Schools

This Chanukah was “full of light” for the sixth graders at the Bais Yaakov Academy of Queens, not only with the light of the menorah, but the light that comes from bringing joy to others who are less fortunate. BYQ’s Heart2Heart Shabbos Kit project, a chesed project program now in its fourth year, had sixth graders craft special Chanukah-themed Shabbos kits that were distributed at North Shore University Hospital for those who needed to spend this special time away from home.

This past Monday, Rambam played host to a special assembly hearing Maria Ntourlia, the Tri-State Area High School Coordinator for StandWithUs, speak.

MTA’s 11^th annual Makor Chaim Exchange Program is off to a great start, as 14 MTA Sophomores arrived in Israel at Yeshivat Makor Chaim on Tuesday, December 31. Located in Kibbutz Kfar Etzion, Yeshivat Makor Chaim was founded by noted Jewish educators Rabbi Adin Steinsaltz and Rabbi Dov Singer.

The entire Central community was invited to school on Wednesday morning for the Annual Family Yom Iyun with Rabbi Aryeh Lebowitz, Rosh Yeshiva at Yeshiva University. The morning began with t’filah and a light breakfast of fruit and yummy doughnuts.

MTA talmidim in Rabbi Kerner’s Sophomore Shiur volunteered at Masbia of Queens: A Community-Supported Kosher Soup Kitchen and Food Pantry, on Thursday morning, January 2. Talmidim were grateful for the opportunity to give back to the community and help an organization that provides vital resources. The talmidim worked hard alongside their rebbe and returned to yeshivah feeling spiritually fulfilled. 

Integrating Chanukah throughout general studies’ learning added “an extra spin” all week at BYQ! Although every grade celebrated with Chanukah activities, here are some highlights. The first graders thoroughly enjoyed their special Chanukah-themed activities! The girls spun dreidels and created graphs to show their results. What a fun way to explore graphs! They practiced writing adjectives to describe delicious Chanukah foods and beautiful Chanukah pictures of doughnuts, menorahs, and latkes. Reading practice turned into a Chanukah activity when the girls spun a dreidel that had a consonant blend on each side. They wrote words beginning with those blends on their own paper dreidels. The girls matched flames and candle numerals to their number words and glued them on to a menorah.