First of all, I am so happy to continue writing to you from Israel. Last week, on Monday, I finally returned to school after more then 62 days at home. I was so happy to return to my school and meet my friends face to face.
My name is Yehonatan. I am 14 years old and I live in Netanya, Israel. Netanya is located near the sea, and actually I can see the beach from my house balcony. I am a student at “Hakfar Hayarok” school which is near the city of Tel Aviv. Due to the Covid-19 situation I am learning from my house by using the zoom app.
Remembrance is a core Jewish value. But our remembering is not one of cold intellectual distance. It is a warm, personal, and experiential undertaking. And so we wish we could have held our assembly in person.
Creative, driven, compassionate and a “Jill of all trades” are some of the words we would use to describe Danilack Middle School art teacher, Rachel Albert. It’s no surprise that her class is a favourite among students who look forward to learning and creating alongside Ms. Albert. Read on to hear about what inspires her, and how she aims to inspire each and every one of her students.
Although the current situation is a difficult and unfortunate one, it has provided us with an abundance of examples of caring in our community. In times of difficulty, we see clearest how we are thinking of one another, and how closely-knit our community truly is. We have loved seeing photos and social media posts of how your children are adapting to their online learning at AHS, and we have received many messages of support and feedback from our families, for which we are deeply appreciative.
About a month ago, the COVID-19 outbreak was declared a Public Health Emergency as thousands of Chinese citizens had contracted the virus, and the entire city of Wuhan was placed under quarantine. As we aim to provide our students with authentic learning experiences, we saw this as an opportunity to engage our students in a project where they could develop valuable skills and learn about social responsibility in a contextualized and meaningful way.
When I was a student in the Chidon Hatanach, every year, in every division, the top placers would always include students and graduates of Associated. This year, at the International teen Bible Contest in May, there will be two AHS alumni out of 4 participants representing Canada. For me, this is true proof of what we do here at Associated. We meet the excellence we pursue.
The transition from Senior Kindergarten to Grade 1 is the first big jump in a child’s educational journey and a magical year of exploration and discovery. At Associated, our teachers recognize that there is a big shift in the daily structure for students when they start Grade 1 and are dedicated to ensuring a smooth transition from Bet Hayeled to Kitah Aleph.
We sat down with Mazal Satov, teacher and Hebrew Department Head at Danilack Middle School, to hear about what Associated means to her. Click the link below to see what she has to say about the role Associated has played in inspiring her to be the outstanding educator she is today.
As we prepare to usher in the Jewish New Year, we are presented with an opportunity for reflection on the year that has passed and on our goals for the year ahead. We want to make this coming year – the 2019-20 school year, and the Jewish year of 5780 – the best that it can possibly be, and to make the most of our year’s theme of Tradition and Innovation.
