blogs/masa

Pirkei Avot 1:6: Joshua ben Perahiah used to say: appoint for yourself a teacher, acquire a friend, and judge everyone favorably.

Our year at Masa is off to a sweet beginning, and I hope that the honey cookies we had on our first Sunday will help the students to associate learning with sweetness!

We have a lot of new faces among the teaching staff this year! Jonathan Billig is teaching our fifth and sixth graders on Sundays, as well as leading one of the project-based sessions on Fridays. Carole Penner, who some of you may know from Beacon’s theater and arts communities, is teaching our first and second graders on Sundays. For the next few weeks, I will be teaching the third and fourth grade students. Debbie Broshi, a long-time teacher at Masa, will be returning to us at the end of November to teach the third and fourth grade class!

Ellen will continue working with our oldest students, and Wendy will continue to give our youngest students their first lessons at Masa.

We are studying Pirkei Avot this year, and this Sunday, students began to dig into a verse about finding a teacher, getting friends, and ways of thinking about each others’ behavior. I have known our children long enough that I wasn’t surprised to hear that even the kindergarten class had some insightful things to say on this verse. You might enjoy talking about it with your children as well!

I hope you’ve had a chance to take a look at the registration page for Sexuality and You: Bodies, Communication, and Jewish Values! There will be courses for parents, for children ages 8-11 and children ages 12-15. Register soon, as space is limited!

The holidays are beginning in just a bit more than a week! Please be sure to register your children (as well as yourself). Here’s the schedule:

Rosh Hashanah, Day One:
9:00-10:00: Ilana Friedman will lead a program for children ages 2-6 and their adults.
10:00-10:30: Our B-Mitzvah class will lead a short holiday service for children ages 2 and up.
10:30-11:00: We’ll have a birthday party for the world! Children of all ages are welcome to join us.
11:00-1:00: We will have programming for children from K-6th grade. If your child prefers, they can instead join you in the adult services.

Rosh Hashanah, Day Two:
10:00-10:30: Our B-Mitzvah class will lead a short holiday service for the younger children.
10:30-1:00: We will have children’s programming, including joining the adults for the Torah and Shofar services.

Yom Kippur:
9:00-10:00: Ilana Friedman will lead a program for children ages 2-6 and their adults.
10:00-10:30: Our B-Mitzvah class will lead a short holiday service for children ages 2 and up.
10:30-1:00: We will have programming for children from K-6th grade. Children can also join their parents in the adult services.