8th Grade History- Rabbi Hellman

While studying the French Revolution, we pinpointed three key causes of this event: the social inequality in France, the economic situation in France, and the spread of the Enlightenment’s ideas. The 8th graders were split into different groups and each group focused on one of these causes. The students looked at primary sources that were relevant to their topic. Students were exposed to different mediums of primary sources. They looked at pictures of the Grand Palace of Versailles, studied political cartoons of the time, and investigated public speeches from 1789. Upon completing their investigation of the primary sources, each group received a large poster board puzzle piece. Working together, they reflected on what they had absorbed from the primary sources and artistically designed pictures on the puzzle pieces that representing the major causes of the Revolution. The students realized that often several causes, when joined together like puzzle pieces, critical historical moments can develop and change our world.

Rabbi Hellman - slideshows

Poetry Club Enrichment Group- Mrs. Blum

The poetry club meets every Monday at lunch, and we spend our time reading and talking about and appreciating poetry. One of the first things we did was talk about how poems are similar to songs. Poems, like songs, are meant to be listened to. We then looked at some lyrics of our favorite songs and talked about how they are similar to poems.  We noticed that they have many similarities, like rhymes, imagery, beautiful language, and themes. The past two weeks we've been talking specifically about narrative poems, poems that tell a story.  Today, the girls brought in children's books from their own homes: books that are actually narrative poems. We are having a wonderful time exploring the many aspects of poetry.

The Boy and a Business Club - Akiva Lipshitz, Yeshivat Noam 8th Grader

The Boy and a Business Club

October 17, 2013 at 8:45pm- Posted by Cedar Market on their Facebook page!

Akiva Lipshitz is not your typical 13 year old.
The young man has already interned for 3 months at a technology startup, created a business club for his 8th grade class to meet during lunch and recently approached Cedar Market owner Jeff Hollander to talk about entrepreneurship.
Needless to say, the staff at our store was absolutely blown away.
“The reason I’m here is because I started an entrepreneur club (http://thinkrey.tumblr.com/) in my school at Yeshivat Noam,” Akiva explained on a recent Thursday evening at 646 Cedar Lane. “And I was wondering if you could come speak to my school,” Akiva asked Mr. Hollander.
“Why me?”
Akiva went onto explain that the club – which gathers on Thursdays in a school-approved classroom – is interested in hearing from people who manage businesses that kids can relate to.
“If you were a hedge fund manager trading stocks, the kids wouldn’t be able to understand that. Everyone knows what a supermarket is, and we want to know why you started Cedar Market.”
What goes into running a supermarket? Why did you open a supermarket? Can you tell me more about daily operations? Those were just some of the questions Akiva asked.
“This summer I met with venture capitalists,” Akiva explained. “I got an internship at a technology company called Elevatr, where I translated the company’s app into Hebrew for them.”
“And now, I’m talking to you,” Akiva said. “You never know where it could go just from having this conversation.”
This thought was also echoed by Elevatr founder David Spiro in a blog post (http://under30ceo.com/5-lessons-learned-by-hiring-a-13-year-old/) titled “5 Lessons Learned By Hiring a 13 Year Old,” written after Akiva’s summer internship:
Saying I was shocked by Akiva’s bravado would be an understatement. How many of us would have had the courage to reach out to a young CEO and ask for a chance to meet and work with them? It should be motivation for anyone hesitant to reach out to an investor, business partner, or media outlet. Take the chance and see what comes of it, a little bravado can take you a long way. Like Akiva told me when I asked him if he was afraid of being rejected, he said, “the worst they could say is ‘no’.”
And 35 kids in Akiva’s school did not say ‘no’ when asked if they wanted to join his new business club. And they’re all loving it. “One kid told me, ‘The same way you don’t love basketball, Akiva, I didn’t want to join your club. I joined and now I love your club.’”
Interestingly, no adults are in the club – it’s just kids talking business.
“I wanted to teach kids about things they don’t learn in school: emotional intelligence and business. I want to give them an opportunity to learn [this]. I don’t know much more than they do, except that I have three months of experience.”
Akiva continued to amaze.
“It is part of a bigger vision I have. There are a lot of kids in school, each with their own uniqueness. I want to connect all these kids on a social networking site, show them how each of them brings something new to the table.”
Kids are asked to bring a discussion topic to the club at the beginning of the year.
“We’ll see how their views change at the end of the year,” Akiva said.
A couple of the topics suggested were texting while driving and world peace (“maybe they’ll learn at the end of the year that it is very hard to attain,” Akiva ponders) – all the kids will learn something new.
Why did Akiva call Cedar Market?
“It was my Dad’s idea,” Akiva answered. “We were discussing local businesses that kids will understand.”
Akiva described how important his parents are in his quest to learn more about business.
“My parents are extremely supportive. We’re always talking about it,” he said. “We’re going to meet with the school. My dad has gotten me a lot of meetings and has helped me with a lot of ideas. My parents are with me. I’m very lucky that they’re supporting my ideas.”
Before long, the staff at Cedar Market, so intrigued by Akiva, was asking question after question to help better understand the boy behind the business club.
That’s when he reminded us just how special this seemingly ordinary boy is.
 “I don’t have much time left. I have school tomorrow.”
Mr. Hollander promised he would come speak to the club on an upcoming Thursday.
Minutes later, Akiva – thinking of the next big thing in business -- sat in the passenger seat of his father’s Camry as it chugged down Cedar Lane.

Mrs. Taubes' 6th Grade Navi Project

Last week, Mrs. Racheli Taubes' 6th grade Navi class created posters illustrating the cycle of events that happened in the time of the Shoftim. They refer to this cycle as "Galgal Ha'Chozeir." Each group created a poster, incorporating the four key elements: Cheit, Onesh, Tz'aaka/Teshuva, Hatzalah/Shofeit. Throughout the year, we will refer to the posters and add the specific details as they relate to each Shofeit. 

Mrs. Taubes' Galgal Hachozeir Project - slideshow

Middle School EdTech Initiatives Have Launched

It's been an exciting couple of days here in the Middle School as several new initiatives related to Educational Technology have all launched simultaneously.

First, we've deployed three Chromebook carts in the Middle school which, along with our Computer Lab and MacBook and iPad carts, make it now possible for six different classes to all be working with computing devices at the same time. When you couple that with the fact that we've also launched a 1:1 Chromebook program in Grade 7, it means that virtually every student in the Middle School can have access to a computer during each of their classes.

One of the guiding principles of our technology program here at Yeshivat Noam is that we use technology everywhere it helps learning and, when it doesn't help, we put it away. It is up to our faculty, all masters of their own content areas, to determine precisely when it is appropriate to use these tools and when the lesson is better served by more traditional methodologies.

In addition to providing our students with new learning tools, we also recently began this year's formal program of faculty professional development, which will focus on moving the entire Middle School team further along toward mastery of technology integration and 21st century learning. Using a differentiated approach, we have divided the faculty into three Professional Learning Communities which will each focus on development in a different skill set. One group will study technology tools in depth, familiarizing themselves with the many software tools now available for classroom use. A second group, comprising teachers with more EdTech experience, will work together with an industry expert to develop technology-rich lessons and activities for their students. The third cohort, made up of the technology leaders on our team, will work together with me on researching and developing a comprehensive vision for what a 21st Century Curriculum looks like at Yeshivat Noam. Each of these faculty PLCs will serve as models of effective learning communities for our students, using the same tools for collaboration, blended-learning and creative problem solving that we we have begun to put into place in our classes.

There is a lot going on with Middle School technology and it is easy to miss some of the news... which is why a Parent Information Night is being planned; you'll hear more about that in the coming weeks. In the meantime, I welcome your suggestions, comments and suggestions; please get in touch.

חכם עובדיה יוסף בן יעקב זצ"ל HaChacham Harav Ovadya Yosef z"l

If a Torah is accidentally dropped or destroyed in a fire or flood, the family, shul or Yeshiva that this Torah belonged to feels the pain of such a loss. Last week a living Torah, one that belonged to all of the Jewish people, was lost with the passing of HaChacham harav Ovadya Yosef. On Monday morning, Rabbi Hagler spoke with the Middle School students about the loss that all of Klal Yisrael suffered and explained to the students what it means to be a Gadol Hador.

Many Limudei Kodesh teachers took time during the week to share thoughts or memories of HaChacham Harav Ovadya Yosef z"l or to learn Torah in his zechut. 

Rabbi Markowitz shared the following thoughts with his classes:
I had the privilege of meeting Rav Ovadyah Yosef during my year in Israel. I described to the students how my only opportunity to meet him was to wake up really early in the morning and to daven in his personal minyan that took place in his study in his in Har Nof, Yerushalayim.  His study was full of seforim from the floor to the ceiling. It was an experience that I can remember as if it was yesterday.
I shared with the students how he has able to develop Psak Halacha from Gemara, Rishonim, and Achronim to situations that never had come up before. Several years ago, someone called me and explained that he was going to be out of the country for the night of Purim and wouldn't be near a place where he can hear Kriat Megillah (he was flying back early the next morning). He wanted to know what to do. Several years back I remember learning a teshuva from one of Rav Ovadyah's seforim, "Yechaveh Daat." I explained to the students that this set of teshuvot was developed based on a radio show that he would appear on weekly, people would call in and ask him halachic questions. He was probably one of the first Rabbanim to use technology as a way for others to learn Torah. On the spot, he would give lengthy answers to all of the callers questions. Someone wrote down Rav Ovadyah's answers and compiled it into a Sefer.
One of the questions was if someone could fulfill their mitzvah of Kriat Megillah by hearing it live over the radio. Rav Yosef concluded that ideally one should lain it on their own with a kosher Megillah, if this was not feasible  then they may fulfill their mitzvah by hearing the Megillah over the radio. Upon learning this teshuvah, I called back my friend and explained to him the halacha according to Rav Ovadyah.
This is only one small example of how we utilize so much of Rav Ovadyah Yosef's Torah on a regular basis.

Morah Shira's class did the following:
The world of Torah lost one of its brightest lights on Monday when Harav Ovadiya Yosef zt”l passed away on Monday. He embodied the breadth, depth and beauty of Torah. The 6G1, 6G2 and 6B2 Halacha classes looked at maps generated by NASA and Google Maps that show what the entire world looks like in a cross-time-zone nighttime (see images below). We imagined that rather than the glows representing the lights on Earth, that they represented the light of Torah. We further imagined the strongest light in the world, burning brightly in Yerushalayim, going out with the passing of Harav Ovadiya Yosef. We resolved to make the light over Yeshivat Noam burn as brightly as possible to help restore the light of Torah that left this world when Rav Ovadiya did.
Working in small groups, students became experts in various parts of Harav Ovadiya Yosef’s life- such as his time spent in Egypt, his family life and his leadership as the Rishon l’Tzion, Chief Sephardic Rav of Israel. Once students mastered their various areas of concentration, they shared what they learned with fellow students. At the end of the day, students gained an appreciation for Harav Ovadiya Yosef’s whole life, and way of life so as to best kindle his inspiration within ourselves.

Mrs. Weinberg's 8th Grade Chumash Class

Over the past few weeks, the girls in 8G have been learning about all of the various holidays as they are written in Sefer Vayikra. We have discussed leap year calendars, agriculture and the desperate need for water in Israel. We started the year learning mussar haskel, a moral lesson from Rashi. We are supposed to treat the holidays with the same respect as we treat Shabbat and that is therefore the reason why Shabbat is mentioned in the same perek as the holidays. We are ending this unit with a serious discussion about the holiday of Sukkot and what the reasons are for some of the specific mitzvot related to this holiday. We talked about the four species and the interesting characteristics that they have. We are ending the perek with a meaningful discussion as to the reason behind why we sit in a sukkah. The girls sat b'chevruta analyzing a commentary of the Ramban. He brings a well known debate regarding the mitzvah of having a sukkah. We understand from the pasuk that Hashem made for us sukkot when He took us out of Egypt. SO, are these sukkot like the opinion of Rabbi Eliezer? Are they the clouds of glory? Or are they like the opinion of Rabbi Akiva? Are they real sukkot? Think about it...and YOU decide!!

Mrs. Blum 7B English OASIS

Now that the Chagim are over and we are settling into a routine, the 7th grade boys are spending 10-12 minutes twice a week doing independent reading in our English class.  We call this time OASIS time.  

OASIS stands for Open A Superb and Interesting Story.   We discussed this concept along with one of the word's dictionary definitions which is  "something serving as a refuge, relief, or pleasant change from what is usual, annoying, or difficult." 

This OASIS time is an opportunity to take a break from the busyness of our lives and schedules and to settle in with a book.  Students are choosing their own novels, based on their interests.  I am also encouraging students to step outside their comfort zones and to try different authors and genres and topics.  OASIS reading is for personal exploration, growth, enjoyment, and an opportunity to build independent reading skills.  There are also homework assignments connected to the OASIS novel to give students the chance to analyze and think critically about their reading.  It is really a beautiful thing to see so many students enjoying reading...

Mrs. Kurtz's 7th Grade Social Studies

The seventh grade students had a great time today creating timelines for all the different dates we have learned about.  In their timeline the students separated between the Jewish and Secular dates we learned about; they will be adding onto their timeline throughout the year.  The purpose of doing this is to see where everything they learn about falls into history, how Jewish and secular events intertwine, and to serve as a good study aid.

 

Middle School Sport Teams 2013-2014

Thank you to all of the middle school students who came to the tryouts and demonstrated their wonderful abilities. We are so proud of the effort that each and  every one of you put forth. Whether you are playing on one of the teams or cheering them on, there are just three words to know...

Let's Go Knights!

7th Grade Lab

Mr. Kogut's 7th Grade science class recently did their first experiment as part of the Human Body Systems class. After learning about the four different kinds of tissues that are present in the human body (Muscle, Connective, Nervous and Epithelial), students collected cells from their cheeks which were then stained blue and observed under the microscope. This was a fantastic opportunity for students to be able to relate our class to themselves in a tangible, hands-on way and resulted in many smiles and "light bulb" moments. Following this experiment, students worked on the first lab report of the year. This allowed them to not only review material learned in class and apply it to the experiment , but also led to a discussion on why students followed a specific procedure for the experiment and more generally why scientists write lab reports altogether.

MS Simchat Beit Ha'Shoieva

Thank you to all of our Middle School teachers and students who made getting together to celebrate Chag Sukkot so wonderful!