nEWS From the Middle

January 23, 2012

2012-01-23T16:37:00.001-06:00

Random Song Quote: Lots of people emailed wondering about the song quote that was absent last from last week’s blog! Okay, no one really emailed except someone who works at EWS, but I thought I’d make it sound like it was a really popular feature!

In honor of the release of Bruce Springsteen’s new single, “We Take Care Of Our Own”:

“Where's the promise from sea to shining sea
Wherever this flag is flown

Wherever this flag's flown

Wherever the flag is flown
We take care of our own”

What’s Happening?

There is a lot going on at school now that we have hit the second semester stride. This week we are beginning two programs in advisory, digital awareness for all grades and drug and alcohol awareness in 8^th Grade only. The goal of these two programs is to provide some basic education on these two pertinent topics in our students’ lives. If you have any questions or would like your child to not participate in one or both of these programs, please give me a call or drop me an email.

The digital awareness program is going to cover five advisory periods. During the course of those periods students are going to try to identify their own digital footprint and learn ways to minimize it. For “homework” due Janaury 31, students will Google themselves to see what information is online. We encourage parents to join with their children for this activity. In February, students are going to hear from the Upper School College Counseling staff about the pros and cons of the digital age on college admissions and we will wrap up the program in February with a lesson on the effects of cyber bullying.

The drug and alcohol program in the 8^th Grade will serve as an intro and extension to the same unit in health. We will have three whole group activities including a survey and discussion on self-esteem, and then on February 23, we will have a guest speaker – Dr. Bob Weinberger – who will give a presentation to parents and students at 8:45 a.m. He will then be available for a parents’ only meeting from 9:30-10 a.m. We encourage you to put this date on your calendars as we hope to see you all here for it.

Thanks again for another great week.

Mazel Tov to Marlo Olifant and Allan Frederick who will be celebrating their Bat and Bar Mitzvahs this weekend.

Happy Birthday to Sam Kaminsky (27^th) and Morgan Levy (29^th) who are celebrating birthdays this week.

Athletic Events this week:

Monday –

7 Boys Basketball @Westbury – 4:30 p.m.

7/8 Boys Basketball @St. Michael’s – 4:30 p.m.

8 Boys Basketball @Westbury – 5:30 p.m.

MS Girls Soccer v. John Cooper – 4:30 p.m.

Thursday -

MS Girls Soccer @Grace – 4:30 p.m.

Winter sports Season Concludes. Spring sports begin Monday, January 30.

Calendar Events – There are no significant calendar events to note this week.

January 17, 2012

2012-01-17T15:58:00.003-06:00

The Blog is finally back after an extended vacation! I hope you all had a good break. It has been great being back at school and seeing the kids. It has been a busy start to the semester, and it seems like we returned to school mode quickly and smoothly. There is a lot going on around campus that I would like to get you caught up with before the month just passes us by.

This week, the 8^th Grade enjoyed a two-day retreat at Camp Allen in Navasota. The kids seemed to have a great time doing the high ropes course and other activities including a photo-scavenger hunt that brought out some creative answers to some unique challenges.

A group getting ready for the high ropes course on a chilly Thursday

Students also had a chance to prepare skits (a camp classic, right?) that had to include a rhyme, an English vocabulary word from this week’s test, something having to do with math and science, and finally, “When I say Emery, you say…Weiner!” The skits were quite entertaining as students demonstrated their talents in dance, acting and impersonation (Dr. Bishop and I were taking notes, boys). I hope the kids had as much fun with us as we did with them.

This week we will spend an extended Kallah on Tuesday remembering Martin Luther King, Jr. In addition to viewing his “I Have a Dream” Speech, the SGA president and vice-president will say a few words, Rabbi Strauss will tie in MLK’s principles and goals with Judaism, and then students will have a short advisory activity that I hope to have the video of up in the next couple of weeks.

So, things are back to full speed at school. Have a great week everyone.

Mazel Tov to Jared Weisenthal on his Bar Mitzvah this week. We also need to congratulate Amanda Zivley, Abey Bazbaz, Jake Yudkin, Joseph Fields, Orly Golub, and Rachael Totz who have all who have all celebrated their Bar and Bat Mitzvahs since the last blog post.

Happy Birthday to the following January birthdays:

Lewis Graubart – January 4

Rachael Totz and Trenton Simmons – January 5

Hannah Golub – January 6

Kaitlyn Massin and Tal Behor – January 9

Allison Daniels – January 12

Joe Sondock – January 13

Collin Hecht – January 14

Jared Weisenthal – January 18

Jacob Arnold – January 20

Grant Schneider – January 23

Athletic Events this week:

Tuesday –

7 Boys Basketball @Trafton – 4 p.m.

7/8 Boys Basketball v. St. Mark’s – 4 p.m.

Wednesday –

7/8 Boys Basketball @Presbyterian – 4:15 p.m.

Thursday –

7/8 Boys Basketball @Cat Classic (Presbyterian)

7 Boys Basketball @Logos Prep – 4 p.m.

8 Boys Basketball @Logos Prep – 4 p.m.

Saturday –

7/8 Boys @Cat Classic (Presbyterian)

Calendar Events – There are no significant calendar events to note this week.

November 21, 2011

2011-11-21T14:31:00.002-06:00

Random Song Quote:

Here is the Gary Neuman Classic, Cars:

“Here in my car
I feel safest of all
I can lock all my doors
It's the only way to live
In cars”

Seems appropriate given this week’s blog entry.

Carpool:

Over the past couple of weeks, there seems to have developed some confusion regarding afternoon carpool. As a result, there also seems to be some frustration among parents about it as well. Carpool is not a particularly difficult process, however it takes time, patience and attention in order to run smoothly and more importantly safely. With vehicles and children all moving, and generally in different directions, it is necessary that the priority of carpool is the safety of your children. There is no compromise in this regard. Below I will explain the procedures of carpool and make some requests in from you in order to facilitate this process.

Process:

There is only one Middle School carpool line around the back of the school. It is in the lane closest to the buildings.

The lane splits into two at the end of the sport court – please see the diagram – you can stay in the line closest to the sidewalk or head straight towards the median. Both lanes are used to pick up children.

In either pick-up lane, please pull as far forward as possible without stopping at the crosswalk next to the rear entrance to the Middle School. This crosswalk is used for children to cross onto the median for the pick-up lane #2.

Please stay in your car in the carpool lanes and wait for your children to come to you. It slows down carpool if you get out of your car.

Please DO NOT park in the spaces reserved for teachers and expect your child to cross three lanes of traffic to get to your car. It is dangerous for the students and backing out of these lanes slows down carpool.

Please travel in the first and second carpool lanes only. The third is reserved for the Upper School students and their carpool. Certainly DO NOT use the third lane to bypass the longer MS carpool lane and then cut in after the sport court.

Once you pick up your child, please proceed slowly out the middle lane between the median and pick-up lane #1 or wait to move forward out of pick-up lane #2.

Requests:

· Proceed slowly through any of the carpool lanes.

· When your vehicle is moving, please put down your cell phone.

· Please watch the person on carpool duty for directions of when to move.

· Please be patient. The whole process is generally finished by 3:50 p.m., which is just 15 minutes after the students get out of class.

We understand that carpool can seem long particularly at the end of the day, or if you need to pick up other children at other schools. A safe and smooth carpool process is the responsibility of the drivers and the school faculty on duty. Our primary concern is the safety of your children and we will sacrifice speed in order to ensure it. Thank you for your cooperation.

Thanks again for your cooperation in this regard. Have a great Thanksgiving.

Happy Birthday to the following students:

Jacob Stern and Joseph Scwartzberg – Nov 22

Nikki Schwartz and Lauren Rosenberg – Nov 23

Sophia Kuperman – Nov 24

Sam and Gaby Ross – Nov 25

Adam Leigthman – Nov. 26

Anna Epstein – Nov 29

Mazel Tov to Emma Danziger who will celebrate her Bat Mitzvah on Saturday, November 26

There are no Athletic events scheduled for Thanksgiving week in the Middle School.

Calendar Events:

December 9, 12, and 13 – Exam Review Days – Day zeros

December 14-16 – MS Exams – Carpool begins at 11:15 a.m.

December 16 – January 2 – School Closed for Winter Break

January 3 - MS Classes resume at 7:45 a.m. – Day 4

November 14, 2011

2011-11-15T10:09:00.003-06:00

Random song quote:

I know this is supposed to be a holiday song, but given how I feel about the subject of this week's blog...

"It's the most wonderful time of the year..."

Countless people sang this holiday classic.

Exam Information

With Thanksgiving just a week away, and the second interim grades now behind us, students, parents and teachers will start to think about exams. This tends to be a time of stress for our students. Many of the exams are comprehensive exams covering material since the start of the semester. Each teacher will provide a study guide to students on December 9. This is to aid them in their preparation and to identify the key topics students should study for the exam. The purpose of these exams is to provide a culminating event for the semester and to help students practice preparing for and taking exams and give final presentations.

From Wednesday, December 14 to Friday, December 16, students will take six exams (two per day). The first exam begins at 8 a.m. each day, and the final exam ends at 11:15 a.m. You can expect to pick up your child by 11:30 a.m. on those days.

Wednesday Exams - English first and then Judaic Studies

Thursday Exams - Science and then History

Friday Exams - Math and then Foreign Language

There may be alternate assessments given in lieu of exams in a few classes this year. Each individual teacher will send out the details of those assessments in December. The time and weighting for each grade-level exam is as follows:

6th Grade - 1 hour exam; 10% of semester grade

7th Grade - 1 hour and 15 minute exam; 15% of semester grade

8th Grade - 1 hour and 30 minute exam; 20% of semester grade

In preparation for the exams, students will work on exam study skills in the 6th Grade and share successful exam preparation methods in 7th and 8th Grades during advisory on December 5 and 6. In addition, three exam review days are scheduled for December 9, 12 and 13. These are day zeros in which students will meet with all classes in order to maximize the time to review for each exam.

If you have any questions about the schedule or process, please feel free to email or call me.

Thanks and have a great week.

Happy Birthday to the following students who will celebrate their birthdays this week:

Melissa Altar - Nov 17

Vinit Reddy - Nov 18

Dylan Solomon - Nov. 20

Kyle Stein and Elise Shoss - Nov. 21

Jake Stern and Joe Schwartzberg - Nov. 22

Lauren Rosenberg and Nikki Schwartz - Nov. 23

Mazel Tov to the following students who either celebrated or are celebrating their Bar/Bat Mitzvahs:

Rebecca Burd - Nov 12 (sorry we missed you last week)

Kyle Stein and Michael Ran - Nov 19

Upcoming Athletics Games:

Monday -

7th Grade Boys Basketball @ John Cooper - 4:30 p.m.

8th Grade Boys Basketball @ John Cooper - 5:30 p.m.

Tuesday -

7/8th Grade Boys Basketball v. Presbyterian - 4 p.m.

7th Grade Boys Basketball v. Trafton - 5 p.m.

8th Grade Boys Basketball v. Trafton - 6 p.m.

Calendar of Events:

Nov. 23 -25 - School Closed for Thanksgiving

Dec 9, 12 and 13 - MS Review Days

Dec 14-16 - MS Semester Exams

Exam Calendar:

Wednesday - English/Judaics

Thursday - Science/History

Friday - Math/Language

November 8, 2011

2011-11-08T11:29:00.003-06:00

Song:

Since you all know how we feel about your children, here is a very appropriate Katy Perry lyric (yes, Katy Perry....I really like her)

"cause baby, you're a firework

Come on show 'em what you're worth

Make 'em go, oh, oh, oh

As you shoot across the sky"

I guess my musical interests finally moved closer to the present?

Empowering our students:

In future blogs, the students of SGA will begin taping weekly segments that will be played in Kallah and uploaded to this blog. The content of these videos will vary from week to week, but will always include birthdays, Bar/Bat Mitzvah, and scores of and upcoming athletic games. SGA is committed to becoming more of a voice in the school and this is one of the ways to do so. SGA has also created its own Twitter account. Feel free to follow @EWSMSSGA for weekly fun and informative tweets.

The purpose of SGA has always been to provide a student voice to faculty. However, this year we are trying to give it more. We have asked the SGA president to speak to the student body about key issues, they, as a group, have met with SAGE about its menu, and they have had opportunities to create programs such as student of the week and tweet of the week. With this enhanced role, it is our hope that MS SGA becomes truly a representative body of the students in the Middle School and a means for producing more student-driven programming.

Dr. Bishop and I share a similar philosophy in regards to the importance of a strong student voice. When Dr. Bishop reminds students "to ask for what you want because you just might get it," it is not just a tag line. Some of what they ask for gets implemented and honored. We both believe in student empowerment. We feel that by empowering students, the school is a better place and that student buy-in is much more widespread. As a result the programming is more robust, behavior is better, and academic achievement is increased. It is with this in mind that we continue to work to enhance the programs in the Middle School to include more student involvement.

Thanks again and have a great week.

Happy Birthday to the following students:

Cole Caress and Joseph Minkowitz - Nov 10

Jonathan Blum - Nov 12

Mazel Tov to the following students who are celebrating their Bar/Bat Mitzvahs this week:

Kyle Cimino, Nicole Zucker, and Audrey - November 12

Athletics:

Tuesday

MS Girls Soccer v. Awty - 4 p.m.

Wednesday

MS Girls Soccer team pictures

Thursday

Boys 7/8 Basketball v. Veritas - 4 p.m.

MS Girls Soccer @Fort Bend - 4 p.m.

7 Boys Baseketball @ Fort Bend - 4:30 p.m.

8 Boys Basketball @ Fort Bend - 5:30 p.m.

Friday

7 Boys Basketball @ Family Cristian Tournament - 3 p.m.

7/8 Basketball @Family Christian Tournament

Calendar of Events:

Week of November 7 - Second Interim reports will be emailed home.

November 16 - Begin fourth rotation of 6th Grade electives

November 23-25 - School Closed for Thanksgiving

October 31, 2011

2011-11-01T14:26:00.003-05:00

Random Song: Halloween Style

Word of the week:

Last week was our first full week in a while and it seemed that we quickly got back into rhythm. We now have three weeks until the Thanksgiving break and then we return and exams are upon us in a blink. The next few weeks are a great time for teaching as it is one of the longer periods of the first semester without a break. Once we return from Thanksgiving, exams and exam preparation are on us quickly. I will have a blog post in a couple of weeks outlining the exams schedule, review days and what you can expect from that week.

Last week we had our first Friday Kallah in a while. Mr. Dean's music classes ripped it up for the student body. While students performed student art work from Mr. Murasko's class was shown on the big screen. With musical numbers that ranged from an already classic Adele tune to Michael Jackson's Billie Jean, there was something for everyone. 8th Grader Cy Pacht and 6th Grader Ari Schwartzberg had a guitar battle greater that would rival those from the video game, Guitar Hero. The music days in Kallah are a fun time for the students and it serves as a nice way to end the week and transition into Shabbat.

As we were reminded in seeing the student's art work and watching the them perform on Friday, you all send us some pretty talented kids and we appreciate it. As Dr. Bishop says frequently, thank you for sending us your best.

Have a great week.

Happy birthday to the following students:

Katie Rosenkrantz - Nov 3

Amanda Barsky and Annie Ferdman - Nov 5

There are no Bar or Bat Mitzvahs this week. Seventh graders gets a bit of a break this weekend.

Athletics

Team pictures for all MS teams on Tuesday

Calendar Events

Thursday, Nov. 3 - 12:30 p.m. dismissal for teacher in-service

Week of Nov 7 - Second Interim reports will be emailed home

Nov. 16 - Beginning of final rotation of 6th Grade Fine Arts

Nov 23-25 - School Closed - Thanksgiving Break

October 24, 2011

2011-10-24T09:27:00.003-05:00

Random Song:

Unbeknownst to many, I am a big Dave Matthews Band fan and one of my new favorite Disney classics is Tangled, the story of Rapunzel. So how are they connected, well, here are some lyrics from the aptly named DMB tune, Rapunzel:

"For you I would crawl
through the darkest dungeon
climb the castle wall
If you are my Rapunzel
you let hair down
right in through the window..."

Who would've thought?

Parent-Teacher Conferences

Next Monday, October 31, is designated as the annual Middle School parent-teacher conferences. The conferences begin at noon and run through 7 p.m. Cathy Power has spent countless hours scheduling those conferences and at this time, scheduling for that day is closed. If you need to still schedule conferences, please contact the teachers directly to determine a time before or after October 31 to meet.

The purpose of the Parent-Teacher conferences is to give you an opportunity to meet one-on-one with one or all of your child's teachers. It is a good time to talk about your child's grades, efforts, expectations and goals for the remainder of the school year. The second interim grading period ends a week later, so teachers may be able to either give you a picture of what those grades will look like when they are emailed home, or they will be able to let you know what assessments lie ahead before the interim grades come out.

The meeting times are very short, only lasting 10 minutes. Teachers' schedules are generally very full, so we ask both you and the teachers to respect the 10-minute time limit. In order to maximize your time, we suggest that you prepare and prioritize questions and address the most pressing concerns first. The time goes very quickly and before you know it, you will be waiting for the next conference. The one favor we ask is that you do not try to hold an impromptu meeting with a teacher at a time that you have not scheduled. This is really a busy day and even if a teacher does not have a parent in his or her room, he or she is likely jotting down notes from previous conferences or preparing for future ones.

It is generally a good day of discussion between the parents and the teachers. It is a great opportunity to get to know the outstanding people who work with your children every day. Thanks for taking the time to come in and be such a huge part of your child's education.

Have a great week and we look forward to seeing you on Monday.

Birthdays:

Zach Roubein - Oct. 27

Shelby and Garrett Glover on Oct. 29

Mazel Tov to Garret and Shelby Glover who will celebrate their Bar and Bat Mitzvahs on October 29.

Athletics:

Practices for MS Girls Soccer and MS 7 and 8 Boys Basketball

Calendar Events

Oct. 27 - JOE Dinner - 12:30 p.m. Dismissal
Oct. 31 - Parent-Teacher Conferences (No School for MS Students)

October 17, 2011

2011-10-17T11:51:00.000-05:00

Random Song:

Here is a classic Stray Cats tune that my daughter just loves (go figure!)

"Black and orange stray cat sitting on a fence ain't got enough dough to pay the rent Im flat broke but I don't care I strut right by with my tail in the air"

It seems appropriate to have a song about a black cat during this month.

Busy October:

There are a lot of things going on right at this moment on campus and coming up in the following weeks as we move into the later stages of October. The 7th Grade enjoyed two days in the Hill Country on their retreat on Monday and Tuesday. They did some spelunking, rock climbing and hiking on and around Enchanted Rock - I even got a tweet from the top of the rock! Again, the kids seemed to really enjoy themselves as I heard stories of overcoming challenges and defying death (okay, so they exaggerated a little in their story-telling) when they returned.

The 6th Grade took a terrific field trip on Wednesday to the Holocaust Museum. By all indications, that trip went very well and the students found it to be a rewarding adventure. Also on Wednesday, the 7th and 8th Grade advisories participated in their first Tikkun Olam day of the year. The experiences for the students were varied and the results seemed positive overall. Kids traveled to League City to help collect and organize clothes, some stayed at school and packed boxes for service men and women overseas, and some kids traveled to different schools around the the city to help in a number of capacities depending on the need. Thank you to those parents who drove and helped in various ways to make the day engaging for our students.

We still have a lot of things going before the month ends. We have another short week this week as we are again off on Thursday and Friday. In order to compensate for these short weeks, we have had several Day zeros in which students meet with all of their classes. Although classes are shorter in length, they meet more consistently to help keep the flow of the school year intact during this challenging time. The JOE dinner is next Thursday night and promises to, once again, be a huge event on campus. In preparation for it, school will dismiss at 12:30 p.m. on October 27. Finally, the month ends with parent-teacher conferences on October 31. We will have much more information about the expectations of those meetings in next week's blog.

Have a great week everyone.

Happy Birthday to the following students:

Nicole Zucker - October 19

Jillian Greenberg - October 20

Hannalee Fox, Nicole Miller and Dylan Zisman - October 21

Hailey Caress - October 22

Mazel Tov to Adam Davis who will celebrate his Bar Mitzvah on October 22

Athletics:

MS Girls Soccer, MS girls Basketball, 7th and 8th Grade Boys Basketball teams all begin practice on October 17

Calendar Events:

Oct 17 - 6th Grade electives begin third rotation
Oct 20-21 - School Closed
Oct 27 - 12:30 dismissal for JOE Dinner
Oct 31 - Parent-teacher conferences 12-7 (No MS classses)

October 10, 2011

2011-10-10T11:18:00.004-05:00

Random song:

This seems appropriate after yesterday:

In honor of the baseball playoffs that are now into the second round of games:

“put me in coach
I’m ready to play, today
Put me in couch,
I’m ready to play today
Look at me, I can be centerfield.”

A sweet John Fogarty tune.

First Interim

And so we are now deep into autumn. The fall sports season will end on Tuesday with the final boys soccer game of the year, the holidays are upon us, and the first interim grades have been sent home. With all of these events, the school year is no longer new and we all begin to see patterns, both with individual and larger groups of students.

EWS has two official grading periods a year - the end of the first semester and the end of the year. Those two grades are the only ones that go on the official school transcript. The semester grade is reached by a combination of the semester grade and the mid-term exam. In 6th grade, the exam counts 10%, 7th grade it's 15%, and 8th grade is 20% of the semester grade. The second semester grade is calculated the same way with the final year-end grade being the average of the two semesters.

However, interim grade reports go out twice during each semester. These reports are a snapshot of where the student is at that point in the semester. It also serves as an opportunity to review the status of all of out students. Advisors are made aware of their advisee's grades and are there to help students identify and make plans for any issues that arise. It is also at this time that the school may require students to attend tutorials or find additional time to work on studies. Although one of the goals of middle school is to provide students the space to become self-sufficient, often times this is a three year process that requires additional help from teachers and parents. As the first interim concludes, please know that we are working hard to provide your children the necessary scaffolding for them to reach their individual goals. If you have any questions, please call the teachers, the advisor, or the administration as we are all ready to lend a hand when needed.

Thanks and have a great week.

Happy birthday to the following students who celebrated birthdays last week or will this coming week:

Nathan Lederman and Sari Raizner - Oct 5
Sam Stewart and Audrey Goodman - Oct 7
Matthew Kronowitz- Oct 11
Eve Baliff and Natalie Goldberg - Oct 13

Mazel Tov to Hannalee Fox and Matthew Kronowitz who are celebrating their Bat and Bar Mitzvah respectively on October15.

Athletics

MS Boys Soccer v. Holy Spirit - 4 p.m.

END OF THE FALL SPORTS SEASON

Calendar events

Oct 10-11 - 7th Grade Retreat to The Outdoor School
Oct 12 - 6th Grade field trip to Holocaust Museum; 7/8 - Tikkun Olam
Oct 12 - school dismissed at 12:30 p.m.
Oct 13-14 - school closed
Oct 20-21- school closed

September 26, 2011

2011-09-26T08:43:00.002-05:00

Random Song:

In hopes that my red sox can somehow avoid disaster in this last week of the season :

"Sweet Caroline

Good times never seemed so good

I've been inclined to believe it never would"

- Neil Diamond, "Sweet Caroline"

The Holiday Season

For many people in the United States, the unofficial start of the holiday season is about the time that we start decorating for Halloween in mid-October. However, at EWS, the holiday season starts when Rosh Hashanah begins that four-week period of high holidays and many breaks from school.You probably do not need us to tell you, but that time has arrived.

At school this means a variety of challenges. We have finally reached a rhythm as the students, teachers and parents now understand the schedule, systems and generally how things are going to operate for the coming school year. This results in better production from students and more time for learning because the habits have now been formed. Well, this month is challenging as much of that rhythm is broken. We go from seeing our students in classes three or four days a week to once, twice, or in some cases, not at all. So, some of the efficiency that we gained will now take a step backwards.

As a result, the schedule has been adjusted to allow for several day zeros during the next four weeks. This means that classes will be shorter, but will meet more frequently. Teachers will work together to schedule tests and quizzes as to not overwhelm the students, but still assess and evaluate students regularly. The casualties of this schedule are Kallah and clubs as they will occur less frequently through the month of October. It is a challenging but important time of year. We recognize the importance of balancing the high holidays with academics and athletics. Please let the teachers know early if there are obligations that conflict with assignments in order to give them time to adjust and help.

Thank you for a terrific open house. It was great seeing so many of you.

There are no birthdays or Bar/Bat Mitzvahs this week.

Athletics this week:

7th Volleyball
Monday - v. Awty - 4 p.m.
Tuesday - v. Fort Bend Baptist - 4 p.m.

8th Volleyball
Monday - v. Awty - 5 p.m.
Tuesday - v. Fort Bend Baptist - 5 p.m.

Calendar Events:

September 28 - 12:30 p.m. Dismissal
September 29-30 - School Closed
October 6-7 - 1st Interim Grades emailed home
October 10-11 - 7th Grade Rereat - The Outdoor School
October 12 - 6th Grade field trip to Holocaust Museum
October 12 - 7/8 - Tikkun Olam
October 12 - 12:30 p.m. dismissal
October 13-14 - School Closed

September 19, 2011

2011-09-19T08:04:00.002-05:00

Random Song Quote:

"I want to know
Have you ever seeming rain
Coming down on a sunny day."

A little CCR for a rainy Monday.

Super Students:

It is with awe that we watch many of our students grow over their three years in the Middle School. They come in as wide-eyed sixth graders and leave with a pretty solid concept of what is important to them. Some of this is a result of the Bar/Bat Mitzvah year in which students are required to give back to the world in some way. Some is because of the school's mission and philosophy of Tikkun Olam and experiential learning, and some is because they see values modeled every day from their teachers, friends, and most importantly you, their parents.

Our students are doing a lot of terrific things in and out of school. Racheal Totz and Orly Golub are organizing a walk in support of the Berry Family, and Amanda Zivley developed a webpage and is raising money to supply under-developed countries with much needed water. All of our students do really cool mitzvah projects, so please let us know about those as we are always interested to hear the great things going on outside of school.

This week on campus, there was the formation of the S.W.A.T team. SWAT stands for Student Wiz Kids Assisting Teachers. This selected group of tech savvy students will be working with Ben Stern, the tech integration specialist in the Middle School, to further their knowledge of technology and then to help teachers trouble-shoot issues during class. These students are going to eventually give up their elective period in order to help The School further its goal of integrating technology.

Lastly, a big shout out to 8th Grader Lydia Elieff! We miss you Lydia and are really excited to see you back on campus soon.

As Dr. Bishop says, thank you for sending us your best. They really are making huge contributions to their community.

Have a great week.

Happy Birthday to the following students:

Jon-Jon Moulton and Ashley Doctor - Sept. 20
Ashley Barriga - Sept. 22
Adam Davis and Joel Nates- Sept. 24
Emma Danziger - Sept. 25

Mazel Tov to Jonathan Stein and Kacy Rosen who will celebrate their Bar/Bat Mitzvahs on the 24.

Athletic Events this week:

MS Boys Soccer

Tuesday - v. Honor Roll - 4 p.m.
Thursday - v. Lutheran South - 4 p.m.

7th Girls Volleyball

Tuesday - v. John Cooper - 4 p.m.
Thursday - v. Lutheran South - 4 p.m.

8th Girls Volleyball

Tuesday - v. John Cooper - 5 p.m.
Thursday - v. Lutheran South - 5 p.m.

Important Events:

Tuesday, September 20 - MS Picture Day- All MS students should wear the navy EWS polo

Thursday, September 22 - MS Open House 6-8 p.m. (2:50 p.m. dismissal from school)

Wednesday, Sept. 28 - 12:30 p.m. dismissal - Erev Rosh Hashanah

Thursday, Sept. 29-Friday, Sept 30 - Rosh Hashanah - School Closed

**Parents, please remember to submit a field trip permission form that can be found on our website, www.emeryweiner.org, under parents and forms and information. No student may go on a field trip, retreat or school trip without your consent via this form.

2011-09-12T09:37:00.002-05:00

Random Song Quote:

I love this Fleetwood Mac classic:

"If you wake up and you don't want to smile If it takes just a little while Open your eyes and look at the day You'll see things in a different

Don't stop thinking about tomorrow...

Don't stop, it'll soon be here..."

Our election season is over:

As the GOP candidates continue to battle it out in a series of debates in an effort to attract voters in states like Iowa and New Hampshire, we expedited our process for electing our Student Government representatives. Two weeks ago students concluded their week-long campaigns with speeches in front of the student body on Friday, September 2, and the election was held on the same day at lunch. On Tuesday of last week, The School announced the officers. It is important to note that all of the candidates ran great campaigns and they should be proud of themselves for running.

SGA Officers:

President - Mikayla Smolensky

Vice-President - Ryan Middleman

Treasurer - Olivia Dadoun

Secretary - Liam Faigen

6th Grade Representative - Ryan Bronston

Congratulations to you all.

Now, they turn their attention to a few of their primary responsibilities for the year. The first thing you will notice is that within the next couple of weeks, SGA will develop, plan and produce their weekly video announcements that will be played in advisory each Monday and then posted on this blog. Second, SGA will begin accepting and approving proposals for clubs and then organize and oversee the club fair on September 21.

Finally, they will vet the Tikkun Olam projects in the 7th and 8th Grade. As mentioned last week, the first Tikkun Olam day will be October 12. On that day, 7th and 8th Grade students will participate in an activity that they choose and plan within their advisories. The goal is to enhance the experience for all students by giving them more opportunities to choose the community service organizations that they feel most strongly about. Within their advisory, they will contact groups schedule the day's activities, and finalize all the logistics. SGA will make sure that there is little overlap as all activities must be approved first by SGA and then Dr. Bishop and me. So, things are going to get busy as we are now at full speed.

Have a great week everyone!

Happy Birthday to the following students:

Rachel Morris - Sept. 15

Adam Glombick - Sept. 16

Rachel Abreu - Sept. 17

There are no Bar/Bat Mitzvahs this week.

Athletics:

***Athletic Pictures on Wednesday during the school day

7th Grade Volleyball

Tuesday: v. Trafton - 4 p.m.

Thursday: v. Logos Prep - 4 p.m.

8th Grade Volleyball

Tuesday - v. Trafton - 4 p.m.

Thursday: v. Logos Prep - 5 p.m.

Saturday: @ Bellaire Tournament

MS Boys Soccer

Tuesday: @Trafton - 4 p.m.

Thursday: @Holy Spirit - 4:30 p.m.

Important Events:

September 14 -12:30 p.m. Dismissal

MS Open House - September 22 - 6-8 p.m. - 2:50 p.m. dismissal

2011-09-07T16:41:00.000-05:00

Random Song Quote:

Okay, another Paul Simon Ditty. He just has some great stuff:

"Never been lonely, never been lied to

Never had to scuffle in fear, nothing denied to

Born at the instant, the church bells chimed

The world whispering, born at the right time"

Unofficially, it's Fall:

I hope you all had a good last weekend of summer. It seems the best was saved for last weather-wise as this weekend was a gem. Once Labor Day passes we quickly transition from the beginning of the school year into the meat of it. The homework will begin to ratchet up and tests, quizzes and other assessments will begin to show up on the combined calendar

We spend a lot of time in the Middle School getting adjusted. I have written in past blogs about the challenges that face students in each of the grade levels. As a result, we try to plan programming that we feel will help our students navigate their respective grade. Through large and small group activities, the purpose of these programs is to give students tools that they can use over the course of the year and perhaps beyond. There is certainly more than one way to successfully manage each school year and these programs are not intended to help all students in every circumstance. There is more than one way to skin the proverbial cat and these following programs are meant to give students tools that they can add to their toolbox.

In the next couple of weeks, the 6th Graders will have a bullying 101 program with Dr. Bishop, the 8th Graders will share with them the top 10 things they need to know about Middle School, and they will begin a four-week study skills unit. Study skills will cover a number of areas, including binder and note management, time management and test-taking strategies. The 7th Grade will complete a two-advisory lesson on the Bar/Bat MItzvah year with Rabbi Strauss, the Head of Jewish Life, they will have Bullying 102 with Dr. Bishop and will begin preparing for Tikkun Olam in their individual advisories. The 8th Grade will put their learned skills to use as they assist the 6th Graders in the top 10 things to know about the Middle School, and they will also begin to prepare for Tikkun Olam. The first Tikkun Olam day will take place on October 12, an early dismissal day.

We realize that these activities have the greatest impact when you all, as parents, share in the process. You can expect us to disseminate the details of many of these programs as they approach in order for us to continue to work together to provide the best middle school experience for your child.

Thanks and have a great week!

Happy Birthday to Ari Schwartzberg on Sept. 8

Bar/Bat Mitzvahs:

None

**If you notice that your child is not on the birthday list or the Bar/Bat Mitzvah list, and they should be, please drop Cathy Power an email so that we may update our records. We don't want to miss anyone. Thanks.

Athletics:

7th Girls Volleyball:
Tuesday @St. Mark's – 4 p.m.
Thursday @Awty – 4 p.m.

8th Girls Volleyball:
Tuesday @ St. Mark's – 5 p.m.
Thursday @ Awty – 5 p.m.

MS Boys Soccer:
Tuesday v. St. Mark's - 4:15 p.m.
Thursday v. Awty – 4 p.m.

Important events coming up in the MS:

September 14 -12:30 p.m. Dismissal
MS Open House - September 22

August 29, 2011

2011-08-29T09:30:00.002-05:00

Random Song Quote:

“Now I, I wish it would rain down, down on me
Yes I wish it would rain, rain down on me now”

- Phil Collins, “I Wish It Would Rain Down”

Musings from the First Week:

And so the first week is behind us. It was a terrific open to the school year. The 6th Grade overnight was a success as our 6th Grade students walked in the door with confidence on Thursday morning. They are learning to manage their lockers and take command of their schedules. In addition, they knew who to ask when they had questions. The learning curve for a new 6th Grader is great, so hopefully they moved up on that curve a little ahead of time.

The opening ceremonies did not disappoint. In the midst of the rock band, our talented teachers and students singing and playing instruments, and the long and winding road video of Mr. Dow's return voyage to EWS, was an immense message of overcoming challenges. Mr. Dow made no promises that a student’s 7-year path at EWS, or life itself, would be always smooth. Additionally, he wove in challenges that some in our community are facing today and provided inspiration by sharing inspiring stories of those who overcame extraordinary odds to achieve their success. Finally, Upper School students shared their own stories of challenges that they too had overcome and the inspiration they found in the journey. It was truly a memorable event, one that will inevitably help to define the year. The video should be available online after Wednesday for those of you who were not able to make it to the ceremony. We will communicate the link to you when it is ready.

Finally, the first week wound down with a return to classes. As I strolled the halls, I saw students smiling and engaged. I saw teachers excited to interact with their students and doing so in such unique and awesome ways. If the first two days are any indication, this school year is going to be incredible.

Have a great week everyone. Enjoy the three-day weekend.

Happy Birthday to the following students:

Sterling Rosenthal - Aug. 30
Kally Hatcher - Sept. 2
Lauren Schoen and Nancy Gorosh - Sept. 3
Aron Sable and Ilana Vines - Sept. 5

Bar/Bat Mitzvahs:

Mazel Tov to Adam Gombicki who is celebrating his Bar Mitzvah on Sept. 3

Important Dates/Events on Campus:

6th Grade Parent Meeting - Monday, Aug 29 - 8 a.m. or 6 p.m. in The Loft
7th Grade Parent Meeting - Tuesday, Aug 30 - 8 a.m. or 6 p.m. in The Loft
8th Grade Parent Meeting - Wednesday, Aug 31 - 8 a.m. or 6 p.m. in The Loft
All-School Musical - Auditions - Monday, Aug 29 and Tuesday, Aug. 30 - The Becker Theater
September 5 - Labor Day - School Closed

August 22, 2011

2011-08-22T14:30:00.001-05:00

Random Song Quote:

“Hello again hello
Just called to say hello
I didn’t sleep at all tonight
And I know, but I couldn’t wait…hello.”

A Neil Diamond classic!

The First Day of School:

So it is with great excitement and anticipation that we will welcome the first day of school on Thursday. Each year is so different as the new students add their own personalities to our Middle School, the rising 8th graders offer new and unique leadership, and the new faculty and staff add their own flavor to EWS. The first part of the year, getting to know the students new to our community and catching up with those who are returning is truly one of the joys of this job.

With the first day also comes a great deal of anxiety for the middle school student. For 6th graders it is the new school and with it uncertain expectations of what the days and weeks ahead will bring. We try to mitigate these with the pool party and overnight experience, but it is not uncommon for a child who was very comfortable and excited about school to suddenly become very nervous. This goes away. I promise. For 7th graders, there is a lot of excitement about the year ahead. This is a big year for most of our 7th graders as they will celebrate their Bar and Bat Mitzvahs. This means a lot of social activity and a lot of responsibility. This is a challenge for most parents and kids, and we will do the best we can to help during this exciting time. For 8th graders, they have survived 7th grade, and they are now the kings and queens of the castle as they move upstairs, and their voices are much louder than they were before. These are the students we will mostly rely on to make recommendations, to take leaderships roles, and to set the example for the rest of the Middle School. With the higher expectations come greater rewards and privileges for meeting those expectations.

And so, it is with a great deal of hope for a super year, with excitement to see the kids, and with genuine love of this school and community that we welcome some of you to, and some of you back to, the EWS Middle School.

Wishing you all a great year.

Birthdays this week:

Eden Sharaby – August 23
Olivia Dadoun – August 24
Jordan Love, Ben Tuchshneider, Patsy Serna-Cohen, and Ellie Spier – August 25
Bucky Engel and Megan Haas – August 29
Michael Ran and Ian Arzt – August 26

Bar/Bat Mitzvahs:

Mazel Tov to the following students who will celebrate their Bar/Bat Mitzvahs this week:

Bess Krasoff
Brandon Roseman
Alexa and Michael Spolane

Important Dates/Events on Campus:

• Athletic Practices start on Monday, August 22
• August 23 and 24 – 1-4 p.m. – 7th and 8th Grade Locker set-up. Please feel free to bring your 7th or 8th grade child to school during those assigned times to place supplies and visit with teachers.
• August 25 – School begins at 7:45 a.m. with the traditional and much anticipated opening ceremonies led by Head of School, Stuart Dow. The excitement builds…
• August 28 – The EWS Annual Picnic will be held in The Commons and the patio from 5-7 p.m.

August 15, 2011

2011-08-15T08:34:00.000-05:00

Random Song Quote:
“And I believe,
These are the days of lasers in the jungle
Lasers in the jungle somewhere
Staccato singles of constant information
A loose affiliation of millionaires and billionaires and babies
These are the days of miracle and wonder…”
-Paul Simon, The Boy in the Bubble, 1986

Well, a warm welcome to all of our new families, and a welcome back to those of you who return for another year at EWS. I hope that you all have had a great summer, found some reprieve from the heat and are ready to tackle yet another school year. I am posting this blog a little before school starts because there is a lot going on before the kids walk through the door on Thursday, August 25 and we wanted to give you a little reminder of some of the new stuff happening on campus for this coming school year. So without further adieu, let’s get to it:

Changes:

The Schedule - in order for the Upper School and Middle School to be more in line this year we have adopted a common schedule. A couple of significant changes for the Middle School are that we have Kallah/advisory/clubs following the first period of the day. The second change is that we only have study hall Monday-Thursday. As we dismiss at 2:50 p.m. on Friday, we will no longer end the day with a study hall. Also, at the end of each Kallah/advisory/clubs period, we will have a snack for the students, which will be served by Sage.

Lunch – As most of you know, we have changed food service providers to Sage. This is just a reminder that salad, sandwiches and a hot option are available every day for students, and that they can have as many servings as they like.

Uniform – The Middle School has adopted the Upper School dress code. Button-downs or polos of any color of green, blue, gray, black or white – with a logo no larger than 1”x1” – are allowed. We require a navy EWS polo and a white t-shirt under all button-downs. Shorts, skirts and pants can be any color of khaki. Girls also have the option of navy or plaid skirts. The Uniform Shop contains used but clean uniforms for those occasions when a student needs a reminder about standards.

Digital Literacy – Digital Literacy is now a required semester course for 6th Graders. Sixth Grade students will now take one semester of PE and one semester of Digital Literacy.

Communication – The blog will change a little after SGA elections in early September. We will add a video component to announce the athletic schedule, birthdays and Bar/Bat Mitzvahs. In addition, we will use Twitter much more frequently to announce changes to the schedule, game scores and special announcements from the Middle School. Please follow us on @EmeryWeiner or “like” us on Facebook to keep abreast of these announcements. The song referenced above was not so randomly chosen as Paul Simon seemed to predict Twitter – “staccato signals of constant information” - in his 1986 classic. The school will continue to use email, E-Flash and Edline as the primary means of communication so that no one misses anything important!

The Facility – There have been a few changes to the Middle School over the summer. First, the chairs in The Loft have been replaced making it much more comfortable for people attending meetings. Angela Thomas, our Student Support Specialist, has moved to MS 121. Her former room, MS 111, will now be used as the conference room for the middle school. And finally, a wall has come down between MS 129 and 130. This is now a large space that will be used as a classroom, a location for class meetings and faculty meetings on campus.

Important Dates/Events on Campus:

• August 22 – 6th Grade overnight – please have students on campus between 4:45 and 5 p.m. There is a parent meeting with Mr. Dow and Dr. Bishop at 8:45 a.m. on August 23. Parents of 6th Graders are asked to bring any books or supplies at this time. Students will set up their lockers during this meeting.
• August 23-24 – 1-4 p.m. – 7th and 8th Grade Locker set-up. Please feel free to bring your 7th or 8th Grader to school during those assigned times to place supplies and visit with teachers.
• August 25 – School begins at 7:45 a.m. with the traditional and much-anticipated opening ceremonies led by Head of School, Stuart Dow. It is sure to be a treat!
• August 28 – The EWS Annual Picnic will be held in The Commons and on the patio from 5-7 p.m.

Thank you all. Have a great couple of weeks and we look forward to seeing you and your children very soon.

May 24th, 2011

2011-05-24T10:06:00.001-05:00

Random Song quote:

“Na, na, na, na
Na, na, na, na
Hey, Hey, Hey
Goodbye..”

It seemed to make good sense as this will be the final blog of the school year.

School Year Wrap and Summer Fun:

May, as usual, has passed in a flash. With the outstanding production of Oliver! now concluded, suddenly, we find ourselves in the final days of the school year as our attention turns to final exams. It is obvious in talking to students that they want to be excited for the end of the year, but the uncertainty of exams does give them some pause. I would say that as teachers, we have the same feelings, but for different reasons.
We are all excited for the summer – family vacations, time to relax, and the slower pace are all things for which to look forward. However, once the kids leave, the school loses a lot of its life. The middle school becomes very quiet, lockers and hallways sit empty for months, and within just a couple of weeks, we really start to miss the students. It is also a bitter sweet time as we have to say goodbye to some many of our students. We have some families moving away, some kids will change schools, and our entire 8th grade will move on. So, although the next two weeks are exciting, they are not without some sadness.
I remember the day the current 8th grade walked in building for the first time as 6th graders. They were little bundles of enthusiasm, happy to be around new and old friends alike. One of the really special parts of our job is watching these kids mature over their three years. As they grow in size, so too does their maturity (okay, at least it is supposed to work that way) and their senses of humor. They have had amazing moments on the stage, on the courts and fields, and in the classrooms. Each student has left a mark on the school and on their teachers as they have passed through. To those who will not return to Emery/Weiner next year, thank you for your efforts over the last three years. You will be missed and we look forward to that day or two on which you return to say hello. To those who are returning to the upper school, don’t be strangers…it is not that long of a walk to the other side of the arbor. You all have a lot of which to be proud and there is no doubt that you will make excellent high school students and adults.

Have a great summer, everyone. Connie, Cathy, Lue, and I will all be in for most of the summer and the office is always open. If you need anything, just give us a call or drop by.
See you all in August.

Happy Birthday to the following students who are celebrating birthdays before the end of school and who will not be here to celebrate their birthdays with us over the summer:

Ashton Normand – May 24th Hannah Brookner – May 26th
Cole Introlligator – May 28th Melissa Goldblatt – May 30th
Simone Trevas – May 31st Lydia Elieff and Jake Feldman – June 1st
Jordan Hudson – June 2nd Hayden Turk – June 3rd
Annie Abramowitz – June 4th Max Nicolayevsky – June 6th
Mike Shalev – June 8th Jake Yudkin – June 15th
Scott Gold – June 16th
Leigh Gonik, Marah Fields, and David Kleban – June 18th
Rory O’Dwyer – June 23rd Adi Tuchschneider – June 28th
Sophie Daily – June 29th Greg Holste – June 30th
Jake Meltzer – July 1st Jonathan Stein – July 3rd
Carlos Serna-Cohen – July 4th Ben Roberts – July 5th
Rylie Cohen – July 6th Dylan Agnich – July 7th
Evan Diebner – July 8th Nick Dennenberg – July 9th
Arianna Swaab – July 14th Sydney Scherer – July 20th
Reagan Bisel – July 22nd Amanda Atzil – July 25th
Eric Rosenbaum – July 30th Ethan Middleman and Cy Pacht – August 1st
Maayan Yaari – August 5th Sarah Horwitz and Josh Raizner – August 6th
Rebecca Burd and Elle Shaw – August 10th Ellie Sondock – August 16th
Sebastian Biondi – August 20th Olivia Dadoun – August 24th
Eden Sharaby – August 23rd

Mazel Tov to the following students who will celebrate their Bar/Bat Mitzvahs over Memorial Day weekend and in the summer:

Andrew Kalmans and Ryan Sable – May 28th
Max Nicolayevsky – June 4th
Lydia Elieff – June 11th
Harrison Rosenthal – August 5th

Kallah and Advisory:

• Monday –

Yearbook distribution

• Tuesday

Talent Show – Begins at 2:35pm

• Wednesday

Year –end Kallah

• Thursday and Friday – Review Days – No Kallah

Calendar Events

• May 26 – Meeting in the Middle for incoming 6th grade parents – 8am or 6pm
• MS Review Days – May 26-27
• Memorial Day – School Closed – May 30th
• Final Exams – May 31-June2
• June 2nd – 8th grade promotion; Last day of School
• Final Grades - emailed home June 13-14
• June 17th – Tentative - 2011-2012 schedules available on ApWeb

FINAL EXAM SCHEDULE:

Exams begin at 8am and end at 11:15 (except extra time students) every day.
Tuesday, May 31st:
Hebrew: 8-9:30
History: 9:45-11:15

Wednesday, June 1st:

Judaic Studies: 8-9:30
English: 9:45-11:15

Thursday, June 2nd:

Math: 8-9:30
Science: 9:45-11:15

Extended Time:

6th Grade – 8-11:15 every day
7th Grade – 8- 12:15 every day
8th Grade – 8-12:45 every day

**Once students are finished, we allow them to leave, so the end time is the latest that extended time exams will finish.

May 16, 2011

2011-05-19T09:45:00.002-05:00

Random Song quote:
“It’s the final countdown…”
You all know the song and the heavy synthesizer riff..(it’s still a riff if it’s on the keytar, right?)

Dates and Schedules:

I hope that you all are having a good month of May. It is really flying by as we hit the middle of the month this week and we only have two full weeks of school left before exams. There are a lot of dates, times and schedules to cover, so I wanted to give you all a heads up as to what is coming up and what to expect from us between now and the end of the school year.
The all-school production of Oliver is this week. It marks the final extra-curricular activity of the school year. Once the curtain closes Thursday evening, the focus turns entirely to a strong finish of the school year and to exams. I have added the exam schedule at the end of the blog for your convenience. You can also expect an email from me this week with the schedule as well.
On Friday, May 20th, you should receive your child’s recommended placement for the next school year. If you would like to appeal the school’s recommendation, then please call Cathy Power and set up an appointment to do so. We have set aside the afternoons after exams for these meetings. Once appeals and the master schedule are complete, you will receive an email outlining the process for finding your child’s schedule on APWeb. There is a link on Edline to it and our target date for releasing next year’s schedule is June 17th. However, that is still a tentative date, so if it is not up by that date, please be patient as we problem-solve any scheduling conflicts.
Finally, the last day of school is Thursday, June 2nd. On that day, students will be dismissed beginning at 11:15. Later that afternoon and evening, the 8th grade will return for their promotion ceremonies and then a dance. This event is for current EWS 8th graders only and their families. The dance will end at 10pm at which time our 8th graders will go their separate ways, sadly, for the last time as a class.
Have a great week and if you have any questions regarding exams, schedule, etc. please drop me an email or give me a call.

All-School Musical, “Oliver” hits the stage May 17-19…Get your tickets now for our first ever all-school theater event!

Happy Birthday to Jenni Daum who is celebrating her birthday on May 22nd

There are no students celebrating Bar/Bat Mitzvahs this week.

Kallah and Advisory:
• Monday –

Advisory – 6/7 – coloring and cutting out butterflies for the Houston Holocaust Memorial; 8th – surveys for the upper school to help determine 9-12 buddies for next school year, if applicable

• Tuesday

Special Schedule to accommodate an all-school Kallah for a preview of “Oliver!”

• Wednesday

Clubs - Final clubs of the year

• Thursday

Torah Service – Final Torah Service for Andrew Kalmans and Ryan Sable who have their Mar Mitzvahs on the 28th of May and Max Nicolayevsky and Lydia Elieff who have their respective Bar and Bat Mitzvahs over the summer.

• Friday

12:30 schedule with crEWSapalooza in the afternoon. School dismisses at 2:50.

Calendar Events
• Oliver! – Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday evenings beginning at 7:30
• Incoming 6th grade welcome event – Thursday, May 19th – pizza party, scavenger hunt, and the musical
• Placements for school year 2011-2012 will be emailed home May 20th.
***Appeals will be heard on the afternoons of May 31st, June 1st, and June 2nd – please call Cathy Power to schedule a time. Appointments will be no more than 20 minutes in length.

Looking Ahead:
• May 26 – Meeting in the Middle for incoming 6th grade parents – 8am or 6pm
• MS Review Days – May 26-27
• Memorial Day – School Closed – May 30th
• Final Exams – May 31-June2
• June 2nd – 8th grade promotion; Last day of School
• Final Grades - emailed home June 13-14

FINAL EXAM SCHEDULE:
Exams begin at 8am and end at 11:15 (except extra time candidates) every day.
Tuesday, May 31st:
Hebrew: 8-9:30
History: 9:45-11:15

Wednesday, June 1st:

Judaic Studies: 8-9:30
English: 9:45-11:15

Thursday, June 2nd:

Math: 8-9:30
Science: 9:45-11:15

Extended Time:

6th Grade – 8-11:15 every day
7th Grade – 8- 12:15 every day
8th Grade – 8-12:45 every day

**Once students are finished, we allow them to leave, so the end time is the latest that extended time exams will finish.

May 9th, 2011

2011-05-09T15:41:00.001-05:00

Random Song quote:
Here’s an 80’s “Power Station” classic that is appropriate for the coming week:

“Some like it hot and some sweat when the heat is on
Some feel the heat and decide that they cannot go on
Some like it hot, but you can’t tell how hot til you try
Some like it hot so let’s turn up the heat til we fry.”

Happy Mother’s Day!

I imagine that many of you hard working moms tend to feel like it is a thankless job raising middle school age children. They have reached the age where little of what you say is right, their wisdom tends to come from their adolescent peers, and they probably lock themselves in their rooms for long periods of time. Almost all children go through this as they progress from elementary school – when they still want you around all the time – to high school, by which time they have gained a whole lot of independence that seemed impossible just three short years before. I’ve had a few conversations recently in which mothers have wondered aloud if their children behave the same way in school.
Dr. Wolfe visited our school in the fall and spent a couple of hours talking to the faculty. One of the pearls of wisdom that he sent our way was that we see a different student in school than you see at home. You see the “baby-selves” of your children. We see a much more adult version, if you will. Your kids are well-behaved and generally respectful (except when we have to climb over their outstretched legs in the halls). I have said more than once, your kids are a joy to work with. They are some of the best kids I have dealt with in my career which includes coaching, public and private schools, and several trips.
So, to all of the moms out there this week: from what we see every day, you have done an excellent job raising your children. You continue to do an excellent job helping them navigate through this very difficult time in their lives. To steal a line from D-Bish, the nickname the kids have for Dr. Bishop, thank you for sending your best to us.
I hope you all had a restful and indulgent Mother’s Day. Have a great week.

All-School Musical, “Oliver” hits the stage May 17-19…Get your tickets now for our first ever all-school theater event!

Happy Birthday to the following students who are celebrating birthdays this week:

• Dylan Blend – May 13th
• Joey Engelhart – May 14th

There are no students celebrating Bar/Bat Mitzvahs this week.

Kallah and Advisory:

• Monday –

All-School Kallah/Ma’amad in observation of Israeli Memorial Day

• Tuesday

MS – special activities centered around Israeli independence Day

• Wednesday

Clubs

• Thursday

Kallah – Introduction to TEDx

• Friday

Kallah – Preview of 2011-2012 Theater Productions

Calendar Events

• New Student science and math placement tests after school on May 2nd, 3rd, and 9th

Looking Ahead:
• Placements for school year 2011-2012 will be emailed home May 20th. Appeal opportunities will be posted at that time.
• “Oliver” – May 17-19
• May 26 – Meeting in the Middle for incoming 6th grade parents – 8am or 6pm
• MS Review Days – May 26-27
• Memorial Day – School Closed – May 30th
• Final Exams – May 31-June2
• June 2nd – 8th grade promotion; Last day of School
• Final Grades - emailed home June 13-14

May 2, 2011

2011-05-02T10:23:00.002-05:00

Random Song quote:
I love this song. I think it is the rock Ukulele that is really pretty sweet. The lyrics leave a little to be desired, but this song did win a Grammy this year:
“Hey Soul sister
Ain’t that mister mister on the radio, the stereo
The way you move ain’t fair you know
Hey soul sister
I don’t wanna miss a single thing you do
Tonight.”

- Train (They come out with one good song every five years or so)

It’s May!

I hope you all had a good and restful break. I hear stories from the kids of exciting trips all over the map. It is good to see every return safely and in good spirits. Suddenly we find ourselves doing all the things required to finish this year strong preparing for those last few tests and exams while we all start to look ahead to the summer break and next school year. As busy as it is though, May is generally a really fun month for teachers and students.
As late as Passover was this year, we returned to school on Wednesday with 26 school days – counting exams – before we close the book on 2010-2011. Because of that short of a time, teachers will get that one more test, paper, project, or book in before the end of the year. However, by this time, we know the students so well, and they know us so well, that it becomes a much more relaxed and fun environment. We spend a lot of time laughing about things that happened during the year and our own shortcomings which become fun diversions from the hard work that we still do in class every day. This is not to say that it has not been a fun school year, because it has, but the excitement and relaxed nature of month of May makes it one of my favorite times of the year.
We also have some big events this month as well, most notably “Oliver” the all-school musical. For three nights, May 17-19, our thespians will take the stage, but this time in front of the whole community. In years past, the musical in May was a Middle School only event. For most of the performers, rehearsals have already started to run later and teachers will take that into account for those student. However, please have your child visit with their teachers soon and work out a plan to get through the next three weeks. Getting ahead of the problem will surely pay dividends later.
Have a great week!

All-School Musical, “Oliver” hits the stage May 17-19…Get your tickets now for our first ever all-school theater event!

Happy Birthday to the following students who are celebrating birthdays this week:

• Jordan Goldberg – May 2nd
• Andrew Kalmans and Ryan Sable – May 7th

Mazel Tov to Noah Miller who will is celebrating his Bar Mitzvah on May 7th.

Kallah and Advisory:
• Monday –

All-School Kallah/Ma’amad in observation in the Holocaust Day of Remembrance

• Tuesday

6th – Study Hall
7th – Special Kallah
8th - Advisory

• Wednesday

Clubs

• Thursday

6/7/8 - Advisory

• Friday

crEWS

Calendar Event
• New Student science and math placement tests after school on May 3rd, 9th, and 10th
• May 9-10 – Special Kallahs – Israeli Memorial Day and Israeli Independence Day

Looking Ahead:
• Placements for school year 2011-2012 will be emailed home May 20th. Appeal opportunities will be posted at that time.
• “Oliver” – May 17-19
• May 26 – Meeting in the Middle for incoming 6th grade parents – 8am and 6pm
• MS Review Days – May 26-27
• Memorial Day – School Closed – May 30th
• Final Exams – May 31-June2
• June 2nd – 8th grade promotion; Last day of School
• Final Grades - emailed home June 13-14

May 2, 2011

2011-05-02T10:23:00.001-05:00

April 12, 2011

2011-04-12T15:04:00.003-05:00

Random Song quote:

I love hearing that you all are reading the blog. The most comments I get are regarding the lyrics that occasionally do not show up. So, in order to keep the masses happy (please recognize my humor there), here is a very random and obscure quote for this week:

“Why’s it never light on my lawn
Why’s it never rain and say good day to the newborn
On the big screen they showed us the sun
But not as bright in life as the real one
You know it’s never quite the same as the real one.”

- Elton John, Grey Seal (off of Goodbye Yellow Brick Road, 1973)

Passover is Coming!
This passed Thursday after the Torah Service, the Judaic Studies department played the following YouTube for the students. It is a very clever take on the origin of Passover and Exodus in the digital age.
So, with the break coming and few announcements that cannot wait until afterwards, enjoy the video blog this week:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BIxToZmJwdI&feature=player_embedded#at=54

Thanks and have a terrific break!

Athletic Events this week:

• Monday –
Girls MS Softball @ John Cooper – 4:15pm

• Tuesday –
Boys MS Baseball @ Holy Spirit – 4:30pm

• Wednesday –
Co-Ed MS Track @ GHAC District Meet – 3pm
Boys MS Baseball @ Westbury Christian – 4:30pm
Girls MS Softball @ Holy Spirit – 4:30pm

• Thursday -

Girls MS Softball v. Fort Bend Baptist – 4pm
Boys MS Baseball @ Pershing – 4:15pm

---------------------------Spring Season Ends--------------------------------

Happy Birthday to the following students who are celebrating birthdays between now and May 2nd:

• Noah Miller – April 12th
• Jake Stein – April 13th
• Lauren Weinberger – April 14th
• Joey Bursten – April 15th
• Rotem Spivak – April 16th
• Jamie Schneider – April 20th
• Brandon Gomel – April 21st
• Andrew Hirsch – April 22nd
• Liam Faigen – April 30th

Mazel Tov to Greg Holste and Bram Lowenstein who are celebrating their Bar Mitzvahs on Saturday, April 16th.

Kallah and Advisory:
• Monday –

6th – Special Kallah
7th – Advisory
8th - Advisory

• Tuesday

6th – Study Hall
7th – Special Kallah
8th - Advisory

• Wednesday

Kallah - What's in our Suitcase?

• Thursday

Torah Service for Bram Lowenstein and Greg Holste

• Friday

Faculty/8th Grade Annual Volleyball Spectacular

Calendar Event
• Passover Break – April 18-26

Looking Ahead:
• Placements for school year 2011-2012 will be emailed home in mid-May.
Appeal opportunities will be posted at that time.
• US/MS Spring Musical – May 17-19
• May 26-27 – MS Review Days
• Exams – May 31-June 2
• 8th Grade Promotion – Thursday, June 2nd

April 4, 2011

2011-04-04T10:13:00.001-05:00

It is THAT time of the year:
As I have written prior, the school year has a rhythm. In my four years at EWS, there are things that we can count on such as a lot of holidays in the fall and a late, but longer Spring Break. As a result of our schedule, there are challenges for the teachers, students, and families that are not necessarily common at some of our fellow ISAS schools. For instance, we really struggle to schedule games for our athletic teams during September or October and spring break. We have a tough time getting into academic rhythm in the fall and our students get really tired as we near our Passover Break.

We have been going strong for three straight months with few breaks. Our students spend a lot of time on the weekends together, particularly in the 7th grade, and as a result they have little time away from each other. This manifests itself at school in two ways: they start to have trouble in their classes and social issues really explode. Academically, students tend to recover in May – although some will begin to check out – as they refocus for exams and there is a very real light at the end of the proverbial tunnel. Once we return from break we have three full school weeks before exams take center stage and our thespians will help close the school year with a bang with the all-school performance of “Oliver.” Because of the play, because of exams, and because the end is so near the social issues which plague our students right now will diminish after break.

We talk a lot about the social issues of middle school students during the course of the year. I am sure I have mentioned them a time or two in this blog and the primary reason that I receive calls and emails right now is because of these issues. This year we have done some things differently to minimize these problems such as Havurah and more adult supervision in the halls, at lunch, etc. We have not eliminated the problem as middle school children are still learning how to interact and communicate in positive ways. For those who have children who are struggling with these issues, please know that we are making every effort to minimize those, we are thoughtful and reactive when you visit, call, or email, and these issues bother us as much as they do you. The best advice I can give is to hang in there. The dust settles with maturity. However, that does not mean that we will all sit by and wait for it to do so.

Thanks again for all you do to communicate with us. We are in this together to help your children through the three difficult middle school years and our ultimate goal is to provide the best experience possible for our students.

Have a good week.

Athletic Events this week:
• Monday –
Girls MS Softball @ Westbury Christian – 4:15pm
Boys MS Baseball @ Fort Bend Baptist – 4:00pm

• Tuesday –
Boys MS Baseball @ Fort Bend Baptist – 4:00pm
Girls MS Softball v. St. Thomas – 4:30

• Wednesday –
Co-Ed MS Track @ Houston Christian - TBA

• Thursday -
Both Boys Baseball and Girls Softball games originally scheduled on this day have been rescheduled.

Happy Birthday to the following students who are celebrating birthdays this week:
• Ross Aaronson – April 6th
• Solomon Guefen – April 8th
• Alyssa Karpas and Brooke Kaplan – April 9th
• Conny Egozi – April 10th
• Brandon Roseman – April 11th

Mazel Tov to Evan Diebner and Solomon Guefen who are celebrating their Bar Mitzvahs on Saturday, April 9th.

Kallah and Advisory:
• Monday –

MS Music classes perform

• Tuesday
All school Kalla/Ma’amad

• Wednesday
12:30 dismissal

• Thursday
Torah Service for Solomon Guefen and Evan Diebner

• Friday
Clubs

Calendar Events:
• 8th Grade Tikkun Olam – April 6th
• 4th interim grades – should be emailed home by April 4th
• April 6th – 12:30 dismissal

Looking Ahead:
• Passover Break – April 18-26

March 30, 2011

2011-03-30T08:16:00.001-05:00

Wrap from the Trips:

First, amidst all of the trip excitement, please join us in congratulating math teacher Blair Livingston who became Blair Lucas over the weekend. She and her new husband, Michael, were married here in Houston on Saturday, March 26th

So, while Ms. Livingston prepared for her nuptials, the trips last week seem to have been a great success. The reports from the 8th grade trip to DC were that the kids had a great time. From touring the White House to spending an afternoon and evening on the National Mall to dinner in Union Station, the trip was all that was promised. Isabel Graubart’s design was chosen for the trip t-shirt and her acceptance speech included the statement that this will be the event that seals the deal for her entrance into college. So, the long wait on the tarmac leaving Reagan National could not squelch the feeling that our students gained an understanding of what the Democratic process is all about and the power of our nation’s capital. One student revealed such a perspective at Arlington National Cemetery that it brought Mr. Stern to tears.

The bus pulled in to New Orleans under crystal blue skies. With such beautiful weather setting the tone, students enthusiastically visited such local hot spots as The New Orleans Museum of Art in the largest city park in the country, The French Quarter including Café Du Monde, the outstanding Holocaust Memorial set against a backdrop of the Mississippi River, and the always thought-provoking WWII Museum. On the final day, under more perfect weather, students saw countless alligators under the ever-hanging Spanish Moss as they toured the swamps of Lafitte. It was the perfect ending to an outstanding trip where students learned a little history, made some prints, and really felt the flavor of this classic American city.

Warm and sunny was the outlook as the buses carrying our 6th graders rolled into Galveston. It seemed that the trip met the expectations of students and teachers alike! When I asked a teacher on Monday morning about the best parts of the trip, she answered, “the whole thing.” I got the same feeling from the kids as I wandered the halls. The time at the beach, the tours and the time spent with friends seemed to make for an outstanding first trip for the 6th graders.

We are so grateful to be able to spend these trips with such great kids. We say it a lot, but it is worth mentioning again how wonderful your children are. We love spending time on and off campus with them as they are so interesting, personable, and engaging.

Thanks again and have a great week!

Athletic Events this week:
• Monday –
Girls MS Softball v. Holy Spirit – 4:30pm

• Tuesday –
Boys MS Baseball v. Grace Pres. – 4pm
Co-Ed Track @Northland Christian – Time TBA

• Thursday –
CANCELED - MS Baseball @ John Cooper– 4:30pm

Happy Birthday to the following students who are celebrating birthdays this week:
• Apologies to Harrison Rosenthal who celebrated a birthday on March 17th
• Brandon Miller – March 30th
• Bethany Yeh – April 1st

Mazel Tov to the Megan Rahlfs who is celebrating her Bat Mitzvah on Saturday.

Kallah and Advisory:
• Monday –
Trips’ Wrap-up Kallah

• Tuesday
6th – study hall
7th – advisory
8th - advisory

• Wednesday
Clubs

• Thursday
Kallah - EWS Trip Final Four

• Friday
Kallah – Concert – MS Music Students

Calendar Events:
• 8th Grade Tikkun Olam – MOVED to April 6th
• 4th interim grades – should be emailed home by April 4th
• April 6th – 12:30 dismissal

Looking Ahead:
• Passover Break – April 18-26

March 15, 2011

2011-03-15T07:28:00.001-05:00

Trip Education
Last week turned out to be trip information week. We met with students on Monday to give them the itineraries and the packing lists for their respective trips. We met with parents on Tuesday to do the same. Some of those details will change a little – for example, The White House Tour is now scheduled for Tuesday at 8am in DC – but for the most part, the itineraries are set, student groups are arranged, and room assignments are being worked out this week. So, with all of that, I wanted to take a minute to go over the educational pieces of the trips.

The trips are intended to enhance the school’s philosophy on experiential learning. It is our belief that students learn best by doing and these trips give us an opportunity to use resources outside of the classroom to help enhance our classes. Starting in the 7th grade trip this year, students will carry a journal on each trip including those in the upper school. The purpose is to give students opportunities during the trips to reflect on what they are doing. Once they graduate, students will be able to look back and see their growth over those six years.

The piece that we have been more deliberate about this year is connecting the activities on the trips to work they are doing in class. The 6th grade will do a marine biology tour which is consistent with work in their Life Science class, the 7th grade will have an assignment while visiting the WWII museum in New Orleans which connects to their US History classes, and the 8th grade has spent most of the year discussing the US’s place in the world and they will get some opportunities to see our government in action while in DC. It is these types of connections that we are trying to arrange for our students so that the learning becomes more meaningful, both in the classroom and on the trips. By the end of the week, students will know what their assignments are for the trips and what our expectations are of them while in the respective parts of the country. Our hope is that tying the educational piece to the trips will make the trips richer for our students.

With that, have a good couple of weeks.

Athletic Events this week:
• Thursday -
MS Baseball v. Montgomery – 4pm

Happy Birthday to the following students who are celebrating birthdays in the next two weeks:
• Danielle Singer – March 16th
• Camille Simmons – March 17th
• Sammy Levin – March 19th
• Miranda Levy – March 22nd
• Aviv Navon – March 23rd
• Eliav Terk, Arielle Terk, Max Dokell, Megan Rahlfs – March 24th
• Lindsey Selzer – March 25th
• Bram Lowenstein – March 28th

Mazel Tov to the following girls celebrating their Bat/Bat Mitvahs over the next two weeks:
• Sam and Gaby Ross – March 19
• Elana Shoss – March 26

Kallah and Advisory:
• Monday –
Clubs

• Tuesday
Grade Level Trip Education Advisory

• Wednesday
Grade Level Trip Education Advisory

• Thursday
Torah Service for Gaby and Sam Ross

• Friday
Purim Celebration

Calendar Events:
• March 20-23 – MS Spring trips (8th – DC – 20-23; 7th – New Orleans – 21-23; 6th – Galveston - 21-22)
• Wednesday, March 23rd – No School for 6th Grade
• MS Closed – Thursday, March 24th and Friday, March 25th

Looking Ahead:
• 8th grade Tikkun Olam – March 29th – Half day at The Houston Food Bank
• Second Interim Grades should be emailed home on April 1st
• Wednesday, April 6th – 12:30 Dismissal for Faculty In-Service

March 7, 2011

2011-03-07T16:43:00.002-06:00

Random Song Quote:
“So kiss me and smile for me
Tell me that you’ll wait for me
Hold me like you’ll never let me go
Cause I’m leavin’ on a jet plane
Don’t know when I’ll be back again
Oh baby, I hate to go”

- I’ll choose the John Denver version rather than the one by Peter, Paul and Mary or the cast of the movie “Armageddon.”

Trip Information:
Informational Parent Meeting for MS trips – Tuesday, March 8th at 8am and 6pm:
6th – The Loft
7th – The Library
8th – Alexander Lecture Hall (in the high school)

6th –
Where: Galveston Beach
When: Bus leaves school at 8am on Monday, March 21st; returns to campus at 5pm on Tuesday, March 22nd – No school for 6th grade on Wednesday March 23rd – Friday, March 25th
**Students will need to bring a lunch on Monday
Activities: Include but not limited to marine biology tour, Sea Wolf Park, Oil Museum, visiting with Rabbi Kessler at a local synagogue, Galveston Historic and tree Carving Tour, and their hitting the beach for some rays!
Contact people for the trip: Char and Deb (281-684-6766)
Recommended spending money: $20
**iPods and phones are allowed on the trip for the bus rides, but not during organized events

7th –
Where: New Orleans
When: Bus leaves school at 6:30am (please be on campus at 6am to load buses) on Monday, March 21st; returns to campus at 6pm on Wednesday, March 23rd
**Students will need to bring a lunch on Monday
Activities: Include but not limited to The French Quarter, Café Du Monde, Jackson Square, WWII Museum, and Swamp Tour
Contact person for the trip: Tony Houle – 281-303-7447
Recommended spending money: $100
**iPods and phones are allowed on the trip for the bus rides, but not during organized events

8th –
Where: Washington DC
When: Bus leaves campus at 6am on Sunday, March 20th; returns to campus between 9:30-10pm on Wednesday, March 23rd
Activities: Monuments, White House, and Museums – all the usual events for a trip to DC
Contact person for the trip: Lue Bishop – 281-904-0101
Recommended spending money: $100
**iPods and phones are allowed on the trip for the bus rides, but not during organized events

The MS is closed on Thursday, March 24th and Friday, March 25th

Thanks y’all…Have a great week and we’ll see you on Tuesday.

Athletic Events this week:
• Monday –
MS Baseball v. Fort Bend Baptist – 4pm
MS Softball @ Fort Bend Baptist – 4:30pm

• Tuesday –
MS Tennis v. Kinkaid at Homer Ford – 4pm
MS Baseball v. Westbury Christian - 4:00 pm
MS Softball v. Westbury Christian - 4:15 pm

• Wednesday –
MS Tennis v. Honor Roll/Wesley

• Thursday -
MS Baseball v. Holy Spirit - 4:15 pm

Happy Birthday to the following students who are celebrating birthdays this week:
• Ryan Middleman – March 8th
• Becca Kalinsky – March 10th
• Elana Shoss – March 13th

Mazel Tov to the following girls celebrating their Bat/Bat Mitvahs this week:
• Ryan Middleman
• Lindsey Selzer

Kallah and Advisory:
• Monday –
Trips – packing lists, logistics, what to expect, etc.

• Tuesday
Clubs

• Wednesday
None due to 12:30 dismissal

• Thursday
Torah Service for Lindsey Selzer and Ryan Middleman
8th Grade – College Counseling in the Upper School

• Friday
CrEWS

Calendar Events:
• Tuesday, march 8th Parent meetings for trips – 8am and 6pm for your convenience
6th Grade – The Loft
7th Grade – The Library
8th Grade – Alexander Lecture Hall in the Upper School

• Wednesday, March 9th – 12:30 Dismissal

Looking Ahead:
• March 20-23 – MS Spring trips (8th – DC – 20-23; 7th – New Orleans – 21-23; 6th – Galveston - 21-22)
• MS Closed – Thursday, March 24th and Friday, March 25th

February 28, 2011

2011-02-28T08:36:00.002-06:00

Random Song Quote:

Great call from Dr. Bishop on this one given all the games this week:

“Take me out to the ballgame
Take me out to the park
Buy me some peanuts and Cracker Jacks
I don’t care if I ever get back
So, root, root, root for the Jaguars
If they don’t win it’s a shame
For it’s one, two, three strikes you’re out
At the ole ball game”

ERB Testing
This week marks the first of March, the month that brings us the spring trips, the rodeo, daylight savings, the return of spring, and ERB’s. Beginning March 1st, your children will spend about two hours a day taking standardized tests. For your convenience here is a link to the schedule for those four days. You will find that the schedule is very different from years past as we try to negotiate the time it takes for tests, time for the students to have a break after testing, and to still maximize productive class time.

In the schedule you will see that on Tuesday and Wednesday students will take their morning classes only. After testing and a break, students will have their A period class in the morning and then B, C, and D respectively in the afternoon. On Thursday and Friday, students will take their E period class in the morning and then F, G, and H in the afternoon respectively. We have already let the students know of this schedule and we will post it around school as well. Despite the testing, students will still have a normal homework load, and although we have not announced it specifically to all teachers, I think I can say confidently that your children will have very few, if any, tests those days in their normal classes.

Mrs. Hochschild gave all the students some advice this week on how to best prepare for the testing. They cannot study for these as they are meant to evaluate a student’s body of work and growth over an entire year. However, students can improve in these tests by being sure to get good sleep each night as the tests are exhausting and rested children will work more efficiently and with a clearer mind. The second piece of advice was to eat a good breakfast. When children get hungry, they only think about that and not about the task in front of them. A good, healthy start to the day will help your children succeed on these tests. Finally, the last piece of advice is not to stress over these tests. These will not be used to admit to our Upper School, they will not be sent to colleges for admissions, and they will not be added to the students’ grades at the end of the year.

Thanks y’all. Have a good week.

Athletic Events this week:
• Monday –
MS Baseball v. Trafton - 4:00 pm
MS Softball @ Trafton - 4:00 pm

• Tuesday –
MS Baseball v. John Cooper - 4:15 pm
MS Softball v. John Cooper - 4:15 pm

• Thursday –
MS Baseball v. Fort Bend - 4:00 pm
MS Softball @ St. Thomas - 4:30 pm

Happy Birthday to the following students who are celebrating birthdays this week:

• Abby Shreyberg – March 3rd
• Megan Glover – March 5th
• Samantha Agnich – March 6th

Mazel Tov to the following girls celebrating their Bat/Bat Mitvahs this week:
• Ross Aaronson
• Jenni Daum
• Ethan Dryer
• Kelly Hatcher

Kallah and Advisory:
• Monday –
Kallah – Science Fair awards

• Tuesday
Study Hall

• Wednesday
No Clubs due to ERB testing

• Thursday
Torah Service Ross Aaronson, Jenni Daum, Ethan Dryer, and Kelly Hatcher at 11:45am

• Friday
No Kallah due to ERB testing

Calendar Events:
• ERB Testing March 1-4 – please click here for this week’s school schedule

Looking Ahead:
• March 8th – MS Spring Trips Meetings – 8am and 6pm
• March 9th – 12:30 Dismissal for Faculty In-Service
• March 20-23 – MS Spring trips (8th – DC – 20-23; 7th – New Orleans – 21-23; 6th – Galveston - 21-22)

February 22, 2011

2011-02-22T11:41:00.002-06:00

Random Song Quote:

“This ole highway’s getting longer

Seems there ain’t no end in sight

To sleep would be best, but I can’t afford to rest

I gotta ride in Denver tomorrow night..”
- A little Garth Brooks for you all this week

A Little Love and Logic:

Last week I attended a conference in Denver titled “Building a Love and Logic School.” I had asked to go to this conference because the Middle School faculty and staff have been reading and working together on a book called Teaching with Love and Logic. It is a philosophy on education and parenting that was developed in the late 1970’s and implemented in many schools across the country starting in the 1980’s. When I first started reading about this philosophy I realized that it was consistent with our school, our teachers, and my personal beliefs, so we decided to be more deliberate about it this year.

The basic principles of Love and Logic are that we treat students with dignity and empathy. We have great students. I have taught at several places in my career and I have rarely met a collective group of students who are more kind, respectful, interesting, personable, and caring of those around them. As I walk around school I do not see teachers berating students and I don’t see students being consistently disrespectful to adults (sometimes they are, but they are early teens). What I do see is a lot of positive interaction between adults and students. This rapport is one of the key components of any successful school or teacher, but by also treating students with empathy when they make a mistake, we demonstrate that children are not judged by the mistakes they make. We then give them the opportunity to problem-solve. The goal is that through overcoming these challenges that they create, students gain a sense of responsibility and self-worth.

There are also nine essential skills that Love and Logic preaches to any teacher, but a lot of these transfer to parenting as well. Our great students come from great parents. The work you all do on a daily basis is extraordinary. However, if there is one thing we hear most from parents is that their child never stops arguing with them. One of the techniques is to neutralize arguing. The theory is that when students argue, they are working from an emotional state and as a result are not rational. If we engage in the argument, then children feed off of our emotion and will never see our point (they may never see our point anyway). The skill here is to just not argue. “I argue at 7:15 and 3:45” would be a great one for a teacher. Just repeating over and over, “I know” whenever a child tries to engage us is another option. Eventually, the argument will never get started and then the issue can be resolved when the student moves from a state of emotion to reason.

If you would like to learn more about this philosophy, Love and Logic is a trademark company and the author Jim Fay has written many books on teaching and parenting. I also get a weekly newsletter that I would be happy to post on here as a source of information.

Thanks again and have a great last week of February.

Athletic Events this week:· Tuesday –
MS Baseball v. Trafton – 4pm

MS Girls Softball v. Trafton – 4pm

Co-Ed MS Track @ Lutheran South – 4pm

· Thursday –
MS Baseball @ Grace – 4pm

MS Girls Softball @ Pershing – 4:30pm

Happy Birthday to the following students who are celebrating birthdays this week:
· Allison and Daniel Farb – Febraury 22nd
· Grayson Sheena – February 26th

Mazel Tov to the following girls celebrating their Bat Mitvahs this week:
· Lauren Schoen
· Lauren Weinberger

Kallah and Advisory:· Tuesday
6th – Study Hall

7th – Advisory

8th - Advisory

· Wednesday
Clubs

· Thursday
Torah Service for Lauren Weinberger and Lauren Schoen

· Friday
Kallah

Calendar Events:· Wednesday, February 23rd – Dr. Marcia Laviage’s Parenting Program 7:00pm – 8:30pm

· Thursday, February 24th – 1st Interim Reports sent home via email

Looking Ahead:· ERB Testing – March 1-4 (Special Schedule – March 1st and 2nd ONLY A-D periods will meet; March 3rd and 4th ONLY E-H periods will meet)

February 14, 2011

2011-02-14T13:43:00.000-06:00

Random Song Quote:
We showed this video in Kallah on Friday. It is a great youtube, if you just type in “Shabbat’s gonna be a good night,” it should come up:

“I’ve got a feeling
That tonight’s gonna be a good night
That tonight’s gnonna be a good, good night
That Shabbat’s gonna be a good night…”

It’s worth watching as a Jewish group of students from Yale (I think it’s Yale) put this together.

My First Shabbat Dinner
On Friday evening the Middle School Judaic studies and Hebrew departments hosted the first 8th grade “Shabbat Across Emery” dinner. Rabbi Danny Masri, his wife Naomi, and their four children hosted the event in their home. Dr. Bishop and I joined thirty-nine 8th grade students for the event along with several teachers with their families. It was a wonderful show of community as we all came to together to share in this event. We sang songs, ate a great meal that Naomi had been preparing since Thursday morning, played charades and other games, and shared stories.

My first Shabbat Dinner was a memorable one. Several students helped me to understand what was going on. For instance, there was moment after Rabbi Masri had washed his hands and had yet to break the challah when he could not speak. I wonder what he was thinking as he was trying to offer me a seat while I attempted to ask where exactly he wanted me. Koby Sokoloff thankfully saved me by telling me that the Rabbi could not speak yet. “Oh, sorry…” The good news is that Rabbi Masri is much more concerned with me being a Red Sox fan than he is of me not being Jewish.

The last piece is the wonderful tradition of the Shabbat. What would seem like an inconvenience to me as I sit here on Saturday afternoon preparing dinner, watching Nascar, and writing this blog on my computer, to Rabbi Masri, Mrs. Fass and others who keep the Shabbat it is a time of reflection and relaxation. Mrs. Fass once told me that the Shabbat was a great excuse for not working and for playing games and spending time with her family. Despite the fact that much of our community does not celebrate the orthodox Shabbat, I am probably still preaching to the proverbial choir a bit, but I really enjoyed the Shabbat dinner. It made me want to turn off my television, enjoy a game of scrabble with my wife, and to just relax the senses a little.

Thank you to Rabbi Masri and the Judaic Studies and Hebrew faculty for hosting and organizing this event. I had a great time at my first Shabbat and it seemed like the students did as well.

Have a great week.

Athletic Events this week:
• Tuesday –
MS Baseball v. St. Thomas – 4pm

• Thursday –
MS Baseball @ Fort Bend Baptist – 4pm

Happy Birthday to the following students who are celebrating birthdays this week:
• Isabel Graubart, Matthew Hall, Bram Cox and Evan Sack -February 18th
• Lindsay Weycer – February 19th
• Noam Cohen – February 21st

Mazel Tov to Dylan Solomon who is celebrating his Bar Mitvzah this week

Kallah and Advisory:
• Monday –
All Students –Special Grandparents’ Day Kallah

• Tuesday
6th – Study Hall
7th – Advisory
8th - Advisory

• Wednesday
Clubs

• Thursday
Torah Service for Dylan Solomon

• Friday
No Kallah – 12:30 Dismissal

Calendar Events:
• Monday, February 14th – Grandparents’ Day
• Tuesday, February 15th – 8th Grade Parent College Counseling Night – 7pm in the Becker Theater
• Wednesday, February 16th – Dr. Marcia Laviage’s Parenting Program - 8:00pm – 9:30am
• Friday, February 18th – 12:30 Dismissal
• Monday, February 21st – School Closed for Presidents’ Day
• Wednesday, February 23rd – Dr. Marcia Laviage’s Parenting Program 7:00pm – 8:30pm

Looking Ahead:
• February 24ish – interim reports due home (they should be emailed sometime around the 24th or 25th
• ERB Testing – March 1-4

February 7, 2011

2011-02-07T09:02:00.001-06:00

A Grandparent’s View
On Monday, February 14th, the middle school will be hosting grandparents on campus from 9am until about 10:30. During the first part of the visit, grandparents will meet Dr. Portnoy and Dr. Bishop. They will have an opportunity to get to hear about the current state of Emery/Weiner and to ask questions pertaining to the school. After our second period of the day, students will then go to the Commons to meet their grandparents, have a cookie and a drink, and visit with their grandparents. This will be followed by a Kallah that will include a grandparent/grandchild Minute to Win it, a video comparison of the two generations, and even a special musical performance by our music class featuring Dr. Bishop. It will be a Kallah for the ages…quite literally.

In talking with Dr. Bishop about this Kallah, we got to thinking about how many changes have occurred in the lives of our students’ grandparents. While I thought about what to write this week, I kept coming back to the idea of what our school would look like to one of our student’s grandparents. Without going into a history lesson, the changes in schools and education alone have been pretty drastic in the last 60 years. Couple that with the fact that we have grandparents that lived in pre-WWII Germany and Poland and one who even lived in Stalin’s Soviet Union. What they saw in the world is pretty extraordinary, so I wonder what our little school would look like to them?]

The first thing that comes to mind is the advancement of technology. I have students bring iPhones to my class so that they can confirm or dispute facts that I spew out at them as well as look up questions that I cannot answer. We have interactive white boards that project a computer screen and act as computers at our fingertips. Contrast those advances to looking things up in paper-bound encyclopedias and working on chalk boards. I’ve worked with a chalk board and they are messy (I always had chalk on my hands), dusty, and they don’t always erase cleanly. White boards are much easier and SmartBoards, well, they are awesome to use. The second thing I thought might be interesting is our Commons, Fine Arts Wing, and the athletic areas. In my elementary school, I ate my first school lunch (ugh, was that awful), shot my first basketball, and tried out for my first school play in the same room. I worked in one school where the teacher break room was a converted fallout shelter and another school where we had a cafetorium. Yes, it was exactly what it sounds like. Now, we have a facility that includes two theaters, several music and art rooms, a gym, a sport court, a library, and a dining room all in a single, yet separate complex. I would imagine that a tour of our campus does not bring back memories of school for our students’ grandparents. Instead, it is probably more a tour of amazement and pride; pride in their own hard work and accomplishments that meant greater opportunities to those generations which followed.

Thanks y’all and have a great week…it is suppose to be a little warmer.

Athletic Events this week:
• No games scheduled

Happy Birthday to the following students who are celebrating birthdays this week:
• Ethan Dryer – February 11th

No students are celebrating Bar/Bat Mitvzahs this week.

Kallah and Advisory:
• Monday –
All Students - Kallah

• Tuesday
6th – Havurah
7th – Advisory
8th - Advisory

• Wednesday
Clubs

• Thursday
6th/7th – Advisory
8th – Meet with Upper School registrar, Josh Blice to discuss scheduling for 2011-2012

• Friday
Kallah

Calendar Events:
• Monday, February 7th – Elective selection forms due to MS office
• 8th grade Cereal Sessions continue this week

Looking Ahead:
• Friday, February 11th – 8th Grade Shabbat Dinner @ Rabbi Masri’s residence - This event is optional, but it is for students only.
• February 14th – Grandparent’s Day
• February 18th – 12:30 dismissal
• February 21 – School closed for President’s Day
• February 24ish – interim reports due home (they should be emailed sometime around the 24th or 25th

January 31, 2011

2011-01-31T08:27:00.000-06:00

Random Song Quote:

“The long and winding road
That leads to your door
Will never disappear
I’ve seen that road before
It always leads me here
Lead me to your door”

- The Beatles (one of my favorite Beatles tunes and we have yet to have a Beatles song)

Electives for next year:

Although it seems very early to be thinking about next year, February marks the beginning of the teacher recruitment season, and with all of our changes for next year, the school will start to identify needs for the 2011-2012 school year. The most announced change comes in the Foreign Language Department where Spanish will be offered to our 7th and 8th grade students. Hebrew will continue to be offered and will be required of all incoming 6th graders. Fine arts electives will continue to be offered as in the past. Art, Theater, and Instrument Ensemble will all be offered to the 7th and 8th graders, and incoming 6th graders will again take a semester of rotating electives then choose an elective for the second semester.

This week Dr. Bishop and I will conduct meetings with the 6th and 7th graders separately to help them navigate the changes and requirements. After our meeting, each student will receive an Elective Selection Form that will include each student’s current fine art elective and current Hebrew placement. On the form, students will choose a fine art elective for the next year (they will still have the opportunity to change at mid-year, as long as class size and schedule allow). Also on the form is a place to choose Hebrew or Spanish as the foreign language elective for next year. At the bottom of the form is a space for student and parent signatures. We will not accept any forms without a parent’s signature. It is our goal to have a good idea of how many students are enrolling for each elective. Although these decisions do not necessarily have to be final, they are going to be fairly binding. Please take time with the decision, and think carefully about which elective your child will choose prior to turning in the form. Please don’t wait too long; the forms are due back Monday, February 7th.

Below you will find the requirements and the choices for both Fine Arts and Foreign Language Electives:

ELECTIVES:
Rising Grade 6:
Fine Arts:
First semester – Students rotate according to a predetermined schedule.
Second Semester – Students choose one elective for the entire semester

2010 - 2011 Course Offerings – Instrumental Music, Art, Theater, and Vocal Music
2011 – 2012 Course Offerings – No expected changes

Foreign Language:
Hebrew is required of all 6th grade students

2010 - 2011 Course Offerings - Hebrew I-III
2011 - 2012 Course Offerings – Hebrew I-III

Rising Grade 7:

Fine Arts:
Students choose an elective for the year.

2010 – 2011 Course Offerings – Instrumental Ensemble, Art I-II, Theater (First semester), Film Appreciation (Second Semester)
2011 – 2012 – No Changes expected

Foreign Language:
Hebrew is optional for returning 7th grade students who have passed one year of Hebrew.
Hebrew is required for all new students.
***Students must complete one additional year of Hebrew after 6th grade and prior to graduating high school. It can be taken in any year, 7-12.

2010 – 2011 Course Offerings: Hebrew II-IV (Hebrew I was available to new EWS students)
2011 – 2012 Course Offerings: Hebrew II-IV (Hebrew I will be available to new EWS students)

Introduction to Spanish – Grade 7 and 8 will all receive the same introduction course, regardless of prior experience or proficiency in Spanish Language (8th graders in year 2 of Spanish for school year 2012-2013 will take Introduction to Spanish II, rather than the same course again).

Rising Grade 8:

Fine Arts:
Students choose an elective for the year.
2010 – 2011 Course Offerings – Instrumental Ensemble, Art III-IV, Theater (First semester), Film Appreciation (Second Semester)
2011-2012 – Theater II may be offered for students who completed theater in their 7th grade year, subject to demand and scheduling.

Foreign Language:
Rising 8th graders who have passed 2 years of Hebrew have completed their Hebrew requirement for Emery/Weiner. No further Hebrew is required to graduate in good standing.

2010 - 2011 Course Offerings: Hebrew II-V (Hebrew I will be available to new students to the school)

Introduction to Spanish – Grade 7 and 8 will all receive the same introduction course regardless of prior experience or proficiency in Spanish Language.

***If you have any questions regarding electives, please give me a call or drop me an email. Please look for Elective Selection Forms on Monday and Tuesday.

Thanks and have a great week!

Athletic Events this week:
• The Spring Athletic season begins Monday with practices in MS boys baseball, MS girls softball, and co-ed track.

Happy Birthday to the following students who are celebrating birthdays this week:
• Sarah Stein and Marlo Olifant – February 1st
• Gal Egozi – February 4th
• Kyra Goren – February 5th
• Ariella Teller – February 6th

Mazel Tov to the following students celebrating their Bar/Bat Mitzvah on Saturday, February 5th:
• Joseph Schwartzberg
• Ariella Teller

Kallah and Advisory:
• Monday –
6th – Schedules and electives for next year
7th – Havurah
8th – Cereal Sessions with the upper school (for one advisory); all other students report to advisory
• Tuesday
6th – Havurah
7th – Schedules and electives for next year
8th – Cereal Sessions and advisory
• Wednesday
Clubs
• Thursday
6th/7th – Torah Service for Joseph Schwartzberg and Ariella Teller
8th – US Cereal Sessions
• Friday
Kallah

Calendar Events:
• January 31st –February 1st – Dr. Bishop will speak to 6th and 7th grade students regarding schedules for next year. Fine Arts and Foreign Language Elective selections will commence that week.

Looking Ahead:
• 8th Grade Cereal Sessions during advisory with Upper School Administration began last week and continue one advisory at a time into February.
• Friday, February 11th – 8th Grade Shabbat Dinner @ Rabbi Masri’s residence - This event is optional, but it is for students only.
• February 14th – Grandparent’s Day
• February 18th – 12:30 dimissal
• February 21 – School closed for President’s Days