Religious School Archives | Congregation of Temple Sinai-Vermont

Mazel Tov, Emme!

November 21, 2019 by directorjudy • Religious School, Temple News •

Emme with her Fire Safety poster We are all so proud of Kitah Gimmels’s (3rd grader) Emme Stein whose drawing for the Vermont DPS Division of Fire Safety’s annual calendar contest earned an Honorable Mention. Emme was invited to the Vermont Statehouse in Montpelier, where she was recognized for her contribution by none other than Governor Phil Scott!

Go Emme!

Photo of Emme with Governor Scott — Emme with Governor Phil Scott

Group photo with Smoky Bear and Sparky the Fire Dog

November’s Here!

November 4, 2019 by directorjudy • Religious School •

Shalom Horim:

We are now in the Hebrew month of Heshvan, often called “Mar” or “Bitter” Heshvan, because there are no holidays in the month. Having come off the month of Tishrei, in which there seem to be an endless supply of holidays, Heshvan can seem downright non-celebratory, or as I like to think of it, very restful.

But … we do have quite a bit going on here this month. This Saturday is the first of our Whole School Services for the school year. Please join us, at 10 a.m. for a musical morning of song and prayer.

Value of the Month

Our value this month is Kibud Av V’Em, Honoring One’s Parents, or Ancestors

What does it mean to honor one’s parents? Why does the commandment say “honor” rather than “love”?

One of the projects our school is doing is compiling a family tree and family stories. Each child will go home with a Family Tree template – feel free to use this or if you’d like, you may download one of your own. Help your child in filling it out, with names (and you may include pictures) of family members. It would also be wonderful if your child could interview a family member and ask about a time when this member exemplified a Jewish value. All these family trees and stories will be compiled into a book. Some to consider, but not limited to:

Welcoming Guests (Hachnasat Orchim)
Honoring One’s Parents/Ancestors (Kibud Av v’Em)
Doing the Right Thing (Derech Eretz)
Guarding Your Tongue (Shmirat HaLashon)
Do Not Destroy the Environment (Bal Tashchit)
Righteousness and Charity (Tzedakah)
Do Not Oppress the Stranger (Al Tilchatz)
Ahavat Tzion (Love of Israel)

Letter of the Week

Our letter this week is Gimmel.

Stop by our bulletin board and see how many gimmel words you know.

Bulletin Board Gimmel

Don’t forget, for the little ones, we have a Tot Shabbat on November 15, which is also the date that our 7-8 Grade class is going to UVM to prepare dinner, attend a Hillel service, and dine with the students.

Kol tuv,

Morah Judy

Religious School Weekly Update – October 23, 2019

October 31, 2019 by templesinai • Religious School, Temple News •

Shalom Horim/Dear Parents:

With the holidays now behind us (not counting Halloween*), we can get into a somewhat normal routine without major distractions.

In case you haven’t already received it, check out the school calendar. Please note when your child’s class service is (class services begin in January and are usually the first Friday night of the month to coincide with Folk Services). They begin with a Pot Luck dinner at 5:30 sponsored by the host class.

In addition to the class services, there are two Whole School Shabbats: the first on Nov. 9 and the next one of Feb. 15. This is a great way for your family to experience a Saturday morning service at Temple and for our students to practice the prayers they are learning.

This past week our Letter of the Week was Lamed, as in Lulav, which we shook on Sukkot.

Hebrew letter Lamed

as in:
Lulav, Night (Lailah), Lemon (Limon), Bread (Lechem)

Starting tomorrow, our Letter of the Week is Aleph.

Hebrew letter Aleph

Letter of the week - Aleph on bulletin board

Lastly, with all the events we’ve had at Temple involving food, A LOT of plates, containers, bags, baking pans, etc. have gotten left behind in the kitchen. Next time you’re here, please check to see if maybe some are yours. Additionally, we’ve got quite a collection of water bottles piling up. Maybe one of those is yours too?

Best wishes for a sweet and Happy New Year,

Morah Judy

PS – if you know folks with young children, or you yourself have a child too young for school, please know that we have a monthly Tot Shabbat on the third Friday of the month and Story Hour on the first Sunday of the month. Next Story Hour is Nov. 3 at 10 am and Tot Shabbat is Nov. 15 at 5:30 pm.

*we do NOT have school Oct. 31

Jack-O-Lantern

Religious School Weekly Update – October 10, 2019

October 10, 2019 by templesinai • Religious School, Temple News •

This week is brought to you by the letter DALET.

Some Dalet words

Dvash – Honey – דְ בש

Delet – Door – דֶלֶת

Degel – Flag – דֶגֶל

Dahg – Fish (also the Temple Sinai Rock Band!) – דָג

This Sunday our 7-8 Grade Chai Group is heading to the Living Tree Alliance Farm to learn about Sukkot. On October 17 our Torah Chanting class begins for the 6th Grade class, adults are welcome to join. And on the 20th, at 5:30, we have a fun Simchat Torah celebration where we Consecrate our newest students, dance with the Torah, and have a jolly good time!

Learn to Read Hebrew!

Have you always wanted to learn to read Hebrew but never had the chance? Or it’s been so long you can’t tell an Aleph from a Bet?

Starting October 17, from 7:-8:30 pm, this 8-10 week class will have you reading Hebrew after the first 10 minutes.

No fee. Call 802-862-5125 or email Judy Alexander to register.

Religious School Weekly Update

October 1, 2019 by templesinai • Religious School, Temple News •

Welcome to the first edition of Temple Sinai’s Religious School Weekly Update!

Religious School got off to a great start, with 11 new students this year in grades 1-6, and three new faculty members. In the coming weeks, we will be profiling our Morim/Teachers, so watch for it and make them welcome when you see them at services and other Temple gatherings.

The first week we asked families to send in some of their precious Judaica items, and we had a small ‘museum’ display in the lobby. We also sent home items for the children and their families to create their own beautiful Judaic items, as part of our Value of the Month curriculum, September’s value being Hiddur Mitzvah/Enhancing the Commandment. In other words, creating beautiful Judaic objects to make the mitzvah even sweeter. Over the next few weeks we plan to display these items in our own ‘museum.’ When you come for the High Holidays, particularly Yom Kippur, we should have all our items for the museum on display.

Each week we are highlighting a Hebrew letter of the Alef-Bet, which is displayed on the bulletin board in the school. Also, our Value of the Month poster is on same bulletin board. Feel free to visit and see how many words you can think of with our letters.

Do you have a special talent you would like to share with our schoolchildren? We’d love to have you. Are you able to read Hebrew, even a little bit? We’re looking for volunteers to work one-on-one with some of our students. Let Morah Judy know if you would like to help in any way.

Wishing everyone a Shanah Tovah u’Metookah,
a Happy & Sweet New Year /ֹ שָנָה טוֹבָה וּמְתוּקָה

Morah Judy