JK's Crazy Critters

This morning in Mrs. Gilbert's class, our JK-er's used their creative juices to create their very own "critters" out of special connective blocks.  From butterflies to caterpillars to flowers, they conjured up some very unique creatures... Check out photos below!

The Yummiest Graggers

Mrs. Brandt's ECC students are getting into the Purim spirit! This morning they were working on their edible graggers to shake (and then eat!) when they hear Hamman's name.  First they beautifully decorated the plastic tubes and then filled the tubes with different foods to hear which foods made the  most noise.  They used fruit loops, chocolate chips, and raisins and concluded that the fruit loops made the best "Ra'ashan" (Hebrew for noise-maker).  The best part about these awesome graggers? If you get hungry during megillah reading, you have a snack waiting for you!

HAMC Alums Hear from Lieutenant Schaeffer

At the most recent PGLP program, HAMC alums heard the inspirational words of Mr. Schaeffer, a Jewish First Lieutenant in the US Marines.  He shared his stories and experiences from the military, as well as some of the challenges he faces being a Jew in a predominantly non Jewish military environment - especially the Marines which is a gruelingly difficult position to reach.  Schaeffer emphasized the importance of being both mentally and physically strong in life in order to get through the ups and downs that life may throw at us.  Our alums walked away from the program with a newfound appreciation for the values of resilience and strength which Lieutenant Schaeffer surely possesses.

"Teaching Excellence" in the ECC

As a part of the "Teaching Excellence" initiative, our ECC teachers have been taking professional development workshops with Mrs. Rubin towards curriculum enhancements and innovative resources. Our teachers are extremely enthusiastic about the training sessions and have already implemented much of what they have learned in their classrooms.  We visited Mrs. Brandt's classroom to see what the buzz was all about! After attending the  "Literacy Center Workshop", Mrs. Brandt is utilizing creative writing "centers" as stepping stones towards literacy.  At one station, the students are tracing their names in sand.  At another station, they are matching cut-out letters to the letters of their name.  At another, they are writing their names in shaving cream.  All of these centers are steps in the right direction towards eventually writing their own names with pen and paper! 
Check out  photos below to see these literacy centers in action!

Keep up with our Teaching Excellence newsletter; learn more about these ECC workshops and all the other amazing ways our teachers are continously learning for our students. 

Our teachers are the BEST! Don't forget to remind them once in a while :)

Moreh Moshe visits Kindergarten Scientists

This week in Moreh Moshe's weekly message, we visit with our Kindergarten scientists exploring the scientific world of water and wood.

Watch so see what happens when they put a block of wood into a basin of water...

Enjoy!
 

Welcome to Camp HAMC!

On Thursday morning, sleepaway camp invaded HAMC! Martin Sipicki, a special visitor from Argentina came to the HAMC to give the middle school students a feel for the incredible NJY sleepaway camps.  While some of our students already go to NJY sleepaway camps (Camp Cedar Lake, Camp Nesher, and more) others are getting ready to go for their first time this summer! Our visitors put us into the camp spirit, teaching us some catchy camp-fire songs, playing a heated game of Simon Says, and singing and dancing to a camp favorite "Salaam".  If we weren't excited for sleepaway camp already, we definitely were after this special event!


For more information on NJY Jewish sleepaway camps click link below:
http://njycamps.org/camps/

Tu B'Shvat Higiah...

"Tu B'Shvat higiah chag ha ilanot..." Tu B'shvat has arrived; the holiday of the trees!
The Tu B'shvat spirit was flowing through the halls of the HAMC yesterday as the entire school attended an all day Tu B'Shvat program in the auditorium.  When the students walked in, an authentic Tu B'shvat Seder was waiting for them, with a table adorned with the Sheva Minim (7 Species); wheat, barley, grapes, figs, pomegranates, olives, and dates.  Everything tasted delicious!  The younger grades created delicious edible "dirt" and planted seeds in real soil, followed by an energetic scavenger hunt to find the materials to "grow a tree".


Later in the day, our middle school had some special visitors from Lester Senior Housing.  Mrs. Knapp organized a beautiful art project using colorful paints and white canvases to create different nature scenes (flowers, trees, sunsets, etc.).  The student's artistic talents emerged and the final products were incredible (see photos below!).  Before the seniors left, Moreh  Moshe joined the students in serenading our visitors with some spirit-filled Tu B'shvat songs.  Everyone had a great time and it was a wonderful celebration of the day.