brand, Head of School accompanied representatives of the seventh grade to the local Hollywood, Fire and Rescue Station. The girls expressed their appreciation and gratitude to the men who were working on their holiday and who are always at the ready to help out in an emergency. The girls presented the Firefighters with hand made notes, a platter of cake, pancakes, hot cocoa and coffee. Aliza Bokor, Rina Restler, Shirel Sharon, Abbigail Dahan, Elisheva Roth, Estee Bensira, and Abby Heller enjoyed climbing onto the ambulance and examining the brand new fire truck.
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Visit to the Miami Beach Holocaust Memorial
On Thursday, Asara B'Tevet, the 8th grade visited the The Holocaust Memorial of the Greater Miami Jewish Federation on Miami Beach. The trip was meant to enhance the meaningfulness of the fast day. It also served to further inform the students about the epic tragedy of the holocaust, as they are studying the Holocaust through the Names Not Numbers survivors documentary project.
The memorial is a comprehensive learning institution and the students began their visit in a special classroom. They were greeting by the Executive Director of the Memorial, Mrs. Sharon Horowitz, who emphasized the importance of studying the Holocaust because those who died were "our people." Next, the students were shown a documentary about the Holocaust's history, featuring the testimony of local survivors. The students also met Mr. Alex Gross. a survivor, who told them of his nightmarish experience that began when he was only twelve years old. Mr. Gross was optimistic and left the students with the message "
Zei Gezunt", be of good health, by taking care of yourselves. He directed them to make good choices in life and be kind to one another.
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The Tenth Day of Tevet is known as
Yom Hakadish Haklali- the day of remembering those who perished in the Shoah, whose "yahrzeit's" are unknown. The eighth graders took a trip to the Miami Beach Holocaust Memorial as part of their Names Not Numbers project. The rest of the school watched the film "Monsieur" produced through the Zechor Yemos Olam division of Torah U'mesorah. "Monsieur" depicted the dramatic and inspirational story of Rav Yonah Tiefenbrunner, z"l, and the orphanage he established in Belgium during the Holocaust.
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The high school students who are taking part in the Better Together intergenerational program created a meaningful craft project this week to share with their senior citizen partners. Once again, the students, together with Mrs. Bodkins and Mrs. Sprung joined the senior citizens at The Peninsula for a fun and meaningful afternoon. They decorated memory jars that were filled with Happy memories from the Past and Hopeful Wishes for the Future. The sharing of these dreams made for a very special bond. We learned that the most meaningful wishes for next year were Good Health, Friends, Laughter and continued Better Together Meetings.
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