Essence of ESTER

New Ad Deadline – Wednesday, November 1818.

New Date for 1B Program – Thursday, November 19 at 2:00.

Videographer in school on Tuesday.

Chemdas 2009-2010 unveiling coming soon.

Rosh Chodesh Kislev NOAM (Night Out at Max’s) – this coming Tuesday evening, November 17.

Erev Shabbos Parashas Chayei Sarah November 13, 2009 Licht Bentchen: 4:37 Volume XVI, Issue 10 Dear Parents, Brace yourselves for a shock!! The ad journal submission deadline has been extended!! The new immutable, unchangeable, etched-in-stone, absolutely, positively final date for sending in ads is next Wednesday, November 18. In spite of my great fear of and trepidation at being repetitiously redundant, we once again ask, encourage, and beseech you to take this golden opportunity to honor and express appreciation to:

The Singers. The Biberfelds. Your children’s teachers.

I hope this has been sufficiently clear and specific.

Comin’ Right Up

Sunday, November 15 –5th/6thShiurim Tuesday, November 17 – Rosh

Chodesh Kislev NOAM (Night-Out at Max’s).

Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday, Nov. 17,18,and 19 – Full post-3:30 schedule.

Wednesday, November 18 – Nuthouse Pizza. Thanks to many staff members for this week’s lunch.

Thursday, November 19 – 1G to National Zoo in P.M. 1B program at 2:00.

Wednesday, November 25 – End of

First Marking Period. Thursday & Friday, November 26

and 27 - Thanksgiving Break – No Classes.

Sunday, November 29 – No Shiurim. Tuesday, December 1 – First

Grader’s Chag HaSiddur at 9:15. Thursday, December 3 – 12:00

Dismissal. No P.M. Day Care P.M. Professional Day.

Sunday, December 6 – 15th Annual TSGW Dinner.

Friday, December 11–Monday, December 14 – Chanukah Break.

Sunday, February 14, 2010 – Chinese Auction.

We wish a heartfelt Mazel Tov to: ☺ Bracha and Chaim Melman and family, upon the birth of a boy to their daughter and son-in-law, Bashi and Ari Kellerman. ☺ Nechama Biberfeld, her parents, Rabbi Chaim and Mrs. Chana Biberfeld; her siblings, Nesanel, Malka, Rochel, Chaya, Yitzchok Meir, Akiva, and Sarah; and the entire Biberfeld, Slater, and Winter families, upon her becoming a Bas Mitzvah. May they continue to be blessed with Simachos. We express HaKaras HaTov to:

Simmy Pollock, for covering the front desk on Sunday.

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

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

Rivka Goldstein, Caroline Namrow, Barak Tanzer, Yehudis Komarow, Aviva Rosen, and Mrs. Rivka Winter for driving/chaperoning 2G to the National Wildlife Research Center on Monday.

Jennifer Stiber, Ron Kavanagh, Helene Goodman, and Jessica Eizenstat for driving/chaperoning 1G to the National Zoo yesterday morning.

Amy Mizrahi, Michael Shimoff, and Michele Kraiman Gross, for driving 1B to the National Zoo yesterday afternoon.

Julie Vogel, Miri Gottlieb, for coordinating today’s final session of grandparent picture-taking and to all our volunteers, Shulie Bergman, Esti Graham, Sharon Shimoff, and Maola On.

Cory Myers, for once again sharing his professional photography expertise with us.

Attached Today Chosen Words. Ooroo La Tefillah. Classroom Close-ups by Mrs. Sharona

Katz. SOVEYA newsletter.

Ongoing Programs

Parshathon Study will continue for another two weeks (through Parashas VaYeitzei). The (final) test will be given December 1, and then it’s time to collect all pledges.

For the fourth week running, we have learned how to respect parents and teachers. This week’s special focus was on properly phrasing requests made of our parents and teachers. Hope it’s having an effect at home.

Coming Very Soon to Your

Neighborhoods BE’H, Chemdas 2009-2010 will go public next week. Stay tuned.

Tuesday’s Special

This coming Tuesday, November 17, a videographer,

Jeffrey Reches, will be filming in school all day. His results will be shown in a delightful (more prophecy) DVD at our dinner.

Keep it Up

In October, we earned $193.52 in Giant A+ Bonus Bucks. That’s $127.25 more than in October, 2008. If you haven’t signed us up yet, there’s still plenty of time to do so.

Don’t forget to cut out and send in those

Box Tops for Education coupons. We make hundreds of dollars yearly from them.

What’s Happening?

1G (A.M.) and 1B (P.M.) went to the National Zoo yesterday (1G-P.M. are going next Thursday) for an interactive, hands-on program called “How Do You Zoo.” The kids really got into and learned a lot from the four stations: Veterinarians, Commissary Stewards (in charge of food for the animals), Zookeepers, and Researchers. Fortunately, this was indoors, so it was unaffected by the precipitation.

6B is getting “ready for receiving” the Torah in Parashas Yisro. Among the prerequisites: unity, responsibility for each other, not being preoccupied with physical needs.

3G are watching Eliezer “negotiate” with Rivkah Imeinu’s family to allow her to travel to and marry Yitzchak Avinu. They saw that Lavan did not follow the Halacha of not interrupting or talking before his father. They have also begun scientific investigations into force and motion by using the scientific method and continued working on personal narratives.

3B completed Chayei Sarah and enjoyed a fun-filled, thorough review of the Parasha. They had a great time rolling toy trucks

around the gym using various types and strengths of force and have really, really mastered subtracting across zeroes (regrouping with 3 digits). They are quick and accurate. I was really impressed – even though one young man declined when I challenged him to a contest.

KB/G made lotto and bingo games to review Aleph Bais letters, really know their Chayei Sarah details, acted out stories using magnetized story characters, and are getting ordinal #’s in order.

1G/G played prefix tic-tac-toe, are bringing home a project depicting the special features of the tents of Rivkah Imeinu and Sarah Imeinu, dissected a pumpkin and estimated the number of seeds it had, and planted pumpkin seeds.

1B learned five Hebrew prefixes, are “resting up” from learning the rules of Sh’va Nach, made books on the life cycle of pumpkins, really got into!!! exclamation marks!!!, and discussed how animals take care of their babies.

2B/G experimented to find out why duck feathers are waterproof (are they sprayed with repellent?) and are experiencing the joy of comparing numbers:>,<,=.

2G learned about and memorized via song the seven Noachide Mitzvos.

2B made rainbow magnets containing with the Beracha on the rainbow. This was after learning, in Parashas Noach, about HaShem’s special sign to us.

4B learned, in Mishnah, about openings, closings, and lengths of Berachos and learned that Yosef HaTzaddik’s success was largely due to his constant references to HaShem in all He did. They’ve continued with their study of the Chesapeake, the water cycle, and salinity and finished reading “Titanic” (not the movie version).

4G are fascinated by Pirkei Avos and their introduction to Navi, compared and contrasted two stories by the same author, reviewed “marsh metaphors,” tried out mental math strategies, and wrote persuasive essays.

5B have covered, in Mishnah, the items necessary for writing Sifrei Torah and

Megillos. They’ve also thoroughly covered the Eastern states and their capitals.

5G illustrated the recurring cycle of Sefer Shofetim – now they get to see it repeating itself. They’ve seen the greatness of Aharon HaCohen and his reward for rejoicing at Moshe Rebbeinu’s position. They are preparing for the multiple parts/projects of their study of Colonies and their upcoming Colonial Day. They’ve become quite adept in using both similes and metaphors.

In P.E., all classes have “perfected” their soccer dribbling, shooting, and kicking skills.

6B/G learned, in Shiras Chana in Navi, about ups and downs in life, why they happen, and Who causes them. They’ve explored plate tectonics and comparing, ordering, and rounding of #’s.

Good Shabbos!

Sincerely,

Rabbi Yitzchak Charner

Headmaster

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vk̈h ¦p §T©k UrUgVolume III, Issue 7 November 13, 2009

ד"בס הר שיחיערב שבת קודש פרשת November 13, 2009

Classroom Close-ups Volume VI, Issue 6

Mrs. Sharona Katz - 5G Judaic Studies A very rich man, afraid that his wealth would be lost in the turmoil of war, split his fortune into many parts and carefully hid each one in a different hiding place in and around his house. Unfortunately, he was called away suddenly, before informing his family of the whereabouts of his treasure. His son was sitting alone one day, counting his last few coins. He accidentally dropped one, and, as it rolled away, he scrambled after it. He searched and searched and finally pulled up one of the floorboards to find it. Imagine his excitement when he found, under the floor, not one coin, but 200! This discovery prompted him to put all of his efforts into searching every corner of the house, uncovering more and more of the treasure his father had hidden. The Dubno Maggid used the above parable to describe a person’s path through life. People constantly strive to improve themselves and come close to Hashem, and they find untold treasures along the way. The parable can be applied as well to learning and to the treasures we uncover each day as we strengthen our skills and delve into the Torah. Our Sages say that the Torah, like a hidden treasure, is “poor in one place and rich in another.” The riches of Torah must therefore be searched out and found. In Kittah Hay, we have the privilege of learning the first half of Sefer Sh’mos. The students come to class knowing the basic story - the slavery in Egypt, the birth of Moshe Rabbeinu, the ten plagues, leaving Egypt. In class, however, we constantly uncover new understandings and meanings that originate from the text that we study. Using the “toolbox” that we have assembled over the years and to which we continue to add daily -- including knowledge of grammar, vocabulary, sentence structure and ta’amei hamikra (“trop”) -- we study the text to understand its meaning, and we relate its lessons to our daily lives. Our most recent excursion into the world of Torah study took us to Moshe Rabbeinu at the burning bush. As Hashem persuades Moshe to go down to Egypt to rescue the Jewish people, the students carefully read, asking questions about the wording (Why is the word “vayomer” - “he said” - used twice in the same pasuk?); the context (Why was Moshe in the wilderness? Why did Hashem speak to Moshe from a bush and not a majestic tree?); and lessons for living (From where do we see the humility of Moshe? What is Hashem’s message to him - and to all of us?). We use our tools -- Rashi and other m’forshim, midrashim, our knowledge of grammar, vocabulary etc. -- to help us ask and answer these questions. To promote retention of vocabulary, our class learned a game through which we reinforced the meanings of words (“zakan” / beard, which we learned in chumash in the form of zaken, elder; and “zanav” / tail, learned in connection with the tail of the snake into which Moshe’s staff had turned); number concepts; and possessive pronouns. These learning opportunities are found across the curriculum, as familiar words and grammar constructs are seen again and again in Navi, Ivrit, Pirkei Avos, and our Shomrei Halashon program. Students are encouraged to “teach” the class, sharing stories of their own experiences to explain or clarify a particular point and to integrate the lessons that we learn into their own experiences and lives. Episodes are illustrated and then put into proper order, words are split and pronouns identified, worksheets are color coded to indicate who is speaking in each pasuk -- all to bring us greater understanding of the text, to make this amazing gift of Torah a part of our lives. Treasures abound in our study -- it’s just a matter of looking for them. The efforts we expend are a reward in themselves, as we uncover the wonders of Torah learning and build our skills for the future.

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Rabbi Eli Glaser, CNWC – Director p 1-888-8-SOVEYA (876-8392) * f 443-379-0665 * www.soveya.com * info@soveya.com Volume 3, Issue 8 6209 Western Run Drive, Baltimore, MD 21209

SWITCHH Newsletter (Soveya Wellness Initiative To Create Healthy Habits)

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Copyright © 2009 by Soveya, Inc.

Torah thought on health and Torah thought on health and Torah thought on health and Torah thought on health and wellnesswellnesswellnesswellness: : : :

The Rambam in Hilchos Deios (4.1) is quite clear: “Keeping our bodies healthy is a spiritual practice of going in the way of HaShem, for it is impossible to know and understand the will of HaShem if one is sick. Therefore, we must distance ourselves from any activity that will be harmful to our bodies, and we must accustom ourselves to healthy and appropriate conduct.” The first proper behavior he lists is that we should only eat if we are hungry – לעולם לא יאכל אדם אלא כשהוא רעב - and that we should not eat until our stomachs feel full, but rather we should stop when we feel 3/4 satisfied – לעולם לא יאכל עד שתתמלא כריסו אלא יפחות כמו רביע משבעתו(4.2). Hunger (רעב) exists to tell us that our body needs nourishment, says the Rambam. But it’s not our hunger that tells us to keep on eating after we should stop. It’s our appetite. The Ohr Gedalyahu writes that our appetite – התאוה should not govern our consumption, as much as – אכילהwe might feel like eating more. Our appetite is a means toward an end, serving the purpose of giving us pleasure while properly nourishing our bodies. If we use it in the inverse, he says, allowing our desire to dictate how much we eat and what kind of foods to digest – instead of consuming the right type of foods in the appropriate amounts that our bodies need for optimal health – we have truly mistaken the means for the ends. This is perhaps the greatest battle many of us face – being unable to distinguish between our hunger and our appetite. And this conflict, about which our Rabbis have elucidated over the past millennia, has been identified recently by the scientific community in its ongoing battle against the growing epidemic of weight gain and obesity.

Hunger vs. Appetite – Don’t Get Your Signals Crossed

All the food we eat is digested into glucose and distributed through the blood to fuel, repair and synthesize the millions of cells in our body. When we eat the proper foods in the appropriate amounts, we nourish our cells with essential nutrients that allow us to survive and thrive. Quite simply, without eating we would die. The hypothalamus, the part of our brain that monitors glucose levels in our blood, sends a signal to the cortex of the brain when our body’s cells are being deprived of fuel. This is the involuntary sensation of hunger. However, our interpretation and response to that feeling of hunger is governed by a voluntary action called our appetite. Sometimes our appetite gets creative and confuses a variety of feelings unrelated to hunger into a perceived need for food. The signals in our brain get crossed. We eat to alleviate stress or for psychological comfort (emotional eating). We eat because we’re bored or tired or to reward ourselves when we’re happy. We think we’re hungry when we’re really just striving to satisfy our appetite. Learning to distinguish between hunger and appetite is a key component toward developing a healthy relationship with food and fulfilling the Rambam’s dictate of going in the way of HaShem. Good שבת.

SWITCHH is a coalition of Jewish Day Schools committed to effecting real and lasting changes toward our approach to eating and nutrition. The Wellness Initiative uses a Torah educational approach combined with practical tools and the latest news and

information to inform and empower parents, teachers and students about the obligation to properly care for our bodies by developing and enjoying healthy eating habits. If you would like to receive a free, expanded email version of this newsletter,

please send us an email or sign up at our website. We welcome and value your feedback.

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News, information and practical advice:News, information and practical advice:News, information and practical advice:News, information and practical advice:

SWITCHH is presented by Soveya, providing nutrition & wellness coaching, educational programs, teleconferences, seminars, and newsletters for the Jewish community concerning health, nutrition, and obesity prevention.

Changing the Jewish World – One Pound at a Time

ONE MORE POTATO CHIP

by Bracha Goetz

One more potato chip.

One more potato chip.

After this, no more will pass between my lips.

I've got to have it.

Can't live without it.

I will take only one more unnoticeable bit.

"I'd like a thin slice, please."...

"Another small slice please."...

After this one, I surely will feel at ease.

I really need it now.

I deeply need it now.

One more scoop. I'll be contented as a cow.

I'll take one tiny bite.

O.K., just one more bite.

Is there a cure for an insatiable appetite?

One chocolate chip cookie.

Two chocolate chip cookies.

I could finish up the box when no one is looking.

I've got this hunger.

It's a strange hunger.

When the last piece of cake is gone, it's even

stronger!

While gobbling up some food,

Then gobbling up more food,

Why, I am in just the most delightful mood.

But when it's over,

Oh, when it's over,

The emptiness I tried to bury is uncovered.

Hashem, You placed within me

This deep spiritual hole.

It's not my stomach that was hungry.

What was starving was my soul!

Bracha Goetz is the author of 10 children's books,

including Aliza in MitzvahLand, What Do You See at

Home? and The Invisible Book. To enjoy Bracha's

presentations for both women and children, you're

welcome to email bgoetzster@gmail.com.

Awareness of ObesityAwareness of ObesityAwareness of ObesityAwareness of Obesity----Cancer Link Called Cancer Link Called Cancer Link Called Cancer Link Called

“Alarmingly Low”“Alarmingly Low”“Alarmingly Low”“Alarmingly Low”

The latest results from a biennial survey of cancer risk awareness shows that only about half of Americans realize that carrying excess body fat places them at significantly

higher risk for several cancers.

The survey also reveals that although cancer ranks as the nation’s #1 health concern, only a small percentage of

Americans realize that many cancers are highly preventable.

Experts at the American Institute for Cancer Research (AICR), who commissioned the survey, expressed concern

today that the latest results show body fatness - a major cause of cancer - still lagging far behind other known risk

factors.

“In light of the fact that excess body fat causes over 100,000 cancer cases each year in the US - cases that could be prevented by staying lean - public awareness of the link

remains alarmingly low,” said Alice Bender, MS, RD, Nutrition Communications Manager for the American Institute for

Cancer Research. “It’s a message that desperately needs to be heard.”

An AICR expert report found convincing evidence that excess

body fat is a cause of 6 different cancers: colorectal, postmenopausal breast, endometrial, pancreatic, kidney and

esophageal.

About one-third of the most common cancers could be prevented through diet, physical activity and weight

management.

SOVEYA provides effective solutions for health, wellness & lasting weight loss. Contact us today to find out more.

Broiled Salmon Broiling is great when you want a fast, simple, hassle-free preparation with delicious results.

It gives fish a nicely browned exterior.

Ingredients

1 cup soy sauce (w/o sugar or cornstarch)

1/2 teaspoon ground ginger 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

1 teaspoon dried parsley

1 lemon

2 pounds salmon steaks or fillets

Directions Mix soy sauce, ginger, black pepper, parsley,

and juice from the lemon. Pour mixture over

salmon.

Place baking pan on top rack of the oven and broil for about 5 minutes per side.

Recipe Corner