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Grade 6 Camp George Trip: Recap of a 3-Day Adventure!

Posted On י׳ בסיון ה׳תשע״ב (May 31, 2012) by Morah Lesley

From May 14-16, the Grade 6 students spent an incredible three days at Camp George.  When we arrived on Monday, we were greeted by incredible weather, beautiful facilities, and an ecological playground in which to expand our knowledge of ecosystems, biodiversity, and our Jewish identity.  Over the next two days, we went on ‘brachot’ scavenger hunts, ecological hikes, serene nature explorations, all while learning about the diverse landscapes of the Parry Sound region.  The students conducted tefillah in nature, learned how to build a fire, sculpted nature scenes from clay, roasted marshmallows over a campfire, and participated in team-building activities at the ropes course.  They also demonstrated their unique talents at an evening variety show.  A fantastic time was had by all!

Mitzvah Day 2012

Posted On ט״ז באייר ה׳תשע״ב (May 8, 2012) by Morah Naomi

Thanks to our incredible co-chairs, volunteers, staff and families, Mitzvah Day 2012 was a meaningful success!  Please check out the video here and leave your comments either to this blog post or on the YouTube site.

Todah Rabbah!

Mitzvah Day 2012 Video

Fantastic Eco-Seder Presentations!

Posted On כ״ו בניסן ה׳תשע״ב (April 18, 2012) by Morah Lesley

For nearly a month, the Grade 6 classes worked tirelessly in Math, Language Arts, Science, and Art classes to create their Eco-Seder projects.  This thought-provoking integrated project ties the various parts of the Passover Seder to important ecological issues confronting our world today.  Who knew that Nirtzah could teach us about forest conservation, or that Maror could enlighten us about the importance of honeybees?

The Grade 6 students did a fantastic job in all aspects of the project and successfully showcased their work to students in grades 3, 5, 7, and to the community at large.  Kol Ha Kavod to all!

Heschel Online Auction

Posted On ו׳ בניסן ה׳תשע״ב (March 29, 2012) by Morah Naomi

Going, going, gone…

The 2^nd Annual Heschel Online Auction closes Wednesday, April 4 at 2pm. Don’t miss out on the fabulous items up for bid this year! Tickets to a Canada’s Got Talent taping, Centre Camp and Camp Northland B’nai Brith sessions, Babysitting, Leafs tickets and much more. Check out the auction at www.heschelonlineauction.org and please forward to your family and friends.

It’s all about relationships really…

Posted On כ״ח באדר ה׳תשע״ב (March 22, 2012) by Moreh Dan Aviv

Sefer VaYikra is often regarded as probably the hardest (and, if you ask most Chumash students worldwide, the most boring) book of the Torah to learn (and teach).  Known also as Torat Kohanim, VaYikra deals with matters that would engage and interest even the most lackadaisical Priest in the Temple: ritual sacrifice, blood, lots of internal cow organs and how to arrange them on the altar, as well as matters of ritual purity, kashrut and a veritable laundry list of mitzvot that police our interactions with other people.

So how does one who is not a Priest nor someone who is planning on offering an animal sacrifice anytime soon connect to this book… especially if you are in Grade 6?

Well, as the title of this blogpost indicates, in a sense, Sefer VaYikra is all about relationships and what we do in order to strengthen them when they are showing signs of strain.

The korban is thus a ritual act that gets the giver into a relationship-repairing mindset just like, say, walking up and down the greeting card aisle or sitting down to write a thank you note (or email).   We have been looking at how, through the korban back in the day or the finely-written email today, we can come closer to the people in our lives.  In our latest perek, we saw what happened when an individual comes too close.  Nadav and Avihu brought an eish zarah (“strange fire”) to the altar and, to put it mildly, they were blasted to smithereens.  But why?

We studied a handful of commentaries to try and piece together the details of this incendiary incident… and we concluded that Nadav and Avihu tried to come close without the proper mindset.  They brought the eish zarah without really considering whether God wanted it and, for this, they were most seriously punished.

Though we would not immolate someone who tried to get too close to us too quickly, they might bear the brunt of a different blast from us.  And, more importantly, we, too, must consider how another feels when we try to get close to them … else we get burned in the process.