January 4, 2017, 17 Tevet 5778

Reminders for the Week: Wear your Yavneh shirts on Monday. 


Chai Challenge
We achieved our goal for the 4th annual Chai Challenge! We reached 100% participation in 95 days, with every family, teacher and Board Member giving or pledging to the Annual Campaign.  Our community's generosity and commitment helps ensure the continued success of Yavneh and our students. Thanks to the Chai Challenge matching grant, we will now receive an additional $21,600!
Message from the Head of School   

So far, the year has has been filled with many beautiful moments of learning. We have some incredible special events. We have shown our strength as a community, coming together to both celebrate and to support each other. The vibe is good. The anecdotal feedback has been positive. As I've learned over time, while anecdotes and good feelings are important, metrics are valuable as well.

One of the things that we try to teach our students as critical thinkers is to back up their hypotheses and arguments with evidence. This is not only a hallmark of what is known as 21st century learning, but also integral to traditional Jewish "chevruta" learning. In this pedagogy of partnership, it is easy to get carried away in theorizing based on personal experiences and reflections. However, we are reminded that these need to always be anchored in evidence, basing contentions on the relevant passages of text that is being studied.  

As we plan for the rest of this year and begin strategizing for the next school year, it is important to reflect on actual evidence, and not only on our impressions and good feelings. For that, we need actual metrics. One of the ways we gather evidence is through our annual parent perception survey.  If you have not done so already, please take a few moments to complete the surveys below for each of your children. Feedback from past surveys has played a part in everything from determining strategic priorities to expanding elective choices to improving our lunch program. Plus, it is also always encouraging to our staff when surveys reinforce those good feelings about our accomplishments. Thanks in advance for taking the time to partner with us by contributing your perceptions to our expanding pool of evidence! Shabbat Shalom  -Zvi

Please complete a survey for each child:
Bet
Chet

Calendar and Upcoming Events
      
  Jan. 5 Kabbalat Shabbat, 2:30pm 
  Jan. 8 All School T'fillah, 8:30am
  Jan. 10
South Bay Institute, Hosted by Yavneh Day School , 7:00pm
  Jan. 11
Torah Service, 8:30am
  Jan. 12 MLK Jr. Day Presentation at Kabbalat Shabbat, 2:30pm 
  Jan. 15 MLK Jr. Day, SCHOOL CLOSED
  Jan. 18 All School Open House, 6:00pm




Early bird tickets available through this Sunday, January 7th. Prices go up on the 8th.

South Bay Institute, Hosted by Yavneh Day School 

January 10th, APJCC Auditorium, 7:00-9:00pm
David Jaffe,  Changing the World from the Inside Out: A Jewish Approach to Personal and Social Change. An inspiring and accessible guide, drawn from Jewish wisdom, for building the inner qualities necessary to work effectively for social justice. Jaffe is a rabbi and social worker.
Includes dinner. Tickets $36, Yavneh parents $24, Students $18 (Students in 4th grade and above are encouraged to come)
Volunteers needed:  Yavneh is in need of 2 more greeters for the evening (Your ticket will be comped).  Volunteer
2018 After School 
Enrichment Classes
Wednesdays - Modern Band 
starts Jan. 3rd. 12-week series (3-8)
Wednesdays - Cooking starts Feb. 7th. 4-week series (2-5) 
Thursdays - Singers Group
 starts Jan. 4th. 12-week series (K-8)  
Fridays - Chess Wizards starts Jan. 26th.  8-week series (K-8)
 
Register at yavneh.boonli.com.  (School Password is yavneh1).
Existing customers, use your login and password.
 
Click on the FIRST DAY of class to
purchase the series.  
Thursday, January 18th, 6:00pm
For all Yavneh families - Come explore your child(ren)'s current and future classrooms together. All classrooms will be open with student work on display. This event is open to the whole family and to the community, so invite your friends to come explore Yavneh!

Volunteers are needed to help with set up and registration. Please sign up here!

 
Students in Action
In Kitah Dalet STEAM, students solved a challenge using teamwork and a lot of perseverance! Using a tool made of a rubber band and string, students created different structures. 
Important Links
Volunteer Opportunities at Yavneh:  Click here
Afterschool Enrichment Classes and Yavneh Merchandise:  Click here (School Password yavneh1)
Shop with eScrip: Order gift cards from Lands End, restaurants, supermarkets, and more. eScrip will donate a percentage to Yavneh.  More info, Shop Now 
AmazonSmile:  When you shop Amazon Smile, Amazon will donate a portion (0.5%) of the purchase price to  Yavneh.  Shop Now
Challah Order Form: Click here 
Hot Lunch: Menu
Danielle and Hank Drew, in honor of Bonnie Slavitt Moore
The Rubnitz Family, in memory of Dan Goncharoff
The Rubnitz Family, in honor of Nathan Miller's Bar Mitzvah
Samantha Rubnitz, in honor of the Annual Campaign
Esther Kletter, in memory of Adina Shira Kletter
Frida and Eugene Vodkin, in memory of Bob Hudson
Benjamin Warwick, in honor of Maya Warwick's Bat Mitzvah
Debra and Zvi Weiss, in memory Joseph Carlinsky
Debra and Zvi Weiss, in memory of Dan Goncharoff
Good & Welfare
Condolences the Goncharoff and family on the passing of Dan Goncharoff,  father of Sophia (Kitah Alef- Tamar) and husband of Erin. 

Condolences to the Meir family on the passing of Nachum First, grandfather of Noga and Maya (4th grade). 

Condolences to the Berg family on the passing of Janet Berg, long-time member of the extended Yavneh family and important member of our Jewish community