Kids on the (Schechter) Street

As we close out the school year with all of the excitement of graduation, there is such a rush of energy in the air. We’re watching student video productions and getting ready for the end of the year staff vs. student basketball game. Everyone is sharing summer plans and reflecting on the year that has passed.

We did a few kid on the street interviews today to share some of what they are thinking. Here are their answers to questions about what Schechter is, what they are looking forward to for next year, and what they will miss about Schechter this summer.

Click HERE to view the video.

Shabbat Shalom and Go Cavs!

Dr. Ari Yares
Head of School

Oh the Places We've Been!

Like the kids, I’m just as excited when our learning leaves the classroom and we head out on a field trip. There is something special about climbing aboard a school bus and heading to a new place for exploration and discovery. Field trips are about allowing our curiosity to run wild and connecting our learning to the world outside the walls of the school.

Over the past few weeks as the weather has shown signs of summer, we’ve had a number of field trips that have helped deepen student learning. Our fourth graders just returned from a day- long exploration of Columbus, the culmination of their learning about the state of Ohio. They visited the State House, State Treasurer Josh Mandel’s office, and Ohio’s recently opened Holocaust Memorial. You might have seen Lolly the Trolley hanging out in front of the school as it waited for our third graders to board for their tour of downtown Cleveland as part of their study of our community.

Our middle schoolers wrapped up their monthly TOPS trips to a variety of community service sites throughout the area. Each experience was designed to inspire them to a life of volunteer service and a commitment to tikun olam (repairing the world). At the opposite end of the building, our PreK students explored the Cleveland Metroparks Zoo while looking for examples of all of the letters that they had been learning all year learning (lions, tigers, and bears, oh my!).

As you finalize your summer travel plans, think about how you can not just have fun as you visit distant (or close by) places, but also deepen your child(ren)’s understanding of the world around them and how it connects to things that we continue to learn about here at Schechter.  In fact, as you do so, share your summer adventures with us through our new Schechter Selfie social media campaign.  Take photos of yourselves in your Schechterwear, post them on FB, tagging Gross Schechter Day School and including the #SchechterSelfie or email them to selfie@grossschechter.org so we can share them for you.

We look forward to seeing where the summer takes you!

Shabbat Shalom,

Dr. Ari Yares
Head of School

Entering the Home Stretch

I am sure that we have more than a few students eagerly counting down to the last day of school (and maybe a few teachers, too). It has (thankfully) gotten warmer and feels like summer is just around the corner. And each group of students is starting to think about themselves in the next grade up.

We’ve started marking these transitions this week with the Fourth Grade Kabbalat Tikkun and the Fifth Grade Siyum. Our fourth graders have concluded their introduction to reading Torah and have read in front of the fourth/fifth grade minyan. Each of them left school Wednesday evening clutching a new Tikkun (the special book that includes the text of the Torah as it appears in the scroll without vowels and another column with vowels). This gift from the Malcmacher Fund has provided every Schechter student with a Tikkun and even replaced a few that wore out from being lovingly used to read to learn a Torah reading.

Our fifth graders mark the transition to Middle School with their Siyum. This isn’t a graduation (we’ll have one in two weeks for our eighth graders), but rather a way of marking the end of one period of study and the beginning of another. Our fifth graders are eager to explore the Middle School hallway for more than just math with Mrs. Markus.

Step Up Day, our annual tradition of treating our students to a taste of the grade to come, is just around the corner. It’s just another sign that we are entering the home stretch of an incredible year of learning.

Shabbat Shalom,

Dr. Ari Yares
Head of School

Taking Flight

Imagine a plane taking off. As it taxis down the tarmac, it gathers speed and then lifts off the leaving the earth behind. The plane climbs steeply at first until it slowly levels off at 30,000 feet and you breath a quiet sigh of relief as the captain turns off the seat belt light.

This is the metaphor that we focused on as we began our strategic planning process at Wednesday night’s board meeting. Our goal is to help Gross Schechter lift itself higher, building on our strengths and successes, as we move into the years ahead. Our conversation wasn’t on what was wrong, but rather using a technique known as Appreciative Inquiry, focused on finding what is right and building from it.

To kick off this process, we began by thinking about the things that make Schechter excellent. We shared our own personal experiences and what we felt during those moments. Then, we shared wishes and hopes for the school in the next three to five years. These Appreciative Inquiry tools will push us to discover more about Schechter, dream about our future, design plans, and, of course, deliver results.

Over the next few months, a group of board members, parents, teachers, administrators, and community members will serve as our strategic planning committee. The group will be led Beth Rosenberg, past board president,  and supported by consultant Marcy Levy Shankman, Vice President for Strategy and Director of Leadership Cleveland for the Cleveland Leadership Center. With Beth and Marcy’s guidance, we are excited to embark on this path of growth and seeing the heights that Schechter will soar to.

Shabbat Shalom V’Chag Same’ach,

Dr. Ari Yares
Head of School

Bringing it Home

Not surprising, but one of the questions that the younger siblings of our eighth graders asked, upon their return from Israel, was, “What did you bring me?” It’s not that the siblings are selfish, but knowing that their older brother or sister brought them a gift meant that the older sibling was thinking about the younger sibling during the trip. For the younger child, it is a tangible way of knowing that they are loved (and you can see this from the big smiles on their faces when you ask them about the new Israeli t-shirt that they are wearing in school).

As our oldest students, our 8th graders are responsible not just for bringing back a gift for their siblings, but also a gift for the younger students at Schechter. Today, this gift materialized in the Yom Yerushalayim presentation prepared by the 8th graders. More than just your traditional post-vacation slideshow, it was an interactive experience guiding our younger students through the reunification of Jerusalem in 1967 with a wide variety of activities designed to help share the connection to Israel that our 8th graders now have. Combined with reflections, music and images (and, of course, food), they developed and implemented a multi-sensory experience with the help of their teacher, Cheryl Stone. This medley of images, words and experiences brought us together to celebrate Yom Yerushalayim and relive the Israel trip through the eyes of the 8th graders.

The gift wasn’t a t-shirt with a funny Israeli logo, but sharing their excitement from the trip. Their enthusiasm on this day, dedicated to the capital of Israel encourages the next cohort of students to be just as excited for their 8th grade Israel trip and build our love of Israel.

Shabbat Shalom,

Dr. Ari Yares
Head of School

Food for Thanks

Over the past several months, Randy Boroff and I have been building a partnership as we work to build on the excellent academics at Gross Schechter. We have also been thinking about a side venture that would highlight some of our other skills. We’re thinking of calling it “Boroff and Yares’ Breakfast and Barbecue”. We’d serve a yummy breakfast complete with waffles in the morning and switch over to grilled burgers, hot dogs and other treats for the evening crowd.

Ok - maybe I’m kidding just a little bit, but Randy and I have gotten a good rhythm together this week in the Schechter kitchen and out on the grills. It’s been fun for us and cooking this week, first for our teachers as the administration made them breakfast early Wednesday morning and then for our families at our Lag B’Omer Bonfire, has been a way of saying thank you.

Thank you to our faculty and staff for all of the hours that they put into making Schechter an incredible place to learn and work. I know how deeply our students are cared for and the lengths that you go to to help our students grow into their best possible selves. You are igniting a love of learning and shaping them into passionate and engaged young Jews.

Thank you to our families who are incredible advocates for our children and our school. Your dedication to our school community, and to the larger Jewish community, makes us proud to call Schechter and Cleveland home.

Shabbat Shalom,

Dr. Ari Yares
Head of School

Got Mensch?

When I got back from Israel, I received an unusual letter in my mailbox. Like most of you, I seldom receive meaningful snail mail. Personal notes usually come via e-mail and my snail mail is mostly a collection of bills, catalogues and brochures. The letter was from Ilissa Cappell, a good colleague and the associate director of the Schechter Day School Network. When I opened it, a huge smile crossed my face.

After doing some quick math, I’ve realized that with this current eighth grade trip, I have escorted nearly 300 students to Israel. It’s an incredible privilege as an educator to have helped connect such a large group of students to Israel, and, of course, each trip has its own special memories. As I reflect on each of the groups, I think about conversations with individual students, special stops that were unique to a group and the way that the groups bonded together.

What I don’t think about is the airplane flight.

I’ll be honest. The flying part of an Israel trip is my least favorite part. Being stuck on a plane with a large group of students for 12 plus hours is usually the part of the trip that I selectively “forget”.

That’s not going to be the case with the Gross Schechter Class of 2015. As you can see fromIlissa’s letter, our students were just phenomenal on the plane! The derekh eretz that they displayed so impressed this anonymous gentleman that he called the Schechter Network’s offices in New York to find out which Schechter school was on his flight and to share that he had noticed that our students behaved like mensches on the flight.

The eighth grade Israel trip is more than just an opportunity to travel to Israel and see the land. It is a learning laboratory for all of the skills that our students gain during their Schechter experience. They are connecting their lessons in Social Studies to their stint as amateur archeologists at “Dig for a Day”. While they may not want to admit it, math is constantly in use each time they pull out their wallet to buy a souvenir, converting between dollars and shekalim, and when we give them money to buy lunch on their own in small groups. Of course, their Hebrew skills are constantly in use, whether it is meeting their Israeli pen pals in Bet She’an for the first time or just checking out the billboards as we drive down the highway.

And, as we saw on the plane, it is an opportunity for our students to demonstrate the Jewish values that are integral to being a student at Gross Schechter Day School.

During this time of year, we study the chapters of Pirkei Avot, Ethics of Our Fathers, as we move through the days of the Omer from Pesach to Shavuot. Famously, Hillel is quoted as saying,

“If I am not for myself, who will be for me? But if I am only for myself, who am I? If not now, when?" Ethics of the Fathers, 1:14

Understanding that we treat others the way that we want to be treated may be the most valuable life lesson we can give our children. It shows that we understand that “others” are people as well, and that there is an urgency to treating other people with dignity. We put this into practice in our personal interactions, in our giving of tzedakah and in how we engage in Tikkun Olam.

I can proudly say that the Class of 2015 is learning this lesson well.

Shabbat Shalom,

Dr. Ari Yares
Head of School

A Study in Contrasts

The contrast in atmosphere is simply striking. One day is somber, filled with tears and touches you deeply in your soul. The following day is filled with laughter, food and excitement. It’s as ifYom Kippur is suddenly the day before Purim. As you experience these two days, you discover how intricately entwined they are.

For us, the intensity of Yom HaZikaron is light years away from the barbecues and furniture sales that mark Memorial Day in America. From the moment that we heard the siren, that marked the start of the day and tears started to flow around us. We watched a moving ceremony conducted by the Israeli scouts as Yom HaZikaron began. Flames licked the signs created by the scouts as we sat quietly huddled together in the cool Jerusalem air. Beautiful, haunting music filled the air and the names of the fallen were read out loud. The follow morning, we visited Har Herzl (the equivalent of Arlington Cemetery) and experienced the somber nature of the day as we traveled through a subdued Jerusalem.

Smoothly, Yom HaZikaron gives way to Yom Ha'atzmautjust as Shabbat transitions into the rest of the week duringHavdalah. Tears are replaced with laughter and the entire area around our hotel transformed into a giant street fair. Music filled the air and people (including our students) start spontaneously dancing. Everywhere you turn there is life and light.

One place where this transition is most acutely noticed is at the top of Mount Herzl. In the morning, it was filled with families, friends and even strangers collectively saddened in Israel's most important military cemetery. Yet, in the same place where we were crying is also where Israel was later marked as a nation, the start of Yom Ha'atzmaut on a stage surrounding the grave of Theodore Herzl, the father of modern Zionism.

This is because Yom Ha’atzmaut cannot exist without the sacrifices that we mark on Yom HaZikaron, Israel’s Memorial Day. This is a message that we have heard not just on Yom HaZikaron, but in many of the sites that we have seen and will see during the trip. Israel’s freedom and existence were not handed to us on a silver platter. The lives lost, whether as soldiers killed in the line of duty or terror victims cut down unexpectedly, are the price that we pay as a larger Jewish community for the existence of the state of Israel. The depths of our sorrow on Yom HaZikaron, as we remember these losses, help us soar in happiness on Yom Ha’atzmaut. One without the other simply isn’t as meaningful.

Shabbat Shalom,

Dr. Ari Yares
Head of School

Impact and Power of First Impressions

While traveling to Israel this week with the eighth grade, I read a blog by Kristi Hedges about the impact and power of first impressions. She shared that, according to some researchers, our first impressions can be highly accurate. We take a few seconds of interaction to "thin slice" and learn an incredible amount. Others, however, have demonstrated that these same first impressions can be incredibly arbitrary and then our interactions are based upon this point. Reading this got me thinking about our eighth graders’ initial impressions of Israel. One of the goals of our trip is to cement the relationship between our students and Israel. How were we doing at the beginning of this important experience?

We asked them to give us a one word description of their experience so far. Here are their words:

Pretty
Beautiful
Community
Surprising
Crazy
Interesting
Food
Amazing
Holy
Scenic
Different
Israel
Awesome
Exciting
New
Diverse
Trees
Memories
Unbelievable
Speechless
Tired
Yallah
Yes!
Historic
Sabbabbah

Our goal over the remaining two weeks in our trip is to continue to build upon these first impressions.

Hedges writes that "we have two thought systems: system 1, which is fast, intuitive and emotional; and system 2, which is slow, contemplative and logical."  Our trip is designed to touch on both of these systems whether we are walking the streets of Jerusalem or listening to our guide share with us the history of landmarks along the road. Hearing these initial reflections of our students confirms that they are using both of these thought systems.

If you’d like to enjoy the trip vicariously, please take a look at the Facebook album and follow us on Twitter and Instagram. Our students are also writing longer reflections to share how the trip is impacting them via blogs on our website.

Shabbat Shalom from Tzfat,

Dr. Ari Yares
Head of School

11 Ways a Gross Schechter Student Can Enrich Your Seder

Pesach is literally around the corner. Wondering what you are going to do to make your seder feel different this year than it did last year? Looking to get your kids more involved in the seder? Try out these suggestions from our faculty and students.

1. Ask a fourth or fifth grade student how having chickens in your house can make Passover cleaning easier.
2. Have a kindergartner talk about the feelings of the various characters involved in the Exodus story and see them empathize with them.
3. Discuss with a seventh grader the role of the rashah or wicked child and whether that child should be included or excluded from the seder.
4. Use the Haggadot made in the ECC.
5. Have a first grader explain each part of the seder and share their book about the main players in the Passover story.
6. Compare and contrast, with a third grader, the differences between an Ashkenazi seder (what most of us are used to) with a Yemenite seder.
7. Explore the text of the Haggadah with a fifth grader. Ask them to interpret what we are reading as we move through the Haggadah.
8. Have a 6th grader organize bedikat hametz (the search for unleavened products) and explain why the wheat for matzah is ok, but the wheat for bread is not.
9. Watch a 4th grader recline during the seder and have them explain why.
10. Get a math lesson from a 2nd grader as they unpack all of the ways that the number 4 is significant.
11. Listen as students from all grades recite the Mah Nishtanah.

For more ideas, check out these two blog posts from last year. And, of course, take a look at these videos from the folks at G-d cast.

Shabbat Shalom,

Dr. Ari Yares
Head of School

People of the Book(s)

As Jews, we are often referred to as people of the book. But while that usually refers to the Torah or the Bible, it could mean any number of books from the Talmud to the Zohar (a collection of kabbalistic writings) to any number of rabbinic texts. In fact, we are living in an era of an explosion of Jewish writing about a wide variety of topics from Jewish food to Jewish history to Jewish humor. Just check the shelves at Barnes & Noble.

Books are central to who we are as Jews. The stories and knowledge contained in them help define us, guide us and give us something to argue with. It is perhaps this deep relationship with the written word that makes the images of book burnings during Kistalnacht hit us so strongly.

Today, our first graders received their first real siddur during our Kabbalat Siddur program. Until now, they have been using a photocopied packet as they learn tefillot (prayers). For them, it is the first of many books that they will receive from the school and their parents on their path of Jewish learning. It is a moment that they have been eagerly awaiting for all year, and they were excited to have the eighth graders hand them their new siddur.

Our Kabbalat Siddur ceremony, however, was more than just an opportunity to present a siddur to our first graders (and we are excited about our new siddur - see below for more details about it). Today was a learning opportunity for all of our first grade families. Each family was asked to prepare a d’var tefillah  (a short presentation, talk or activity about a prayer). Our families learned together, shared their insights and explored our relationship with God as we explored tefillot from throughout the siddur. The excitement as each student stepped up to talk about their prayer was incredible. Everyone, students, parents, and staff, left the Merkaz this morning having learned something new.

Kol HaKavod to Hadassa Hoff and Marci Friedman on their hard work preparing our first graders for this morning. Mazal tov to the first graders and their parents! We look forward to marking many more moments together with you.

Shabbat Shalom,

Dr. Ari Yares
Head of School

P.S. For Schechter, today marks another first. It is the first time that we are giving out a brand new siddur. For years, we have given out the same siddur to our first graders, and you can still see many of them using it middle school. With the explosion of Jewish publishing, we took an opportunity this fall to survey the many new siddurim that have been published since the last time we had a conversation about this important text.

The content in each siddur that we looked at was similar. After all, the prayers that we use have been part of Jewish life for generations. Some had translations while others had other key features that resonated with us as educators. We explored each siddur, comparing them, looking critically at them and wondering about the decisions of the publisher.

In the end, our first graders will be the first students at Schechter to receive the beautifully written, Siddur Halleli Nafshi. Published by our sister school, the Solomon Schechter Day School of Greater Boston, Halleli Nafshi is a brightly-illustrated siddur that is engaging for daveners of all ages. We’re just as excited as the first graders to see them start using it, and we’re looking forward to placing copies in our Lower School classrooms next year.

Tomayto, Tomahto

I learned something interesting earlier this week. Did you know that there is no Hebrew word that means “to teach”? I was a little surprised by that announcement to roughly a thousand Jewish professionals and volunteers at the 2015 North American Day School Conference this week in Philadelphia.

To clarify, it’s not that you can’t say “to teach” in Hebrew. The word that we use is lamayd (למד), but it comes from the shoresh, or root, as the word that means to learn. Rabbi David Lapin explained to us that lamayd really means to facilitate learning.

“Tomayto, tomahto,” you say. “Teaching and facilitating learning mean the same thing.”

Except that they don’t.

In a model where we just think about teaching as the action, the attention is focused on the actions of the teacher, not on what is going on with the student. If we are facilitating learning, then the focus is on what the student is doing and on the outcome achieved by the student. You can teach a great lesson, but if you have no idea if it has been learned and understood.

With a conference theme of Uncommon Connections: Schools, Systems, and Success, each of the many sessions that I attended was pushing me to think differently about how we learn, examine the systems in place at Schechter and see how a slight shift in thinking might change my practice as an educator.

Another presenter shattered a metaphor that I have used for years to encourage more interactive and student-driven learning. I’ve frequently talked about not wanting to have teachers serve as “sages on the stage” delivering frontal lessons with mostly passive students. Instead, I’ve pushed them to be “guides on the side” as they support learning.

Conference presenter, Grant Lichtman, suggested throwing out that metaphor and, instead, thinking of our teachers as farmers. A good farmer lays out a boundary (think of this as the fence around the field), breaks up the tough topsoil and removes rocks, makes sure that the right amount of nutrients gets to the plants and judiciously weeds and prunes to ensure growth.

Lichtman’s metaphor for what we want teaching to look like aligns neatly with Rabbi Lapin’s assertion about how the Hebrew language wants us to focus on the process of learning, not on the process of teaching.

As a teacher, I knew that my students were truly learning when I heard the comment, “My head hurts.” Not from a headache, but from being engaged in such profound thinking that they were literally abuzz. Having left Philadelphia, I can truly say that my head hurts, and I’m thankful to Rabbi Lapin, Grant Lichtman, the other presenters and the conference organizers. I’m looking forward to continuing to share what I’ve learned with you and our staff and to see how to apply these things at Schechter.

Shabbat Shalom,

Dr. Ari Yares
Head of School

Todah Rabbah

Purim is one of my favorite holidays. Reading megillah, dressing up in costumes, and the vibrant energy that is part of the holiday are just a few of the reasons that it resonates so strongly with me. One of neatest parts of Purim is the exchange of mishloach manot (usually gifts of food) to friends and family. It has its origin in the text of Megillat Esther and has become an integral part of how Jews all over the world celebrate Purim.

Here at Schechter, it wouldn’t be Purim without our school-wide mishloach manot. These fun-filled bags of goodies, along with homemade hamentaschen, made their way home yesterday in the backpacks of our students (hopefully without being crushed or eaten) and were delivered throughout Cleveland by groups of volunteers.

As I was munching some of the contents of our mishloach manot at home last night, I was thinking about the hours of work that went into it and how fortunate we are to have so many dedicated volunteers who willing give their time and effort to what is not a simple undertaking. Too often, we take things for granted and therefore forget to say thank you.

In talking with our many volunteers over the last few weeks, I have been reminded that we need to do a better job of saying “Todah Rabbah.” Gratitude is incredibly powerful, both to the receiver and the giver. We as a school need to recommit to saying thank you.

To get the ball rolling, here are just a few thank you’s:

To Nancy Zimmerman, Julie Kaufman, Heidi Geis, Sylvia Kramer and their wonderful team of bakers, packers, and drivers for making mishloach manot continue to be part of how we do Purim here at Schechter.

To Rachel Lappen, Mary Anne Donovan, Kimberly Pleasant, the Koslen’s, the Purim Gala Committee and the tribute chairs who have organized an entire event geared at saying thank you to Mitch and Sheila (z”l) Balk and celebrating Schechter.

To Irit Slain, Lynne Yulish, and group of uninhibited Schechter staff who delighted the students with a Purim shpiel yesterday and to Dan Weiss for organizing megillah reading and the Purim Carnival.

To Jim Walker and Ellis Thompson who wake up early each school day to clear yet another coat of snow and ice from the front walk. Much to their relief warmer temperatures are forecast.

To our parents for being “All In” and responding to our challenge grant and exceeding the 85%.

To our students whose energy and excitement made sure that Purim was filled with joy.

To our teachers, office staff, and food services staff who continue to go beyond the call of duty to create a learning environment that is filled with fun, love and support.

Shabbat Shalom,

Dr. Ari Yares
Head of School

Do the Write Thing

Over the last month, there has been an incredible amount of excitement in the air around reading. One of the goals of the Sveta Grinberg Read for Life Program is to create that excitement and buzz around reading, and, judging by the number of books read by our students during the program, it did.

We should be equally excited about writing, and here at Schechter, there is a lot to be excited about. In the last two weeks, our students have won high honors in the Power of the Pen competition (including our seventh grade team advancing to regionals) and swept Federation’s writing competition for Yom HaShoah. Mazal tov to all of the students and kol hakavod to their coach, Davida Amkraut!

Some may feel that writing is an art form that is slowly being lost because of texting, instant messaging and social media. And receiving a message like “AFAIK” (as far as I know) or “BRB” (be right back), probably reinforces it.

Yet, written communication is becoming even more important because of the dramatic increase in the places, times and formats that we do write.

Writing is something that you will see emphasized starting in our four-year-old classrooms as students begin putting together sentences in their journals (often with some fascinating creative spelling). These skills grow and develop over time. Our first graders engage in creative writing and start drafting reports. Third graders are learning research as they draft their President speeches. In fifth grade, they discover the challenge that an ambiguous prompt can provide as they write short stories based upon a series of pictures from Chris Van Allsburg, and of course, writing abounds in all classes as our students enter middle school whether they are working with Mrs. Amkraut in Language Arts, Mr. Norton in Science or Giveret Slain in Hebrew.

Even just outside my office door is a wall filled with graffiti about our school-wide read, Rules. Students with varying levels of writing sophistication have filled it with thoughts and observations about the book.It is these kinds of scaffolded writing experiences that have led to the successes that our school has had in the Power of the Pen competition year after year.

A Schechter education prepares students to use their writing to effectively communicate ideas!

Shabbat Shalom,

Dr. Ari Yares
Head of School

Power of a Jewish Mother

While our fourth graders are researching famous Jews for the Wax museum project, their teacher, Donell Newman, has been reaching out via e-mail and Facebook to several of the people selected by the students to see if they can get questions directly answered. Sometimes, though, you have to try a different channel to get a hold of them, like their mom.

One of our students had selected Browns offensive tackle Mitchell Schwartz as his famous Jew. Schwartz is one of the few visibly Jewish NFL players. Mrs. Newman had reached out to the Browns’ front office, but had not heard back yet from them about arranging an interview with Schwartz. Late one night, Mrs. Newman’s husband, Scott, suggested that she try a different approach - contact his mother.

Mrs. Newman scoffed at the idea, but she did it anyway.

Pretty quickly, she got a response from Olivia Goodkin, Mitchell’s mom. “I’ve passed along your e-mail. Please let me know if you don’t get a response.”

Mrs. Newman did get a response and a series of emails starting going back and forth between Schwartz and her. Mrs. Newman’s hope was that Schwartz would answer the student’s questions and thus enrich his Wax Museum presentation. A lot more than that happened.

“You know,” Schwartz wrote, “I’m going to be in Cleveland in a week or two. How about I stop by the school?”

And he did.

This morning, our fourth graders were treated to a question and answer session with Mitchell Schwartz. He then joined us for the closing ceremonies for the Sveta Grinberg Read for Life program as our celebrity guest.

Sometimes you just need to call mom.

Shabbat Shalom,

Dr. Ari Yares
Head of School

In their own words

"I liked making mummies with my buddy!" Ever think you'd hear that from a first grader?  Or hear an eighth grader say, "My buddy was incorporating what he learned in class when we played the game online.  He knew so much!" These were some of the rave reviews given by our first graders and eighth graders after spending an interactive, dynamic field trip for both the first and eighth grade classes at the Cleveland Museum of Art.

Middle School Social Studies teacher, Jesse Ebner, and first grade teacher, Marci Friedman, created a great opportunity for collaboration, growth and deeper learning. Prior to a field trip to the Cleveland Museum of Art, the eighth graders met with the first graders twice before the field trip and then met them twice after.  The pre-field trip classes were focused on some joint learning on ancient Egypt (the eighth graders had studied Egypt a few weeks earlier, and the first graders were currently working on a unit about Egypt).  They used  computers to play a game called "Mummy Maker" to learn about religion in Ancient Egypt and the mummification process.  They also used the computer to learn about hieroglyphics and "translate" their own names to hieroglyphs.  They made "name plates" with their name in hieroglyphs and drawings to represent themselves and the items they would take with them to the afterlife.  

On the field trip, the eighth graders and first graders took separate tours focused on seeing items they learned about in their respective units.  Eighth graders saw ancient Egyptian and Mesopotamian artifacts, as well as ancient India and Chinese religious artwork.  First graders focused mostly on Ancient Egypt.  Then, both groups got together for a fun scavenger hunt throughout the museum, lunch and free time in the hands-on "Gallery One."

After the trip, eighth graders wrote their own reflection blog posts  Then, they met with the first graders to share what a blog looks like and explain how they write their own blog posts. The eighth graders helped the first graders write rough drafts and then use the iPads to publish their first blog posts!

Here’s what we heard from our eighth graders about their experience:

"It was fun to be with and hang out with our younger buddies."

"They (first graders) know what they saw at the Museum and what they learned, but they couldn't put it into words.  I attempted to help them put their thoughts into words and spell hard words like, hieroglyphics."

"We learned some leadership skills.  The first graders looked up to us as the oldest grade in the school.  They probably look forward to being in eighth grade when they could be the ones teaching their first grade buddy about ancient Egypt."

"Remembering being in first grade and having a book buddy, it would've been really cool to have a blog from first grade to look back on."

"It's strange to hear first graders have blogs. I didn't even know what the internet was in first grade!"

"I like working with the first graders, it was just fun. Working with younger kids gives you a new perspective on what you are learning."

"I thought it was nice that the first graders really look up to us. They like being with us."  

Our first graders had similar reflections ranging from, “I was able to learn more from my buddy" to "I am excited to blog again." Another shared, "It was cool to blog because it was my first time”; while one student told us, "I felt happy because I had someone to work with me and explain things to me and she was so nice."

Kol HaKavod to Mrs. Ebner and Mrs. Friedman for facilitating this shared unit and for enabling our students to begin sharing their own words!

Shabbat Shalom,

Dr. Ari Yares


Eighth Grade Blogs (password is Schechter):  

http://talyasocialstudies.weebly.com/eighth-grade-world-history/field-trip-reflection-blog

http://noahsocialstudiesblog.weebly.com/eighth-grade-blog-page

We're expecting!

As you’ve probably heard, we’re “expecting” and not just one baby, but at least a dozen or so.

Our Schechter family is growing with the opening of our Infant Care Center in the B’nai Jeshurun facility. We will be welcoming infants and toddlers starting at six weeks of age into this warm, caring and nurturing environment.

We’re excited to be creating a program where parents will feel comfortable entrusting their children into our care. We want to be our parents’ partners as their children grow and develop from infants to toddlers to young children and as they move into their teen years. We want to share in your joy over developmental milestones and hold your hand through those more challenging moments of parenting.

Our Infant Care Center is about providing a Schechter experience at the earliest age and offering a much-needed resource to Jewish Cleveland. We’re putting the finishing touches on our new home next door and we’re grateful to our host, B’nai Jeshurun Congregation, for welcoming us in. These finishing touches will create an inviting environment for infants and toddlers filled with toys for a range of ages and spaces to explore for our crawlers and toddlers.

The Infant Care Center will deliver a low child-to-teacher ratio and a warm, welcoming environment supervised by Schechter’s well-trained and excellent Early Childhood Center (ECC) staff. The environment will promote healthy child development and flex with each child’s needs through careful observation of each child. It will foster growth towards independence, and we will partner with parents to meet their desires for their children’s care and well-being.

Not only do we care about providing warmth, education and support to our students, now starting at a VERY early age, but we are able to provide great resources for our parents, as well. We’re also excited that our brand new lunch and learn series, led by school counselor, Mandy DuBro, is kicking off soon. The sessions are focused on the book, How to Talk So Kids Will Listen & Listen So Kids Will Talk, written by two Jewish moms and child care experts. Each session will help us build our toolbox as parents. Join us for this engaging series of workshops during the last two Fridays of each month starting in February. You can find more information at www.grossschechter.org/lunchandlearn.

Please help us spread the word about our new program and all of the wonderful ways that Schechter is “growing”.

Shabbat Shalom,

Dr. Ari Yares

Strengthening Our Hearts

I’ll have to admit that I have not seen the new movie Exodus: Gods and Kings, but I understand why Ridley Scott was drawn to the story. The narrative of the Exodus is compelling filled with dramatic tension, flawed characters, and wondrous miracles. While I think my vision of the Exodus may be more Prince of Egypt or Charlton Heston, we can be enriched in our understanding of our sacred texts each time a new creative force attempts to interpret them into a new medium.

Over the last several weeks, the story of the Exodus has been unfolding from the bimah of our synagogues as we read the opening parshiyot of the book of Exodus. Like the movies, this story is keeping me engaged and curious as a I read along.

One thing that has caught my eye was the constant repetition of the Hebrew phrase which we translate as the hardening of Pharaoh’s heart. It appears twenty times between Vaera and Bo as we witness the interaction between Pharaoh and Moses with the plagues occurring in the background.

Most of our traditional commentators look at this as the increasing development of Pharaoh’s stubborn nature. His resistance to changing his mind builds and eventually the hardening of his heart is attributed to God. Some interpretations of the text say that the hardening of Pharaoh’s heart was done to demonstrate the incredible power of God. Others are troubled by the lack of free will that these passages seem to infer. Instead, they say that Pharaoh was given several chances to change his mind and repent. Each time that he refused, he backed himself further into a corner making it harder and harder for Pharaoh to change his mind and save face. God’s hardening of Pharaoh’s heart was merely an example of human nature at work.

Somehow, these interpretations weren’t satisfying to me (like many people’s impressions of Ridley Scott’s movie). They don’t fully explain the divine intervention needed during the last five plagues. A chance reading of a more obscure commentator, Hizkuni, brought me new insight. Hizkuni writes that God wasn’t making Pharaoh stubborn; he was strengthening Pharaoh’s heart so that he did not die of fear!

Now, all of a sudden, this makes some sense.  The plagues are fear and awe inspiring. Nature is running awry as God is proving God’s supremacy over Egypt. Had Pharaoh’s heart not been strengthened, the events of the Exodus might have unfolded differently and the Egyptians might have not given the Israelites their full freedom.

Most of the time, we want our children to aspire to be like our heroes, but perhaps in this one case, we want our children to have a little Pharaoh in them. We want them to strengthen their hearts to be able to face the trials and tribulations that await them as they grow. We want them to have an inner strength that grants them resolve to forge forward in the face of adversity. We want them to have the strength to have convictions and take action to see those thoughts become reality around them.

So while I will wish that you live until 120 like Moses, I also wish for you to strengthen your hearts like God did for Pharaoh.

Shabbat Shalom,

Dr. Ari Yares
Head of School

Read for Life

It has been an incredibly busy week. We have had evening programs, step up nights, field trips and special programs throughout the week. These changes to our routine help deepen our students’ classroom experiences and connect them to the real world, the next steps in their education, and ignite their passion for learning.

At the risk of stealing the thunder of our faculty, I’m very excited that our expanded Reading Week program is continuing the excitement next week. This is an incredible celebration of reading and literacy that the faculty and staff have been hard at work on for weeks. Last year, our theme was “Go for the Gold: Read for Life,” and students experienced a series of  Olympic-themed programs that encouraged reading and promoted literacy.

This year, the theme is “Schechter Celebrates Reading,” and I’m delighted to announce that the program is now the Sveta Grinberg Read for Life Program.

Who is Sveta Grinberg?

Sveta is the daughter of Mikhail and Ida Grinberg, who, unfortunately, passed away as a young adult. Sveta is most remembered for her passionate love of reading. She was never without a book, or several, and enjoyed learning and exploring as she read. At work, Sveta encouraged others to read. She kept a box by her desk and placed her finished books in it for her colleagues to grab and read for themselves. In her memory, her parents created the Sveta Grinberg Memorial Literacy Endowment Fund at Schechter as an enduring way of celebrating this important aspect of Sveta’s life.

Over the last several years as the fund has grown, it has supported our Reading Week program and now supports the larger and longer Sveta Grinberg Read for Life Program. It is in Sveta’s memory that we dedicate this program and we hope that all of our students will share her love of reading as they grow.

Shabbat Shalom,

Dr. Ari Yares
Head of School

A Warm Blessing

As the song goes, “Baby, it’s cold outside,” but, despite that, it feels warm inside the walls of Gross Schechter. It’s more, though, than just the warm feeling we get from the heaters working overtime to beat back this week’s plummeting temperatures. There is an additional warmth that I’m feeling as I watch our staff settle back into teaching, coaching and nurturing our students.

That warmth comes from hearing from teachers who are so dedicated to creating incredible learning experiences that they constantly ask if we can open the building for them on Sundays or during vacations for them to get things ready in their classrooms.

It comes from sitting with a group of teachers who have volunteered to plan our Read for Life program and are meeting, not just after school, but after a faculty meeting, to put the final touches on our annual celebration of literacy and reading.

It’s seeing teachers jump up to cover for an absent colleague even though this means missing out on precious planning time or lunch.

I’m warmed by seeing staff working with students after school on projects, helping them catch up on missed assignments or re-teaching a concept to ensure that a student masters it.

The warmth comes when I hear about a teacher sitting with a child who was feeling down and eating lunch with them to help cheer them up.

I see it when our staff turns out for recitals, games and plays to watch our students shine on the field or stage.

It appears in the e-mails from staff sharing the accomplishments of our alumni in high school and beyond, and the pride that we take in seeing our graduates succeed.

This warmth is a blessing which was the focus on last week’s Torah reading, Vayechi. The text contains the source for our Friday night blessing of our sons to be like Joseph’s sons Ephraim and Manasseh. But let’s face it, we don’t know much about them (and while we bless our daughters to be like Sarah, Rebecca, Rachel and Leah, we don’t know much more about them).

This week, I’d like to bless all of our children to be like our teachers and grow to have their compassion, dedication, energy and initiative.

Shabbat Shalom,

Dr. Ari Yares
Head of School