Federation camp scholarships are available.  If you would like to apply for a scholarship, please let me know, and I will mail you a form.  The deadline is Friday, February 17.

The 3rd Graders have all received parts for their Siddur Dedication Ceremony on Friday, April 20.  Hope to see you at this special evening for the 3rd Grade class.

The 5th and 6th Graders will be participating in the World Wide Wrap on Sunday, from 10:00-11:00 am.  This program introduces the students to Tefillan through both a video and practicing wrapping the Tefillan.  It would be great if 5th and 6th Grade parents could also make it to this important event.

Mark your calendars for the next Shabbat Family Experience on Saturday, February 11.  For the following Shabbat Family Experience (Saturday, March 10) we will be meeting at Handmaker for some special programming with the seniors.  

Sunday, February 12 is our Tu B'Shevat in the Park.  We will be meeting at McDonald Park at 9:30 am and having three rotations (a Tu B'Shevat Seder, planting parsley seeds and Israeli dancing) in addition to going on a nature walk.

Please watch your mail for information about our Spring Fundraiser, "The Phantom of Shushan."  I will be there and hope to see you.  

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Teachers' Classroom Recaps:

Kindergarten – Elana Weiner 

This week we learned the letter lamed. We talked about the lulav that we shook on Sukkot and how shaking the lulav reminds us that G-d is everywhere. We drew pictures of our favorite places to remind us that G-d is our favorite places too! We also started working on our very special prayer that we are going to lead at our Shabbat dinner and services coming up in March.  

1st Grade – Renee Hulsey

The first graders are such a wonderful group of kids!  I love working with them!  This week we reviewed all of the Hebrew letters and vowels we've learned so far.  Then, we realized that we can already read a few words!  It was very exciting for them to read the flashcards with the words "Shabbat," "challah," and "Torah."  We also had a very lively, hands-on Q and A with Rabbi Herman in the Chapel while we looked closely at a Torah.  Next week I've promised the students that we will each make our own Torah!

2nd Grade – Emily Riley-Saxton 

This week in 2nd grade we continued our study of the Hebrew months including discussing Tu B'Shevat.  We are in Chapter 10 of the workbook while also doing the Hebrew script workbook and a Hebrew primer.  We reviewed vowels and practiced oh vs. ooh using our bodies (oh when you hit your head and ooh when your hit in the stomach).  We finished the week with Simon says Hebrew body parts. 

The 3rd graders did a great job on their quiz and booklets after studying Deborah and Mt. Tabor.  Their mini maps are progressing as they add more or more places to mark and label.  They are becoming quite the Israel Map Navagators! In Hebrew this week, they focused on the letters "Pey" & "Samech", with their key word, "Pesach".  They took hope a practice page so they can practice. (The more practice the better).  I do hope to see you and your child at the Shabbat Dinner on February 17 as well as the Tu B'Shevat in the Park on February 12! Awesome job 3rd graders!

4th Grade – Rebecca Grossberg 

This week in 4th grade we learned about the upcoming holiday Tu B'shevat and played a few fun games. In Hebrew we began our unit on the Mi Chamocha. We are looking forward to more fun activities this Sunday!  

The fifth graders made paper dolls for our life cycle unit.  They cut pictures out of magazines that represent parts of their identities and pasted them on their dolls.  They will utilize the dolls through many Jewish life cycle rituals: from birth to death. 

6th grade students had a passionate discussion about how we can use labor unions as inspiration for action in our own lives this week.  We used the lives of several notable pro-labor Jewish personalities such as Rabbi Stephan Wise, Editor Abraham Cahan, and labor leaders Sidney Hillman and David Dubinski.  In addition we discussed the devastating Triangle Shirtwaist Company fire in which 150 young women, the majority of them Jewish, died. Students also began work on their murals depicting several famous Jews and events from the 1930s.  They will present these in class on Sunday.  

The 7th and 8th Graders are continuing to get ready for their Yom HaShoah service.  They also helped feed the homeless on Wednesday as part of Operation Deep Freeze: Project Hospitality.

• Our Portion for the Week •

BESHALAH – EXODUS 13:17 – 17:16
In this portion we follow the Israelites' journey to the Red Sea, where they find themselves trapped by pursuing Egyptian forces. God effects the miraculous crossing of the sea and the destruction of the Egyptians, and the Israelites rejoice, singing the "Song of the Sea". The journey to Sinai may now be resumed, but three challenges are immediately encountered. The people complain that they have no bread. In response, God provides the manna and gives directions for gathering it during the week and for the Sabbath. They further complain that they have no water, and God provides it from a rock. Finally, when the people are attacked by the Amalekites, Joshua leads a band of soldiers who defeat the attackers while Moses holds up the staff of God to encourage the Israelites. These incidents all serve to highlight the difficulty of transforming slaves into free men, who can rely on God yet act on their own behalf.

• Our Question for the Week •

Then Miriam the prophetess, Aaron's sister, took a timbrel in her hand, and all the women went out after her in dance with timbrels."
(Exodus 15:20)
Are women more religious than men? In what way? Are men and women religious in different ways? Is gender a helpful distinction in thinking about Jewish belief and practice? Do we have a "boy crisis"? Is it possible to make such broad-stroke statements?
Over the last 25 years the overwhelming majority of Conservative congregations have become egalitarian. Some people have suggested that there is no longer a place in the Conservative movement for non-egalitarian congregations. What do you think? How do you understand a movement in which some congregations are led by female rabbis and cantors while others forbid or limit women's participation in ritual?

 Candlelighting for
Friday, January 27, 2012 • 5:34 pm

• Our Portion for the Week •

BO – EXODUS 10:1 – 13:16
In this portion we continue the account of the ten plagues with the last three. The plagues of locusts and darkness are described, and then the account is interrupted in order to record a detailed set of instructions that God gives to Moses and Aaron to prepare the Israelites for freedom. They are first directed to establish a calendar starting with the month of liberation, Nisan. The calendar is meant to provide social and religious cohesion as well as to symbolize the free man’s ability, indeed responsibility, to mark time. Then follow directions for offering the paschal sacrifice – to be eaten in haste – and for smearing blood on the doorposts and lintels so Israelite houses will be spared the final plague. God then passes over the land and kills all the first-born sons of the Egyptians, whereupon Pharaoh finally sends the Israelites out and they begin their journey toward Sinai. The Exodus is the key event in all of Jewish history, and the instructions given here are by way of assuring that we remember God’s role as redeemer to eternity.

• Our Question for the Week •

And the blood on the houses where you are staying shall be a sign for you: when I see the blood I will pass over you, so that no plague will destroy you when I strike the land of Egypt.
(Exodus 12:13)
Why were the Israelites commanded to mark their houses with blood? Even in the unlikely event that they lived in mixed neighborhoods with their Egyptian masters, surely God knew who lived in each house, just as He knew who was firstborn. For whom was this sign intended? Was it meant as an act of defiance? A sign of faith? A test of commitment? Today we place mezuzot on our doorposts. What does this mean to you? Have you ever felt uneasy about making this public declaration of your Jewishness? How do you explain the mezuzah to strangers who ask about it?

Please watch your mail for information about our Spring Fundraiser, "The Phantom of Shushan." I will be there and hope to see you.

Thank you to all of the 6th-8th Graders and 3rd-5th Graders who have signed up for parts in your special Friday evening services (6th-8th Grade Service is Friday, January 27. The 3rd-5th Grade Service is Friday, February 17.) If your child would still like to participate, there are spots available. For future reference, the K-2nd Grade Shabbat Service will be Friday, March 23 and the 3rd Grade Siddur Dedication Ceremony will be Friday, April 20.

Mark your calendars for the next Shabbat Family Experience on Saturday, February 11.  For the following one (Saturday, March 10) we will be meeting at Handmaker for some special programming with the seniors.   

Sunday, February 12 is our Tu B'Shevat in the Park.  We will be meeting at McDonald Park at 9:30 am and having three rotations (a Tu B'Shevat Seder, planting parsley seeds and Israeli dancing) in addition to going on a nature walk.

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Teachers' Classroom Recaps:

Kindergarten – Elana Weiner 

The kindergarten class learned the names of the animals in Hebrew.  We are also continuing to learn the letters and are up to "kaf."

1st Grade – Renee Hulsey

The first graders are doing such a great job with learning to recognize the Hebrew letters.  We now know 16 letters and three vowels.  We are working on writing the letters as well as knowing their names and sounds.  We are on track for learning all of the letters by the end of this year!!  In Judaics, we learned about our Torah this week.  We know that a scribe uses a quill to write the letters on parchment to create a Torah.  Lastly, we have started preparing to lead Friday night services with our kindergarten and second grade friends on March 23rd. Please mark this date on your calendars!  It will be a wonderful opportunity for our parents to see how beautifully we daven!

2nd Grade – Emily Riley-Saxton 

The class has been learning the Hebrew days of the week and recently began learning about the Hebrew months. Ask your child if he/she remembers which Hebrew month he/she was born in!

The 3rd graders have done a really good job on their booklets, that tell and illustrates Deborah the Prophetess and Barak's battle at Mt. Tabor in Northern Israel. They learned about Rosh Chodesh and the month "Shevat", and that Tu B' Shevat  is approaching. In Hebrew, they learned the vowel "segol" and worked on prayer building blocks and new key words. They  took home a practice page for the week! Please keep encouraging your child to practice. Great job 3rd graders! 

4th Grade – Rebecca Grossberg 

The fourth grade is learning about Kabbalah, or Jewish mysticism. They learned about stories of humans speaking to God (Moses and the burning bush) and then formed their own mystical story.

The fifth grade class learned about Israeli food and got to taste some of the foods (hummus, pita, krembo and bisli to name a few!) We are beginning our unit on Jewish life cycle rituals from birth to death. 

This week, the sixth grade was busy running through history.  We covered the opression Jewish immigrants from Eastern Europe faced, explored the living conditions on the lower east side of New York, learned about the Protocols of the Elders of Zion and the damage it caused.  In addition we also learned about the Reconstructionist movement in Judaism.  Finally, we started our unit on the movement of labor unions and the participation of several noteable American Jews including Samuel Gompers and Louis Brandeis. In tefilah we continued to work on Birkat Hamazon.  I look forward to seeing several of my students and their parents this Friday evening at Shabbat services for our class dinner! 

The 7th and 8th graders divided up parts for the Religious School Yom HaShoah Service and examined pictures from Poland and Israel to determine which to use for the service.  The kids had a great time!

Mark your calendars for the next Shabbat Family Experience on Saturday, February 11.  For the following one (Saturday, March 10) we will be meeting at Handmaker for some special programming with the seniors.  

Sunday, February 12 is our Tu B' Shevat in the Park.  We will be meeting at McDonald Park at 9:30 am and having three rotations (a Tu Bishvat Seder, planting parsley seeds and Israeli dancing) in addition to going on a nature walk.

Please also save the date on Sunday, March 25 for our Keep on Truckin' Festival!

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Teachers' Classroom Recaps:

Kindergarten – Elana Weiner 

• Our Portion for the Week •

VAERA – EXODUS 6:2 – 9:35
In this portion God reiterates His pledge to redeem His people from slavery and promises severe punishment for the Egyptians. A contest then ensues between the will of God and the will of pharaoh. Moses and Aaron make another appeal to pharaoh and in the process humiliate his magicians. The appeal, however, is again rejected. There follow the first seven of ten plaques that God must inflict on the Egyptians in order to achieve the release of the Israelites. The plaques of blood, frogs, lice, swarms of insects, pestilence, boils and hail (as well as locusts, darkness and the slaying of the first-born, which are related in the next portion) demonstrate God's ability to manipulate nature and to protect His people. Since a number of the plaques were directed against Egyptian divinities, we also have here the beginning of the Israelite war on polytheism.

• Our Question for the Week •

The Lord said to Moses and Aaron, "When Pharaoh speaks to you and says, 'Produce your marvel [literally, produce a marvel for you],' you shall say to Aaron, 'Take your rod and cast it down before Pharaoh.' It shall turn into a serpent."
(Exodus 7:8-9)
Why did God choose to bring the Israelites out of Egypt by means of the ten plagues? Was it to make a theological point – there is only one true God? Was it justifiable punishment for what the Egyptians had done, with perhaps a bit of revenge? Was it midah keneged midah – measure for measure, making the punishment fit the crime? Were the plagues also intended to provide lessons for the Israelites? What were they, and we, meant to learn?

• Our Portion for the Week •

VAERA – EXODUS 6:2 – 9:35
In this portion God reiterates His pledge to redeem His people from slavery and promises severe punishment for the Egyptians. A contest then ensues between the will of God and the will of pharaoh. Moses and Aaron make another appeal to pharaoh and in the process humiliate his magicians. The appeal, however, is again rejected. There follow the first seven of ten plaques that God must inflict on the Egyptians in order to achieve the release of the Israelites. The plaques of blood, frogs, lice, swarms of insects, pestilence, boils and hail (as well as locusts, darkness and the slaying of the first-born, which are related in the next portion) demonstrate God’s ability to manipulate nature and to protect His people. Since a number of the plaques were directed against Egyptian divinities, we also have here the beginning of the Israelite war on polytheism.

• Our Question for the Week •

The Lord said to Moses and Aaron, "When Pharaoh speaks to you and says, ‘Produce your marvel [literally, produce a marvel for you],’ you shall say to Aaron, ‘Take your rod and cast it down before Pharaoh.’ It shall turn into a serpent."
(Exodus 7:8-9)
Why did God choose to bring the Israelites out of Egypt by means of the ten plagues? Was it to make a theological point – there is only one true God? Was it justifiable punishment for what the Egyptians had done, with perhaps a bit of revenge? Was it midah keneged midah – measure for measure, making the punishment fit the crime? Were the plagues also intended to provide lessons for the Israelites? What were they, and we, meant to learn?

Event proceeds support CAI’s preschool/kindergarten, religious school and youth education programs.

AUCTION
We are committed to making “The Phantom of Shushan” a huge success. As such, we are soliciting merchandise and/or services for the event auction. By making a donation for the auction, you’ll be making a tax-deductible contribution and you will gain valuable exposure at the event. Each year’s auction bidders and winners avidly support donors throughout the year.

We’d love to be able to include you in the auction and the event program. Please complete and return the Auction Donation Form. After receipt, a member of the event committee will contact you for follow-up. Thank you for your support!

SPONSORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES
By becoming a “The Phantom of Shushan” sponsor, you’ll be making a tax-deductible contribution and you will gain valuable exposure in the event program. Please complete and return the Sponsor Form. After receipt, a member of the event committee will contact you for follow-up. Thank you for your support!

We’d love to see you at what we hope will be a memorable and fun evening celebrating Purim!

We may be called “Baby Boomers,” but we’re not defined by a number. We’re vibrant, active, involved and so much more! If that describes YOU, then join us! Singles and couples welcome.

For more information about The CAI Connection, please contact Barb Neuman.