This page last updated 11/27/2007

Instructors:
 Glenn Siegal (Judaics) cbpercy@aol.com
Marina Milbert (Hebrew) marinamilbert@yahoo.com

2nd Annual DC Area Chanukah Blowout!
Grades 6-8
Saturday, Dec. 8
7:30-10:30 p.m.
JCCGW

Do you like food? How about games and a D.J.? On Saturday, December 8, 2007, 7:30 to 10:30 p.m. at the Jewish Community Center of Greater Washington there will be all this and more!

Click here to see a flyer about the Blowout! (PDF)

This event is for grades 6-8.

$8 in advance, $10 dollars at the door.
Tickets available from Mr. D. in the RS Office

Proceeds from this event will go to charity.

For more information about the Blowout, contact Tracy Schneidkraut, (301) 348-3889, or tschneidkraut@jccgw.org

ELLIS ISLAND TRIP
Sat/Sun May 3/4, 2008

UNITED STATES HOLOCAUST MEMORIAL MUSEUM TRIP
Sunday, May 18, 2008

Welcome Letter from  Hebrew Teacher

Hello everyone! My name is Marina Milbert and I am very excited to be returning for my fifth year teaching at BJC. Here are some facts about me:

My full-time job is teaching at the Jewish Day School as a 1st and 4th grade teacher.

Welcome Letter from Judaics Teacher

Dear Sixth Grade Parents:

6th grade Jewish Studies revolves around three questions

We will spend the year trying to answer these questions. On Saturdays we will cover more than three thousand years of Jewish and world history in a few months.

Students will be active participants in our class discussions; classes will give them practice in informal/extemporaneous speaking and they will be expected to defend their positions.

During the class they will frequently stand on the Bimah to practice public speaking. They will read prayers and readings from the prayer book and their Torah portions. They will be challenged to apply these words to their lives today. In both formal and informal speaking they will develop their skills as speakers, which will prove helpful as they get more involved in their Bar/Bat Mitzvah preparations.

We will do all this and have fun at the same time.

Parents are welcome to come and sit in on a class anytime..

Class Outline 6th Grade Jewish Studies

Jewish Holidays – Discuss Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur, explain idea of repentance, explain meaning of Kol Nidre. Towards Chanukah, discuss differences between Chanukah and Christmas. Passover – discuss origins, importance, compare/contrast with Easter.

Origins of Religion – Early ideas about God, how religion was organized (Priest/sacrifice). Idols, local Gods. Development of early Judaism – revelation to Abraham, Covenant, “Chosen People.” Relations between early Jews and others. Patriarchs, journey to Egypt.

Torah – God or man? Discuss basic ideas, why was this so important? Establishment of relation between God and Man. Emphasize how “progressive” it is, how advanced for its time – role of women, equality before the law, importance of justice and fairness, restraints on powerful. Discuss how can we apply these ancient teachings to life today as Reform Jews (begin preparation for D’var Torah at Bar/Bat Mitzvah). Importance of Tzedakah.

Ancient Israel – how the location played such an important role in both world and Jewish history. The great empires – Egypt, Assyria, Babylon, Persia, Greece, Rome – how did each impact Judaism? Conquests, wars, exile (Babylonian and Roman). Contact with other religions – concept of the Messiah.

Development of Rabbinic Judaism – Babylonian exile, destruction of the Temple by Romans. How Judaism became “portable” and survived when other religions faced with similar situations died. Introduction to Talmud.

“Diaspora” – Jews settle in Europe and Asia, origins and basic beliefs of Christianity and Islam. Origins of anti-Semitism, “blood libel.” Jewish life in Middle Ages, relations with Christians, exile from England and Spain (point out where exiled Jews settle (Eastern Europe – Poland, Russia, putting them in the path of future Holocaust).

Immigration to America – Start with first Jews in America from Brazil (1655). Jewish life in Eastern Europe, pogroms, Pale of Settlement. Prepare for Immigrant in Each of Us, select and research Jewish ancestor. Jews in Colonial and Civil War times, contributions to America, how they adapted to new world. Study of Ellis Island, prepare for class trip to Ellis Island in the spring.

Jews in America – Development of Jewish life in America. Development of Reform Judaism. Discuss what it means to be a Jewish child in modern America – does being Jewish matter? Does it influence what you do or how you act? Has being Jewish ever caused problems? How do you get along with your non-Jewish friends?

Holocaust – End year with overview of the Holocaust. Review history of anti-Semitism in Europe. Discuss WWI and its aftermath. Rise of Fascism and the Nazi’s. How did it happen? What was the reaction of the world and US? Discuss events of the Holocaust. Prepare for class visit to Holocaust Museum. Emphasize how it happened and what came of it – establishment of modern Israel. Relate Holocaust to events today.

"Out of Class" Events:

1. Immigrant in Each of Us - Dates will be announced shortly 2. Ellis Island Trip 3. Holocaust Museum

Public speaking is a major part of the class. Whenever possible I will take the class into Covenant Hall and have them practice speaking from the Bimah. This is part of their preparation for Bar/Bat Mitzvah. I will work with them on their speaking skills and urge parents and students to take this seriously. Every class I try and have every student participate in the discussions. I encourage volunteers, but will call on individuals if they don’t volunteer to speak out.

Class Expectations

Tzedakah is an important Jewish value and I emphasize it every week. Please encourage your students to give regularly and cheerfully.

For our three “out of class” events I will need parent volunteers, so feel free to volunteer often.

I am always available to talk with you, in person, by phone, or via e-mail. Home Phone: 703-549-4783 Work Phone: 202-501-2589 Cell Phone: 202-309-4938

Home e-mail: cbpercy@comcast.net Work e-mail: glenn.siegal@gsa.gov

Latest Messages from  Teachers

Last updated 11/27/2007

Judaics:

Sept. 29: We spent the morning talking about God.  How theyn see God, reasons why they believe or don't believe.  Then we got in to how early man came up with the idea of God -- a power bigger and stronger than they were -- and how they set about trying to pacify this frightening spirit.  It was a good discussion, everyone participated -- some more than others, but they are getting into the spirit of the class.  I had to use the duck several times, but by the end of the year he will be just another observer.

We went into Covenant Hall for the Torah service and stayed till the end.  I was very pleased with the demeanor and behavior of the class.  On Saturday we will begin talking about how Judaism began, idols, sacrifices, and lots of other god stuff.

You are always welcome to come and observe/listen -- even participate.  If your students have any questions or concerns about what we discuss in the class, please let me know.

Sept. 16: The school is off to a good start. On Saturday we got to know each other, went over the rules for the class, and began a discussion of Rosh Hashanna and Yom Kippur. We focused on the words “On Rosh Hashanna it is written and on Yom Kippur it is sealed.” What is “it?” We visualized God sitting at a big desk (like Bob Cratchet from Dicken’s A Christmas Carol) making entries in the Book of Life. Do we know if we are down for a good year of bad year? Since we don’t know, we should assume we’ve been marked for a bad year and use the time between the Holidays to convince God to change us to a good year. The question is, how do we do it? This led to a discussion of repentance and the importance of not only admitting and regretting our errors or sins, but making an honest effort not to make the same mistakes again – in other words, “Don’t get stuck on stupid!”

We talked a bit about the Torah and some of the stories it contains. I asked them if they knew who Gilgamesh was. A few had heard of him, one said he was an old king who did a lot of stuff. Their assignment for this coming class is to look up Gilgamesh, tell who he was and why he is remembered, then explain what possible connection there is between him and Judaism I eagerly await the class response. I expect all students to bring the assignment to class.

On Saturday we will talk about Yom Kippur, focusing on the Kol Nidre and the confessions of sin.

Sept. 8 : We got the year off to a good start. I welcomed everyone and explained the rules (ask your student what they think of them) and introduced everyone to the Duck (just ask) . I explained what the class was going to be like then talked about the year in general. We gave out the books for the year, if anyone still needs books, please let me know or contact Adrian in the RS office. We covered Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur, I hope the students were able to attend services and that what we talked about in class helped them understand and participate. This Saturday we start on the curriculum. We'll talk about God -- how did early man conceive of God (or the Gods as it really was). We'll spend some time discusiing how the students see God, and of course keep up with the Yankees and Red Sox.

Hebrew CD-Rom Software

This year, students in Grades 4 and 5 will receive the Hineni Interactive CD series. It contains games and other extra features not found online or in the textbooks and will make learning Hebrew a joy for your child/ren.

The Hineni 3 CD-Rom (for our 6th grade) was just released in Spring 2006. We recommend that parents purchase a copy through the religious school for your 6th-grader to use this summer to keep their Hebrew skills fresh as they enter their bar/bat mitzvah year of study.

Publisher's Information About the Hineni 1 Interactive CD (4th Grade)
Publisher's Information About the Hineni 2 Interactive CD (5th Grade)
Publisher's Information About the Hineni 3 Interactive CD (6th Grade)

Full Color EZ Guide to the Hineni 3 CD (for online viewing) PDF
Full Color EZ Guide to the Hineni 3 CD (hi-res for printing) PDF

Online Help for Hebrew

Behrman House, publishers of the textbook and accompanying CD-Rom series Hineni which we use as our 4th-6th grade Hebrew textbooks has online resources that both students and parents can use to study, practice, review and learn at home, in addition to the content of the CD-Rom, which parallels the chapters in the textbook.

3rd Grade - Shalom Uvrachah Learn Hebrew at Home
4th Grade Hineni 1 Learn Prayer at Home
5th Grade - Hineni 2 Learn Prayer at Home
6th Grade - Hineni 3 Learn Prayer at Home

The site features audio, so be sure your speakers are on. There is a speed control that will allow you to adjust the speed at which the letters/words are read.

Year-to-date Review

update pending