Parashat Ki Tavo begins by describing the mitzvah of Bikkurim, bringing the first of your fruits to the Beit HaMikdash. In the context of this commandment, Moshe tells us that   "Et Hashem he'emarta hayom...v-Hashem he'emirecha hayom...-   " It is Hashem that chooses you... and you choose Hashem (as a nation)" (26:17-18). Rashi explains the unusual terms "he'emarta" and "he'emirekha" in these verses to mean selection or designation. On the surface these two "designations" do not seem parallel. G-d chose us from all the nations of the world, but because there are no deities other than Hashem, the word "designate" does not seem appropriate in this context.  

Rav Moshe Feinstein (Kol Ram vol. 2) explains that this verse does not mean to designate, as much as it means to prioritize. According to Rav Moshe, this verse is not about a choice to believe in G-d, but rather our constant emphasis on Torah ideals amid all of life's distractions. This time of year, in the month of Elul, we are reminded to make sure that our energy is focused in the right direction. The sound of the Shofar acts as a wake up call to summon us to our greater mission.  

It is fitting that Elul always corresponds to the start of the school year. Our existence as an institution is for the purpose of ensuring our students "choose G-d" in all aspects of their life. Whether in the science lab, on the basketball court, or eating lunch with their friends, we always have to ensure we react in a way that is consistent with Torah values. With G-d's help, this Elul will be a time where we can all refocus, and this school year be a time for continued growth and prosperity for us as individuals, families, our school, our community, and the world at large.

 

                        Shabbat Shalom,

                        Rabbi Weinberg, Principal

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HOW TO WIN AT SCRABBLE

 

 

This week, Mrs. Myers's students have been learning about dictionaries, and why you can't make the claim "the Dictionary says...." This is because there are many different dictionaries, all with their own audience, agenda, and scope. Take, for instance, the Merriam-Webster Official Scrabble Dictionary. It doesn't seek to provide you with comprehensive definitions of words; it exists merely to help you win at Scrabble.

 

The only words it includes are those officially allowed when playing the game. You might think that the most valuable thing it contains are all the seven-letter words (thus scoring a "Bingo"), or perhaps all the words containing the high-scoring letters. (Zyzzyva, perhaps  - a genus of South African weevils found on or near palm trees - is a good one, but you have to have the Z and both blanks to make it.) You'd be wrong. The most valuable words in Scrabble are the smallest possible ones: the two-letter words. So essential are they, that any good Scrabble player knows them by heart. You probably know most of them already. There are 105 of them, and you might be wondering how on Earth such small words can add up to big points.

 

Here's how: The key is to lay words alongside other words, not across them.

Let's say you start with TOW. Instead of adding JO to the T to make JOT, make the high-scoring J count twice and get points from the W too by using the two-letter words JO and OW. You can then build on this by laying the next word alongside the other words to double up those letters for maximum scoring potential. Here, I made JO again with the OWE across the bottom. This turn continues to reap those 8 points from the J by making JOTS.

 

Using this method, you will easily double, or triple your points by claiming points from letters already on the board. Of course, the best thing to do is to play your high-scoring letters on high-scoring squares in this way, creating many more points. For example: if you placed a Q (10 points) on a Triple Letter square using this method, you'd get 60 points from this one letter alone! Happy Scrabbling! 

All 105

Two-Letter Words

 

aa   ab   ad   ae   ag ah   ai   al   am   an ar   as   at   aw   ax ay  *  ba   be   bi   bo by  *  da   de   do  *  ed   ef   eh   el   em en   er   es   et   ex  *  fa   fe  *  gi   go  *  ha   he   hi   hm   ho   *  id   if   in   is   it  *  jo  *  ka   ki   *  la   li lo   *  ma   me   mi mm   mo   mu  my  *  na   ne   no   nu   *  od   oe   of  oh   oi om   on   op   or   os ow   ox   oy  *  pa pe   pi   po   *  qi   *  re   *  sh   si   so   *  ta   te   ti   to   *  uh   um un   up   us   ut   * we wo   *  xi   xu   * ya ye   yo   *  za

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CAPTION THIS PHOTO

 

Submit your captions to [email protected]

LAST WEEK'S WINNER: 

Rabbi Admon, you'd better keep your day job!  (Bonnie Morris)

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An Ode to the JCC Copy Machine

(An Epic Found E-Mail Poem)

 

Hi all,

 

I know I hyped up

the JCC copy machine

as rarely breaking

but it is currently

out of service.

I will let you know

when it is fixed.

 

Sorry for the

inconvenience.

 

* * *

Apparently, with asterisk

that 2-sided copies

don't seem to be working.

I will call them

to come back for that.

 

Sorry, YS

 

* * *

They just sort of duct taped

the copy machine yesterday.

Today he's going to replace the part.

 

Sorry for the inconvenience.

 

* * *

Currently,

the copy machine is working

for one sided copies only.

The repair man is hopefully

going to fix it today.

 

* * *

The guy came.

He ordered a new part

which should be here

on Tuesday / Wednesday .

In the meantime,

single-sided copies

are still working.

 

* * *

He replaced the broken parts

and 2-sided copies

are now working!!

 

Hopefully, this is

the last time all year

we have to deal with this.

(But I'm not betting on anything.)

 

Please let me know

if you have any questions.

 

 

by Rabbi Smith

(A poet, even if he doesn't know it)

     

LAST WEEK'S ANSWER: THE SCIENCE LAB