a slice of chai - spring edition (bialik high school)

Sept. 2014Issue No. 1

Building Jewish Leaders since 1914

Toutes les nouvelles que vous souhaitiez savoir!

II Spring 2015

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Inside This Issuee Media Visits From Breakfast Television, Global Montreal and 94.7 Hits FM

e The Bialik Sephardic Wedding Experience e A Visit From Dr. Stanley Vollant

e Secondary Ⅰ-Ⅲ from the International Baccalaureate Programme (IB) Volunteering at Sun Youth e Lecture By Dr. Mordechai Kedar

e All the fun from the 58th Annual JPPS-Bialik Concert Gala & Purim!

And much, much more!

Contact:

Brittany WittCommunications and Marketing Coordinator Les Écoles juives populaires et les Écoles Peretz inc.(514) 731-3841 ext: 233 or [email protected]

SO, what are you looking for?

News: pages 3-19It Is A Party!: pages 20-21Science & Technology: page 22Arts: pages 23-29Sports: page 30Awards: page 31Next Issue Sneak Peek: page 32Classified Ad Info: page 33

Table of Contents

© 2014-2015 Les Écoles juives populaires et les Écoles Peretz inc.

Chai Lifeline Crohn’s & Colitis Canada

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2 A Slice of Chai From JPPS-Bialik

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Appointments

Judy SteinSenior Academic and Pedagogical Consultant

We are very proud to announce Andrea Greenberg as President of the Bialik Parent Council for the 2015-2016 academic year. As well, she will hold a seat on the JPPS-Bialik Board of Directors. Andrea is full of enthusiasm, and has been involved in the school co-chairing this year’s Gala program book. Current President Mona Segal-Strasser, JPPS ‘79, will mentor Andrea.

Andrea Greenberg ‘89

This past January, Judy Stein was appointed Senior Academic and Pedagogical Consultant at Bialik High School. Judy brings a wealth of experience and knowledge regarding best practices and strategies in curriculumdevelopment, implementation of assessment and evaluation practices and strategies, faculty professional development and academic requirements for success in post-secondary education. Welcome back, Judy!


The Tolerance Caravan, organized by the Bialik Guidance Department, is an interactive workshop that encourages Secondary Ⅲ, Ⅳ, Ⅴ and CEGEP students to develop critical thinking skills on the various forms of prejudice, stereo-types and discrimination.

Two of the facilitators used the students’ viewpoints and experiences as a basis to create a space for dialogue where the students could explore and deconstruct common prejudices and their sources.

The discussion examined how pre-conceived notions sometimes translate into acts of discrimination and how, in turn, the Charter of Human Rights and Freedoms helps us ensure that our rights are respected.

When discrimination and prejudice take root in society, what are the consequences? The facilitators used videos and concrete examples to look at serious human rights violations that occur, such as apartheid, imprisonment of ethnic groups, segregation and genocide.

The workshop ended with a discussion about each person’s role in maintaining harmonious social relations, and ways to promote respect and inclusion within their school.

Tolerance Caravan

A Slice of Chai From JPPS-Bialik 4 A Slice of Chai From JPPS-Bialik

A Lecture By Dr. Mordechai Kedar

Dr. Mordechai Kedar (Ph.D. Bar-Ilan University) served for 25 years in IDF Military Intelligence, specializing in Arabic political discourse, Arabic mass media, Islamic groups and the Syrian domestic arena. A lecturer in Arabic at Bar-Ilan Uni-versity, he is also an expert on Israeli-Arabic culture.

“I heard Montreal is very cold, so I thank you very much for the warm atmosphere here,” said Dr. Kedar as he began his lecture to Bialik High School Secondary Ⅴ students. Dr. Kedar was invited to speak at Bialik by Mrs. Etti Kimchi and Principal Avi Satov.

Dr. Kedar’s lecture began with the popular saying, “Peace in the Middle East.” He told students that when this term is used, people mostly think about the fighting between Israel and Palestine. He went on to explain that other countries in the Middle East are not at peace, and this expression must reflect these countries as well.

“It is time to look at the Middle East from within,” was just one of the points Dr. Kedar made.

He provided the example of the conflict between Morocco and the Western Sahara. Is this connected to Israel and Pales-tine? “Not at all,” he said.

Dr. Kedar provided other examples of Middle Eastern conflicts that have nothing to do with Israel and Palestine: Algeria, Libya, Sudan and Syria.

He told students that the Middle East definitely needs peace, but that the problems are not linked to Israel. He said that if Israel didn’t exisit, the other countries would still have conflicts. The question of “Peace in the Middle East” is not centered around Israel. He looked at a historical timeline, where he demonstrated that some of these problems have existed since the 7th centuy, and that Israel has only been a country for 70 years.

Dr. Kedar’s lecture was very enlightening, and left the students with much to think about.


CHABAD LIFELINEHope, help, and healing for individuals and families affected by addiction

Workshop: Addiction Prevention

The CHABAD LIFELINE is a non-sectarian agency dedicated to helping everyone affected by addiction. Their services are immediate and free to those in need.

Organized by the Guidance Department of Bialik High School, Secondary Ⅱ students had the opportunity to listen to stories from two CHABAD LIFELINE volunteers. These volunteers had a deep impact on the students. They learned how quickly things can go bad once you become addicted to a substance or lifestyle. They learned of the turmoil and pain experienced by the families of these two volunteers. One spoke about how he thought it was a bad idea to get help because he deemed it shameful, and felt like a loser. However, he finished by saying that reaching out is about strength and maturity and the best move he ever made.

The other volunteer said that it took about a year from the time she started using to when her world fell apart. She kept up with the facade that everything was fine until the habit became just too large to handle.

Both volunteers wanted to make clear that it doesn’t matter what background you come from; everyone is susceptible.

The students engaged in a Q and A with the volunteers. The focus and attentiveness of the students was a sign that this initiative was well received.

The CHABAD LIFELINE centre offers counselling and support for: - Substance-based addictions (drugs and alcohol) - Behavioral addictions (gambling, food, etc.) - Family Division - Youth Services - Education, Prevention and School Outeach

They are located at:4615 Cote Ste-Catheriene(514) 738-7700www.chabadlifeline.com


This past January, Bialik High School welcomed Dr. Stanley Vollant, Quebec’s first aboriginal surgeon. Dr. Vollant grew up in the Innu community of Pessamit. He met with Secondary Ⅰ, Ⅱ and Ⅲ students to talk about his journey, and the many projects he is involved in that serve to inspire him.

One particular project he mentioned was the “Innu Meshkenu” walk, which is a 6,000 km trek. One of Dr. Vollant’s many goals during this walk is to inspire the First Nation youth. Toward the end of his presentation, the Secondary Ⅱ French classes performed two songs for Dr. Vollant, led by Maggie Fayer. This initiative was put together by Bialik teacher Lysie-Anne Desrochers. Bialik Vice-Principal Ms. Nancy Sculnik thanked Dr. Vollant and added that Bialik High School would be adding a significant amount of aboriginal literature to its library. Learn more about Dr. Vollant at: www.innu-meshkenu.com.

Dr. Stanley Vollant


Annie Abitbol’s Secondary Ⅰ and Ⅱ IB students created superb geography projects. Ms. Abitbol’s students chose a territory in the world studied in class, created a mini-model and then presented a 3-minute oral presentation, discussing three issues and solutions surrounding the type of territory chosen.

Fun in Geography Class


In early 2015, construction in the room formerly known as 201 began. Bialik is extremely excited to be building its very own synagogue! This project has been in the works for some time, and is finally coming to fruition. The offical name of the synagogue is the Lederman Foundation Synagogue.

Bialik High School Soon To Have Its Very Own Synagogue


From January to mid-February, Bialik’s Secondary Ⅰ-Ⅲ IB classes volunteered at Organization Jeunesse au Soleil / Sun Youth Organization. They had lots of fun and did an amazing job.

Organization Jeunesse au Soleil / Sun Youth Organization


Jewish Muslim Intercultural Dialogue (JMID)

Bialik’s JMID (Jewish Muslim Intercultural Dialogue) Committee hosted their second activity with École Le Savoir in early January. Students participated in various discussions and ice-breaker activities, followed by powerpoint presentations from each school. The two-hour meeting was informative, fun and overall the students from both Bialik and École Le Savoir had a great time.


Original poster from event

Special lunch time program with Ittah Raskin

Special Minyan and Rosh Chodesh at Bialik


Bialik Semaine de la Culture QuébécoiseLundi: Présentation de différents films québécois pour les Secondaires I à V dans les classes de français.

Mardi: Lancement de la Programmation par les groupes de musique de Secondaire III I.B. Il y aura des juges qui noteront les chansons et des prix seront attribués pour les meilleures performances.

Mercredi: Deux élèves qui ont gradué de Bialik Eli Batalion et Philipp Kalin Hajdu (YidLife Crisis: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yh5uWajtPtA) viendront nous parler de la culture québécoise et la culture yiddish. Nous présenterons des ex-traits de leur reportage et nous aurons par la suite une discussion.

Jeudi: Exposition interactive: Des québécois qui ont marqué l’histoire par les élèves de Secondaire II I.B. Lunch: Cabane à sucre à Bialik

Vendredi: Lunch: le groupe de musique de Dylan joue quelques morceaux de musique francophone.


Bialik Sensitization ProgramFor two weeks in March, Bialik Secondary I students visited the Jewish Employment Montreal (JEM) Workshop as a part of the Bialik Sensitization Program. On April 2nd, Michael Lifshitz ‘92 spoke to students about disabilities. He explained how his disabilties do not stop him from being who he wants to be. One of the highlights was when he showed the students a video of himself suspended off a tall building, despite the fact that he usually gets around in a wheelchair. What an inspiration to our students!


Students posing with Anthony Housefather, Mayor of CSL

Bialik at the Jewish-Canadian Youth Model UN

L-R: Tracy Stroll, Bialik Student Services Supervisor and CSL Mayor Anthony Housefather


On March 6th, the Junior Public Speaking Competition took place. The Senior Public Speaking Competition was held the following Friday on March 13th. The winners from both the Junior and Senior competitions will present at West Island College (WIC) on April 29th. In the photo below, Secondary Ⅱ student Jacqueline Dalfen speaks on the topic of: “Just Because You’re Taught That Something’s Right And Everyone Believes It’s Right, It Don’t Make It Right” by Mark Twain.

An insightful quote from Dalfen’s speech was:“Stop being numbers and become people again. You are not the number of likes on your Instagram photo, you are not the number of your waistline.”

Congratulations to the following students:

Junior & Intermediate Public Speaking Contest Winners

Junior Public Speaking -1st place - Zachary Groszman

2nd place - Madison Laxer

Intermediate Public Speaking -1st place - Jonah Zoldan

2nd place - Jacqueline DalfenHonourable Mention - Lara Herscovici

Senior Public Speaking -1st place - Avery Albert

2nd place - Jonah Zoldan3rd place - Jonathan Starr

Honourable Mention - Rebecca Turner

Bialik Public Speaking Competition


The week of March 9th to 13th was designated as “Semaine de la Culture Sepharade.” On Thursday, March 12th, the Secondary V students had the special opportunity to learn about Sephardic wedding customs, including the costumes, foods and music associated with the Henna Ceremony.

The Bialik Sephardic Wedding Experience


On April 2nd, Mrs. Etti Kimchi’s Secondary V class skyped with their twin high school from Be’er Sheva in Israel. Our partner school is Makif Zein, a comprehensive school and member of the Amal system. Our students are encouraged to correspond with the Makif Zein students, and via Skype, they did just that! A few students from Makif Zein visited Bialik the week of April 19th to 27th on an exchange. Stay tuned to our Summer 2015 newsletter to read about their experience.

Cross-Continental Communication Via Skype!


Bialik Participates In “We Day Montreal”

On March 24th, a group of Bialik High School students partcipated with more than 4,000 students, educators and guests in “We Day.” This event took place at Théâtre Saint-Denis, where everyone heard amazing speeches and saw stand-out performances. Together, the students celebrated a year of taking action locally and globally, and received “a fresh dose of perspective and mo-tivation for another year of making a difference.” One of the speakers, Jonathan Emile, shared his cancer-survivor story and his passion for music. Quebec legend Mitsou had a heart-to-heart talk with the audience; she shared her body image struggles and inspired the crowd with her story! See see a full recap of the day by visiting: http://www.weday.com/we-day-events/we-day-ci-ties/montreal/


The Bialik Secondary V Integrative Project, with Special Guest, 94.7 Hits FM!

The Integrative Project allows students to learn valuable interpersonal and organizational skills while combining and implementing their knowledge from other classes. Previously known as the Bialik Economics Project, the newly coined Integrative Project was introduced as a course in September 2013. The project requires Secondary V students to work collaboratively to plan, build and manage a business. This year, students created unique businesses. Groups sold stocks to students in Secondary I-V, in order to raise the funds necessary to operate their business. After paying out their “stockholders,” students donate all profits to charity. The project is one of the most highly anticipated experiences at Bialik. It not only provides a valuable learning experience, but also creates many memories which students will carry with them long after graduation.


The 58th Annual Concert Gala!The Bialik Secondary V Integrative Project, with Special Guest, 94.7 Hits FM!


PURIM at Bialik!!!!


L’équipe de physique de Bialik a gagné! L’équipe a remporté le prestigieux concours international de physique Shalheveth Freier, parrainé par l’Institut Weizmann. L’équipe se rendra en Israël en mars pour participer à la finale mondiale. Nous sommes heureux d’an-noncer que l’équipe de physique de Bialik en Israël a terminé en 9e place sur 72 coffre-forts!!!

Nous avons également un des quatre coffre-forts attribués le plus résistant!

La physique, la robotique et beaucoup plus à l’école secondaire Bialik

L’équipe de la Robotique

Les étudiants en sciences du secondaire I ont eu la possi-bilité de naviguer sur Skype avec l’astronaute canadien Jeremy Hansen qui s’entraîne actuellement au Texas.


Bialik and the Visual Arts

From March 16th to 20th, Bialik’s Student Lounge was transformed into an exhibition of amazing and powerful works of art. The subject matter of these works of Protest Art was “Stop Child Exploitation.” The event was organized by Bialik’s P.E.A.C.E Committee (Pro-moting Education Against Child Exploitation), Bialik’s Art and Film teacher Ms. Chanti LePessec and Bialik’s Drama and English teacher Ms. Samantha Neuman, The creative pieces refer to the so-cial injustice that is child exploitation.

The Bialik High School #bialikcares t-shirt was designed by Secondary I student Ally Steinberg. This t-shirt was designed for Bialik students to wear when helping out in the community and performing acts of Tikum Olam.

The Bialik Secondary III art class used an eraser as the drawing tool to create these images. The drawings were generated by looking at a trans-forming image on a Smartboard.


Bialik High School Spirit Week!February 9th to 13th was Spirit Week at Bialik High School. It was a Free Dress week as well, where each day held a new dress theme! Monday was Neon Day, Tuesday was Pajama Day, Wednesday was Sports Apparel Day, Thursday was Colour War Team Colours Day and Friday was a regular Free Dress Day. The winner of the Bialik Spirt Day Cup was the Red Team, led by Noah Adessky. Some of the activities that took place during Colour War were a delicious breakfast followed by team building exercises, DJ Tobi and DJ Cherry spinning tunes during lunch, a student vs. teacher basketball game and much more!


Teacher Appreciation Week at Bialik!


The Bialik “Iconic” Fashion Show 2015


Bialik hosted a Comedy Night on Monday February 9th! There was a hilarious lineup of professional comedians and a special guest: our very own Secondary III student Jonah Presser! Awesome prizes were raffled, such as a pair of tickets to a Montreal Canadiens game. The event was hosted by Bialik grad Ozzie E ‘93, and featured Chris Venditto as the headliner. Chris was the star of “Young Guns of Comedy”.

Bialik held its annual Coffee House on Monday, March 16th, and featured students from all grades! It was an amazing night full of singers, musicians, dancers, comedians and even a ventriloquist! Hot beverages and delicious desserts were supplied by various groups from the Second-ary V Integrative Project.

Monday, March 16th at 7:00 pmHelen & Sam Steinberg Auditorium

Bialik High School6500 Kildare, Cote-Saint-Luc

Refreshments provided by Sully’s Sweetzeria,

Bibbidi Bobbidi Browniesand Coffee & Co.

Student waiters needed!Tickets $15 on sale now at http://store.jppsbialik.ca

Bialik High School Presents

Designed by:Magan Solomon & Derek Newman

Bialik Has Talent! The Bialik Comedy Night And Coffee House!

A Slice of Chai From JPPS-Bialik 28 A Slice of Chai From JPPS-Bialik“Mary Poppins” Spring Musical Performs a Flash Mob at the YM-YWHA


On Tuesday, March 24th, Bialik Cafeteria’s very own Rami opened a resturant for the staff and students! He introduced several signature dishes from the menu of Cafe Juicy Lotus, a vegetarian and vegan store on Monkland Avenue. He invited the owner of Cafe Juicy Lotus, Gigi Cohen to spend some time at Bialik to answer questions about healthy eating. Gigi interacted with students and faculty throughout lunchtime, and served a delicious free strawberry smoothie to all. It was a great experience.

Bialik High School: Restaurant Takeover


Bantam Boys Hockey• The Bulldogs narrowly missed the playoffs after a roller coaster second half. Despite the disappointing finish, the team has the foundation for future success thanks to a strong core of junior players.

Basketball• The Juvenile Boys D1 team finished in 3rd place in their division, with a record of 7-5. Despite a tough loss

to St. Thomas in the first round of the GMAA playoffs, the team had a successful season, winning both the JISA and the Oren Grunbaum Invitational Tournament. The Grunbaum Tournament included Jewish high school teams from Montreal, New York and New Jersey. The Juvenile Girls D1 team finished just outside of the playoffs, with a record of 3-9.

• The Midget Girls D1 team had a strong second half, winning the JISA tournament and finishing in a tie for the final playoff spot with LCC. They were eliminated from the playoffs in the play-in game. The Midget Boys D1 team had a very successful regular season, finishing in 2nd place in their division with a record of 9-3. They were upset in the first round of the playoffs by John Rennie High School, in an exciting 77-73 contest. The Midget Boys D3 team finished their season strong, qualifying for the playoffs in the last week of the season. They lost to Vincent Massey Collegiate in the first round of the playoffs.

• The Bantam Girls team made it to the semi-finals of the QAIS league, and had a great second half of the season. They lost to a strong team from The Study, in the semi-final game. The Bantam Boys team battled with Maimonides for GMAA D2 supremacy throughout January and February. The Bulldogs lost a thrilling championship game 60-56, after beating Maimonides by one point in an equally exciting contest earlier in the month.

Swimming• The swimming team competed all winter in the GMAA East meets, held at the Cotes des Neiges Aquatic

Center. Jonah Presser, Jordan Hoppenheim and Jacob Laxer all qualified for several events at the GMAA Championship Meet.

Badminton• Our Juvenile Girls Badminton team is currently competing in GMAA competition, with playoffs being held

in early April.

Bialik Bulldogs Winter Sports Recap


Congratulations to Rebecca Nadler and Josh Itzkovitz of Secondary V for advancing to the Nationals of the Bible Contest, to be held May 3-4rd, 2015. Good luck!

Mazel Tov! JPPS-Bialik Awards Section

Mazel Tov to Lia Elbaz ‘12 on her acceptance into the Steiner Sum-mer Yiddish Program at the Yiddish Book Centre of Amherst Col-lege in Massachusetts. Lia is one of eighteen students worldwide who has been invited, on full scholarship, to participate in this summer’s seven week program at the Centre. This was based in part on her application, which included a short introduction in Yiddish, a video recording and two overwhelmingly positive let-ters of recommendation from her teachers at Bialik: Lorna Smith and Doris Gandell. The program includes classes in language, lit-erature and culture led by some of the most prominent professors in the field from universities all over the United States, Canada and Europe. The students will intern on projects at the Yiddish Book Centre and go to New York City for a cultural visit on “Jewish New York,” as well as attend the Yiddish Theatre Festival with the Yiddish Folksbiene Theatre.

Congratulations to Eva Shabitai, one of five provincial winners in the 2014 Encounters with Canada /LEARN “Compassion in Action” contest. Students submitted essays about inspiring individuals or groups who, through their compassion and leadership, have made a difference in the community. Eva wrote about her personal hero, Emilia Salvatess. The winning essays are posted on the LEARN web site at www.learnquebec.ca.

Compliments of LEARN, Eva has received a fully-paid week of her choice in Ottawa at Encounters with Canada, the country’s largest youth forum. She will take part in exciting workshops and outings with students from across the country, developing citizenship and leadership skills and exploring career options. (For more information, go to www.encounters-rencontres.ca.)

Rachel Tchinov was the runner-up in the contest for her essay on Malala Yousafzai, and received a subsidy towards her participation in Encounters with Canada.


SO, What’s Next?In the next edition of A Slice of Chai From JPPS-Bialik, readers can look forward to:

e The Bialik Annual Awards Ceremonye Bialik Invention Convention

e Bialik March Of the Living, Costa Rica and New York/Washington Tripse Bialik Mentor/Mentee Annual BBQe Bialik Secondary V Scavenger Hunte The SPARTAN RACEe And so much more!!!!

ClassifiedsIf you are interested in placing an ad in A Slice of Chai from JPPS-Bialik, please contact: Amy Finkelstein at (514) 731-3841, ext. 263 or by e-mail at [email protected]

Please send any graphic work to Brittany Witt at [email protected] File Type• PDF, EPS, JPEG• All colour files must be CMYK• All fonts must be embedded• No bleed is necessaryPhotos• Minimumu 300 dpi at 100%. • Highlight must be at a minimum of 5%. • Shadow must be a maximum of 85%TextColor reverses should not have type smaller than 10 pt. and please avoid serif fonts.


Sept. 2014Issue No. 1

Building Jewish Leaders since 1914

Toutes les nouvelles que vous souhaitiez savoir!

Spring 2015

A Slice of Chai From JPPS-Bialik

a slice of chai - spring edition (bialik high school)

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