A Cross-Curricular Holiday Celebration: In Nature, the Innovative Learning Center, and the Classroom
Tu B'Shevat at the NEMJDS was a cross-curricular opportunity for the entire school to unite as we celebrated and appreciated nature. The day started with a breakfast made by the upper schoolers to support our Abroms Youth Philanthropy, Social Justice, and Leadership Initiative. Breakfast included centerpieces and decorations made by the entire school for the holiday. Then right as the first bell rang, our third and fourth graders shared a multimedia Hebrew presentation about recycling. In addition to educating our students about the school's new recycling program and what materials to recycle at home and at school, students wrote and acted in their own Hebrew video about recycling, complete with singing and dancing! This was a chance for students to work together, figure out how to convey a message, practice public speaking, and use their Hebrew skills (all in one)!
All students also went on a reflective nature hike. Students used their mindfulness skills from yoga class to appreciate their surroundings. Students discussed the idea of "leave no trace" and picked up trash as they hiked. Third and fourth graders even brought back a piece of nature to examine during science class and wrote poetry about their experience during language arts class. What a special way to spend such a beautiful day!
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Persuasive Letters, Petitions, and Signs: Problem Solving and Repairing the World in Kindergarten
Our kindergarteners recently had a chance to intertwine writer's workshop and the principle of tikkun olam, repairing the world. The kindergarten class has been working on a persuasive unit focused on problem solving. As a class, students discussed problems and solutions in their own lives, from running in the hallway, to respecting classroom supplies, to wasting water. Students then brainstormed solutions and created their own persuasive pieces.
Students wrote persuasive letters, made persuasive signs, and created petitions to convince others. This was an individualized way for students to use their skills to articulate their own ideas. For example, Adi focused on using less water, and Tzvikah talked about how bikes can reduce pollution. Our kindergarteners then used their editing skills to peer edit their final products.
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The Great Rhombicosadodecahedron: A Lesson in Teamwork, Mathematics, and History
Our seventh and eighth graders combined their study of polyhedrons and ancient humans by building a "cave," a great rhombicosadodecahedron, for other students to walk in and learn about cave art and ancient humans! Our students started by learning about the structure of the
great rhombicosadodecahedron, and they then made several different sized templates to decide which size they wanted to create. Students also made a scale model to prepare for their construction. Students planned and worked together to assemble the cardboard shapes. Students had to communicate with each other and work together to create their "cave." Students even had to problem solve when the shape partially collapsed midway through. Students learned about perseverance and attention to detail as they worked through this challenge to create their "cave" in the center of the school.
Each student also researched a particular cave and recreated the art work found by archaeologists on the inside of the "cave." As a class, they created a presentation titled "Mathematics in History by grade 7/8 Homo Sapiens" to describe the process of building the polyhedron. They then taught each class, K-5, about cave art, polygons, and the benefits of working as a team.
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Very Hungry Caterpillar: Authors, Designers, and Leaders (all in HEBREW)
The second graders recently authored and published books inspired by
The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle. Students read
The Very Hungry Caterpillar in Hebrew and then discussed the elements of a good story, such as introducing your character and including a conflict.
Before writing, students also explored the unique format of The V
ery Hungry Caterpillar
and brainstormed ways to create nontraditional books. Barrett and Cam created interactive books, making 3D caterpillars that the reader actually has to feed, Liberty imitated Carle's collage technique, and Ori even wrote a comic!
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Student-Led Book Clubs Throughout the School for Black History Month
Through their role as student librarians, the fifth graders led groups of younger students in book clubs connected to Black history month throughout February. Fifth graders read books with the second graders focused on individual change makers throughout U.S. history, such as the story of Mae Jemison, the first African American woman astronaut. Our third and fourth graders participated in book club discussions guided by the fifth graders around the book I
n the Year of the Boar and Jackie Robinson which is the story of a young Chinese girl who moves to America. Through this experience, our students developed leadership, analyzed literature, and celebrated important stories!
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Chanukah NEMJDS Style: Creativity, Community, and STEAM
At the NEMJDS, Chanukah was an opportunity to incorporate STEAM (science, technology, engineering, art, and math) while also getting involved in the community. In art class, students competed in a decorate your own dreidel competition. Students were encouraged to turn their dreidels into something besides a dreidel. Finished products included dreidels turned into fish, turtles, and more!
Our second grade sang Chanukah songs and delivered treats to the Joy Club at the LJCC, which is a gathering of senior citizens from our community. Second through fourth grades also wrote their own books about Chanukah to share with the preschoolers and younger students. What a way for our students to develop their skills, confidence, and leadership while sharing their Chanukah joy!
Our older students also learned about a pop-up card designer as part of their study of STEM professions. Students then figured out how to make their own Chanukah pop-up cards. They made a prototype and created their own cards. We love that they could problem solve, engineer, and design while celebrating Chanukah!
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A Visit to McWane Full of Excitement and Teamwork
Our third and fourth graders visited the McWane Center to launch their participation in the Celebrate Science competition. Our students visited the McWane Center to explore and evaluate the exhibits in order to design their own. As they design their own exhibit prototype, students will have the opportunity to collaborate and use their creativity in order to design an effective exhibit.
Two highlights of the McWane visit were when the class worked together to build a bridge in one of the exhibits and when they saw the NEMJDS first place prototype from last year. The NEMJDS fourth and fifth graders won first place last year, and their Brilliant Buoyancy design is still on display at the McWane Center. As third grader Laila explained, "The best part was building the bridge. The class built it! We needed a lot of people to hold it up!" Fourth grader Jacob explained his excitement about the contest when he said, "I'm excited about the contest because last year the fifth grade won so I think we can do it again this year. Our class has a lot of ideas, and we are creative." Their
three ideas are: how to build a "disaster proof" skyscraper, t
he best design for a solar powered car, and b
uoyancy in different fluids. We can't wait to see their final design!
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NEMJDS Spelling Bee Champ Wins City-Wide District Bee!
Congrats to our NEMJDS Spelling Bee champ, Aviva, for winning the Birmingham City District Bee! Aviva competed with the school-wide spelling bee winners from 21 Birmingham City public and private schools. The students ranged from third to eighth grade. Aviva worked so hard in preparation for the bee. She even had coaching from Ellen Landy, past NEMJDS Spelling Bee champ, and we are so excited to see Aviva's hard work pay off!
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Thank You For Supporting Our 2018 NEMJDS Gala!
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Support Our 2017 Annual Campaign
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Other Ways To Support Our School
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 BOX TOPS FOR EDUCATION
Did you know that every box top collected brings in ten cents to the NEMJDS?
Click here for the list of products with Box Tops and start clipping!
YOU SHOP. AMAZON GIVES!
Click here and choose N.E. Miles Jewish Day School as the organization you'd like to support and a portion of your purchase will go straight to the school!
PUBLIX PARTNERS
When you shop at Publix and use a Publix Partners NEMJDS swipe card, our school earns a donation.
Please your swipe cards when you check out at Publix. If you need a swipe card, please stop by the school office.
LIBRARY WISHLIST
To support our fifth grade librarians' efforts to enhance our library, please consider purchasing a book from our Library Amazon Wishlist for the NEMJDS student-run library.
To Make a Donation:
Call Rebekah Weinberger, Director of Advancement at 879-1068 or
Sally Friedman, Birmingham Jewish Foundation at 803-1519.
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Visit Our School
Interested in learning more about our program or touring our state-of-the art learning environment? It would be our pleasure to give you a personalized tour! Contact us.
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For over forty years, the N.E. Miles Jewish Day School has inspired learning for a lifetime. We are a community day school, and through our values-based education our students learn to be leaders both in our school community and the greater community. At the N.E. Miles Jewish Day School, our high academic standards, low student-to-teacher ratio, and individualized instruction create a love of learning and an environment of academic excellence where students reach their full potential.
Learn more about what it means to be a part of our school family.
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