Religious School Parent Bulletin
April 26, 2013

I look forward to seeing the 7^th and 8^th Graders at our Siyum tomorrow evening at 6:00pm! The students will lead the Shabbat afternoon and evening (Mincha and Ma’ariv) services.

Please join us on Sunday, May 5, 11:30am – 12:00pm in Cantor Falkow Lounge for our end-of-the-year Teacher Appreciation. This is a special time to acknowledge CAI’s outstanding teaching staff, as well as to announce the winners of the Shabbat incentive program, “You Pray, You Play.” Refreshments will be served.

We’re still collecting tzedakah so that all students can dedication a letter in the torah commissioned for the Mitzvah 613 Torah Project. The Kindergarten and 1^st Grade collected $36.52, the 5^th Grade gave $13.69 and we received an anonymous donation of $32.00 … making our total so far $224.47. Yasher Koach, everyone! 

UPCOMING EVENTS:

Saturday, April 27
7^th/8^th Grade Siyum 6:15pm, Epstein Chapel
Join us as we celebrate the accomplishments of the 7^th and 8^th grade class. The students will lead the Mincha and Ma’ariv (afternoon and evening) services, as well as speak during the Third Meal (dinner) about what they have learned this year. There is no charge for dinner, but please RSVP to Kim.

Sunday, May 5
Teacher Appreciation 11:30am, Cantor Falkow Lounge
Join us at the end of the last day of Religious School for the year as we honor our teachers, acknowledge Renee Hulsey, named the JFSA’s “Outstanding Judaic Educator” and raffle off an IPod for the Shabbat incentive program, “You Pray, You Play.” Refreshments will be served.

Saturday, May 10
Shabbat Family Experience 6:00pm Dinner in Cantor Falkow Lounge; 7:00pm Service in Epstein Chapel
Join us for the final Shabbat Family Experience of the year as students from the Religious School and Tucson Hebrew Academy lead the Friday night service, followed by a delicious Shabbat dinner. For a part in the service, contact Rabbi Herman; to RSVP for the dinner, contact Kim by May 6.

Teachers’ Classroom Recaps:
Kindergarten/1^st Grade – Renee Hulsey
We had a great time this past week in class. We learned another letter as part of the Mitzvah 613 Project. We also learned about the holiday of Yom Ha’atzmaut, which celebrates Israel’s independence. This year, Israel is celebrating its 65^th birthday! We learned why the Israeli flag has a Magen David (Jewish star) in the center and a blue stripe on the top and bottom. Ask your child to share that with you. Lastly, we enjoyed a very special snack (cake pops) to celebrate my “Outstanding Judaic Educator” Award given by the Jewish Federation of Southern Arizona. I look forward to seeing all of my students this Sunday.

2^nd Grade – Natalie Guerin
We are on a "Hebrew Marathon" to try to finish our Hebrew books before the end of the year.  Often, there are entire pages of words that the students should be able to read. Today, I was so proud of them for reading all 26 words perfectly! They tried it individually, and then asked if they could work in teams. They decided that the whole class would be one team and it was marvelous to watch them work it out together and offer me the correct word.

3^rd Grade – Laura Olesen
The 3rd Grade had a good week; they are just about at the end of their Hebrew books! They were able to reinforce their skills using the computer Hebrew program that they love so much. In addition, they are continuing to learn new prayers. They are also learning about Lag B'Omer this week and I hope they will experience Lag B'Omer this Sunday with their families!

4^th Grade – Rodin Molina
We had a busy week. In Hebrew, we continued learning about brachot (blessings): Students learned how to identify brachot we say before performing mitzvot and practiced saying food related brachot over actual food. In Judaics on Sunday, students who were done with their final "Jewish Hero(ine)" project went with Sarah Artzi for a "values auction," (see below) while students who needed some extra time made use of the computer lab. On Tuesday, students had their final chance to work on their project in class, and students who had finished practiced "getting into character" and rehearsed for their presentations for Sunday, May 5.

4^th Grade – Sarah Artzi
In Hebrew this week, we concluded our in-depth exploration of the Amidah. We reviewed the themes of each section — connecting with our ancestors,
God's powers, holiness, giving thanks, peace — and tried to create relevant connections to our daily lives. We then held a "values auction" where we selected four major Jewish values and each student had to "vote" on which one he/she felt was most important and why. It was a wonderful, deep and meaningful conversation.

5^th Grade – Courtney DeYoung
On Sunday, we went to Evergreen Cemetery, where we met Rabbi Eisen. He taught us many Interesting things. He showed us where past congregants are buried and explained what an incredible impact they had on our synagogue. We learned about the process behind burying Siddurim and other holy books. It was an amazing experience. REMINDER for STUDENTS: Please have for Sunday a paragraph or two reflecting your experience at the cemetery, (e.g. how you felt, what you learned, anything you found interesting.) In Judaics, we are nearing the end in our life-cycles book. We discussed the process behind sitting Shiva and will soon be working on an overall review. In Hebrew, we are pages away from finishing the Hebrew review packets, and within the last few classes we will go over all of them.

6^th Grade – MeMe Aguila
The 6th Grade took a field trip this past Sunday to the Anshei Israel Geniza (site where holy objects are buried) at Evergreen Cemetery. We got a history lesson from Rabbi Eisen regarding some of our family and congregants buried there. We finished by putting old books and other items in the Geniza. It was a fantastic learning experience. Thank you to the parents who drove us there. In Hebrew, we are almost done with our book, with one more chapter to go. It's been a great year and we are ending on a great note.

7^th – 8^th Grade – Jacob Kotz
The 7^th and 8^th Graders discussed what they can do to advocate for Israel on a local level through local media.

Rabbi Ben Herman