From
Rabbi Steve
(please read to your
children)
|
 |
The Ten Commandments
The word "commandment"
means "law" or "rule."
The Torah contains many commandments, and the best-known
ones are "The Ten Commandments." These are 10 rules that
help us be nicer to each other. They include such things
as not hurting other people, not stealing things, and
listening to our parents.
Shavuot is a
Jewish Holiday during which we pay special attention to
these Ten Commandments. If rules and laws did not exist,
people might not treat each other nicely. So, it is very
important to follow the Ten Commandments, as doing
so makes us better people.
|
|
The CBE Annual Picnic was a great success (despite the
rain)
on Sunday, May 23
Preschool Activities
included planting
basil,
face painting and
moon bounces just
to name a few...
|
|
|
Your Incoming 2010-11
BEECC PA Board
The
2010-11 BEECC PA Board looks forward to working with and
seeing you over the summer and next school year!
Jennifer DeAngelis
and Kay Shear
Co-Presidents
Brett Fox
Vice President
Corinne Jacobson
Treasurer
Jaime Levin
and
Sam Brown
Fundraising
Dana Rosensweig
and
Vanessa Leung
Social/Education
Shana Cassidy
and
Julie Dann
Sunshine Committee
Emma Goldenberg
Scholastic
Lisa Moore
Tikkun
Olam
NEW
email address as of July 1 will be:
BEECCPA@yahoo.com.
Let us
know if you are interested in hosting events or helping
with events. Please look for a survey from us mid-summer.
Thank
you. |
| |
Summer Playdates
(Everyone is invited!)
The 2010-11 BEECC PA will host playdates this summer.
Stay tuned for dates and locations.
Friday, June 18
10 am-noon
place TBD
Friday, July 30
10:00 am - noon
Fairrfax Corner
Fountains
Special Family Event
Coming in August
Contact
Jennifer DeAngelis or
Kay Shear with any questions.
|
| |
Mark Your
May/June Calendar |
|
Sunday, March 23
Annual CBE Picnic
11:00 am - 2:00 PM
Tuesday, May 25
Afternoon Drop-Off Movie
1:15-2:15 PM
Wednesday, May 26
The Great Zuchinni
4:00-5:00 PM
Monday, May 31
NO SCHOOL
Friday, June 11
Shabbat Family Service
7:15 pm
Tuesday, June 15
Last Day of Classes
for 2-Day
Wednesday, June 16
Last Day of Classes
for 3-Day and Pre-K
|
BEECCers and their Friends are invited to
Come and See
The Great Zucchini
BEECC PA Event
Wednesday
May, 26, 2010
4:00
-5:00 pm at CBE
Washington's funniest
and most magical PRESCHOOL &
KINDERGARTEN
entertainer, performs a colorful magic show where
every child
is a star and
guaranteed to laugh! The wonder of magic, silliness of
comedy,
and interactive
nature of The Great Zucchini's show keeps children on
the
edge of their seats.
Tickets $5/child
max $10/family
Please make checks
payable to BEECC PA, "Great Zucchini" with numbers
attending in notes field.
Reserve tickets soon, seats are limited.
Contact:
beeccpa2008@yahoo.com
CBE members
e-mail to have tickets billed to your account or
drop-off check in BEECC PA mailbox.
BEECC Families please backpack checks to BEECC
PA mailbox.
All others please send checks to: Congregation
Beth Emeth c/o BEECC PA, 12523 Lawyers Rd., Herndon,
VA 20171
See you there!
|
|
|
Thank
You!
A big thank you to everyone who has bought Scholastic
Books this school year. The BEECC library has greatly
benefitted from your purchases. The last order of the
school year will was due on Wednesday, May 5.
Emma Goldenberg will be taking Scholastic over next year
and I wish her much success.
|
|
BEECC
PA donations
for
2009-2010
This year,
thanks to all of your support, we are able to make some
very generious donations.
Those donations are:
-
$500 towards in-services and training
for our very talented teachers. One of the programs
the teachers will be attending is the Partnership for
Jewish Life and Learning (PJLL) early childhood
conference at B'nai Israel on October 21, 2010. Their
working title is: Healthy Body, Healthy Mind, Healthy
Soul. They will present topics that focus on nature,
nature deprivation, ecology, and health and fitness.
As always, they will frame this through a Jewish lens
in both their introduction and in many of their
sessions.
- $400 donation to CBE
as a thank you for all of the support the members and
staff of the congregation have given us this past year
- All of the
additional funds raised for tikkun olam above the
required "bears for life" program will be donated to
the reservoir efforts in Israel.
Thank you again for supporting all of
the fundraisers this year!!
|
|
|
|
|
From Your BEECC Director
Dear BEECC Parents,
"Flowers and Children
Bloom when Showered with Love"
-- Anais Nin
It is hard to believe that
our school year is nearly over. Over the past nine
months, I have gotten to know your children and I can
truly say it has been a wonderful experience. Their
openness and willingness to let me become a part of their
lives has been so special to me. Like the children, I too
have learned a lot this year. I have discovered what an
incredible and caring community BEECC is and how our
families are always ready to help those in need. I have
learned that Beth Emeth is not just a congregation, but
also a family - one that I am so very proud to now be a
part. Thank you all for your generosity of spirit and for
sharing your wonderful children with me. They brighten
each and every one of my days!
I want to thank everyone who
has helped make my first year at BEECC a success. Lori
Kraden and Sam Brown, our amazing Parent's Association
presidents, were an extraordinary support team. Thank you
our wonderful PA committee chairs Jamie Steinberg, Jocelyn
Tedder, Shana Cassidy, Julie Dann, Susan Friedman,
Jennifer DeAngelis, Jaime Levin, Caryn Danoff, Beth Levy,
and Lauren Pinnar. I am also grateful to Corinne Jacobson,
chair of the BEECC Committee, who was an incredible
resource. Thank you to our dedicated BEECC Committee
members Dana Rosensweig, Rebecca Fleischer, Jamie
Steinberg, Sam Brown and Lori Kraden and teacher
representative Ellyn Greenspan. Thank you
also to Debbie Levine, CBE Vice President for Education
for your unwavering support and advice this year.
We are busy planning for
summer fun. Camp Kaitana will soon be in full swing and
the sounds of laughter in the sprinkler and smell of
sunscreen will fill the air. I wish you all a joyous
summer!
B'Shalom,
Judy |
|
From Your Parents' Association (PA) Presidents
 Hello
BEECC Families,
How fast time flies! We
cannot believe that our two years as co-presidents are
coming to an end. We cannot thank you enough for all of
the support that you have given to the BEECC PA over these
two years. Your generosity during our fundraisers has
allowed BEECC to install a sunshade, buy a cricut machine
and support teacher training by funding a variety of
programming throughout the year. Spending time doing
yoga, learning 1, 2, 3 Magic or how to potty train our
children, has allowed us to meet each other and develop
friendships that will last forever. Volunteering during
special programming, like the Trip to Israel and the Purim
Carnival, has guaranteed that everything will run
smoothly. Sitting on the BEECC PA board, becoming a room
parent or running a fundraising event made it obvious that
you had a desire to make sure that your child's preschool
experience was an exceptional one. Having involved
parents like you is why BEECC is, and will continue to be,
a very special place to send our children.
As we wrap up this year, we
want to invite everyone one last time to join us for a
wonderful event as we celebrate the end of the year
together with The Great Zucchini. If you haven't
registered yet, please go to
http://www.bethemeth.org/zucchini.htm. We hope to see
you there!
Once again, thank you for
all of your support throughout the past two years. We
couldn't have done it without you!
With love,
Sam and Lori
http://www.bethemeth.org/beeccparentsassn.htm
|
|
BEECC PA News and Updates
Thank You!
Thank you for your support throughout the year with
social, education and fundraising efforts and events.
Join us for The Great Zucchini
(see box on left) at Beth Emeth on Wednesday, May 26,
2010 from 4 - 5 PM. Reserve tickets soon, seats
are limited. Contact:
beeccpa2008@yahoo.com for more info.
Spread Some Sunshine!
Do you know of any families expecting a baby, experiencing
a loss, or going through a stressful period? Please
contact us with any news about our BEECC families so we
can offer support. Please speak to Julie Dann or Shana
Cassidy, or email
beeccsunshine@gmail.com.
|
The Outstanding Owls
April is a
wonderful spring month to celebrate new life both at
the pond, and at the farm. The Owl class became
familiar with amphibians to ready ourselves for a
field trip to Eleanor Lawrence Park. The naturalist at
the park displayed several reptiles and amphibians,
and we enjoyed a guided nature walk. Before heading
back to BEECC, everyone had a picnic lunch.
Fortunately,the weather was extremely cooperative,
making it a great day. Thanks to all our parents for
joining us in a fun day.
This month also included a celebration of Israel's
birthday with a trip to the Western Wall, Dead Sea,
Shuk, and other centers. We loved parading with
our hand-made Israeli flags! Before our visit to the
Dead Sea, the class experimented with eggs and two
glasses of water. The glass with saltwater became
quite dense, causing the egg to rise to the top of the
water. Simple, but so illustrative!
The Owls read a variety of books about the frog life
cycle, and demonstrated their new found knowledge by
working in small groups to produce a beautiful
collage that depicts eggs, tadpoles, and adult frogs.
The owls loved making a class pond by using our water
table. We used food coloring to shade the water blue,
cut out lily pads, poured sand, collected rocks, and
place frogs, snakes and lizards in their habitat. So
much fun! Later the children made individual ponds by
using paper plates, stones, twigs, and grass. The Owls
continue gaining math skills by estimating, and
measuring. We used unifix cubes, popsicles sticks,
blocks and paper clips as units for measuring the
average frog's jump. The class also took turns
jumping in the classroom to compare and contrast the
length of their leaps with the Frog's mighty jump.
Letter Pp and Qq took center stage this month as we
enjoyed pajama day with pancakes. We read Eric Carle's
book Pancakes,
Pancakes, and sequenced the
steps involved in making a simple pancake. We graphed
our favorite pancakes, and found the Owl class is
partial to chocolate chip. So important for our little
ones to understand the process food has to go through
before it reaches the table! Letter Qq is always
followed by letter Uu , so we performed a mock
marriage ceremony for the two letters in our class.
Morah Susan played the role of the lovely Miss Qq
while Morah Joan sang a rousing rendition of 'Here
Comes the Bride.' While learning about letter
Qq the class continued to explore measurement. We
decided to use quarts to fill our pond. The class
estimated how many quarts of water
would be necessary to fill the water table, and then
we took turns filling it up.
The Owls looked forward to sharing Mother's Day with
our wonderful moms. We had some surprises planned and
lots of special treats. As the year winds down, we
anxiously await our end of year celebration. This is
always such a special time, and is sure to be a
cherished memory for many years. The Owl team has
loved nurturing your children, and we wish you lots
of happiness in the summer and beyond!
Morah Joan/Morah Susan/Morah Nancy
 The
Fabulous Frogs
The Frog class took advantage of the old saying "April
Showers Bring May Flowers" by learning about the
rainforest. By reading and exploring through many
books, we learned about the four different layers of
the rainforest. We spoke about the weather, trees,
flowers, and the many animals that reside in the
different parts of the rainforest. The children put
their knowledge to work by creating a fantastic mural.
We painted, traced, colored, stamped, glued and cut
out all of the different features of the rainforest.
The children then placed the animals they created in
the correct layer of the rainforest.
Pajama day was lots of fun. It was wonderful to see
all of the children in their favorite pajamas. We all
enjoyed our special pancake snack that day.
The Frog and Owl classes took a thrilling field trip
to Eleanor C. Lawrence Park to see and learn about
reptiles and amphibians. We saw fish in their tanks,
turtles, a large snakeskin, and a live snake. We
learned the differences between a frog and a toad. On
our nature walk, we saw beehives (from afar), an herb
garden, and bugs in their natural habitat. We enjoyed
a picnic lunch before heading back to BEECC. Morah
Gayle brought one of her crested geckos, named Sabra,
to class so we could watch and learn how a reptile
behaves. Some children enjoyed petting Sabra.
This month we celebrated Israel's 62nd
birthday. As a great introduction into Israel, Morah
Paula showed and explained pictures from her trip to
Israel. We explained why people float in the Dead Sea
because of the high salt content. We demonstrated this
by watching an egg float in salt water, but not in
fresh water. The children signed their names and drew
their pictures on their passports and then took an
airplane trip to Israel. The Frog class visited a
market place, created a stained glass picture, put
their wishes on paper to put into the Western Wall,
and enjoyed humus and pita bread at the Israeli café.
We all made Israeli flags and the entire school
paraded through the halls.
Morah Keren has been introducing Hebrew words for the
rainforest animals, bugs, and spring.
The Frog class celebrated Earth Day by discussing ways
to make the Earth a better place to live. The children
had wonderful ideas. We planted our Spring seeds in
our window box. We are looking forward to observing,
charting and graphing the growth of our May flowers.
The rest of April will take us into outer space. We
will learn about the planets in the solar system and
the children will create their own mobiles.
In
May created beautiful gifts for Mother's Day and we
are celebrated Mother's Day at BEECC.
We
will be celebrating graduation in June with lots of
fun and songs. We are looking forward to spending this
special day with you and your precious children. Thank
you for sharing all of your wonderful children with us
this year. It has truly been a great year of growth,
learning and fun. We wish you and your family a
wonderful summer and a great year in kindergarten.
Morah Gayle and Morah Paula
|
|
Kitty Cat and Puppy Dog Update |
 Kickin'
Kitty Cats
Up, up
and away in our beautiful balloons! The windy days of
spring are a great time to discuss things that need wind
to fly. We created colorful hot air balloons and wove
baskets. The children enjoyed looking through Morah
Carol's photo album and seeing the scale of a real hot
air balloon. We discussed the need for hot air to make
the balloon float and the children could see the size of
the flame that filled the enormous balloon. An
interesting discussion followed on how the direction of
the wind moves the balloon. How a balloon would land
prompted some concerned expressions and interesting
conclusions. It was suggested that we could throw a
string over the side, put an anchor out the side of the
basket, pop a hole in the balloon or put on the brake.
With some prompting, the children were able to conclude
that we nee ded to turn off the flame and have less hot
air in the balloon. Oh, how simple flying a kite is in
comparison! The children made beautiful kites using
their own wind; blowing paint across the kite with a
straw.
We
again took flight, this time in an airplane, to Israel.
We poured over Morah Carol's Israel album and saw the
archeological dig and real pieces of ancient pottery, we
made a Western Wall and put our prayers in it, we put
together two triangles in order to make the Star of
David for our flags, we explored the building and found
the Israeli flag in different rooms, and we pretended to
live, play and work on a kibbutz. This was all before we
actually shared the contents of the items we packed for
our very long flight. We discussed how long the trip
would be, how many meals would be eaten, books read,
games and toys played, movies watched and naps taken
before arriving. We had a lot of fun; however, there was
true disappointment in the fact that we didn't actually
watch any of the movies the children brought! It was
quite cute! We got our passports stamped and had a
wonderful Israel experience in the Social Hall.
Taking
care of our earth and trying to recycle, reuse and
repurpose and produce less trash was our next topic of
discussion. We made a small flower planter with water
bottles and put the part of the container we didn't use
in the recycle bin. We brought in a small bucket of
playground mulch (although we could have just emptied
the mulch from our shoes) to try and figure out what it
was made out of. There was wide eyed amazement that it
was made out of tires! We came up with many great uses
for recycled materials. From tires you could make:
mulch, another tire, a toy zebra, a blue rubber ducky, a
trash truck or a rubber band. Recycled paper could be
made into: books, a calendar or drawing paper. Recycled
plastic only had one useful purpose - TOYS!
The
last week of the month we focused on the most special
woman in our lives...our Mommies! It was all created
with much love, affection and Mommy worship!
Morah
Carol and Morak Karen
Precious Puppy Dogs
April showers do bring May flowers....but luckily
before this month's rain began, the Puppy Dogs were
able to have some sunny day fun. First, we read about
Curious George and his kite adventure. Being as
curious as George, we just had to make and fly our own
kites! A windy day was all that was needed to send
those colorful kites soaring up and away on BEECC's
own playground....an awesome time was had by all! We
also read about a cat who dreamed of sailing above the
earth in a hot air balloon...if a cat can do it, so
can a puppy dog...so we made our own balloons too!
As long as we were already up in the air, we decided
to travel to Israel! Lots of preparation was
necessary...passports and packing lists, but we had
our backpacks packed on the day of departure, had a
smooth flight (watched "Cars") and were especially
happy to look down on Olivia and Leo in England on our
way to Israel! The Dead Sea, Kotel, food and shopping
were just as we had read about! We even brought back
Jewish star souvenirs for our families... a most
exciting adventure!
Back in Virginia we learned a lot about Earth Day and
recycling. We know that we need to help Mother Earth
grow greenly, so that she will help us continue to
grow too. After bringing in used water bottles we
recycled them for special Mother's Day gifts...we are
all officially "green" now!
The month ended with two other exciting events.
"Terrific Truck Day" was so much fun when we could get
up close to several different types of types of trucks
and learn more about what they each are used for.
Lastly, we prepared for Mother's Day...gifts and cards
galore! Each and every Mom enjoyed the special party
in her honor...food and songs and fun!
See you in May!
Morah Ellyn and Morah Jamie
|
|
Dolphin and Teddy Bear Update |
Delightful Dolphins
It is hard to believe that it is already May!
Where
did the year go?
By the time you are reading this article, there will be
only a few weeks of preschool left; but don't worry, we
will make the most of each and every day.
Last month, the Dolphins welcomed Juliana Stillman (and
family) into our class with a seamless transition! All of
the children really enjoyed preparing for and experiencing
our class model seder. Kudos and todah rabah to Kara
Rosenthal and Ariella's Abba for helping to lead the seder
and making delicious matzoh ball soup; special thanks to
Bob Cloutier (Morah Judi's husband) for helping to serve
our wonderful meal. We want to give special thanks to
Coach Robin for a great stint of BEECCercise while Music
was on hiatus; we are all in better shape as a result.
In May the children will explore a variety of topics
including: Spring; Mother's Day; and Shavuot. We hope you
will be able to join us for our 2-Day Mother's Day program
on Thursday, May 6th at 12:30 p.m. in Room 6.
Both children and moms enjoy this time together immensely!
This month we are very happy to welcome back Miss Carol
and our music time, and look forward to meeting with you
at our end of year parent-teacher conferences on May 10th.
June brings Transportation, Summer, and Father's Day to
BEECC. Though we won't officially celebrate with the Dads,
a small surprise may make its way home in time for "his"
big day later in the month. With BEECC ending in mid-June,
there are a few children whose birthdays won't occur
during our school year. We are happy to celebrate summer
birthdays
early
- so please let us know when it would be convenient to
come in and sing "Yom Hudelet Sameach" over our yummy
cupcakes!
Please remember to appropriately dress your child for the
weather and activities of the day. This time of year the
mornings are sometimes a bit cool and require a light
jacket, but by the time we go out on the playground it is
generally warm or even downright hot! As a result, please
send in sun hats, and/or sunglasses, and apply sunscreen
and bug spray to your child
before
he/she arrives at school. As you know, we prefer
closed-toed shoes and socks to avoid "mulch-trama" if we
can. Also, please check to make sure that we have an extra
summer-weight outfit on hand (shorts & t-shirt), just in
case.
Potty training is going very well and the majority of the
children are now out of diapers -- yeah! For those that
haven't quite mastered this achievement, summertime is an
excellent opportunity to work on potty training. Wearing
minimal (or even no) clothing below the belly button gives
the child reduced encumbrance to deal with and also
immediately lets him/her detect wetness. Best of luck in
this arena, but I am confident that all of the Dolphins
will be potty trained by the Fall, and perhaps even in
time for Camp Kaitana.
J
As the
saying goes, "Time flies when you're having fun." I guess
that means we have had tons of fun during the
2009-10 school-year in the Dolphin classroom!! Your
children have grown in so many ways over the course of the
year. Among other skills, they have learned how to: sit,
listen and participate at circle time; feel comfortable at
CBE and walk in a line to and from different locations in
and around the building; eat independently; show, share
and talk about their personal items; recite the Shabbat
blessings; recall a variety of Jewish holiday stories and
songs; and play cooperatively with each other and other
children at BEECC. It has been our pleasure to teach them
and expand their world, and we are sure that they will be
ready for the new challenges and changes they will face
next year at preschool.
Each
one of our Dolphins is truly special and delightful;
thanks so much for entrusting us with their first Jewish
preschool experience. Have a great summer!
XO,
Morah Shari & Morah Dina
Terrific Teddy Bears
It is
difficult to believe that we are almost at the end of the
year. Your children have grown so much and we have
thoroughly enjoyed watching them grow. From those first
tears to the confident little Teddies we have today, they
have truly been a joy.
Towards the end of April, we talked about Yom Ha Atzmaut,
Israel's birthday.We made our own Israeli flags and had a
parade through the building singing Yom Chuledet Sameach
(Happy Birthday)! The Hazak group really seemed to enjoy
us as we marched right through their meeting.
After
Yom Ha Atzmaut we started to think about honoring our Moms
for Mother's day. We tried very hard to keep the surprise
as we made cards and gifts for our special Mother's Day
celebration. We sang songs and gave our gifts to the
Mommies while we enjoyed a special treat at lunchtime.
We
started to talk about the seasons changing again as it got
warmer and warmer. We talked about some of the creatures
we share our world with and made kites to fly in the
wonderful weather.
If you
haven't sent in a set of lighter clothing yet, please do.
Also please remember not to send your child in sandals or
crocs.The mulch gets in, it doesn't come out and it makes
for hazardous climbing on the playground.
We
wish you all a wonderful and relaxing Summer and we hope
to see you all next year.We especially love getting 2nd
generation Teddies, so we'll be looking for them!Thank you
again for sharing your children with us.They have been
such a blessing!
Morah
Judi and Morah Theresa |
Perfect Ponies
The Ponies recently welcomed David Paley and mom Donna
to Budding BEECCers; our clas has grown nicely to 7 (my
lucky number) participating families!
After spring break, on the heels of the Cherry Blossom
Festival in Washington, DC, the Ponies painted their
impressions of the beautiful blossoms. They also
decorated their own dragonflies and caterpillars,
helped Old MacDonald manage his farm animals, and
celebrated Israel's 62nd Independence Day with flags
and a birthday party that included delicious blue and
white cake! The children smiled beautifully for their
individual and class portraits, which have captured
just how much they have grown since the beginning of
the school year.
In May, we celebrate
Riddhi's birthday, do a unit on transportation (kicked
off by Big Truck Day!) and have a day off to observe
Shavuot-the giving of the 10 commandments to the
Jewish people. I hope many of made it to our Family
Service and Torah for Tots on Friday night and
Saturday morning, May 7th and 8th,
respectively.
In June, we will
celebrate Joshua and David's birthdays and focus on
Summer, which officially begins on 6/21. We will
continue to go on the playground on nice days (so
please don't forget the sunscreen, sunhats, and bug
spray), and have a couple of parent education programs
before the last day of school on June 16th
.
It is hard to believe
that the school year is almost over. The Budding
BEECCers have learned much of the BEECC routine and
are very comfortable at CBE. I am confident that all
of the children will be ready to successfully
participate in Camp Kaitana this summer and attend
either the 2 or 3 day class for rising 3-year-olds in
the Fall. To be honest, it was a bit daunting at first
to try to fill Morah Lisa Croll's shoes back in
December, but I have to say that it has been my
pleasure to "teach" the Pony class and get to know all
of the kids and mommies over the past 6 months. Thank
you for welcoming me into Room 3 and making me feel at
ease, even when I forget the words to our songs! Your
support has been greatly appreciated.
Have
a wonderful summer.
Fondly,
Morah
Shari
|
|
THANK YOU
to the Current BEECC PA Board!
|
|
|
| |
|
