Four young men from Yeshivas Chofetz Chaim, NY (two of them home-grown: Ariel Darrison & Nosson Felt) arrived last week to learn in our beis medrash and to mentor our boys. They will be staying until Shavuos. Their presence has already greatly enhanced the atmosphere.
Category Archives: Students
Parenting moments
Most of what we do as parents comes down to those few (maybe not so few) precious moments when we have an interaction with our child that will remain with them for life. If only we can plan those moments. Pesach is one such time that not only is already set in our calendar butContinue reading “Parenting moments”
Shabbos Parashas Tzav
Obedience
Obedience is a word that is somewhat out of fashion but that doesn’t mean it is not important. So how do we learn it and more importantly how do we teach it. The first step is to understand why it is so difficult to be obedient. In Tanach we find a story with Dovid HamelechContinue reading “Obedience”
Celebrating Our Students
Schools do not celebrate their students enough. It is as simple as that. Students sent to the Principal’s office are generally asked to go for disciplinary reasons. Phone calls home are hardly ever to say your child did something great today. Even grades are less than celebratory as 60% of our primary grading system (A-F)Continue reading “Celebrating Our Students”
The power of yet
This week as I returned from the 2015 North American Jewish Day School Conference and I was asked by one of my teachers what my tolerance for change was? This question came after I was discussing some of the great things I learned at the conference, what I presented and how much of it fit into someContinue reading “The power of yet”
Oneg Shabbos
This weeks’ Parsha (Parshas Vayakhel) the Torah begins with the laws of keeping Shabbos. Following this the Torah continues with the intricacies of building the Mishkan. The Gemora questions the juxtaposition between Shabbos and the Mishkan and tells us that it is from the building of the Mishkan that we learn the laws of Shabbos.Continue reading “Oneg Shabbos “
Be (in)credibile
On the top ten list of what parents and teachers have to watch out for is not losing their credibility. When a parent threatens a child with a consequence and doesn’t follow through or when they make a promise and can’t carry it out – they lose credibility. That leaves a child without the securityContinue reading “Be (in)credibile”
Becoming passionate
I was reading an article this week entitled “Passion takes a teacher from being merely good to great” written by Adrian Furnham for The London Telegraph. In it he argues, “Teachers can, and do, change lives. They can light candles in the darkest mind. They can mold beliefs and behaviors, setting an example to follow.Continue reading “Becoming passionate”
Howl Auditions
This was a jam-packed week of learning, professional development for the administration, a visit from a congressman and a beautiful Rosh Chodesh Davening with a fun and entertaining Rosh Chodesh Adar breakfast. There are so many things about this week that I want to share and will hopefully share some of it in future posts.Continue reading “Howl Auditions”
Rosh Chodesh 5775 at the Girls Division
Valley Torah Girls celebrated Rosh Chodesh Adar by spending Thursday afternoon in the park. The girls enjoyed a delicious lunch and had fun playing a school-wide game. Thank you to Mrs. Shira Pollack and to the Rosh Chodesh Committee for planning such an enjoyable afternoon. Chodesh Tov!
Live Blog playoff game one
Valley Torah up 13-3 with 4:00 in 1st Q. VT leading 17-3 with 3:15 in 1st. Max Leibowitz makes a free throw. 25-3 with 1:00 in 1st End of first-quarter Valley Torah leads 28-3. 2nd Q begins: we lead 31-3 with 6:00 left in the half. 35-8 with 4:00 40-10 with 2:00 End of theContinue reading “Live Blog playoff game one”
Improv and Engineering Are The Same?
This week our ComedySportz High School League team had its third workshop from our ComedySportz coach. The team meets daily as part of the Improvisational Arts and Speech class, but every other month they get coached by Tom Clark of ComedySportzLA. He is great and has taught our students amazing improv skills. This week theContinue reading “Improv and Engineering Are The Same?”
My child, not my possession
This semester we started a new Perek in all the Gemora classes. The Gemora the talmidim are doing is the Eighth Perek in Bava Metziah. The first sugya in the Gemora is about the “Daled Shomrim” the four different types of custodians. The Gemora brings a Mishna that lists the responsibilities of the different custodiansContinue reading “My child, not my possession”
Finding a (spiritual) mentor
In an article written for Forbes magazine, Dr. Steven Berglas an executive coach and management consultant who, for over 25 years, was on the faculty of Harvard Medical School’s Department of Psychiatry, declares “find a mentor”. He tells us that this isn’t his personal opinion, rather he affirms that “studies show, most people who succeedContinue reading “Finding a (spiritual) mentor”