THE ESSENTIAL ESTER

Selichos for Ashkenazim start this Mo’tza’ei Shabbos. Sefaradim have been saying Selichos since Rosh Chodesh

Elul.

5th/6th Shiurim this Sunday, September 13 will start at 10:00 – because of Selichos.

Monday, September 14

5B/5G to Project Ascent. Kids should Daven at home, as our “flight” is scheduled to take off at 8:30 A.M. Time of return: 4:45 P.M. Bagged lunches are the order of the day. Vital note: In order for your children to participate, we must have all forms (that were sent home) signed and in our possession.

Tuesday, September 15 All parents are invited to attend the TSGW Annual

Membership meeting for election of board members on September 15th at 8:15 P.M. in the school’s cafeteria

Hot Off The Presses

TSGW 15th Annual Banquet will take place, BE’H, on Sunday, December 6.

Banquet honorees’ identities can be discovered somewhere inside.

Erev Shabbos Parashiyos Niztavim- VaYeilich September 11, 2009 Licht Bentchen: 7:04 Volume XVI, Issue 2 Dear Parents, After last week’s three day “grand opening” and this week’s four days of classes, we are really in high gear and ready for a full week. However, that won’t happen until after Rosh HaShanah. Tuesday night’s Meet the Teacher Program was well-attended and enthusiastically received. BE’H, it should have set the stage for a year of a home-school cooperative partnership that will benefit our sons and daughters. Included in the “preamble” to classroom visits were: • Mrs. Malka’s introduction and allusions to

many of our new programs. • Julie Vogel (PTA co-President) speaking

about the PTA, its activities, and its support of our school, our teachers, and our programs. She reminded us that PTA dues are $25 and discussed opportunities for volunteering. The Volunteer Sign-up sheet is once again attached today.

CAR POOL #’S Cards with your car pool

numbers were given to your progeny yesterday. If you haven’t seen them yet, please examine the book bags of

your oldest children. Many thanks to Laurie Cohen for printing the numbers

once again.

Calendarial Anticipations • Sunday, September 13 – First

Sunday Shiurim for 5B/6B – 10:00-11:30.

• Monday, September 14 – • 5B/5G to Project Ascent. • Reception for new parents at 8:15 P.M.

at the home of Naomi and Nechemia Mond (812 Hyde Ct., Silver Spring, MD 20902).

• Tuesday evening, September 15 – TSGW Board Elections at 8:15 in our cafeteria.

• Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday, September 15, 16, and 17 – Full post-3:30 schedule – including Sports for Girls on Wednesday.

• Wednesday, September 16 – Nut House pizza. (See attached schedule to find out who will provide the pizza each week.) Todah to this week’s many in-house helpers.

• Thursday, September 17 – KB/KG to Homestead Farms in the A.M. Please send booster seats for the bus.

• Friday, September 18 – Erev Rosh HaShanah – No School.

• Monday, September 21 – Tzom Gedaliah – No P.M. Day Care.

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

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

We wish a Refuah Shelaimah to:

• Larry Rosen. • David Makovoz. • Rabbi Jonah Gewirtz.

We wish a heartfelt Mazel Tov to:

• Duvie Bergman, his parents, Shulie and Ronnie; his siblings, Devorah, Noach, and Eli; and his entire family, upon his becoming a Bar Mitzvah.

• Rabbi Shmuel and Mrs. Esther Leigh and family, upon the engagement of Mrs. Leigh’s sister.

• David and Marina Makovoz, Leana and Eliyahu, Rachel, Ayelet, Golda, and the entire family, upon the birth of a girl to their son and daughter-in-law, Misha and Nechama Rochel Makovoz.

May they continue to be blessed with Simachos.

APB Needed: Able-bodied human beings to help pack Rosh HaShanah Greetings Bags on Monday. To volunteer yourself (or an acquaintance), please call Sharon Graff at 301-754-3993.

Special Features Attached today, you’ll discover: ■ Volume III, Issue I of Ooroo

LaTefillah, Wake Up to Prayer. We covered this info in classrooms (2nd-6th) since Tuesday, and we ask you to follow up with conversations at your Shabbos tables.

This year, we will cover Birchos HaShachar, the morning blessings. In conjunction with this year-long unit, it would be valuable for you and your

kids to view a CD-Rom by Rabbi Paysach Krohn entitled “Designer Perfect”. We sent copies of these to each home two years ago, and we’ve ordered more for our new families. Please let us know if you would like one sent home to you.

■ The real 2009-2010 Library Schedule. ■ Girl’s Choir info. letter. Kids may still

sign up and join through this coming Tuesday.

■ Weekly pizza schedule (i.e. Ben Yehuda or Nut House).

Chosen Words.

Middah Alert • We’re smiling all over the place and

at everyone, as this is our present Middah focus. Todah to Miss Shirah Charner’s computer for the classroom posters.

• As HaRav Shteinman, Shlita recommended, we are instituting a daily Machsom LeFi from 9-10 A.M. These two words literally mean “a “muzzle for my mouth” and are found in Tehillim 39:2. A Machsom LeFi is a program in which people commit themselves to focusing, for a set period of time each day, on the proper use of their power of speech as defined in the Torah.

During that time, they concentrate on avoiding speaking, hearing, reading, or writing Loshon Hora, gossip, slander, O’na’as Devarim (hurtful words), any other forms of forbidden speech and anger. The idea is to demonstrate to ourselves that we can do this for short periods of time and, hopefully, expand it to create a 24/7 Torah-based lifestyle.

“Hot Off the Presses” Banquet News 

Our 15th annual dinner is coming up quickly on Sunday, December 6, and the necessary prep is getting off the ground. This year’s honorees are:

• Rabbi Yosef and Mrs. Miriam Singer, for their many years of transmitting a “living Torah” in our community.

• Rabbi Chaim and Mrs. Chana Biberfeld, for more than a decade of inspiring our kids. We thank them for agreeing, only

because of their dedication to our school, to put themselves in this uncomfortable position.

We ask you to reserve the date to honor our worthy honorees and our entire staff and to support our children’s school. This event is the largest single fundraiser of our fiscal year.

Many thanks to:

• Mr. Ed Mack for coming in today to hang roll-down maps and fix a bunch of things.

• Mrs. Mendlowitz and Miss Shirah Charner for the Ooroo posters.

• Those who ate at Max’s last year at NOAM (Night Out At Max’s). Delighting your palates has brought in $300.00 to our children’s school.

SPECIAL ZECHUS Our kids had the unique opportunity

today of hearing HaRav Aharon Feldman, Shlita (Rosh HaYeshiva of Yeshivas Ner Israel). He told them that it was his privilege to address them as they are great people who will be the future leaders of our special nation. He gave them Berachos for a healthy and successful year and that they should achieve their potentials in Avodas Hashem.

Many thanks to Rav Feldman for taking time from his busy schedule to inspire our kids, to Rabbi Zev Katz for the arrangements, and to Rabbi Eli Greengart for bringing the Rosh HaYeshiva.

Some Doin’s Around Here • Kindergarten and First Grades enjoyed

excellent puppet shows on Wednesday. • Out kids heard President Obama’s

speech on Tuesday. • Kindergartners made their first Sefer

in Ivrit (that famous novel known as Adom), made a paper bag Ari, are interviewing each other, are lovin’ their centers, are tracking print, and are just having a great time.

• 1G are learning Hebrew script, wrote sentences about Norbert (the class mascot), and made Royal Proclamations Posters.

• 1B weighed “Aveiros” and “Mitzvos” on a real scale, wrote addition sentences, drew pictures of “fast” and “slow”, and learned what onomotopea means.

• 2B/G are into the different Animal Kingdoms, are getting ready for the big Mabul in Parashas Noach, and are contrasting Miss Nelson with Miss Viola Swamp.

• 3B/G know how to get places after learning cardinal/intercardinal directions, are “perfecting” their script writing, have become experts at locating Perakim/Pesukim in Chumash (thereby reviewing numerical values of Hebrew letters), and know what Simana Milsa means. (Ask your 3Ber/3Ger to find out.)

• 4B are “dissecting” the conflict between Yosef HaTzaddik and his righteous brothers, are learning how to properly deal with such potential arguments, and are “traveling” with huskies on the Iditerod.

• 4G have studied Yaakov Avinu’s success in the sheep-raising business in spite of Lavan’s chicanery, made place value flip charts, and found Maryland’s neighbors on a map.

• 5B discussed Hashem’s unique love for us as His children, wrote “I Am” poems, and set their personal goals for the year.

• 5G are defining climbing the individual rungs of the Teshuvah ladders, made very creative “vanity plates,” and began exploring the New World’s explorers.

• 6B are really into the laws of finding lost objects (in Gemmarah) and applying these principles to real-life cases.

• 6B/G made bioglyphs of themselves, played class trait bingo, and were challenged by games where they had to focus and follow directions.

• 6G have made very creative Ivrit projects and are analyzing Yisro’s coming to meet Moshe Rabbeinu in the Midbar.

Good Shabbos,

Rabbi Yitchak Charner

ד”בס

VOLUNTEERS NEEDED TO HELP

WITH THE ROSH HASHANAH

GREETINGS BAGS

*Please come to assemble the gift bags for this great PTA fundraiser *This is an easy and fun way to help the school

Monday, September 14 12:30 pm to 3:30 pm

Tuesday, September 15

9:15 am to 11:30 am

*Please come for all or just part of the above times *Young children are always welcome

*Volunteers should meet at the TSGW office

*If you would like to help at a different time, please contact Sharon Graff at 301-754-3993*

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vk̈h ¦p §T©k UrUgVolume III, Issue 1 September 11, 2009

Dear Parents:

Welcome to the start of a new school year and another year of A+ Bonus Bucks. Starting October

9, 2009 through March 25, 2010, the Torah School of Greater Washington will have the

opportunity to earn cash through Giant A+Bonus Bucks Program.

All you have to do is:

Log on to www.giantfood.com/aplus to register online

OR

Dial 1-877-275-2758 to register your card over the phone

OR

Call the office 301-962-8003 with your number or send in the information below.

After you register your card, each shopping trip at Giant using your GIANT Card earns CASH for

our school! Each month, the amount of CASH awarded will be updated on the Giant website.

You can track the amount of points you earn for our school by checking your grocery receipt and

online when you create an account at giantfood.com. Our school will receive a check at the end

of the program. The money can be used for any of our school’s educational needs.

Remember, even if you registered your card last year, you must re-register this year for our school to receive credit. Attending to this simple process makes a HUGE difference to our school. We need your support. Please be sure to register your card

to benefit the Torah School using ID #03021.

Also, don’t forget to encourage your friends and relatives to do the

same. It could mean the world to our children.

THANK YOU!

**Revised 9-9-09**

Torah School of Greater Washington Library Schedule for the 2009-2010 School Year

Librarian: Mrs. Lisa Solomson

Each class will visit the library every other week. Teachers should remain with classes during library time. Below are the dates of the

“A” and the “B” weeks.

2009 2010 Sept. 14 – B Jan. 4 – B Sept. 21 - A Jan. 11 – A Oct. 19 – B Jan. 25 – B Oct. 26 - A Feb. 1 – A Nov. 2 – B Feb. 8 – B Nov. 9 – A Feb. 22 – A Nov. 16 – B March 8 – B Nov. 23 – A March 15 – A Nov. 30– B March 22 – B Dec. 7– A April 12 – A Dec. 21 – B April 19 – B Dec. 28 – A April 26 – A May 3 – B May 10 – A May 17 – B May 24 – A June 7 – B June 14 – A

A B 9:30 – 9:55 1G (Ms. Griffin) 10:00 – 10:25 4B 2B 10:30 – 10:55 4G 3B 11:00 – 11:25 KG 12:30 – 12:55 5B 1B 1:00 – 1:25 5G KB 1:30 – 1:55 6B 2G 2:25 – 2:50 3G 1G (Ms. Griffin)

2:55 – 3:20 6G