The Charlotte Jewish News - April 2007 - Page 29
Plenty of Fun to Go
Around at JPS
Spectacular Science
By Sarah Fligel
The ftin hasn’t stopped at The
Jewish Preschool on Sardis in
recent weeks. There’s been plenty
to celebrate, from the annual
100th day party to a Purim parade.
Ava Cohen,_Kate Levin. Sam Olinger, Toby
Howie, and SAm Fligel proudly display their
food collections for JFS.
March 1 marked a milestone
for the four-year-olds at JPS: the
100th day the children had been in
school. Since the beginning of the
year, they’ve been tracking the
days. To commemorate the 100th,
each child brought in their own
special collection of 100 items,
which they’ve been busy count
ing, weighing and categorizing
ever since. The day was filled
with fun activities, from dancing
in the dark to special snacks to a
lunch with all the four-year-old
classes. ■
But perhaps the best way the
children chose to recognize the
100th day was by doing a mitz-
vah. The three- and four-
year-olds brought in canned
goods, paper products and
cleaning supplies to donate to
the Jewish Family Services
food pantry. The goal was to
collect 100 goods. The
result? 256 donations. The
food and supplies lined the
hallways in groups of ten so
all of the children could see
their good deeds ~ and count
them.
Just days later, something
else filled the halls at JPS.
Kings, queens, clowns and a
host of animals gathered to
welcome Purim this year. And
the children were happy to play
the parts. To prepare for the
special holiday, they had spent
time in Judaica every day learning
and acting out the Purim story,
with masks, puppets, songs,
games and activities. They fin
ished up the celebration with a
costume parade, a shaloch manot
gift exchange and a megillah read
ing. ^
By Jessica Sammis
At the Barbara and Jerry Levin
Jewish Middle School, we are fos
tering future scientists and critical
thinkers. Our science topic this
year is a unit oh Energy,
Machines, and Motion. At this
point, the students have finished
their exploration of different types
of energy and how it is trans
ferred, and simple machines
including pulleys, inclined planes,
and levers. They are now moving
into the final section.
Over the next two months, the
students will apply their newly
acquired knowledge of energy and
machines to the concept of
motion. The unit will culminate
with groups building their own
roller coaster to investigate its
motion. They will also be partici
pating in an “Anchor Activity”
mostly outside of the classroom.
While the students were given
several choices as a culminating
activity, most have chosen to chal
lenge themselves by building a
‘Rube Goldberg’ inspired
machine.
Rube Goldberg was , an
American cartoonist who began
his career in 1904. His cartoons,
which poked fun at the unneces
sary complications of modern
technology, often depicted com
plicated devices used to complete
simple jobs. For instance, he cre
ated a “chin-wiper” that required
13 steps in order to move a nap
kin. In honor of these absurd cre
ations, the students have been
challenged to create a machine
that completes 13 simple tasks
after a single action sets the
machine in motion. The students
will have to apply everything that
they have learned in science this
year to this project and by
attempting it, whether they are
successful or not, they will learn
more about physics than they ever
would in a classroom.
If you have any questions about
the Barbara and Jerry Levin
Jewish Middle School, please
contact Jessica Sammis at 704-
366-4885 or jsammis@cjd-
school.org. ^
Mathematical Minds
By Jessica Sammis
Earlier this year, the students at
the Barbara and Jerry Levin
Jewish Middle School competed
in a national math competition,
the AMC 8. This contest is a 25-
question exam that challenges
middle school students across the
nation! As taken from their web
site, “The American Mathematics
Competition (AMC) is dedicated
to the goal of strengthening the
mathematical capabilities of our
nation’s youth. The AMC contests
are intended for everyone from the
average student at a typical school
who enjoys mathematics to the
very best student at the most spe
cial school.”
Academic Competition drives
the students to do their best in
class and absorb as much informa
tion as possible. The students
were intrigued by the level of
mathematical reasoning required
for some of the problems on the
exam, and they were excited to
receive their scores. While several
of our students did notably well,
one of our eighth graders, Zachary
Shporer, received national recog
nition.
Zachary’s score of 21 out of 25
awarded him a Distinguished
Honor Roll Certificate from
th'e American Mathematics
Competitions group. It is estimat
ed that his score falls in the top
1% of students all around the
country who take this test.
Congratulations to Zachary for his
achievement in this academic
area! The Levin Jewish Middle
School will continue to participate
in the AMC 8 contest in the future
to inspire the best from our stu
dents academically.
The 29th Charlotte Yiddish Institute
Come Celebrate Yiddish Language and Culture with Us^ August 9-12
The Charlotte Yiddish Institute
is open to anyone who has knowl
edge of Yiddish and is dedicated t
enhancing their understanding of
it in a culturally stimulating and
heymish atmosphere.
Yiddishkeyt abounds with:
Faculty lectures in Yiddish
and English
^ Concerts
Yiddish language classes
Yiddish culture workshops
Folk singing and dancing
O Book and gift shop
4* Daily and Shabbes services the Blue Ridge Mountains.
Outstanding Southern hospi
tality
Enjoy nature walks and scenic
splendor at the Wildacres Retreat,
a mountaintop conference center
of 1400 acres, set in the he^rt of
Farbraing Mit Undz
Alt and Gene Kavadlo
Cantor Robert Abelson
Joyce Rosenzweig
Call with questions: Baily
Pransky, 704-366-5564; Branya
Gibbs, 704-849-6933; Don
Herbstman, 704-752-1910.
Please enter reservations for Adults Teens (13-19)
Full payment is enclosed as follows;
$ ($300 per adult) $ ($200 per teen)
$_ ($75 per adult round trip bus fee; teens ride free)
lAVe have attended the institute before. lAVe are attend
ing for the 1st time.
Names in English and Yiddish
Address and zip
Phone
Please reserve spaces on the bus from the airport for;
Adults Teens
IMPORTANT; Make reservations for an early arrival in Charlotte on
August 9. Bus will depart the airport promptly at 1:30 PM. It will return
to the Charlotte airport at approximately 2:30 PM on August 12.
Flying to Charlotte: Airline
Arrival time: Flight #
Departure Time: Flight #
Emergency contact name:
Phone ,
Special diet requests:
Please list how many of those in your party want to attend the following
workshops;
Sharing Memories Jewish Humor Beginners Yiddish
Advanced Yiddish
Please mail to Charlotte Yiddish' Inst., 5007 Providence Rd., #111,.
Charlotte, NC 28226 -
V L ■ V I ■ •
jee
The Jev/Ish Federation of Greater Charlotte
and the Levine Jewish Community Center
announce a unique cooperative venture
In support of Israel
JEWISH^
FEDERATIONS
Of OREATtn CHARLOTTt^^
“EXPRESSIONS”
ISRAELI ART SHOW & SALE
APRIL 22 - 29,2007
in fhe Sam Lerner Center for Cultural Arts
Exhibition Hours:
Sunday, April 22: 9:00 am ■
Monday - Thursday, April 23 - 26: 9:00 am ■
Friday, April 27: 9:00 am ■
Saturday, April-28: ^t^:00 pm ■
Sunday, April 29: ^19:00 am •
7:00 pm
9:00 pm
3:00 pm
1 0:00 pm
5:00 pm
ARTISTS INCLUDE:
Agam, Meisler, Ebgi, Brach Lavee,
Hasson, Dawber, Kurt, Sakatler,
Gorban, Ruth Bloch and more.
■».;i) r®
CALL FOR VOLUNTEERS; Dozens of volunteers are needed to make the art show and
sale a success. We are looking for assistance with set up, merchandising and sales.
For more information or to volunteer, please call Aree Pearlman at the Levine JCC,
704.944.6792 or Sue Littauer at the Federation, 704.944.6758.