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Erev Shabbos Parashas Emor 34 th Day of Sefiras HaOmer Fourth Perek of Pirkei Avos May 11, 2012 Licht Bentchen: 7:52 P.M. Volume XVIII, Issue 31 Dear Parents, We open by keeping last week’s promise to provide a recap of Friday’s fourth-in-TSGW-history Grandparents’ Day. From the welcoming reception, to the guided tours, to the classroom visits, to the art projects, to the family portraits, to the luncheon – everything went smoothly and was thoroughly enjoyed by our over 140 visitors. We’ve got lots of people to thank and, hopefully, no one will be left out. We are greatly grateful to our planners, movers, and shakers, Zev Teichman, Julie Vogel, Mrs. Julie Malka, and Becky Langer; our dedicated office staff, Marlene Teichman, Jodi Mailman and Abby Pines; and our cast of volunteers whose presence last week was critical, Yael Azran, Nechamie Fajnland, Rina Eisenberg, Rachie Reingold, Elise Jacobs, Esti Graham, Esti Schwechter, Devora Walter, Ron Kavanagh, Sharon Shimoff, Nancy Weisman, Debra Drang, Ruth Baars, Masha Katz, Elaine Rubin, and Rivka Goldstein. This long list of helpers was put together by Mrs. Miri Gottlieb, and her efforts are also greatly appreciated. Special appreciation goes to Cory Myers for the fantastic, professional pictures and to Melissa Miller and Miri Gottlieb for coordinating this effort. The art projects the kids made with grandparents were very creatively planned and calmly guided by Mrs. Chaya Shinensky. Finally, any Jewish occasion/ celebration needs outstanding food. In this case, it was catered by “Wrap 2 Go” whose proprietors are Azik Schwechter and Chaim Gabay. They also provided munchy chocolate chip cookies for all children in the school (besides the popsicles given to all who were in classrooms). Of course, above all, we thank the Ribbono Shel Olam who constantly graces us with his beneficence. Now…….for This Week Our BIGGEST event of the week was today’s Third Annual Math Fair, the brainchild and labor of love of Mrs. Marcia Laundy. The goals are to have the kids participate in hands-on activities that: Demonstrate how math is regularly used in the real world (wherever the real world might be). What is unthinkable to some is true – math can be fun. As this is being written before the festivities I will, for the second week running, engage in prophetic prognostication. Hence: Everything went smoothly and well, and everyone made “cents” of Math. For all the work involved, we, of course, thank Mrs. Laundy for the months she put into this program. I believe that, this week, the earliest time she went home was 9:00 P.M. In fact, I told Mrs. Laundy that my favorite aspect of the Math Fair is that I get to do nothing – because she does everything. We also express HaKaras HaTov to Mrs. Malka and our entire Secular Studies staff for their hard work and planning and to all teachers, aides, and parents who assisted today. The design for the t-shirts (which were anonymously and generously donated) is attributable to Shirah Sternfield and her computer. G-d willing, a full detailed report will come to you next week. The T-Shirt Design $ $2 2" " T To o r r a ah h S Sc c h ho o o o l l o o f f G Gr r e e a at t e e r r W Wa a s s h hi i n ng gt t o o n n E E . . S S . . T T . . E E . . R R . . E Er r e e v v S Sh ha ab b b b o o s s T To o r r a ah hE Ev v e e n nt t s s R Re e p p o o r r t t

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Page 1: Erev Shabbos Parashas Emor 34 Fourth Perek of Pirkei Avos th … · 2012. 5. 11. · Erev Shabbos Parashas Emor 34th Day of Sefiras HaOmer Fourth Perek of Pirkei Avos May 11, 2012

Erev Shabbos Parashas Emor 34th Day of Sefiras HaOmer Fourth Perek of Pirkei Avos May 11, 2012 Licht Bentchen: 7:52 P.M. Volume XVIII, Issue 31

Dear Parents, We open by keeping last week’s promise to provide a recap of Friday’s fourth-in-TSGW-history Grandparents’ Day. From the welcoming reception, to the guided tours, to the classroom visits, to the art projects, to the family portraits, to the luncheon – everything went smoothly and was thoroughly enjoyed by our over 140 visitors. We’ve got lots of people to thank and, hopefully, no one will be left out. We are greatly grateful to our planners, movers, and shakers, Zev Teichman, Julie Vogel, Mrs. Julie Malka, and Becky Langer; our dedicated office staff, Marlene Teichman, Jodi Mailman and Abby Pines; and our cast of volunteers whose presence last week was critical, Yael Azran, Nechamie Fajnland, Rina Eisenberg, Rachie Reingold, Elise Jacobs, Esti Graham, Esti Schwechter, Devora Walter, Ron Kavanagh, Sharon Shimoff, Nancy Weisman, Debra Drang, Ruth Baars, Masha Katz, Elaine Rubin, and Rivka Goldstein. This long list of helpers was put together by Mrs. Miri Gottlieb, and her efforts are also greatly appreciated. Special appreciation goes to Cory Myers for the fantastic, professional pictures and to Melissa Miller and Miri Gottlieb for coordinating this effort. The art projects the kids made with grandparents were very creatively planned and calmly guided by Mrs. Chaya Shinensky. Finally, any Jewish occasion/ celebration needs outstanding food. In this case, it was catered by “Wrap 2 Go” whose proprietors are Azik Schwechter and Chaim Gabay. They also provided munchy chocolate chip cookies for all children in the school (besides the popsicles given to all who were in classrooms). Of course, above all, we thank the Ribbono Shel Olam who constantly graces us with his beneficence.

Now…….for This Week Our BIGGEST event of the week was today’s Third Annual Math Fair, the brainchild and labor of love of Mrs. Marcia Laundy. The goals are to have the kids participate in hands-on activities that:

Demonstrate how math is regularly used in the real world (wherever the real world might be). What is unthinkable to some is true – math can be fun.

As this is being written before the festivities I will, for the second week running, engage in prophetic prognostication. Hence: Everything went smoothly and well, and everyone made “cents” of Math. For all the work involved, we, of course, thank Mrs. Laundy for the months she put into this program. I believe that, this week, the earliest time she went home was 9:00 P.M. In fact, I told Mrs. Laundy that my favorite aspect of the Math Fair is that I get to do nothing – because she does everything. We also express HaKaras HaTov to Mrs. Malka and our entire Secular Studies staff for their hard work and planning and to all teachers, aides, and parents who assisted today. The design for the t-shirts (which were anonymously and generously donated) is attributable to Shirah Sternfield and her computer. G-d willing, a full detailed report will come to you next week.

The T-Shirt Design

$$””22"" TToorraahh SScchhooooll ooff GGrreeaatteerr WWaasshhiinnggttoonn

EE..SS..TT..EE..RR.. EErreevv SShhaabbbbooss ““TToorraahh”” EEvveennttss RReeppoorrtt

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A Lad B’Omer Review of Lag B’Omer Yesterday’s Lag B’Omer programs and activities provided a fun-filled, wonderful day for all (including charley-horsed teachers). The festivities started with a 3M (Monthy Middometer Medalist) assembly. We announced the names of those youngsters who were selected for demonstrating full Cooperation with Teachers (this was a major focus of Project Derech) or other Middos we’ve emphasized this year. Many thanks to Rabbi Feldman’s computer for the certificates to be given to: K 2B Neima Edinger Shlomo Y. Fischer Miriam Friedman Gavi Green Elchonon Kasierer Aaron Hallivis Faiga Bracha Winter Samuel Hershenson K Kovi Hochstadt Devorah Leah Fajnland Aharon Pollock Daniella Garfield Yisrael Starkman Elka Green 2B 1G Dovid Gayer Aviva Bracha Azran Doni Mond Gila Azran Chaim Newman Eliana Dunkin Avrami Werner Ellia Ferneau Mordechai Winter Rachelle Kugler 3G Shoshana Savir Eliana Brenner Estie Walls Leah Hirschfeld 1G Rosie Kavanagh Esther Malka Lichtenstein Shaina Koblin Chana Esther Milgraum Bracha Raichik Pessie Mittelman Ruthie Seidemann Leah Spilman 3G Tamar Stiber Tova Katzoff 1B Aviva Kramer Naphtali Tzvi Graham Nechama Kugler Betzalel Komarow Ayala Levin Zev Kreiser Golda Makovoz Chayim Merkin Georgia Michaels Dovid Mond Miri Solomson Meir Orlansky Ruthie Troy 1B 3B Akiva Biberfeld Yehuda Arzouan Jacob Brenner Netanel Belgrade Shimon Hes Rafi Hes Joshua Kotek Efrayim Merkin Moshe Langer Dovie Shimoff Moshe Robinson 4G Sruli Soloff Rivka Rachel Danesh 2G Chaya Elka Fischer Hadassah Edinger Rivka Katz Sara Fajnland Rachel Morris Rivka Tehilla Lichtenstein Ayelet Rosen Priva Milikowsky Sara Slater Tzipora Miller Shira Tanzer Sara Leah Soloff

4B 5B Beryl Backman Benny Benamou Yitzchak Meir Biberfeld Shalom Bluming Ari Ferneau Yoav Cohn Eyal Fogel Baruch Cortell Yitzhak Graff Yitzchok Shlomo Savir Hershel Katz Aryeh Stiber Ezra Mond 6G Meir Schwartz Mushka Bluming Shlomo Starkman Nessia Ferneau 5G Adena Hawk Tova Leeba Greenspan Nava Krestt Adina Katz Rena Milgraum Ruthie Vogel Avigail Orlofsky Goldie Walls Chana Bracha Reingold 5G Shani Sukol Miriam Edelstein 6B Pessi Rappaport Rachamim Akeeva

Danesh Raphaella Tenembaum Avi Kavanagh Chavi Weisman Paysach Gedaliah Slater

Currently, we are continuing our study of basic Halachos of Lashon HaRah. Attached are the two laws we studied this week. Then, we had another outstanding Boys’ Choir concert (watch out, Miami Boys), directed by Rabbi Majeski and accompanied on the keyboard by Mr. Shua Mendlowitz. To top it all off, we had the debut of our Sixth Grade trio of Yosef Kugler, Aryeh Singer, and Chaim Singer. They treated us to an original composition by Aryeh Singer (music by Aryeh, words from Dovid HaMelech). Last evening, they continued their singing tour of Montgomery County by performing at Southeast Hebrew Congregation’s Lag B’Omer celebration. After that, the real fun began. 3B/3G/3G/4G traveled to Centennial Park for hiking and games. 5G/5G/6G visited Wheaton Regional and Brookside Gardens in the A.M., and 2G went to Wheaton Regional in the P.M. 4B, 5B and 6B played baseball (with Rabbi Biberfeld and Rabbi Hoffman showing great form as the designated pitchers) on our campus. K/K/1B/1B/1G/1G/2B/2B/2G were treated to a variety of field day activities, coordinated by Mrs. Woodruff, our P.E. teacher. Included in the fun were an obstacle course, parachute games, a massive tug of war, an inflatable Castle Maze, and more. (Rabbi Lichtenstein told me that he hadn’t had such a workout in a long time.) After the dust settled, everyone went home exhausted and happy. Many thanks to the many drivers/chaperones who made all trips possible.

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We wish a heartfelt Mazel Tov to: Ariella Cohn, her parents, Joseph and Debbie, and her entire family, upon her becoming a Bas Mitzvah. Raanan and Ellen Shames, the Kasierers, and their entire family, upon the engagement of Menachem to Michal Stengel. Rabbi Danny Kramer, upon his completion of Shas. Yosef Spilman, his parents, Shira and Eli,and his entire family, upon the occasion of his Upshearin (celebrated yesterday in Rabbi Feldman’s class). May they all continue to be blessed with Simachos.

Pesach Sheini This past Sunday was Pesach Sheini, which is always on the fourteenth of Iyar. At the time of the Beit HaMikdash, those who were unable to bring the Korban Pesach (Pascal sacrifice) on Passover (for a variety of specific reasons) had a second opportunity to perform this important Mitzvah on this date, approximately one month after the original time. Today, many people have the Minhag of eating Matzah (many save some Matzah Shemurah) on Pesach Sheini.

Today’s Attachments Classroom Close-ups by Mrs. Esther Friedman Classroom Close-ups by Mrs. Sara Crane. Halachos II and III of our Shemiras HaLashon unit. 6B Raffle info. Chosen Words. Letter to Parents of Sixth Grade Boys. Letter to Parents of Sixth Grade Girls. Flyer about school pictures. Letters with Chemdas trips info. We wish a Refuah Shelaimah to: Avigail Orlofsky’s elbow. Rani Lipman’s wrist. Mrs.Crane’s and Nechemia Mond’s grandmother.

Raffle News The 6G raffle is over, and 6B raffle sales began today.

APB from Mrs. Elaine Feldman Mrs. Feldman wants to mail the next batch of Box Tops for Education before the end of June. (Some expire on June 30.) Please send them in ASAP.

Calendarial Anticipations Sunday, May 13 – Mother’s Day. 5th/6th Shiurim. Rabbi Samberg’s class. Monday, May 14 – Chemdas Point Accumulation Deadline. 5B/5G/5G to Ft. McHenry. (Return to school is at 5:00.) 2G to Sandy Spring Museum. Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday, May 15, 16, and 17 – Full schedule of post-3:30 classes. Tuesday, May 15 – Freed Photographers will be here to take class and individual pictures. In case of rain, we’ll take the pictures on Wednesday, May 16. Wednesday, May 16 – Nut House pizza. Todah to all in-house helpers this week. 3B to Glen Echo. Thursday, May 17 – 2B/2B to Sandy Spring Museum. Monday, May 21 – Mrs. Werner’s Creative Writing Class. Thursday, May 24 – Annual Mishmar attendees trip to Baysox game after Mishmar. This includes all members of the male gender in Grades 4-6 and those 4th-6th young ladies who stay on Tuesday and/or Thursday for Rabbi Samberg’s class. As in past years, our PTA will sponsor a deli supper (following Mishmar) and the bus to transport us back and forth. Admission is $4.50 per child. We do need adult chaperones and a few vans to handle our overflow SRO crowd. Please let us know if you can come. If your son/daughter will be coming and/or if you can join us with a van, PLEASE FILL OUT THE FORM BELOW. Details: 4:45 – Supper. 5:30 - Leave for game from school. 9:45- Estimated time of return to school. Call school voice mail (301-962-8003 ext. 2) after 9:00 to find out more exact timing. Important Notice: The stadium does NOT allow anyone to bring in food. Please note: Mishmar will continue through Tuesday, June 5. Friday, May 25 – Erev, Erev Shavuos – No School.

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Thursday, May 29 – 6G/Girls’ Choir end of year program at 7:30 P.M. in school. Thursday, May 31 – Chemdas Jr. Trip. Chemdas Sr. Trip.

Tuesday, June 12 – Kindergarten Graduation: Morah Ashley’s A.M. Class – 9:15. Morah Rochel’s A.M. Class – 11:15. A letter with all pertinent details will be mailed to you.

The Ecstasy and the Agony 2012 Last Days of 2011-2012

For Kindergartners Tuesday, June 12 – After Graduation

For Sixth Graders Wednesday, June 13 at High Noon

For 1st-5th Graders Thursday, June 14 at High Noon

First Day of 2012-2013 Thursday, August 30

Dear Parents of Mishmar Attendees, please fill out the permission slip below and return to school A.S.A.P. ………………………………………………………..

Mishmar Trip Permission Slip I hereby give permission to my child/children, _________________________, to go on the Mishmar trip to the Bowie Baysox game on Thursday, May 24. Enclosed is $4.50 per ticket. I can come. I can drive and take ___ children, with seatbelts for all of them. Date: _________________ Phone #: _______________ Parent's Signature : _____________________________________________

We Also Learn Stuff Around Here

Yesterday, 6B/6G began presenting their marvelous Latin American reports. There were very informative and creative videos and Power Points. We were even given a cookbook of Haitian recipes, including how to make corn pudding, spiced cocoa, and mango juice. More is coming up next week. The Sixth Grade Girls also visited Glen Echo this week for a program about Biomes. (Boys are going on the 23rd.) In computer classes, 3rd, 5th, and 6th Grades created Power Points showing three generations of their family trees. These were then presented to grandparents last Friday. K/K observed the ladybug lifecycle and reviewed skip counting by 2’s, 5’s, and 10’s. 1G/1G “invented” a lollipop machine, a driverless car, robots to clean rooms, and sneakers that tie themselves. 1B/1B learned about the consequences Adam and Chava received after eating from Eitz HaDa’as. Mrs. Kasierer’s 2B/2G learned about the Revolutionary War and wrote four paragraph essays of their imaginary places. 2G’s Challah recipes, in beautifully written Ivrit, are on the bulletin board outside Room 155. Ms. Jones’s 3G completed a unit on fractions and finished their animal habitat projects (which included Power Points, games, and plays). Mrs. Dunkin’s 3G had a script party – after finishing all upper and lower case scrip letters and are researching biographies. 3B completed a poetry unit. Included was a Latin American poem by Edgar Allen Poe (in conjunction with their study of Mexico). Mrs. Lerner’s 2B displayed their Poetry Packets and really got into the Water Cycle. They’re now working on book reports of Colonial times. 5G/5G drew beautiful, interpretive drawings depicting words and ideas in Az Yashir, which are hanging outside Room 265. In Art classes, 2B/2G used coffee filters to make watercolor sunflowers for Mother’s Day. In fact, numerous Mother’s Day projects were made in many classes. 1B/1B are involved in Math Olympics and are discovering countries around the world.

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Good Shabbos! Happy Mother’s Day!

Rabbi Yitzchak Charner Headmaster

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May 11, 2012 Dear Parents of 1st and 2nd Grade Chemdas Trip-Goers, Mazel Tov to you for your children’s accomplishments, and special words of thanks to Rabbi Feldman for running this program (now in its 15th year) and to all teachers who encouraged and tested the kids. BE’H, the kids will be going on their Chemdas trip on Thursday, May 31, with arrival at school at regular time. We will Daven at school. The itinerary is as follows: Visit with a Rebbe in school. Travel to Westminster, MD and spend the day at Larry Sheets’ Players’ Family Amusement Center. Eat lunch (at some point in the afternoon).

ETA back in Silver Spring is 5:00 P.M., and children should be picked up in SCHOOL. Rabbi Feldman will call us at various points in order to keep in touch. I will also call our voice mail and leave a message of a more exact time of the kids rearrival in Silver Spring. Chaperoning will be provided by the following staff members: Rabbi Feldman, Mrs. Chani Mendlowitz, Ms. Kerry Griffin, Miss Batya Carl, and Miss Elana Trombka. We will also have parents joining us. More chaperones are needed, so please call the school if you are available. The mode of transportation is a chartered bus, whose cost is sponsored by our PTA. We thank our PTA for this and Nechemia and Naomi Mond and Mordechai and Tami Hyatt for sponsoring the year-long program in memory of Yehuda Mond, Z’L. Any additional financial underwriting would be greatly appreciated. Kids should bring bagged, nonperishable lunches, small drinks, and snacks for the day. We will provide any other drinks and a small snack. Boys and girls need to wear school uniforms that day. The cost per child for admissions and food will be $22.00. Please send payment on Monday with the permission slip below. Again, Mazel Tov to all of you and thanks to all who have made this program and trip possible. Sincerely, Rabbi Yitzchak Charner Headmaster

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Please bring to office.

I give permission for my child(ren), _______________________________________, to participate in the Chemdas trip on Thursday, May 31, 2012. Enclosed is $22.00 to cover admission and food for each child. _____________________________ _____________________

Parent’s Signature Date

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May 11, 2012 Dear Parents of Third - Sixth Grade Chemdas Trip-Goers: Mazel Tov to you for your children’s accomplishments and a special word of thanks to Rabbi Hoffman for running this program, now in its 15th year. BE’H, the kids will be going on their Chemdas trip on Thursday, May 31st, with starting time at school at 7:30 A.M. To facilitate this, children should Daven at home. We will be privileged to be addressed by Rabbi Walter before the trip and expect to arrive at the Knoebels Amusement Center in Elysberg, PA at 12:00, eat lunch, and then have a “four hour blast” at the park. We expect to return to Silver Spring between 10:00-10:30 P.M., and children can be met at school. Rabbi Hoffman will call school at various points in order to keep in touch. We will also leave a message on our voice mail to let you know a more exact time of our rearrival in Silver Spring. Chaperoning will be provided by Rabbi Samberg, Rabbi Biberfeld, Rabbi Hoffman, Rabbi Yair Friedman, Mrs. Elaine Rubin, and Mr. Ronnie Bergman. This year we are extremely short on chaperones. If you are able to join us on the trip, it will be a tremendous help. Please call the school if you are available. The modes of transportation are three charter buses, whose cost is sponsored by our PTA. We thank our PTA for this and Nechemia and Naomi Mond and Mordechai and Tami Hyatt for sponsoring the year-long program in memory of Yehuda Mond, Z’L. Any additional financial underwriting would be greatly appreciated. Kids should bring bagged, nonperishable lunches, with small drinks included. We will provide all other snacks and drinks for the rest of the day and a deli supper. We can use a number of coolers for the day. Please note that school uniforms are required for this excursion. The cost per child for the activities and for food will be $27.00. Please send payment on Monday with the permission slip below. Again, Mazel Tov to all of you, and thanks to all who have made this program and trip possible. Sincerely,

Rabbi Yitzchak Charner Headmaster _______________________________________________________________________

Please bring to office.

I give permission for my child(ren), ________________________________, to participate in the Chemdas trip on Thursday, May 31, 2012. Enclosed is $27.00 to cover admission and food for each child. ________________________________ ____________________________ Parent’s Signature Date

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May 11, 2012 Classroom Close-ups

by Mrs. Esther Friedman Director of Resource Room

Volume VIII, Issue 26

What’s up in Resource? Here are just a few of our low-tech activities.

The “Ooooooh” strategy – Reading for Meaning

Reading for meaning is the goal of reading. We motivate through gold medal cards (for making it make sense), questioning, and light bulb cards to teach kids to monitor themselves as they are reading. They learn to watch out for speeding tickets. “Hey, what’s that doing there? Just give me a minute to fix it.” I tell them that I am looking for the “ooooooh” strategy. It is like a light bulb when they get it! I enjoy hearing them say,” I have a question” or “One second. That does not make sense.” They change around the emphasis and expression a little, blank the word they don’t know, or break up the word using computer graphics. The best part is when their face lights up like a light bulb and they say “oooooooh, that’s why….”

Symbol Imagery

“Okay, here’s a nonsense word-“coist”. Write and say it in the air. Remove the s. What’s left? What’s the third letter in the word? What number letter is the o? How many letters are in the word? What did the word say again? What would the word say if you would put an “a” instead of the” o”? The word says “coit” now. Is that correct? This is to check whether they’ve held the word correctly in their memories. If they say no, they are correct. Sometimes we even ask them to read it backwards. We are training each student to hold a word in his/her memory, visualize it, and manipulate it. It has been shown that this kind of training has changed the imagery part in the brain along with simultaneous progress in reading. In fact, a study was done before and after Lindamood Bell Symbol Imagery instruction that showed the gray matter volume increases in the areas of the brain that have been shown to play a part in visual imagery and learning. This study also showed that the changes were maintained after a period with no instruction. This is because the children now had the underlying imagery skills to learn new information. Furthermore, the TSGW research committee has noticed a significant improvement in reading and cognitive skills for those students who complete this and our other research based programs.

Phonological Awareness and Phonics training

“Say stick. Take away the 2nd sound. What’s the new word? Here are some other words. Please tell me the new word at the beat of the metronome by taking away the 2nd sound. Now, let’s try the same activity with adding sounds.” When reading words, it’s important to be fluent with changing the sounds because of the overlap of the code. For example, ou can represent the middle sounds you hear in pout, soup, and touch. The sound /ou/ can be shown with an ou or an ow. In order to try different sounds or letters when reading and writing, you have to understand how sounds work and be versatile with the

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ability to do it effortlessly and without thinking so you can keep your mind on the meaning of what you are reading. This requires symbol imagery and phonological awareness.

For younger kids, we use blocks, cubes, balls, and real letters to manipulate and teach Phonological Awareness. We also teach letter sounds using many senses. The “ou” says /ou/. The o is the baby with no hair. The u is the toddler in the crib who is pulling his hair and asking to be picked up. The baby says “oh you, stop” and screeches /ou/. The t is a tap dancer. We act out the tap dancer with our hands formed like a t and talk about how our tongue goes up and down just like a tap dancer. We call the t the tip tapper because the tongue is at the tip of the mouth and goes up and down when saying /t/. The /t/ sound is a “stop” sound because it can only be said for a second at a time as the tongue taps the top of the mouth. Here’s a sample exercise. “I’m going to say some sounds, and I want you to trace the t, say /t/, and then act out a tap dancer every time you hear the /t/ sound.

The “taking away” game – symbol imagery and rapid naming

We have learned a new group of sight words. We are ready to practice them. Using a metronome, we say the names of the sight words at the ratio of 1 second per word. We then take turns taking away the sight words. The student has to identify which word is missing, spell it and then read all the sight words, including the missing one, at the beat. If they do it, they earn the word and point. By the end, the student is reading and spelling all 15 words while looking at the imaginary word (which is not there any more on the table) at the beat of the metronome. The next day, one student points to the empty table and says,” Let me try and see if I remember all the words,” and he does.

“The Number Game” (or at least that’s what we call it) – Working Memory

I say numbers. The students add each number I say to the previous number I said. They need to say the answer while keeping in mind the number I have just said. For example, I say 1, 3. They say 4. I then say 2. They say 5. I then say 3. They say 5 again. I then say 1. They say 4. I say 3. We keep going and going. Eventually, we add distractions and increase the speed, all the while, trying for more and more problems before they lose concentration. Each student works on beating his/her own record. This activity enhances the ability to hold information in one’s mind while doing something else. Working Memory is the most accurate predictor of success in school so it’s quite important. In fact, use your working memory now and tell me what the next answer is in the Math game.

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May 11, 2012

Classroom Close-ups by Morah Sara Crane Volume VIII, Issue 25

Third Grade Girls

In ' ג כתה , we place a great importance on feeling positive about our learning. While applying technical skills to learning is crucial, as they serve as the building blocks to all study, it is essential to promote the joyous aspect of the values and lessons that the רהּתֹו teaches us. This is the approach that we use as we work our way through and development of good middos. Hand in ּפרׁשה , חומׁשhand with the didactic aspects of teaching, we encourage thought-provoking discussions and analyzing the lives of our heiliga forefathers and mothers, as well as the messages that we can extract. Additionally, my role as a teacher is also to make the girls aware of the values of questioning and offering their own original ideas. In order to encourage a contagious energy in the classroom, there are charts that the girls keep on their desks during class time to self-monitor their contributions in class. This is one of our motivational systems which leads to a reward and which creates a tremendous excitement about everything going on in the classroom.

Another key to opening the heart of any child to learning is song. Humming a tune is a koach that can be underestimated. Melody has the power to infuse and inspire, not to mention its enhancement of memorization! Song is a tool we apply to many subjects in the classroom, whether it be singing through the הגוף שמות , various tenses in כלליות ידיעות ,עברית or a story from the ּתֹורה. It is also a useful and enjoyable way to make a smooth transition from one topic to the next in the classroom. The girls know that singing is special to me, and many have approached me asking what I think of how they sing as a group! We are fortunate to have the beauty of song resonating in class.

We stress that, more than the highest score or a perfect answer, attitude is crucial. The young ladies march into class daily with their folders and planners, but, more importantly, with a bright “ טוב צהרים ” song and smiles on their faces!

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Dear Parents, As mentioned before, Tuesday, May 15 Freed photography will be at the school to take class and individual pictures. We are very excited to have them available to take magnificent pictures of our children. Sibling/family appointments can be made for Tuesday after 3:30. The slots are not filling up quickly and I had an idea why that might be. You have heard what a remarkable wedding photographer Freed is and, therefore, associate his work with high-end prices. Well, Freed has assured us that their fees will not be different from our previous photographer. We are aware that NO ONE can afford to pay an exorbitant amount for pictures so we have endeavored to get high quality work at an affordable price. Please call Jodi Mailman at 301-602-5922 (cell), the school number or email at [email protected] to make an appointment. Appointments are scheduled for every 10 minutes – the slots close to the end of school day have been filled, but there are other times widely available. Remember, Father’s Day is coming and new pictures are a great gift. Thank you.

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בס”ד

6th Grade Boys Grand raffle

Grand Prize: Shabbos Meal for 10 from “Royal Dragon”

2nd Place Prize:2 large pizza pies from “Ben Yehuda”

3rd Place Prize: Candy wheel From “The Candy Man”

The drawing will be, IY”H, on Thursday, May 24

Price for tickets:

1 for $3

3 for $5

5 for $10

All money goes towards the 6th grade boys’ graduation trip.

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