Category: Jewish Studies

Grade 7: WWI and The Treaty of Versailles

mwasherstein / / Grade 7 - Mr. Washerstein

How could the Holocaust happen?

As we continue to study and analyze the various components of the Grade 7 Jewish Studies curriculum, this week we are beginning to set up the Holocaust. Rather than diving directly into the start of the Holocaust, the Grade 7 class is learning about WWI. This foundation will play a vital role in understanding the historical context in which the Holocaust began.

The WWI/Treaty of Versailles Presentation and Guided Notes Packet are attached. This will be useful for students who missed any of the notes during class. Students should review their notes throughout the week.

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Grades 6-8: Rabbi Bulka Kindness Project Update

mwasherstein / / Rabbi Bulka Kindness Project

The Middle School Students have been busy participating in a variety of Rabbi Bulka Kindness Project experiences. Today the Grade 6A class visited Hillel Lodge and ran a special Kabbalat Shabbat Program. They led a Shabbat Bingo experience for residents. What a great way to bring in Shabbat with valued members of our community.

 

Speaking of Hillel Lodge, last week we launched our “L’Dor Vador: Passing Wisdom from Generation to Generation” international program. This initiative connects middle school students with elderly members of our Hillel Lodge community through monthly meetups. The program fosters meaningful connections by exploring Jewish traditions, history, and values through storytelling, shared rituals, and collaborative projects. Each session focuses on a different theme, such as traditions, Jewish resilience, and tikkun olam (repairing the world), promoting cross-generational learning and cultural continuity. The program culminates in a final presentation where participants showcase their shared experiences and creative projects, celebrating the bonds they’ve formed. 

Students had to apply to participate in this program. There we over 20 applications! Last week students met their partners and interviewed them to learn more about their lives. We look forward to nourishing these incredible newfound relationships.

The students participating in this program are:

  1. Noa (Grade 6)
  2. Gila (Grade 6)
  3. Shayna (Grade 6)
  4. Eli (Grade 6)
  5. Nikki (Grade 6)
  6. Noa P.(Grade 7)
  7. Noa B. (Grade 7)
  8. Lily (Grade 7)
  9. Tehila (Grade 8)
  10. Ariel (Grade 8)
  11. Zohar (Grade 8)     

Lastly, our Grade 8 class recently went to KBI to help pack food for community members in need with Jewish Family Services. Students aided in the packing of boxes for the Miriam’s Well Program. 

Rabbinics Quiz on Wednesday, Dec. 4 for Grade 7

dkogut / / Grade 7 - Moreh David

As stated in a previous post, on the homework board and in class, there will be a Rabbinics quiz on Wednesday. I have included a link to all necessary material below. Students are responsible for Mishnah Brachot 1:1-1:4 and not the 5th Mishnah on that page which we did not yet cover. There is also a math element to this quiz, which is also outlined toward the bottom of the document. I have also included a study page and vocabulary words at the bottom, which student should know for the quiz. The lists of vocab words after each Mishnah, is not necessarily part of the quiz, only the key words at the bottom. We will have a study period on Monday and I will be available to answer questions. Good luck to all and study hard!

 

Moreh David

 

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Img6D6NfdyFVpAL7ZQEqQsFCYMzwnjh6W4vZbiOYW8M/edit?usp=sharing

Grade 7 Rabbinics – Mishnah Brachot

dkogut / / Grade 7 - Moreh David

Here is a link to the material that we’ve been working on in class. This link contains the text of the Mishnah in both Hebrew and transliterated English, as well as the vocabulary words that will help to understand the mishnayot. Students have printed versions of each Mishnah as well, where they were instructed to keep notes that help them fully understand.

There will be a quiz on this material – the first chapter of Mishnayot Brachot (Brachot 1:1-5), as well as the math that helps to understand the “Zmanim” (prayer times) for a Jewish day. the quiz will be on December 4th.

Explanation of math:

12 hours in a Jewish day (Sunrise to sunset)

  1. We take the daylight hours and convert to minutes, then divide by 12, to find the length of an hour on any particular day. (Ex: sunrise 7am, sunset 6pm = 11 hour of sun = 660 minutes of sun. 660/12 = 55 minutes in a Jewish hour)
  2. Decide what time we want to find, such as time for Kriyat Shema is 3 hours into the daylight, or chatzot is halfway point of the day (6 hours into sunlight).
  3. Zma’an Kriyat Shema will be done at 9:45 am (3 jewish hours into the sunlight of the day) nd Chazot will be at 12:30 (6 Jewish hours into the day).
  4. We are also understanding that Shabbat comes in 18 minutes before sunset.

 

 

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Img6D6NfdyFVpAL7ZQEqQsFCYMzwnjh6W4vZbiOYW8M/edit?usp=sharing

 

 

Baruch She’amar and Yishtabach

dkogut / / Grade 6 - Moreh David, Grade 7 - Moreh David, Grade 8 - Moreh David

These two tunes are a part of the daily tefillah each morning for Middle School. We are slowly teaching the Middle School students these new tunes for these two tefillot and it would be helpful for them to listen to them at home to get to know them better. The words and recordings are attached.

 

Baruch She’amar and Yishtabach words

Baruch She’amar

Yishtabach

Grades 6-8: Rabbi Bulka Kindness Project Student Challenge

mwasherstein / / Grade 6 - Mr. Washerstein, Grade 7 - Mr. Washerstein, Grade 8 - Mr. Washerstein

A father and his son were attempting to create mini Lego figurines of themselves. The father, Shai Davidai, decided to create his mini figurine with a yellow ribbon, a Star of David, and the words “Bring Them Home”. The manager of the Lego establishment informed him that Lego wouldn’t print the figurine because the company sees the hostages as a political issue (which violates their printing policy). To support the hostages and teach Lego a lesson, this father decided to start a campaign using Lego. As Shai stated, “Lego is about bringing families together. Let’s bring all the families together. Let’s #BringThemHomeLego”. 

The Challenge: 

  • Families are invited to use their Lego at home to showcase the message “Bring Them Home” or create a yellow ribbon to show their support for the hostages and their families.
  • Parents can post these images using the hashtag #BringThemHomeLego.
    • If you choose to participate, please share a photo with your child’s teacher as well
  • Let’s see which class has the most participation in this fantastic initiative.

Grades 7 & 8: Rabbi Bulka Kindness Project Update

mwasherstein / / Grade 7 - Mr. Washerstein, Grade 8 - Mr. Washerstein

Today the students in Grade 7 visited the Jewish Memorial Gardens Cemetery. The students met with representatives from the cemetery to learn about their important work within our community. They also read narratives of local Ottawa Jewish veterans who served our country in various ways. Students were then broken into groups and were provided with 15-20 gravesites to mark with Canadian flags. The students had the opportunity to pay their respects to these veterans who risked their lives for our freedoms. This was one of the many Remembrance Day activities our students engaged in throughout the week.

 

 

Last week, members of the Grade 8 class spent their morning visiting residents of Hillel Lodge for a Kabbalat Shabbat program. Students sang tefillot and helped residents create Shabbat candles out of beeswax! In addition, some students coloured Shabbat-themed pictures with their partners. We look forward to Kabbalat Shabbat programs in the future!

Grades 6-8: Rabbi Bulka Kindness Project Update

mwasherstein / / Grade 6 - Mr. Washerstein, Grade 7 - Mr. Washerstein, Grade 8 - Mr. Washerstein, Rabbi Bulka Kindness Project

Our students have been quite busy throughout the last month with various Rabbi Bulka Kindness Project experiences. Last week our middle school students visited the Beechwood Cemetery (Canada’s National Military Cemetery) to participate in a dedication ceremony that honored the incredible accomplishments of Rabbi Bulka. This program highlighted Rabbi Bulka’s contributions to the Canadian Armed Forces and Ottawa Jewish Community School’s adoption of the Rabbi Bulka Kindness Project. Students were able to hear from active members of the military who spoke of Rabbi Bulka’s commitment to promoting kindness and strengthening our community. We will strive to create our own community of kindness as we embark upon our various Rabbi Bulka Kindness Project initiatives.

As the week progressed, members of the Grade 6 class created some chain links for the Hillel Lodge sukkah. Students worked together to create beautiful decorations for the sukkah and were able to deliver their decorations to the residents. We look forward to our monthly visits to Hillel Lodge.

Finally, our middle school students spent time over the last two weeks learning about the horrific events that took place on October 7th, while also focusing on how we can show support to our Jewish community both near and far. Our students joined other Jewish day schools around the world to participate in the Yad B’Yad Initiative. Students created hands to help spread positivity and showcase their support for Israel, the IDF, the hostages (and their families).

D’var Torah Schedule for Grades 6-8

dkogut / / Grade 6 - Moreh David, Grade 7 - Moreh David, Grade 8 - Moreh David

Below is the link to see which week each student is responsible for doing a D’var Torah on the weekly Torah portion.
Students are responsible for giving a short summary of the content of the Parsha, as well as elaborating on something we can learn from the Parsha. I have included helpful links below that will provide you with all of this information for each Parsha.

Sign up sheet/D’var Torah schedule

Here are two online resources for preparing the D’var Torah.

https://www.chabad.org/ – The right side of the page has a link to the current week’s parsha. If you are preparing in advance, use the search bar and enter the name of your parsha to find info on that parsha.

https://www.myjewishlearning.com/torah-portions/ – The top of this page has the current week’s Torah portion and if you scroll down, you can find links to any Torah portion.