Parashat Beshalach
Candle Lighting 5:37 p.m.
Havdalah 6:45 p.m.
BerenTube
Mazal tov to all the first grade students and their families on the Mesibat Siddur (prayer book party) that took place on Sunday. Students received their first Siddur (prayer book), sang all the new songs and prayers they learned, and enjoyed a dessert reception with their families. Thank you to their wonderful teachers Morah Miriam, Morah Batya, and Morah Ronith for preparing them so well.
Ultimate Parsha
In this week's parsha, Beshalach, we read that during their time of wandering in the desert the Jews "could not drink the waters of Marah because they were bitter." In English grammar terms this would be called an "ambiguous antecedent" because it is not clear what was bitter--the waters or the Jews. Baal Shem Tov suggests in fact that it was the Jews who were bitter...and simply because of this perspective, the Jews found the water distasteful. In other words, the water may have tasted just fine to people who were neutral or positive.

2 Truths & A Lie
We are excited to feature someone from the RMBA family in every issue of the Buzz via this fun game! Want to be featured? Email Tania Levenstein your 2 truths and a lie!

Liat Goldstein, MS Science Teacher

  1. I spent 3 weeks on boats in New Zealand studying dolphins.
  2. I went on a shark dive in the Bahamas.
  3. I was born at 12:13 on 12/13.

#instaberen 
Stone Soup

Kindergarten read 3 different versions of the folktale, Stone Soup. It is a story that teaches an important lesson about sharing and caring for others. They compared and contrasted the 3 versions of the story, brought vegetables from home to share with the class, peeled and chopped the vegetables, found the perfect stone for the soup, and made a graph about what they thought would happen to the stone after the soup had cooked. Some thought that it would melt or crack, and some thought it would remain the same. There was such excitement when they found the stone intact at the bottom of the pot. The soup was enjoyed by all, including other faculty members.
Texas Bluebonnet Program

Students who participated in the Bluebonnet program and their families were invited for an award ceremony and reception to celebrate the completion of the program. Students participating in the program read a minimum of 5 books for pleasure from a pre-selected list and wrote a report for each one. Students read as many as 20 books through this unique program which encourages reading for pleasure.
Color War Egg Drop

The Red Team and Blue Team each received identical bags of common household items ranging from toilet paper tubes to cotton balls to rubber bands, and were challenged to devise a contraption which would prevent a raw egg from breaking when dropped from the roof of the HS wing onto concrete. Each team submitted two contraptions after a 45 minute design and build phase, and when tested, alas, no egg survived the perilous fall. The Red team was able to secure victory by virtue of submitting the lightest device, which was a svelte 14.9 grams. Congratulations to all participants. Much fun was had, and physics was learned too!
Stand Strong

Kindergarten students were visited this week by Childbuilders, who presented the Stand Strong-Stay Safe curriculum to teach students assertiveness skills that they can use to stay safe at home, at school, and in the community. The children learned all about what to do when faced with a potentially dangerous situation and how to get help. There will be 4 presentations in total.
Teach Like a Champion

Morah Rinat Alatin was invited to the Federation to present to Hebrew teachers throughout Jewish day schools in Houston using the program "Teach Like A Champion." She showed a video clip of the learning techniques she uses in her own classroom using examples that show how a teacher can promote learning so that students can easily advance and move forward in their studies.
Beautiful Shevat

Students in Morah Heather's EC4 class enjoyed the beautiful Tuesday weather we had this week and planted trees by the playground for Tu B'Shevat.
School Marathon

RMBA School Marathon is back! This year we have over 60 students running 26.2 miles - one mile at a time. Thank you to our sponsors: Tanglewood Foot Specialists, Crossfit Central Houston,
Bernosky Construction, Meyerland Martial Arts, and Adaptive Construction Solitions, Inc. Thanks to Mirit Schneider for once again spearheading this fantastic program!
RMBA at Beit Hatfutsot

Congratulations to 9th grade student Julia Brown on having her photograph, Heart and Soul, selected as a winning entry in The Jewish Lens at Beit Hatfutsot Photo Competition. The competition was in partnership with renowned photographer Zion Ozeri, and the wining photographs will go on display starting February 7th. The stunning photograph will be featured in a dedicated exhibit at the Museum of the Jewish People in Tel Aviv celebrating Israel's 70th birthday. It will be displayed throughout May 2018.
Save the Date
RMBA Lower School Presents:
Jewish Texas Fair & Museum

Thursday, February 22, 2018
4:30 - 6:30 PM

Texas style dinner will be served!
All In For RMBA's 1st Annual
MEN'S NIGHT POKER TOURNAMENT

Saturday, March 10, 2018
8:30 PM Play Begins

Genesis Steakhouse & Wine Bar
Must register ahead!

Cash & other great prizes!

Athletic Updates
Please see the Beren Academy Calendar as your most up to date source for information. The  Week at a Glance  is a snapshot, but does not reflect any changes made after that date. 

Lower and Middle School Basketball

MS Girls
The middle school girls earned an impressive victory over Emery on Tuesday and will finish their season with an away game on January 25th at St. Marks Episcopal at 4:00 PM.

4th-6th Boys
The 4th-6th boys basketball team played a tough game against Beth Yeshurun on Tuesday and will close their season with an away game on January 25th at St. Marks Episcopal at 5:00 PM.
 
MS Varsity Boys
The MS boys Basketball team will close out their season with an away game at St. Marks Episcopal at 6:00 PM on January 25th.

High School Basketball Teams

HS Girls Basketball 
The High School girls Basketball team has started off with a 2-0 district record and are sitting alone in first place. They will look to extend their lead with the second round of district play. 

HS Boys Basketball 
The High School Boys Basketball team is currently 3-0 in district and 14-3 overall. They will look to continue their streak next Monday as they take on Briarwood on the road at 6:00 PM.
Accessing the current schedule
Please re-sync your calendars weekly.
If you have any questions, please email Coach Cole at  chriscole@berenacademy.org.
Community Events
* RMBA / UOS / Bnei Akiva Annual Mishloach Manot *
Please CLICK HERE to place your Mishloach Manot order.
First Deadline is: Wednesday, February 7, 2018
Final Deadline with $10 surcharge: Tuesday, February 20, 2018

Please CLICK HERE to read instructions on how to place your order.
Super Bowl Sunday Pizza Fundraiser

Sunday, February 4, 2018
12:00 PM - 4:00 PM

Please click on image for additional details.
Mazal Tov!
Mazal Tov to Benjamin Chorn on the occasion of his Bar Mitzva!
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