June 14, 2013


It is so hard to believe that this was our last full week of school and that soon Gefen will be third graders! I have truly enjoyed working with all of your children. Thank you for sharing them with me.

This week we tied up a lot of loose ends. We continued learning about multiplication and the kids got to practice three digits times one digit. We learned about pronouns. We finished learning about Joseph and what happened to him in Egypt and then assembled our Torah journals which will be coming home next week. We completed our study of Ghana and our unit on planting. And, we joined the first grade to watch The Trumpet of the Swan as they just finished reading the book by E.B. White.

Thank you to everyone for contributing to the ice cream party. The kids had a blast and told me it was the best day of the entire year!  :)

Shabbat Shalom,

Hamorah Caren

Happy girls enjoying sundaes.

Three happy boys enjoying ice cream (one who doesn't want his picture taken!).

Thursday, June 6, 2013

Our International Fair was a huge success! Mazal tov to all of the second graders and a HUGE thank to those who helped us prepare for this special day.

Making a Greek salad from Greece.

Reviewing a recipe in preparation to make sticky caramel pudding from Ecuador.

Discussing facts about Russia

Learning about China

Learning all about Ecuador

Shabbat Shalom,

Hamorah Caren

May 31, 2013

This week we spent a lot of time completing our finishing touches for our International Fair. We worked on our welcome sign, we created stickers for our passports and we practiced sharing our information with each other so that we are prepared when people visit our countries. At the beginning of next week we will be preparing our international dishes to share with our guests. Thank you to Beth M. and Dalia W. for cooking and thank you to Ali G. for doing all of the shopping!!

In math we worked on our multiplication facts. Everyone was successful in finding the answers as they used repeated addition. We also learned and shared other strategies. For example, if you know what 5x5 is then you can figure out what 5x7 is because you only need to add two more fives.

In planting this week we learned about all of the parts of a flower. We labeled diagrams and then we played matching games with vocabulary cards. Last, we dissected an actual flower and labeled the parts.

For Torah this week week we read the story of Pharaoh's Dream and we discussed how these dreams helped to save the lives of many people. Then, we shared about our own dreams and tried to interpret them.

Shabbat Shalom,

Hamorah Caren

Reminder:  the grade 2 International Fair is Wednesday, June 5th from 8:30-9:15.

May 24, 2013

We had a fantastic time visiting the Museum of Science on Tuesday. Some favorite parts were the animal exhibits, learning about space and the indoor "playground."

This week we spent our math sessions taking the Gmade tests. We also had a very brief introduction to multiplication as it will be our last unit.

We continued our study of how to write a paragraph. First, we read paragraphs that contained unnecessary information and we located it. Then, we wrote our own paragraphs by using a guide and filling in blanks. Next, we will construct our own without any help.

In Torah we talked about Joseph being thrown into the pit and being sold into slavery. We made a connection about slavery to our civil rights unit. Next we discussed why we thought that Joseph didn't defend himself when Potifar's wife lied about him.

Finally, we began learning all about how chocolate is made. First, we "visited" a cocoa plantation in Ghana and learned about how the pods grow and are removed from the cacao trees. Then, we learned about how the beans are turned into chocolate. Ask your student to share his/her "How Chocolate is Made" book with you.

Shabbat Shalom,

Hamorah Caren

Reminders: no school this Monday in observance of Memorial Day
The second grade International Fair is Wednesday, June 5th at 8:30 a.m.

May 17, 2013

This was a short but busy week.

On Monday the class learned about Shavuot and created special bags for fruit to be used for our Shavuot celebration on Tuesday. We also worked on assembling our "passports" for our International Fair. As most of our country boards are finished, we spent time researching different foods from our countries and created menus to display at the fair. And, we continued to practice solving story problems by using either addition or subtraction.

On Tuesday we had a very exciting morning. We went to a "challah shaping" workshop. Each child got to shape and then bake his/her own challah. Then, later in the morning, we had a Shavuot procession and we sang lots songs. The students were also given a special treat of ice cream for dessert at lunch.

And, finally, today we celebrated our year long theme of "differently-abled" with a special connection to Shavuot. Grades K-2 got to circulate between two special activities: reading and discussing Chrysanthemum by Kevin Henkes and creating a "People Bouquet" showing the people who were standing at Sinai.

Shabbat Shalom,

Hamorah Caren

Reminder: our field trip to the Museum of Science is this Tuesday. Please sent your child's lunch in a paper bag.

May 10, 2013

Another busy week in the Gefen class!

This week we began our G Rade testing. This is a test to check reading comprehension and listening comprehension. Shortly, we will have our G Made testing as well. That test focuses on math skills.

We have just about completed our country study boards and we were able to share them with our special guests for Special Visitors Day. Over the next two weeks we will prepare for our International Fair by making sure that we all able to answer questions about our individual countries. And, of course, we'll be making some delicious foods from our countries as well.

We continued with our letter writing skills as we wrote thank you notes to one of our country study helpers. And, we began learning about topic sentences as we will start to write paragraphs very shortly.

Shabbat Shalom,

Hamorah Caren

Reminders: we do not have school next Wednesday or Thursday, May 15th and 16th in observance of Shavuot

Special Visitors' Day

Learning about South Africa

Sharing information about Denmark

Teaching Special Visitors about Russia

Special Visitors' Day

May 3, 2013

This week began with such excitement as we celebrated Lag B'Omer with a field day. The four teams were so motivated to earn points and everyone had a blast playing games and dancing.

Our country studies continued with a goal of having our boards completed by next Friday. Then, we will spend time creating menus from our countries and preparing foods to offer at our International Fair (June 5th, 8:30 a.m.).

In math we've been focusing on story problems and locating the key words which tell us whether we need to add or subtract (how many more, total, how many fewer, in all, how much less, etc.).

We continued to work on our letter writing by creating our own Dear Abby questions. Next, we will answer the letters.

And, in Torah we read the story of Joseph being thrown in the pit and then going to Egypt. We talked about what it means to be a slave and we made several connections to our Civil Rights unit.

Shabbat Shalom,

Hamorah Caren

Reminders: the book report is due on Friday!

This Monday at 9:30 we will be releasing our butterflies. Parents are welcome to join us.

Making a giant Israel Facebook page.

Working on our country study presentation boards.

Our sunflowers are starting to grow!

April 26, 2013

The Gefen class is buzzing with activity and excitement. All of the students are becoming experts on their "countries." Each day they look forward to country study time. This week we have just about completed our research and now we are beginning to prepare our presentation boards.

We learned the five parts of a letter: date, greeting, body, closing and signature, and how to set up a letter properly. Then, everyone wrote a practice letter to a friend or relative and we also pretended to be "Dear Abby" and offered our advice for some tough problems through letter writing.

For Torah we read and discussed the story of Joseph and his coat of many colors. We talked about bragging, jealousy and what it would be like to grow up in a family with many siblings.

We had a short introduction to our unit on Ghana this week. The children were put into groups and did a small amount of research about culture, clothing, sports, the language, etc. just to get a taste of what is to come. In our research we discovered that the cacao bean is Ghana's number one export so we will also be doing a unit on chocolate!

Our planting unit was introduced this week as well. We saw a short video about how planting is done on a farm and we generated a list of what we know about planting. And, then, with the help of Alyssa's grandfather who is an avid gardener, we planted sunflower seeds.

Filling our cups with soil.

Learning about sunflowers.

Shabbat Shalom,

Hamorah Caren

Reminders:
On Monday, April 29, we will be celebrated a belated Lag B’Omer Field Day
with Color War events including races, freeze dance, knockout, etc.

All students have been assigned to teams: white, blue, green, and red.

On Monday,
All students must wear sneakers.
Each student should wear his/her team color.
Each student must bring a water bottle.
Parents should apply sunscreen before school (we are not permitted to
apply sunscreen at school.)
 
This Tuesday school is out at 11:45 due to the remaining conferences.

Also, please send in the name and address of your child's special visitor who will be joining us on May 10th.

April 19, 2013

Dear Gefen Families,

What a busy week!

On Tuesday we celebrated Yom Ha'aztmaut and the kids had a blast! They were entertained by a clown named Rami Salami, learned some Israeli dances, made Israeli salad, tried lots of new Israeli foods, sang songs and even ate a cake in the shape of Israel.

Being entertained by Rami Salami.

Cutting tomatoes for the Israeli salad.

On Wednesday we celebrated Art Day. The first and second graders admired and were inspired by beautiful spring flowers as they used oil pastels and then watercolor paints to create their own flower portraits. They also made symmetrical art in math and created butterflies for our science fair board.

Creating flower portraits using oil pastels and watercolors.

On Thursday we did our final preparations for the science fair. Our question: Will this caterpillar turn into a moth or butterfly?

Butterfly or Moth?

In Torah this week we discussed the story of Jacob and Esau reconnecting. We focused on forgiveness and why it is so important.

Next week we will begin our final two social studies and science units; Ghana and planting. We will be doing them at the same time, spending two class sessions a week on each. Below is a picture of our Ghana groups. The students will be doing their own research using the computer and Ipads. If you are able to find any information that will help your child in his/her research, please send it in.

Shabbat Shalom,

Hamorah Caren

Ghana groups

April 12, 2013

Dear Gefen Families,

We had a great time at The Butterfly Place! The students were asked to observe three different butterflies as well as notice what butterflies need to survive. They also completed a butterfly scavenger hunt. Now, we have caterpillars in our classrooms and we're waiting to see
what happens!

Doing some butterfly research.

Recording an observation.

Preparing to see the butterflies.

Checking out our new caterpillars.

"What do you notice about my caterpillar?"

In math we began our unit on place value. We started by looking at ones, tens and hundreds. For example, when we see the number 392, it really means 300 + 90 + 2. What happens if we want to add 10 more? One more?

This week in Torah we read the story of Jacob wrestling with an angel and having his name changed to Israel. We talked about all of the Jews being descendants of Jacob and where the name "Children  of Israel" came from. Then, we did some research on the Israeli flag. It was a perfect connection to Yom Ha'atzmaut which is coming up next week.

Shabbat Shalom,

Hamorah Caren

Reminders:
No school on Monday.
Please have your child wear blue and white on Tuesday for our school-wide celebration of Yom Haatzmaut.


From Hamorah Sefi:

Israel Celebrates 65!

MWJDS will be celebrating Israel Independence day on Tuesday April 16th with many classroom and school-wide activities. We are very exited about that! 

Please have your child wear blue pants and white shirt so we can all be Degel Israel (The Israeli flag).

Essential Questions

When you ask your child what they did in Hebrew, do you often get “I don’t remember?” 

Ask students these questions to help guide a discussion about what they really did in Hebrew.

Can you tell me something about Hertzel? He had a very special idea, what was it?

Can you draw Semel Ha-Medina (Israel state symbol)? How old is Israel?

With your help, and encouragement  your child can become more and more comfortable reading Hebrew. Please ask your child to read nightly and please contact me with the first signs of reluctance.

Parent teacher conferences are coming up soon, it would be great to show and tell you about your child's progress in Hebrew. 

Shabbat Shalom,

Sefi

Working on our Country Study with one of our volunteers.

Getting ready for our Civil Rights Museum

April 5, 2013

Dear Gefen Families,

It was great to come back to school this week and see all of your wonderful children!

For math we continued with our review of addition and subtraction with carrying and borrowing. All of the students are doing a great job! Next week, we will move on to our unit on place value.

In Torah we continued our discussion about Jacob being tricked into marrying Leah. We tried to decide if he deserved it because he tricked his own father. We also discussed how Leah must have felt knowing that she was Jacob's "second choice."

We began our country study. There is such excitement in the classroom. We are using books and Ipads to research about our countries. Some of the things that we are trying to find out are:
foods, language, population, a typical school day, sports, and attractions. If you are able to find info on these specific things, please print and sent it in!

Shabbat Shalom,

Hamorah Caren

Reminders:

Our field trip to The Butterfly Place is this Tuesday, April 9th.
Book choices are due Wednesday, April 10th

Enjoying art class.

Working together to solve three digit subtraction problems.

Art class.

Doing a Mad Lib to practice parts of speech.

Working together.

March  22, 2013

This week we researched and wrote about different Pesach traditions from around the world. Did you know that in Iran everyone at the seder table takes an onion and lightly hits the person next to them on the shoulder? This symbolizes when the Jews were slaves and were hit by the Egyptians. Or, maybe you didn't know that in Turkey the adults act out the Passover story for the children before the seder begins. We also practiced the four questions and wrote our own questions about Pesach. In addition, the K-2 students had a mock seder today which was run by our fifth graders.

In science we've been learning all about the life cycle of the butterfly, including learning butterfly words in Hebrew. This week we began to prepare for the science fair by illustrating the life cycle stages for our presentation board.

This week for math we reviewed double and triple digit addition and subtraction with regrouping. Please make sure your child is still practicing his/her facts at home (up through 20).

Wishing everyone a wonderful Passover and an enjoyable break.

Shabbat Shalom,

Hamorah Caren

Reminders:
The book report is due on Wednesday, April 3rd.
Please send in research for your child's country project on Wednesday, April 3rd.
Tuesday, April 9th we will be taking a field trip to the Butterfly Place. More information will be sent home after break.

Silent Reading Time

Working together to find words in the dictionary.

Playing Passover Jeopardy with Ziv and Rivi.

Working on Centimeter Art during Math.

March 15, 2013

Dear Gefen Families,

This week in math we focused on measuring with centimeters. The students created a character and designed a map of their character's day. Then, they measured the character's travels in centimeters. It was a lot of fun! Soon their projects will be up in the hall to view.

We continued our study of Passover by reviewing the symbols on the seder plate and reviewing the order of the seder. We discussed each step in detail and practiced blessings. We also shared some Passover stories.

In science we started to learn about the butterfly life cycle. And, we wrote our class poem about butterflies using alliteration. This poem was entered into the science poetry contest. A copy of the poem was sent home on Thursday.

In Torah we discussed the story of Jacob meeting Rachel. He had to work for seven years to marry her. We wrote about whether or not this was fair.  And, we wrote about whether or not there was something we felt it would be worth working seven years for.

And, last, for grammar we reviewed quotation marks and learned about articles (a, an and the).

Shabbat Shalom,

Hamorah Caren

Reminders: book reports are due Wednesday, April 3rd
Please send in research material for your child's country study on that day as well.

Using the computer at recess.

Writing about the symbols on the seder plate.

Displaying a seder plate.

Comparing answers during math class.

March 8, 2013

Dear Gefen Families,

This week we began to learn about Passover. We generated a list of things that we already know and then we shared an interesting story about the why's and how's of Passover. Next, we did some creative writing, first as an Egyptian writing to Pharaoh and then as a slave writing to Pharaoh. Next week we will examine the seder plate, the order of the seder and the four questions. And, last, we will learn about  how Passover is celebrated in other parts of the world.

For math, we finished our perimeter art and learned about volume and area. If you have a chance, check out the hallway in front of our classroom!

In our Torah study we focused on Jacob's dream. We talked about how G-d gave Jacob the courage to move on by himself and then each student gave an example of a difficult time and what gave them the courage to get through it.

In science we began our butterfly unit by reading a story about butterflies. Then, we jumped into learning about alliteration because the first and second grades will be entering a class poem about butterflies to the Massachusetts Science Poetry Contest. This poem will be displayed at our school poetry night.

Shabbat Shalom,

Hamorah Caren

Reminders:
Please return the country choice selection sheet
We will be going on a field trip to the Butterfly Place on April 9th. More to follow.

Reading with K buddies

Working on Perimeter Art

Showing the volume of a structure

Some of our Perimeter Art

March 1, 2013

Dear Gefen Families,

I hope that everyone had a restful February break. It is hard to believe that it is already March. Where has the time gone?

This week we celebrated our 100th day of school! There were many activities for the children to choose from: a 100 day activity book, put 100 gumballs into the gumball machines, what measures 100 cm, exercise for 100 seconds, etc. The kids had so much fun.

In our last week learning about civil rights we shared a book called When Grandmama Sings by Margaree King Mitchell. It is about a woman who goes on tour to sing in the segregated south. And, we learned about Harriet Tubman as well. As a conclusion to our unit, the children wrote about their dreams, G-d's dream and MLK's dream. We also watched a clip from the news about the Rosa Parks statue that was just unveiled. (Perfect timing as our unit came to a close!)

In math we continued our unit on geometry. We completed symmetry and now we are looking at both flat and 3-D shapes. We are also learning about the perimeter of shapes and in what real life situations we would need to know perimeter. Next, we will look at area and volume.

And, finally, for Torah, we continued the story of the birthright issue between Jacob and Esau.  We talked about why Rebecca helped to trick Isaac and whether or not she did the right thing. We also discussed whether or not Esau really had a right to be angry.

Shabbat Shalom,

Hamorah Caren

Reminder: Students in grades 3-8 are required to do a project for the school science fair. Students in K-2 will be doing a project as a class. However, K-2 students are encouraged to do a project on their own as well. It's not too late!  Please speak with Hamorah Nancy if you are interested.

100th Day Activity Books

100 Gumballs

Second Grade Creates Symmetrical Art

Purim Costumes

Working on Plural Noun Menu