This Week at Yavneh Academy!

This Week at Yavneh Academy - October 27, 2017/7 Cheshvan 5778

פרשת לך-לך

Early Childhood Department

Gan Bet Participates in the Global Read Aloud Program

Gan Bet is participating in the Global Read Aloud program, reading Mem Fox books along with students from many states and countries all over the world. This week we read our third title, Whoever You Are, which highlights the similarities and differences among people from around the globe. The students in Gan Bet, with the beauty and innocence of young minds, articulated that although people may look, sound, and live differently, they still "have the same emotions" and "share the same joys and hurts".

Our follow up activity involved students working together in pairs to create Venn diagrams, highlighting their similarities and differences. It was amazing to observe students collaborating at such a young age as they learned about their classmates!

Ganon Students Learn about Lech Lecha

This week Ganon Aleph, as well as the other Ganons, learned about Avraham heeding Hashem's command to pack up and leave his home in Charan. Of course, Avraham did this with no hesitation and no questions asked. We asked the children how they thought Avraham might have felt about this, and some of the children shared feelings of nervousness or excitement upon moving into their own new homes. They went on to cut out and decorate their own little suitcases which they "packed" with items cut out of magazines. After leaving our classroom with their suitcases and wandering all around Yavneh without knowing where they would end up (just like Avraham, Sarah, and Lot), they, too, ended up in a great place: Mrs. Gantz's third grade classroom, staged as Eretz Canaan, where they quenched their thirst with cups of water after their long walk in the desert! What a fun, hands-on way to experience this week's Parshat Lech Lecha!!

Lower School

Fifth Graders Skype with Author in California!

Students in class 5D had the special opportunity this past week to Skype with an author in California! During the first month of school, the students listened to the book, Eleven, by Tom Rogers. Eleven is about a boy named Alex Douglas who turns 11 on 9/11. Another main character is a mystery character known as "The Man in the White Shirt." Throughout the course of the read aloud, the students eagerly listened to try to figure out who the Man in the White Shirt turned out to be. After we finished reading the book, the students Skyped with Mr. Rogers and interviewed him about his life as an author and an employee of Disney. The students were surprised to find out that even though Mr. Rogers is an excellent writer, his first drafts of Eleven were criticized and many parts were deleted. We can't wait for Mr. Rogers to receive our thank you notes!

Integrating Engineering Skills and Parshat Noach

As 1A studied Parshat Noach this past week, they integrated an introductory lesson of engineering from KinderLab. The children learned about the building of the Teivah and all of the challenges that Noach encountered during construction. Through the lesson, the students were introduced to the engineering process: ask, imagine, plan, create, test, improve, and share. Following the construction process, the students tested their models in a tub of water. Using a timer for three minutes, the students waited patiently to see if their teivah was a successful construction. Those who did not succeed in the challenge went back to the drawing board to figure out what improvements needed to be made to meet the challenge. The first step of their long journey of incorporating the engineering process into the Judaic Studies first grade curriculum. What an amazing experience!

Middle School


	MS Oneg - Rosh Chodesh Cheshvan 5778

ROSH CHODESH ONEG

L'kavod Rosh Chodesh, Middle School kicked off the month of Cheshvan with a Erev Shabbat Oneg! Wearing white shirts and dark bottoms, 6th, 7th, and 8th graders joined together, along with Mr. Steiner on guitar and Mr. Ginsberg on keyboard, to usher in Shabbat with a kumzitz and dancing. Student Council President, Ozzie Wimpfheimer, gave a D'var Torah, and we ended the oneg with some Shabbat nosh- churros and candy!

PREPARING FOR THE GREAT BIG CHALLAH BAKE

On Tuesday,October 24th, our 6th graders volunteered and prepared supplies for the 800+ women who would be attending The Great Big Challah Bake of Northern New Jersey. The children packaged hundreds of water bottles, aprons, baking supplies and folded numerous challah covers! What a great chessed...and happy opportunity. The Great Big Challah Bake was held at Factory 220. Thank you to our wonderful students and to the committee which allowed us to be part of the mitzvah.

EIGHTH GRADE STUDENTS LEARN TO CODE FROM THE GENIUSES AT THE APPLE STORE

Robots were programmed to move through a maze created in the Apple Store for our students.

Students experienced coding and robotics under the guidance of the Apple staff. Yavneh Academy's technology department has a long-standing relationship with the Apple store at Westfield Garden State Plaza and is grateful for these unique opportunities.

MITZVAH DAY COLLECTIONS AND PROGRAMS

Please help us assist those who lost so much in the recent hurricanes. Beginning October 23rd, our 6th graders will be collecting new and used children's books for the Chabad of St. Maarten while our 8th graders will be collecting new clothing (for all ages) for the Chabad of Puerto Rico. Our students will also be in the building November 5th, during the YPAA Lower School Breakfast, to continue gathering the many products needed by St. Maarten and Puerto Rico.

As has become our tradition, we will also have a group of 7th grade students joining residents at the Jewish Home at Rockleigh to work on Arts and Crafts projects and engage in Bingo.

Be on the lookout for pictures and updates.

Volunteer at the YPAA Book Fair

Thanks to our dedicated volunteers, planning for the YPAA Book Fair is in full swing. We are pleased to announce that the Book Fair will be held on Sun., 11/5, Mon., 11/6, and Wed., 11/8. Volunteers are needed for all three days of the fair as well as Thursday, November 2nd prior to the event for set-up. We invite you to use the link below to volunteer and sign up for a preferred time slot.

Click here to view class schedules so that your time slot can overlap with your child's visit.

To sign up to volunteer, click here.

75 and Still Running!

The 13th Annual Benjamin Schwartz Memorial 5K Run and 1 Mile Fun Run/Walk will take place on Sunday, November 12, 2017.

To register for the run, and to support Yavneh by sponsoring the event, please click here.

For additional event information, please click here.

All students who are registered by Tuesday, 10/31, will have their names printed on the dri-fit T-shirts (1 miler names on the Fun Run shirt and 5K runners on the 5K shirt)! Kids love seeing their names on the T's so don't forget to sign up before the printing deadline!

For more information, sponsorship opportunities, or to join our growing committee, please contact Robin Tare at robin.tare@yavnehacademy.org .