Volume 26 Issue 8 - 24 Mar 2017

From the Principal

From the Principal

By now most of you will know that I have indicated to the Emanuel School Board that I will retire at the end of 2017. I want to make sure that you know of my reasons for leaving this great school.

The last 8 years at Emanuel School have been the most fulfilling of my career – leading our school which has such a positive culture of support and focus on learning has been a great highlight. Getting to know each staff member, our students and so many parents has been a real privilege.

This year 2017 marks my 41st year in education in a career that has included government, Catholic, Anglican and Jewish Schools; girls only, boys only and co-educational schools; and positions ranging from Teacher of Mathematics, Head of Department, Deputy Principal Learning and Teaching, and Principal; as well as Year Patron, Sports Organiser and Mathematics Inspector for the then NSW Board of Studies.

Being Principal has been fulfilling and also all-consuming – for the past eight years, even when walking in Nepal, I have not stopped thinking about Emanuel School and its so many facets. It is time now to give more time to my family – to my husband John who retired eight years ago, to my mum who at 92 has just moved into an aged care facility, and to my boys. There’s much to do and I get the sense that I will still be involved in education in some way in the future, but in a less intensive capacity.

In the meantime, I remain devoted to our school and every person who is part of it. I will do my utmost to assist with a smooth transition for the next Principal of Emanuel School and continue to give 110% until I finally walk out of Waxman Gate at the end of the year. I know that I will be extremely sad to leave when the time comes, and that Emanuel School will always take up a large place in my heart.

It has been an amazing week with so many good wishes expressed by the staff, students and many parents. I really appreciate all of these.

Jazz on the Hill

This event has become a wonderful inclusion in our annual calendar – our very own afternoon of good music and good company on the lawns in front of our beautiful sandstone Saunders building, with the children being entertained elsewhere on site at the same time. Make sure that you book in for this afternoon very soon, as time is running out!

It’s this Sunday 26 March here at school from 2 – 5pm and the booking link is http://tinyurl.com/JOTH2017

 A tip

If you really liked the old version of Ma Nishma where the newsletter was a pdf document, you can achieve the same outcome with the online version, by beginning the process of printing it (without actually pressing the final print button).

Mentoring program

Are you working in IT/Medicine/Engineering/Business/Digital Media/Science etc? We are working on setting up a pilot mentoring program this year for some of our students and are looking for people within our community who might be able to assist (please read the page called ‘Pilot Mentoring Program’ in this bulletin).

Special wedding this weekend

Michael Bartels, our Avoca Street Crossing person, is getting married tomorrow to Sharon. The P&F have led a collection for a community wedding present to Michael and raised over $3000, with 117 donations! This is another indication of the amazing community that Emanuel School is and makes me proud to be a part of. We wish Michael and Sharon all the very best for their future together.

Student success

Mazal tov to:

  • The SRC (Student Representative Council) for their Fete on Monday, which raised $1315 for their charity
  • The winning girls’ Years 9/10 Touch team: Tasha Lapidge, Tia Mallinick, Sienna Meyer, Zoe Miller, Alexa Narunsky, Ashlee Orleow, Chelsea Rutstein, Danielle Rutstein, Lara Rutstein, Mia Shapiro and Sarah Sharwood (see the page ‘Touch Football’
  • All of the students involved in Shave for a Cure this week

Coming up

  • Jazz on the Hill, 26 March, 2:30 – 5:00 pm (book via link on Gesher page)
  • Year 11 Three-way learning conversations (previously Parent/Student/Teacher meetings) 30 March, 4:00 – 8:00 pm
  • Year 10 Three-way learning conversations (previously Parent/Student/Teacher meetings) 3 April, 4:00 – 8:00 pm

Quote of the week

‘When it comes to innovation (and other things) brilliance is overrated, and detmination and hard work are underrated.’ [James O’Loghlin]

Best wishes for a restful and reinvigorating weekend.

Shabbat Shalom

 

 

 

From Primary School

Emma Clemens – Deputy Head of Primary

Anxiety and School Refusal – Part 2

Two weeks ago I wrote about anxiety and school refusal after attending a very thought-provoking course presented by child and adolescent psychiatrist, Professor Gordon. The key message throughout the day was that the treatment for school refusal is exposure to school. The longer students are away from school the harder it is to reintegrate. The reason for this is:

  1. A foundation of learning can be lost and students can feel behind academically
  2. Friendships can be difficult to reestablish
  3. The student can exaggerate the concept of returning to school more than the reality.

Professor Gordon offered fourteen practical strategies to assist with anxiety and school refusal. In Week 6 I wrote about the first seven strategies and below are the final seven strategies.

  1. Shared Locus Of Control: Imagine a line that has ‘Parents’ at one end and ‘School’ at the other. Where on the line does the responsibility lie to assist a child with anxiety and school refusal? Professor Gordon believes that it is a shared responsibility. Therefore school staff and parents must work in partnership.
  2. Mirror Neurons: Children look to adults to moderate their behaviour. Research on mirror neurons has shown us that children will reflect or mirror anxiety displayed by adults. Therefore as the child dials up the anxiety, the adult needs to dial down. Anxiety is highly contagious. So as the adult we need to become increasingly calm or de-escalate as the child gets anxious or escalates.
  3. The Menu: When dealing with anxiety and school refusal, children have a menu they can choose from. They have the option of healthy or unhealthy ‘food’ choices. For example, when feeling anxious a healthy food choice might be to have a bath, do some exercise, read a book or talk to an adult. An unhealthy food choice might be to hide in your bedroom or throw a tantrum. It is important for children to tell an adult if they are anxious so they can choose a healthy option from the menu. If they decide to just show by negative or unproductive behaviours, they are choosing an unhealthy option from the menu.
  4. Internal Dialogue: A key to changing a child’s perspective on school is their internal dialogue. It can be helpful to decide on four or five key phrases that the child needs to repeat in their head when they are anxious. For example: ‘I can control my nerves’, ‘I’ve been to school 1000 times before and I can do it again’, ‘Nothing bad is going to happen to mum and dad’, ‘I can get out the car’. A good exercise to establish these thinking routines is to have a table of positive and negative thoughts. The child brainstorms all the negative thoughts that they ruminate upon and then the child and parent create a list of counteractive positive thoughts. When driving to school, the parent can prompt the child to say these positive thoughts out loud.
  5. We Agree: When speaking to the child, all the adults need to be on the same page when dealing with school refusal or anxiety more broadly. Parents or teachers may be in disagreement as to the exact strategies or causes for anxiety or school refusal. Conversations to agree on the plan or approach must be done with the adults and away from the child. There can be robust discussion between the adults. However, with the child present there needs to be a unified approach with little wriggle room. The creates a sense of safety and trust for the child because all the adults are saying ‘we agree’.
  6. Tag Team: Managing anxiety and school refusal is emotionally and physically exhausting. At times it can feel unsolvable. Therefore, use the adults in the child’s life to tag-team. When mum is exhausted and can’t push any more, allow dad to step in with fresh energy. Research shows greatest successes come from a team approach.
  7. Which Key: Treatment of school refusal is first and foremost exposure to school. However, there are a number of strategies that might be effective in tipping the seesaw so that the child is able to move into the stretch zone and regularly attend school. A helpful illustration is a set of keys. There are many keys or strategies that can be used. It can take a while to work out which key is most effective. Parents and teachers need to collaboratively make a plan that might involve trying a number of keys before seeing success.

 Bus Behaviour

We are very privileged to have such an excellent public bus service to assist our students coming to and from school. However, in recent weeks I’ve had reports about poor behaviour from Emanuel students on our public buses. The NSW Transport Authority has a Code of Conduct which outlines the behaviour expectations of students. Some of these guidelines appear below, but they can also be found at this link.

  • Use appropriate language not offensive or racist language
  • Fighting, spitting, feet on seats, throwing things in or from the bus are not permitted
  • No eating or drinking (other than water) on the bus – unless for medical reasons or the bus operator gives written permission.
  • Offer seats to adults including people with a disability, elderly or expectant mothers
  • Do not push or shove other people
  • Do not bully or harass other passengers or the driver
  • Remain in your seat – do not move around the bus unnecessarily
  • Keep bags and other items clear of the aisle
  • Do not allow any part of your body to protrude out of the bus at any time
  • Wait for the bus in a quiet and orderly manner – including at bus interchanges
  • Stand away from the roadside until the bus comes to a complete stop
  • Allow other passengers to leave the bus before stepping onto the bus in a single line
  • Wear the seatbelt properly adjusted and fastened, if one is available
  • Do not leave rubbish on the bus or at bus stops.

Year 5 Bathurst Trip

Last week Year 5 had a fantastic trip to Bathurst Goldfields. The students did a number of tours and activities to learn about life in Colonial Australia. At Hill End Ranch they explored the Bald Hill Underground Mine, participated in a village treasure hunt and experienced gold panning. In the evening the children engaged in line dancing and colonial music activities. The trip was a meaningful and interesting learning experience as well as a wonderful opportunity to build and strengthen friendships. The students represented Emanuel School with pride and displayed wonderful behaviour. Thank you to the teachers who attended the camp, Tanya Jeckeln, Sophie Poisel, Gabi Wynhausen, Adam Ezekiel, Rebecca Gaida and Tali Silberstein.

Year 6 Canberra Trip

Last Friday we welcomed Year 6 back from a terrific camp in Canberra. The children were able to participate in a range of exciting visits to Parliament House, Questacon, the Australian Institute of Sport, The War Memorial and more. This is a very busy and worthwhile trip and I thank the teachers, Hugo Adrian, Diane Clennar, Anna Economou, Helen Maynard and Karon Rom, for the energy and commitment they offered in order to make the camp such a success. I have heard the best reports about the Year 6 students this term and camp was no exception.

The Australian Government recognises the importance of all young Australians being able to visit the national capital as part of their Civics and Citizenship education. To assist families in meeting the cost of the excursion the Australian Government contributes funding of $20 per student under the Parliament and Civics Education Rebate program towards those costs. The rebate is paid directly to the School upon completion of the excursion. We have factored this into the costing for the excursion.

Upcoming Dates

  • 27 March: Parent Teacher Interviews, MPH 4:00-9:00pm
  • 29 March: Parent Teacher Interviews, MPH 4:00-6:30pm
  • 30 March: Y3 Swimming, Allsorts Fitness Centre 1:15-2:45pm
  • 31 March: Y1-2 Swimming Carnival, Des Renford 10:30-2:15pm
  • 31 March: YK Back to Pre-school Day
  • 3 April: Y6 Seder (students only)
  • 4 April: Y5 Seder 8:50am Millie Phillips Theatre, Y3 Seder 11:10am Angles Leadership and Learning Centre (LLC), Y4 Seder 2:00pm Y4 classrooms
  • 5 April: Y2 Seder 8:50am LLC
  • 5 April: Y6 Gratitude Day
  • 6 April: YK Seder 9:30am LLC, Y1 Seder 2:00pm LLC
  • 6 April: Y3-6 Cross Country, 10:00am-1:00pm Queens Park
  • 7 April: Last Day Term 1
  • 27 April: First Day Term 2, Primary Lice Check

K-2 Assembly 2:00-2:50pm Theatre

Term 1

  • 7 April (Week 10): 2Y Mrs Esra

Term 2

  • 5 May (Week 2): eActive Dance Group
  • 19 May (Week 4): Y2 Hebrew
  • 2 June (Week 6): Shavuot, school closed
  • 16 June (Week 8) 2T Mrs Strub
  • 30 June (Week 10): Music Assembly

 

From Primary Jewish Life Leaders

Purim Report

Primary School rocked as we celebrated Purim. All the students and teachers came to celebrate with amazing, creative and humorous costumes. We began the day by singing Purim songs and having a Purim parade, where each year group had a chance to dance to a song and show off their costumes. We organised and ran an Inter-House Purim Gameshow that tested our knowledge of the Purim story. The game show consisted of two rounds of nine questions, based on the Purim story and Purim vocabulary. Congratulations to Wynn House for winning the Purim quiz. Thank you to everyone who bought in toiletries and food for the Purim mitzvah of matanot le’evyonim – giving food to the needy. Mazal Tov to the Year group who brought in the most items. Our donations were given this week to the Asyulm Seekers Centre by Rabbi Siegel and some High School students. Morah Misrachi read parts of Megillat Ester to us and retold the Purim story from the perspective of Queen Esther, giving us an insight into Esther’s feelings and motivations.

We wrote a parody song and wanted our lyrics to express important ideas in the Purim story – of standing up for your beliefs, of being proud to be Jewish and celebrating differences in our world. Our lyrics are below and we hope you enjoy it and can maybe sing along to it.

By the Jewish Life Madrichim: Ashley Goldman, Maayan Granot, Claire Madziar and Lewis Saul 

Ashley Goldman

Maayan Granot

Clair Madziar

Saul Lewis

 
 

Jewish Life Purim Parody Song to ‘Closer’

Hey, I was doing just fine before I met you 

I am Jewish. Is that an issue? But I’m OK 

Hey, Tell Haman it was nice to meet him

But I hope I never see him again

 

Mordechai, I know it breaks your heart

Moved to the palace in a hopeful way

and became the queen

Now you’re asking me to save the Jewish people

And I I I am scared

But I I I can do it!

 

So Haman won’t you leave us to be free and to be Jewish

That I know you cannot stand

People being something different

 

Pull that hatred from your heart

And see that we are all equal

we’re all different and we’re equal 

 

we are Jewish and we’re prouder

we are Jewish and we’re prouder

we are Jewish and we’re prouder

 

King, I look the same as the day I met you

I forget to mention to you, that I’m Jewish                                   

Hey, let me stay and save my people

because Haman he wants to kill us, OK

 

Mordechai, I know it breaks your heart

Moved to the palace in a hopeful way

and became the queen

Now you’re asking me to save the Jewish people    

 

And I I I am scared

But I I I can do it

So Haman won’t you leave us to be free and to be Jewish

That I know you cannot stand

People being something different

Pull that hatred from your heart

And see that we are all equal

we’re all different and we’re equal

 

we are Jewish and we’re prouder

we are Jewish and we’re prouder

we are Jewish and we’re prouder

 

So Haman won’t you leave us to be free and to be Jewish

That I know you cannot stand

People being something different

Pull that hatred from your heart

And see that we are all equal

we’re all different and we’re equal

 

We are Jewish and we’re prouder

Yeah we’re Jewish and we’re prouder 

 

 

Primary Fundraiser

Meir Panim Primary School Fundraiser

With Passover approaching, we would like to help support Meir Panim which is an organisation that exists in Israel. It helps poverty-stricken families with food and assists children who are at risk.

On Wednesday morning 29 March, we will be standing at the gates of the school collecting donations for Meir Panim. If you donate, you will receive a sticker and a raffle ticket that will go into a draw to win a special gift for Passover.

We thank you in anticipation for your support.

The Year 6 Fundraising Team

Alix Cane, Daniella Nescher, Lotus Van Der Starre, Lilia Joseph

From the Head of Jewish Life

         

Rabbi Daniel Siegel

                         MakerSpace

In our seeking to best provide for the education of our students by preparing them for the quickly evolving world which they will enter, one of our 2017 Staff Focus Groups is exploring the development of a MakerSpace.

If you were to ‘google’ the term ‘MakerSpace’, you would find variations of the following entry:

“A place where people come together to learn, design and make”.

Beyond staff discussion as to how we might maximise our students’ opportunities for enterprising learning and creative production, a dedicated physical MakerSpace will soon be a reality with the construction of our new building.

While MakerSpace is described (Google) as ‘a relatively recent phenomenon that’s fast gaining popularity around the world’, as this week’s parashah attests, it is an integral element of the ancient wisdom of our Jewish tradition.

Parashat VaYakhel (‘gathering together’ the entire Israelite community) describes how the making of the Mishkan (the portable sanctuary) was a MakerSpace in which every Israelite was encouraged to participate.

One term used repeatedly in our parashah for all those who would engage in the creative work of this MakerSpace is chacham lev (חכם לב-literally, ‘wise of heart’). Thus, Moses says to ‘the whole community of Israel’: ‘Let all those among you who are chacham lev come and make’.

While some translate chacham lev as ‘skilled’, others retain the literal and perhaps more expansive meaning of ‘wise-hearted’ or ‘wise of heart’. The word ‘lev’ in the Ancient Near East was most often a cognate for ‘mind’, and so in our school motto we translate be-khol levavkha as ‘with all your mind’.

A non-physical entity, lev chacham connotes a wisdom that is creative and capable of translating theory, through experiment and application, into a physical product. A chacham lev is a ‘maker’, and the Mishkan was the prime space in which he could excel.

Along with chacham lev, the other term repeatedly appearing in our parashah is ‘nediv lev’– ‘generous of heart’.

The Mishkan, the Divine dwelling place, could only be created through the efforts of the wise-hearted and the generous-hearted.

In our world of advancing robotics and 3D printing, we now read of teens creating functional prosthetics, altering the world of the physically limited, expanding the realm of possibility as we perceive it and transforming our reality.

 As we plan for our MakerSpace here at Emanuel, may we seek to foster an enterprise in which our endeavours are of a heart both wise and generous so, like the Mishkan, our school will be the dwelling place for the Divine by virtue of our students contributing to and benefiting each other and our larger community in what they choose to make.

Divrei Torah

The following Divrei Torah were written and delivered in the Years 8 and 9 minyan and the Years 10 and 11 Minyan, respectively. Rabbi Daniel Siegel

From Liat Granot – Year 9

In this week’s double parashah, Vayakhel-Pekudei, all of the details of building the mishkan are repeated and a very important lesson is learnt. Moshe and the rest of Bnei Yisrael are being instructed on which items to donate to the building of the mishkan – items such as, acacia wood, red-dyed ram and seal skins, and gold and silver.

All these things require a lot of effort to retrieve and to prepare to put into the mishkan. But Bnei Yisrael provided everything with a “willing heart”. But what does this phrase mean? And should we strive to be “willing- hearted”? Let’s take a closer look into the context in which Bnei Yisrael were described as being “willing-hearted”.

‘And they came, both men and women, as many as were willing-hearted, and brought nose-rings, and earrings, and signet-rings, and girdles, all jewels of gold; even every man that brought an offering of gold unto the LORD’.

This is the first time in the parashah that this term is mentioned and in this context it means that Bnei Yisrael brought things very willingly. That’s cool and all, but considering how many times this phrase is mentioned throughout the parashah, does it mean something more?

The Biblical commentator, Rashi quotes a midrash that tells of some princes and how they promised to donate anything that Bnei Yisrael could not. And boy, did they underestimate the Jews! The only thing that was not provided was the precious stones that go on the Cohen Gadol’s breastplate and the reason for this was that these stones could not be found in the desert. And subsequently the princes did what they had promised, they donated the special stones. But these princes were far less enthusiastic about providing these gems for the mishkan even though they had done much in comparison to Bnei Yisrael’s efforts.

Even though the princes’ gifts were worth far more in money, Bnei Yisrael’s effort is what HaShem was looking for, they had “willing hearts”. HaShem doesn’t need our money, he is G-D! But what he does need is our effort to do things and be good people!

So I suppose that in modern terms “a willing heart” would be similar to a growth mindset; not that you do, but how you do it. Let’s say your parents or your teacher asked you to do something, a “willing-hearted” person would do it and try to learn something from the experience. They will be better off for it overall.

So let’s all have “willing hearts” this week and do good for our world and for G-D. Shavua Tov.

From Mia Shapiro – Year 10

‘Six days work may be done, but on the seventh day you shall have a Sabbath of complete, holy to the LORD; whoever does any work on it shall be put to death’.

This week’s Parashah is quite interesting, it speaks about the building of the tabernacle and what materials to use and so forth. I found that the most interesting part of this Parashah was the first line: ‘Six days may work be done, but on the seventh day you shall have a sabbath’.

Now this doesn’t sound too surprising, but after that it states, ‘Whoever does any work on it shall be put to death’. Now this doesn’t seem fair. I know almost everyone sitting in front of me does some type of work on Saturday, so why does God command that on the seventh day you shall do no work or face the consequence of death?

Furthermore, if we are to believe that God wrote the Torah and, therefore, we are required to keep His Mitzvot, why is it that we are all sitting here, alive, today?

Well, one reason offered is that Rabbis no longer have the power of a Beit Din (A Jewish Court) to rule on criminal cases, as they did in the days of the Temple. The Talmud also tries to get around this sticky subject by stipulating that the Sanhedrin, a halachic authority that is kind of like a Jewish Supreme Court, has to give you an official court warning before you commit an act that would result in capital punishment. Since the Sanhedrin hasn’t existed since the third century, the warning and punishment of death are no longer a possibility.

Rambam, one of the greatest halachic authorities in Jewish history said, “It is better and more satisfactory to acquit a thousand guilty persons than to put a single innocent one to death.”

So it would seem that we are safe from the death penalty in Judaism. But, before we start committing Jewish ‘capital crimes’ such as breaking Shabbat, let’s think about the question I asked at the beginning of this Devar Torah, why does God prescribe the death penalty and why don’t we enforce it?

Maybe the death penalty is in the Torah for the simple reason that we were never meant to enforce it. Maybe we were meant to consider these violations to be serious but value the sanctity of life above all else.

Ma Koreh

Adam Carpenter – Head of Jewish Studies Primary

Weekly Torah Portion:

Parashah פקודי ויקהל Vayakheil-Pekudai Exodus 35:1 – 40:38.

Moshe reminds the people to maintain Shabbat as a day of rest, including a cessation of all creative work and the prohibition against kindling fire. The parashah continues to tell the story of the building of the משכן Mishkan. At Moshe’s bidding, the people voluntarily offer the necessary materials and the appointed craftsmen, Bezalel and Ohaliab, begin the work. Moshe eventually had to stop the voluntary offerings, as they were too plentiful. Parashat-Pekudei, the final portion of the Book of Exodus, begins with Moshe’s full accounting of all the materials used in the construction of the משכן / Mishkan. A census of males over the age of 20 also takes place, where each person was required to give a half shekel for the benefit of the community. Once the משכן / Mishkan was completed according to God’s instructions, Moshe inspects it and blesses the people. The משכן / Mishkan is then assembled for the first time, and the Divine Presence, manifesting as a cloud, fills the Sanctuary, serving as a guide for the people in their journey through the wilderness.

Family Discussion

  • Shabbat is set aside as a day of rest. What does rest and relaxing look like to you?
  • The ancient Israelites give with a generous heart to help build the Mishkan. What does a generous heart mean to you? What do we have that we can be generous with and with whom?

Yiddish Word of the Week:  קוועלKvell

Kvell means being extraordinarily pleased, bursting with pride and delight, often used in relation to one’s children or grandchildren. According to Merriam-Webster, kvell is derived from Yiddish kveln, meaning “to be delighted,” which, in turn, comes from the Middle High German word quellen, meaning “to well, gush, or swell”.

“It is lovely to kvell over the success of our friends and family”

“I am just kvelling seeing my little one read that book all by herself”

You can check out the following Jewish website for moms (and mums) and parenting www.kveller.com

 Hebrew Word of the Week: נדיבות Nedivut – Generosity

In this week’s parashah we encounter the concept of נדיבות nedivut generosity, as the Israelites gave materials for the building of the משכן Mishkan with ‘נדיב לב’ nediv lev – a generous heart. In Jewish tradition, נדיבות – nedivut / generosity, is about giving of oneself voluntarily, with a positive attitude that engages one’s heart and mind. It entails an outward focus on the world and towards others, sharing our unique gifts with others. One of our school values is Generosity – encapsulated in the Jewish virtue of נדיבות. Judaism teaches that generosity enriches the lives of both the recipient and the giver.

נדב – Nadav: one of Aaron’s sons, contemporary Israeli Hebrew name for males meaning ‘generous’

נדיב – Nadiv: contemporary Israeli Hebrew name meaning ‘noble’ or ‘princely’.

נדיבות – Nedivut: Generosity. An important virtue and value in Jewish tradition.

רמת הנדיב- Ramat HaNadiv: “Benefactor’s Heights’ – a nature reserve in Northern Israel named after Baron Edmond de Rothschild, the great benefactor of the Zionism pre-state. He was called הנדיב HaNadiv – ‘The Benefactor’.

 Emanuel’s Purim Messages Reach Israel

We received a reply from Shira Stein at the 10,000 Letters for 10,000 Soldiers campaign to whom Ms Tritch’s class wrote Purim cards. This is what the reply said: “The beautiful cards that the Emanuel School made gave joy and a strong feeling of appreciation to the soldiers they reached. On a more personal note, it was quite a moving experience watching these brave young men and women, burst into smiles as they opened the cards made by children all over the world. Below is a picture so that you can also see their smiles!”

 

Thank you again for joining us in this beautiful project, and we hope that Emanuel School students will join us again next year!

Morah Gaida

 

Year 9 Interfaith

By Miriam Itzkowitz

On Wednesday March 15, a group of Year 9 students went to the Sydney Jewish Museum to meet with students of other religions and cultures as part of the Respect, Understanding and Harmony program, part of the Jewish Board of Deputies’ programs. While getting there was somewhat of a hassle (we witnessed a bus and car crash), the museum welcomed us with open arms and we were then able to “mix and mingle”, as Ms Rosin put it.

We were quite shy and awkward at first, but when we started conversations with the other students, we didn’t feel so withdrawn.

The program director, Suzanne Green, organised many insightful and enlightening activities. The first one we did was small talk in pairs and then in a group. I spoke with a girl called Layla who is half Christian and half Muslim. I was very quiet before we started talking, but after we spoke for a bit, we discovered we were very similar. We both love the same books and have very similar interests, such as equality for all. We then had to speak in larger groups where we discussed our favourite things (TV shows, apps, subjects). It was really fun because we all pretty much loved and obsessed over the exact same things.

After that we had presentations from all the schools. We learnt about Catholicism, Church of England, Islam, Multiculturalism and the other schools learnt about Judaism from us.

At lunch we all congregated together at the park. We sat together, shared food and discussed religion and lots of other things.

When we arrived back to the museum we watched some videos on racism. After we watched those videos we went back into our previous groups and discussed what we saw and how we can create change in the world. We did have to touch on some sensitive subjects such as people stereotyping Muslims as terrorists, which was awkward, however, the Muslim girls in the group agreed and explained their insecurities about wearing a hijab or headscarf. We created a mind-map and wrote down multiple ways to stop racism. We also wrote down all of our names to unify us.

Ms Rosin asked us to do a rendition of Hi Ne Ma Tov, so we performed the Kabbalat Shabbat version. We were all laughing and enjoying ourselves and the whole room got into it and were clapping along.

At the end, we heard the CEO of the Jewish Board of Deputies, Vic Alhadeff. He told us about Rosa Parks and how she was arrested for refusing to give up her seat in the US in the 1950s. He compared it to something that happened 60 years later to a Malaysian man in Sydney. This was definitely strange to hear because we generally don’t see a lot of discrimination in Australia, but we know it exists. Mr Alhadeff reminded us of the Jewish school bus attack that happened a few years ago. I found this to be very confronting having known many people who were on those buses. Mr Alhadeff told us one more story about a boy named Shai. Shai was mentally challenged and one day he asked to join a baseball game and the teams were kind and compassionate enough to let him play and let him win for his team. Unfortunately, three months later, Shai passed away, but his father was extremely grateful to those who had been considerate and caring to Shai. I found this very heartwarming and bittersweet, because although a young boy died, people still accepted him, which is so important to do in today’s society. Finally Mr Alhadeff explained to us that we are all different, but at the end of the day we are all human, so we should be tolerant of everyone and stand up for the wrong doing in this world and help whoever we can.

Just before we left, St Andrew’s Cathedral School ended the day with a beautiful rendition of Amazing Grace.

All in all, I really enjoyed Interfaith and found it to be extremely insightful. I learnt a lot about other cultures and religions and it was great coming into contact with people from other religious backgrounds. It also made me think that we should be mingling with other people instead of staying squashed in our tiny Jewish bubble and being segregated from everyone. I honestly recommend the Interfaith Program to everyone because it is a once in a lifetime experience that you will never forget.

By Cade Collins

On 15 March 17 students from Year 9 went on an excursion to the Sydney Jewish museum to participate in the Year 9 interfaith program, Respect, Understanding and Harmony, a project in which students from all different cultures, backgrounds and religions bond over similarities and discuss differences. This year there were 6 schools participating, with a range of different religions, mainly Judaism, Christianity and Islam.

The day started off with all of us being scattered across the room, so that no one was sitting next to someone they already knew. Whilst sitting like this, we were asked to answers some basic questions on the board and discuss them with the person sitting next to us. The questions were based around religion and hobbies, such as, ‘What religion are you and your personal opinions on that religion’ and ‘what is something you believe very strongly’. These questions opened up some very important discussions between the pairs.

We then got into groups, two people from each of the 6 schools attending, and discussed our life outside of school. From there each school gave a religious presentation to the rest of the schools, in which we discussed our religion and how our school incorporates those religions into daily life. It led to extremely interesting discussions about acceptance and beliefs, from which we moved into lunch.

 At lunch, we weren’t only allowed to stay within our Jewish bubble and only talk to the people we knew, we had to venture into the unknown world of different religions and sit in a group with at least one other religion. During this some of the Muslim students also shared some magnificent food that they brought with them that were special to them. These included food from the Middle East, South Asia and China.

After lunch we discussed the touchy subject of racism. We discussed how we have experienced it and what we could do to stop it. We then presented how we could possibly stop racism. The Emanuel Group then sang Hi Ne Ma Tov to everybody and spoke about how the song inspires peace and unity.

The day had many activities, all designed to inspire us to work towards combating racism. We were able to meet new friends and to spend the day thinking about some of the most important issues of our time.

 

Pilot Mentoring Program

Suzanne Plume – Gifted and Talented Co-ordinator

Mentors needed for Pilot Mentoring Program

What do we need?

We need public spirited volunteers from the community to spend some time mentoring one of a small number of Year 10 students.

Our mentor program involves students being paired with professionals or experts in the area of their career interest.

The program is designed to give students insights into the real world of their selected area of advanced learning. They will observe, talk with, and work closely with a person in the field they select. Hopefully, they will also learn new and challenging technical concepts in the field of their interest. These experiences will help with career and university choices as well as enabling the exploration of possible life goals.

Who:

We have students aged 15 – 16, who are interested in the following range of fields.

  • Medicine, film or detective pursuits
  • Arts, creative writing and poetry
  • Digital Media, Google Photoshop, Architecture and Design
  • Economics, Political Science
  • Science, Mathematics, Engineering
  • Marketing, advertising, human geography (e.g. world issues – poverty, lack of education)
  • Journalism, writing or music (but not as a professional musician)
  • Music and also medicine (a combination a love of problem solving, mathematics and medicine would be great – perhaps by exploring Bio Mechanical Engineering)
  • Engineering.

What does the commitment entail?

Thirty minutes contact fortnightly for a term (ten weeks). After the initial meeting contact can be via Skype and/or email.

Who are we looking for?

Good mentors are honest, trustworthy and active listeners, meaning they will engage with the mentee during each session, focus on the issues identified by the mentee and help the mentee set goals.

Good mentors also have a network of colleagues and collaborators who could open doors for their mentees, help jump-start their careers or just explain how the system works.

The school will require a Working With Children Check. As a volunteer, this is free. Any meetings will take place at school at lunchtimes. Skype sessions will be during the school day.

We’d love to have members of our community volunteer for this activity – you would connect with young, energetic and dynamic students who are about to embark on selecting their HSC academic program and are looking for advice in a range of areas. If you are able to help, please contact Ms Suzanne Plume at splume@emanuelschool.nsw.edu.au before the end of Term 1.

Year 9 Bronze Duke of Edinburgh Camp

Ray Francis – Head of PDHPE

Year 9 Dukes group –  made of the ‘right stuff’!

The Year 9 Duke of Edinburgh’s Award group proved they were made of the ‘right stuff’ last week.

They not only survived, but thrived on the challenge of enduring one of the wettest D of E camps since Noah built the Ark.

With water cascading down paths, raging rivers to cross, and damp tents to be slept in, the group managed with great spirit all the challenges thrown at them.

Year 9 students worked very well together to complete the 30km journey, and although a few of us had our comfort zones extended, we all returned safely to the welcoming embrace of Bondi Junction station and parents, wiser and stronger for the experience.

Well done to everyone who took the D of E challenge!

High School Sport

Kristy Reed | Sports Co-ordinator & PDHPE Teacher

Term 2 Eactive program will be released at the end of next week.

High School Sporting Events Next Week

Monday

Morning

Year 7/8 basketball development squad

14’s boys basketball training

 

Afternoon

Pilates

Beach volleyball

 Tuesday

Morning

Running group

Afternoon

Sydney Schools Cup Interschool Futsal competition

Sydney Schools Cup netball competition

Open boys basketball training

Wednesday

Morning

Boys fitness

Sydney Schools Cup futsal training

 Afternoon

Cricket development squad

Open boys basketball competition

Thursday

All Day

AICES Swimming Championships

Morning

Girls fitness

Afternoon

Rockclimbing

Year 9/10 girls netball competition

Friday

Morning

Swimming squad

16 boys basketball training

Surfing

Sydney Schools Cup netball training

Sunday

14 boys basketball competition

16 boys basketball competition

Open boys basketball competition

 

 

Touch Football

Kristy Reed | Sports Co-ordinator & PDHPE Teacher

As part of the EActive program, six Emanuel teams compete in the East touch football competition during the summer terms. After dominating the season, the Years 9/10 girls team competed in the grand final on Tuesday. They played a highly skilled and very fast St Clare’s team in what was an entertaining game of touch. After 40 minutes of match time and many spectacular tries, the full time score was drawn at 5-5. The match went into an extra time drop off system when Danielle Rutstein scored the winning try. This capped off a wonderful season for her in which she also was awarded the Best and Fairest Award.

Congratulations to all players in both the girls and boys teams for a great season of touch football, despite the rain interrupted season.

In particular congratulations go to the Years 9/10 grand final winning team: Tasha Lapidge, Tia Mallinick, Sienna Meyer, Zoe Miller, Alexa Narunsky, Ashlee Orleow, Chelsea Rutstein, Danielle Rutsein, Lara Rutstein, Mia Shapiro, Sarah Sharwood.

 

Kol Szenes


Three-Way Learning Conversations

These meetings between students, teacher and parents will take place in the coming weeks. During the meeting students will lead conversations about their learning, bringing with them various pieces of work to discuss with their parents and teacher.

Mazel Tov to:

  • Year 9 students who braved the wet weather last week to complete their Duke of Edinburgh Bronze Award qualifying camp!
  • Students responsible for the creation of the Purim Mural including Szenes House Jewish Life Madricha/Madrich Jordana Blackman and Ari Regan Lacey.
  • Students involved in Shave for a Cure, especially Kyah Laishevsky (8), Tashi Gering (10) and Cleo Woolf (10) from Szenes House.
  • Student Representative Council (SRC) who organised an enjoyable and successful fund-raiser fete on Monday. Congratulations to the SRC Executive body including Year 11 Szenes students Gabriel Wolf and Gabriel Sebban.
  • Liron Smith (11) who has volunteered for Magen David Adom for the past three years. During the High School assembly this week, Liron introduced speakers who spoke about the upcoming Red Sunday Pesach Telethon, which will be held on 2 April.

Liron Smith – Year 11

‘This year our Red Sunday Pesach Telethon will raise funds to purchase a new 4×4 ambulance. These four wheel drive ambulances are an integral part of our ability to provide lifesaving services in areas of rough terrain or under extreme weather conditions. They will also allow MDA paramedics to reach severely injured patients in Israel’s remote communities, often their only chance of survival.’

Please show your support and help with the telethon. Shifts of one to two hours would be appreciated.

www.magendavidadom.org.au/mda-red-sunday-pesach-telethon-volunteer-now/

If you have any questions please call the office on 9358 2521, Doron 0487 340 092 

or Liron Smith smith.liron@emanuelschool.nsw.edu.au

Quotation of the Week

‘If you think you are too small to make a difference, try sleeping with a mosquito’

Dalai Lama X1V

Have an enjoyable weekend.

Szenes House

Connecting our Community


Sonia Newell – Development Officer

JAZZ ON THE HILL THIS SUNDAY – YAY!

 We are so excited to be presenting our third annual Jazz on the Hill event this Sunday, 26 March from 2pm to 5pm.  We look forward to seeing many of our School community at this event.  So, you want to come along but have not booked as yet?  It’s not too late.

The Year K to 6 students will be entertained with supervised activities to suit a wide range of interests, including cartooning, craft, science and lego/robotics.  You will be able to select two activities for each child once you go onto the booking site.

Here now is the link to book:  http://tinyurl.com/JOTH2017

 BYO picnic or better still, enjoy food prepared by our Year 11 Hospitality students:

  • Vegetable Frittata (GF)
  • Rice noodle salad
  • Tuna pasta bake
  • Cheesecake
    Brownies (GF)
  • Salted caramel and chocolate tart

See you on Sunday afternoon!

Lior Smith preparing food for Jazz on the Hill

Kiara Rosen-Tal and Reece Buchman preparing cheesecake

INVITATIONS WILL BE SENT OUT SOON FOR OUR ‘BREAKFAST WITH EMANUEL’ SESSIONS

Wednesday 17 May – The Little Space, Oxford Street Bondi Junction

Wednesday 24 May – PricewaterhouseCoopers, Watermans Quay, Barangaroo 
Choose one of these dates and come along to hear about new initiatives at the School and meet other like-minded parents at the same time.

Maccabiah 2017 is only a few months away and a number of our students are members of various teams heading over to Israel to represent Australia in their respective team sports. Support for their fundraising efforts would be greatly appreciated. Below are just two fundraising events coming up.

Open women and junior girls football teams are hosting a movie night fundraiser at Hoyts Paris, Entertainment Quarter on 27 March to see Beauty and The Beast.  Purchase tickets at http://www/trybooking.com/PCQB 

 

There is a swim team fundraiser to see Kinky Boots on May 25 at the Capitol Theatre. If you have news you wish to share, please send it to me: snewell@emanuelschool.nsw.edu.au

 

Careers

UTS Update Part 1

Last Thursday I was out at UTS at their annual Careers Advisors Day. Just like I have reviewed the University of Sydney days and UNSW days, this is a highlights reel of UTS (part 1). I have to say the vibrancy, proximity to city-based partnerships, the new buildings, and the energy of the staff, not to mention the creation of degrees to meet the future workforce needs, make it such a desirable place to study. Last year we had our highest ever UTS preferences, with 24% of our Year 12 cohort choosing UTS.

Speaker 1 – Dr Wayne Brookes – New Bachelor of Technology and Innovation (BTi) 

“New faculty of Interdisciplinary Innovation”  – this was developed throughout 2016 and launched this year. It is a new broad range of disciplines with a real breadth of exposure. They developed this to address the future of the work situations for new graduates, which is affected by:

  • Extreme longevity
  • Living in a Computational world
  • Super-structured organisations
  • Rise of smart machines and systems
  • New media ecology
  • Globally connected world.

 So what skills do we need?

  1. Sense making
  2. Trans disciplinary skills
  3. Social intelligence
  4. Computational thinking
  5. Cognitive load management – how to manage
  6. Visual collaboration
  7. Design mindset

So what is the BTi  (Bachelor of Technology and Innovation)?

The following are features of the new degree:

  • Small cohort – 35 students this year
  • 100 or more next year
  • Three year degree, and stand alone unlike the Bachelor of Creative Intelligence (BCII) which is a combined degree.
  • ATAR of 84.8 cut-off this year
  • No lectures!!! (only workshops)
  • No exams!!! (only projects)

What careers can you do with this?

Possible careers are: Technology Fusionist, digital experience curator, intelligent system designer, innovation change manager, augmented reality designer, social entrepreneur (preparing for jobs that have not been developed yet). This degree does not replace the Bachelor of Information Technology (the BIT) – it is a generalist degree with a future thinking approach.

A Diploma of Innovation is also something that students can do without adding any additional time to their degree.

Speaker  2 – John Chalmers – Head of Marking & Communications 

John spoke about the UTS rankings. For a very young University (29 years old) they are ranked 1st in the Young Universities sector.

  • In the Times rankings UTS has jumped up by 64 places
  • UTS has been awarded 5 stars for excellence across all 8 categories
  • They have the second highest completion rates of degrees after University of Sydney
  • The only University in 2016 to grow in the 1-3 numbered preferences through UAC.

 They predict that in the future 40% of all current jobs are going to disappear, with 50% of jobs that are around in 2030 having not been developed yet. UTS is addressing this by introducing:

  • New degrees such as the BTi, the MBA (Entrepreneurship), the Diploma of Innovation and the Bachelor of Creative Intelligence and Innovation
  • The new Hatchery Program of start ups and innovations
  • A revised Careers Service
  • Partnerships with new and growing businesses such as Animalogic (http://www.animallogic.com/)
  • UTS and Moore Park Precinct with the SCG, and Australian Rugby Union – a whole sport specific precinct
  • UTS Central open in 2019 – with an amazing new library and teaching space.

 UTS – New Course Updates 

 Bachelor of Management (new major in Digital Creative Enterprise) ATAR 85.2

The digital space is now worth $19bn in NSW alone. They already run a B. Management in Events/Tourism/Sports and this is their new major. Careers for graduates include:

  • Creative technologies enterprises
  • Digital marketer
  • Digital strategist
  • Channel manager.

Bachelor of Computer Science (new in 2017)

Aspects of this new course are:

  • Intake of 40 students this year
  • Focus on high tech companies
  • Careers as a software developer, researcher, computer scientist
  • Jobs earning $60k – $110k
  • The earning in Data Science is nearer to $130k a few years out from University
  • They aim for a IT/Computer Science and Maths underpinning
  • There are not enough computer science graduates in Australia currently.

There is a stronger focus on Mathematics relevance to computer sciences and greater focus on understanding computing and algorithms. Assumed knowledge is 2 Unit Mathematics.

Notices

Notre Dame: Medicine Information Session

This will be held on 26 March 2016, 12pm, 160 Oxford Street, Darlinghurst for those interested in studying medicine in 2017. Information will be provided on the admission process and an overview of the course. There will be tours of facilities and an opportunity to speak to current students. 
www.nd.edu.au/events/2017/medicine-information-session

 UTS Bachelor of Accounting (BAcc) Co-op Scholarship – Information Evening

This will be held on Tuesday 16 May, 6.30 – 7.30pm, at the Aerial Function Centre, UTS Building 10 (level 7), 235 Jones Street, Ultimo. Closing date for Round 1 applications is Friday 2 June 2017.

Closing date for Round 2 applications is Friday 20 October 2017. (Places for Round 2 applicants will be limited)  www.bachelorofaccounting.com

 UTS Update Part 2

www.iftf.org/fileadmin/user_upload/images/whatwedo/IFTF_FutureWorkSkillsSummary.gif

 

Bachelor of Engineering – New Major – ‘Software’

Aspects of this degree include:

  • 5 years in duration
  • ATAR 85 cut off for 2017
  • Careers as a software engineer – salaries from about $60-70k for a junior role starting out in the field
  • More skilled people needed to design, develop, deploy and support
  • World class degree, 1st of its kind
  • Designed to meet the future of the industry needs
  • Intended to be the best software engineering course in the world!

 New Major – Data Engineering – New in 2017 – ATAR 87.35

Aspects of this new major are:

  • More data engineers are needed
  • It’s a new degree for a new profession
  • Careers are advanced with roles as data engineers and data scientists
  • Enables graduates to collect, understand, process and analyse data
  • US Salaries are between US$88K – US$110K
  • Mixes with ‘the internet of things’
  • Also encompasses the hardware – data collection points
  • The three players in the data world are:
    1. Data engineers who collect, transport and process Data
    2. Data Scientists, who build models, do statistical testing and machine learning
    3. Data Analysts who generate reports, explore data and test hypotheses.

 Electronics Major – ATAR 87

There is a growing demand  for this which cannot be supplied at the moment.

 Bachelor of Forensic Science – ATAR 85.35 – New in 2017

Careers are:

  • Government and private forensic drug detection, quarantine services, Environmental Protection Agency, Chemical industries, DNA testing etc
  • There are big changes in the current needs
  • New CSI Major and Digital Forensics major
  • Opportunities for internships.

Why study this?

  • It is the most established forensic science program in Australia
  • It has strong industry connections
  • It is the only undergraduate digital forensic course offered in Australia
  • It is based on a science aptitude test if English brought a student down in the ATAR.

 Bachelor of Biotechnology – ATAR 85.4 (New)

 

This includes:

  • Any application of biology
  • Society/Business/Technology – very broad with a wide range of interests
  • Careers in Research and development in chemicals, pharmaceuticals, manufacturing, communications, public health, mining, technology … and more. The research path is not the only career progression.

Why was this degree introduced?

  • In order to bridge the gap between science & business
  • Biotechnology needs to understand products and have some business acumen
  • Biotechnology careers will be affected by business decisions
  • Majors:-
    • Medical
    • Environmental
    • Computational
    • Biosensor technology

Masters of Physiotherapy (new degree, 50 students)

  • This degree turns out ‘practice-ready’ graduates
  • There are extensive clinical placements (hospitals, community, industry) 700+ hours
  • There is an academic mentor initiative
  • There are close relationships with professions

Why UTS Physiotherapy?

  • It is practice-based, industry fed and includes case study learning with good facilities in a new Moore Park precinct
  • There are clinical placements of 4 x 5 week blocks
  • There are real world projects for research.

 

 

From the parents and friends

Ruby Berkovic and Jennifer Opit

Michael and Sharon’s wedding present

We are so pleased to let you know that there were 117 contributions towards a wedding present for Michael and Sharon and we were able to present Michael with a cheque for $3049 and a bound booklet full of all your well wishes! 
 
Michael wanted us to thank all of you that contributed and to say how overwhelmed he is by your generosity and kind wishes!
 
 
 

Pesach Seders – Calling all volunteers

 
One of our busiest times of the year is working with our Jewish Department to assist with the Pesach Sederim. 
We need the help of our parent volunteers to ensure these events run smoothly. Many parents will be attending the Sederim anyway, so if you are able to volunteer either before or after your child’s seder this would really help to ensure that the event is a success.
 
Here are the Seder dates and times:
 
April 3
Year 6 Seder is in the PAC. Parents are not invited to this but we still need a couple of volunteers to help set up from 10.50-11.50am and to clean up from 1.10-1.40pm.
April 4
Year 3 Seder is at 11.10am in the Angles Leadership and Learning Centre (LLC). The parent buffet starts at 10.30am. We need volunteers to help set up from 9.30am and to clean up from 12.30-1.15pm.
Year 4 Pesach Learning Experience is at 2pm in the Year 4 classrooms. The parent buffet starts at 1.30pm. We need volunteers to help set up from 12.30pm and to clean up from 3.30-4pm. 
Year 5 Pesach Concert is at 8.50am in the Theatre. There will be a parent buffet starting at 8.15am. We need volunteers from 7.15am to set up and from 9.30-10.15am to help clean up.
April 5
Year 2 Seder is at 8.50am in the LLC. The parent buffet starts at 8.15am. We need volunteers to help set up from 7.15am and to help clean up from 10.10-10.55am.
April 6
Year K Seder is at 9.30am in the LLC. The parent buffet starts at 9am. We need volunteers from 7.45am to help set up, and to help clean up from 10.50-11.35am.
Year 1 Seder is at 2pm in the LLC. The parent buffet starts at 1.30pm. We need volunteers from 12.30pm to help set up and from 3.30-4pm to help clean up.

Please send us an email to let us know you can assist (and at what times): rubykb@gmail.com

 
Thanks in advance for your support!
 

Challah Orders

You can eliminate the hassle of having to pick up your weekly challah and support the P&F at the same time.
From Term 2, the P&F will be selling freshly baked challah every Friday at the cost of $4.50 and you can pick it up on a Friday afternoon at the same time that you collect your kids.
 
The challot must be pre-ordered. ORDERS MUST BE PLACED BY FRIDAY APRIL 7.
 
Please follow the link to express your interest and make payment:
 

Mums at the movies

We have a new event in Term 2!
 
On Thursday, May 25 in The Millie Phillips Theatre we will be holding our first Mums at the Movies night! We will be screening “Dirty Dancing.”  In addition, we are selling raffle tickets online (available for purchase whether you attend the event or not) for an exquisite Fine Jewels White Gold Drop Diamond Necklace (retailing for $2250).
 
There is limited seating (200 seats) and there will be a drink and popcorn bar as well as seat prizes. It is sure to be a really fun night!
 
Prices: $20 movie ticket entry; $20 per raffle ticket for the necklace.
 
Bookings can be made by following the link:
 
Have a lovely weekend,
Jen & Ruby
 

Uniform Shop Term 2 Hours

Kornmehl

Terry Aizen – Director Kornmehl Centre

Parent Club Meeting

Our wonderful Parent Club co-ordinators – Mrs Gail Stein, Mrs Sharon Miller and Mrs Lissa Prosser have been working together to plan some exciting events across the year. Their first social event was held on Monday morning at Waverly Park Kiosk. They had the privilege of listening to Mandy Sacher – a Paediatric Nutritionist speaking about school lunches and different options for parents. She provided so much “food for thought.” The feedback was extremely positive and the mums who attended found it extremely valuable and useful. The next Parent Club event will be a basketball event for dads on Sunday 2 April from 3-5pm at Waverley Park oval.

Two dates to reserve in your diary are: Sunday 18 June from 5-7pm – Kornmehl Movie Night in the MPH and Sunday 27 August for our Recycling Building Challenge.

Randwick Council – Recycling Workshop

On Wednesday morning, the children enjoyed a wonderful workshop from the Randwick Council on Recycling. The presenters educated the children about why we need to recycle and what the different coloured bins are for at home and at school. The children enjoyed this interactive and educational workshop very much.

Supporting Bilingual Children in Early Childhood

Early Childhood teachers support children who are bilingual in their classrooms in many different ways. An important starting point is to find out all they can about the families’ culture. It is important to acknowledge the child’s first language and to observe what the children are interested in and what motivates them, so these activities or experiences can be included in their program.

It’s important to recognise how these children might feel in the classroom and that they initially could be silent and need time to adjust to the new language being used. At this time educators do not pressure children to speak, but rather give them warmth, care and understanding to help them through this silent period. Educators will encourage children to join in activities and provide them with praise and encouragement. Bilingual children will learn through play, routines, books, songs and games. As part of these activities, Educators will support language development by modelling and repeating meaningful words and phrases, for example, “wash hands” and “come play”.  Educators will use gesture and visual materials to assist children’s understanding of language and their acquisition of words. Another strategy is to use non-language activities that stimulate a range of senses. These activities allow children to demonstrate their competencies and participate without language. Interactions with peers are also encouraged to further support these children. Educators spend time looking at each child’s strengths and needs and in this way help children’s communication and language development to be a positive and rewarding experience.

From our experience, it does not take very long for children who are bilingual to feel comfortable and to begin to use English comfortably in their everyday interactions. It amazes us how quickly they can grasp a second language and communicate with their peers.

(Source: Supporting Bilingual Children in Early Childhood by Jane Purcell and Michelle Lee, Speech Pathologists, and Janette Biffin, Early Childhood Educator)

 Pesach Seders

All the children will be participating in a Pesach Seder in the Pre-school on Friday 7 April.  This event is for the children only.

The Dolphins will be joining the Year K Pesach Seder on Thursday 6 April from 9.30am in the LLC. The children will need to wear their red Kornmehl T-shirts.

Happy Birthday

We wish a very happy birthday to Isaac Greenberg (4), Maddison Green (5), Maayan Symonds (4) and to our special Educator, Joanne Woods. We hope you all had a great day.

 

Sibling Enrolments

Sibling Enrolments 2018

If you have a child who is a sibling of a current student, whom you wish to enrol for 2018 and have not yet submitted a registration for him/her, please contact the Enrolments Office by email  enrolments@emanuelschool.nsw.edu.au or call via the switchboard on 8383 7333 as a matter of urgency.

We will shortly start contacting those on the waiting lists for 2018 and would like to ensure we have included all siblings of current students.

Deborah Beder

Enrolments Manager

The 40forFORTY finish line

Daphna Levin-Kahn

Rain, shine, wind and humidity…                              

81km of exercise in 17 hours – and we’re still standing!!!

We’ve reached over 85% of our fundraising target.

It would be great if you could help us cross this finish line too! www.mycause.com.au/page/138650/40-for-forty

Sunday was an unforgettable experience, a clear reminder of the beauty and variety of this city – and many of the 10km walkers have been inspired to start a monthly walking group to keep the fitness AND social benefits going into the future!

Thanks to my brave team for your wonderful Emanuel team spirit, all our supporters who donated to their favourite causes and those kind souls who walked with us, played music, fed us and cheered us onwards throughout the looooong day!

If you are interested in joining our monthly Walking Club, please contact me at:

levin-kahn@emanuelschool.nsw.edu.au

B’Shalom U’v’Todah

Daphna

For me 40forFORTY was an opportunity to give my full focus to a goal that stretched me beyond what I thought were my limits. And the added bonus was that I am helping contribute to some incredible causes and make a difference in the lives of those that are in need. What’s next?

 (Absent from the group photo are Kerry Etkin and Mel Levy who ran most of the 40km!)               

Michelle Sanders (Mum of Ezra, Year 3)

I really enjoyed the camaraderie of joining in with the walking part of the challenge. I did not commit to completing the whole walk until I was actually walking – I didn’t really believe I could do it! I have learnt that it is really important to have confidence – with perseverance and determination I really can push myself to achieve anything I want.                 

Eileen Goldberg (Mum of Elise Year 2, Jack, Year 5 and Aaron, Year 8) – Eileen started off walking 10km and completed the whole 40km walk!

It was particularly heart-warming to receive so many kind words of support from members of the public who spoke to us as we strode by in our 40forFORTY bibs! It’s a testament to the goodwill and positive impact that 40forFORTY generated on so many levels.                             

Lisa Sarzin (Mum of Gideon, Year 5 and Gabriel, Year 3)