TheLehrmanLinkFebruary 6, 2013 • 26 Shevat 5773 Insight Inside the Lehrman Difference Volume 14, Number 10

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From the Desk of…page 2

…Music…pages 6

Annual Campaignpages 3/4

…and Drama!page 7

Music…page 5

Everything elsepage 8

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From the Desk of…

Linda K. SchaffzinDIRECTOR OF ADMISSIONS

Dear Parents,It has been a wonderful month

for the arts at Lehrman. On January 14th we opened our annual art exhibit to rave reviews. The memory of the beauty is still in our minds as we eagerly await opening night of the musical and dramatic jewel in the Lehrman crown, this year’s production of Willy Wonka on February 12th and 13th.

Many of us have written about the importance and value of the arts in our lives and our children’s education: we know their impact on the cognitive growth factors and the intangibles—

aesthetics, values, and of course a spur to critical thinking and creativity. Our Jewish tradition recognized the importance of the arts—there are many instruments mentioned in the Tanakh—and we are exhorted in Tehillim Psalms to “make joyful noise unto the Lord” (Psalms 150:xx). Although we are prohibited from making graven images, Bezalel, the talented artist who designed and built the tabernacle in the desert, was “filled with the spirit of God.” The beauty of the priests’ colorful ritual articles and clothing is described in detail.

As an admissions director I hear stories about the pull back in the public schools. Federal mandates led to concentrations on reading and math to the exclusion of not only social studies and science, but recess, physical education and, sadly, the arts. Here at Lehrman we are so lucky to have Michael Day and Deborah Brown, who are as talented and inspired as a King David or a Bezalel, working with our children. Excellent teachers, they are also practitioners of their arts, giving their teaching extra depth.

Our arts program gives our children many advantages, but it also gives them a chance at joy—walk into an art class and you will find them chattering away as they work. It is a wonderful place where they can share their ideas with one another, collaborate and help one another; they always challenge themselves in new ways. The imagination holds sway and a child finds new ways to express herself.

Stop by a musical theater rehearsal and see a different sort of collaboration. It is more disciplined and precise. Students must learn to work in unison, to support one another and be cognizant of each other’s presence, both physically and emotionally. It is creative, but also structured. The result, however, leads to poise and self-confidence as well as fun, not to mention skills that will last a life-time.

January and February are great months for the arts at Lehrman, but lucky for us, the true learning goes on all year and the benefits last a lifetime.

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Head of School CouncilJana & Roger MillerJeffrey Miller

Head of School CabinetTania & Robert BassanLee Casty Family FoundationRenee & Stephen GansKim & Eric MendelsonJane & Michael SabetLenore & Adam Sender

Mentor’s Club Jaclyn & Adam BergmanDeborah & Neil BienstockRochelle & Bobby FinvarbLaura & Ronny FinvarbMonica & Joel HoppensteinNancy & Kobi KarpSuzanne & Richard LeedsCarla & Chris SloanCarrie & Jason Wiesenfeld

Dean’s ListThe Ansin FoundationDeborah Bussel & Stephen GoldinJenifer & Michael Caplan-BernsteinMelanie & Eric GreenwaldJennifer & Alberto GrossRosalind & Saul LanesDr. Dara & Oren LieberDana & Tim Martorella

Suzanne & Brad MeltzerTracy & David MoretJodie & Richard RozencwaigJuliana & Marc SeitlesJennifer & Eric SheppardAllison & Jerry SokolRachel & Dovid TkatchNatalie & Mark WeiderNikki & Randy WeisburdJaya & Joseph Zebede

Honor RollAdam Ben-Shalom Abima Corp.Perla & Jay AbramowitzIves BarroukhDee Dee & Richard BerkowitzMaria Briceno & Domingo AlvarezJodi & Rick BruceLorena & Gil DezertzovMichele & Jeffrey ErezMara & Adam GeronemusAnje & Joe Hark-MinoreAmy & Steven HurwitzJudy & Michael KapiloffRebeca & Rafael KravecElisa & Graeme LemmerThe Lehmann/Kim Charity Fund– Jean & Marc LehmannBella LehrmanCarmen & Jay LeonardBeth & Walter LugoGail & Robert Newman

Allyson & Mathew PapunenJanet & Michael RappMichelle & Jason RubellValeria & Ozzie SchindlerIvonne & Carl SchulmanBonnie Segal & Sam BejarNicole & Michael SimkinsGary SnyderAmy & Richard StokesSol Taplin Charitable FundAarti TaubmanRonit & Steve WasersteinRenae & Robert WinerPhyllis & Alan Wolpert

FellowsRita & Jack BarouhDiane & Marc BreslowScott EvansSuzanne & Roderick FaithJill & Harold GaffenThe Russell & Ronalee Galbut

Family Foundation Jodie & Andy GlennRomina Grinberg & Alejo ChouelaMichelle & Patrick MaloyMariella & Roni MualemJennifer Rapp & Alex FerroLinda & Stephen SchaffzinKaren & Jonathan SepsenwolEmilie & Rodrigo Veloso continued…

An ongoing reflection of our community’s commitment to Lehrman…

✪Donate online.

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Scholars Nicole AbelsonErica AlbertElizabeth & Andy AlloccoKaren AlvarezLilian & Dale AratenAmy & Andrew AtkinsMelissa & Tommy BabilDominique & Harold BallarinSandra & Doron BaranesBela & Joseph BarnesMichele BaronPenny BarrKelly & Michael BeltranEti Ben ShalomAlexandra & Andres BermanDebra & Israel BichachiRabbi Avraham BilletSilvia BinkiewiczShani & Jose BitonMarta & Neb BrankovicDebbie BrownSofia CalvoStephanie & Michael CariglioSilvia CattanSilvina & Mario ChomerStacey & Jonathan ChoppSandi & Matthew CooperAaron CorlissLucia CortavarriaTina DanzanskyMichael DayHeidi & Yehuda DeutchKathy DiamondJessica & Sharon DomfrochtCamila & David Dubay-AronowGuido DuekTracey & Joel EllisonBecky EmmanuelLaurie FarberJanet & Barry FeinGeraldo FeldmanLisa & Andy FeldmanLori Feldman

Carolina FerdmanJudi FishkinMiriam FolwellDiana FrancoJoseph (Papa) GalliotteJessica & Eric GavaraDebbie & Roger GoldenbergNancy & Brad GouldRachel GozlanCarolyn & Stanley GreenfieldEvelyn & Ben GruberKim & Dan HaberJenn & Josh HammelJulia Hanan & David ShapiroStephanie & Laurent HarariLee & Joshua HareHagar HayounElana & Lance HellringTina HernandezAriela & Ernesto HesDanielle & Michael HollandAna HormillaVanessa Hudson & Ben SmithDoron JungerDianah KazazAlejandra & Javier KitaigorodskyAitana & Haim KleinMichelle & Jacobo KligmanJamie KreisbergDeborah & Neal LakeHarry LaveauJose LaverdeLeslie & Seth LaveyMarissa & Jason LeibowitzDr. Judi & Steve LevinsonTali & Tal LevinsonBetsy LevyAnnia & Oscar LopezLinda LuBowDeanna MalaraNiki & Anthony MarkofskyTiki MarksCaryn MatatofKarin & Peter Matos

Betty MatzMichelle & Ian MavorahEsther MeyerGalina & Boaz MishievApril MossAshleigh & Mark MuhlradAretusa NachmaniAlissa NelsonSarit OrenJacky PatinoSandra & Franz PinzonScott PodvinShea PolakowGail & Joe PolakowRuth QuintanaLiora Ramati-GironSylvia RamirezMaria RangelJennifer Reed & Kieran MasekJulie & Jeff ResplerJackelyn ReveszJudith RichardLinda Rivas & Eleazar LopezMichelle RocheYamileth RodriguezHannah RodriguezVanina & Leonard RoitmanJudith RollerAdriana & Joey RosenBaylie & Marvin RosenbergLisa & Jaime RosenbergMelissa & Charles RosenbergRoberto RosenfeldLili RotholzRussell RywellJulie & Diego SaalHarilee SaltzmanAlvaro SanchezAmy & Ed SanchezElana SasiLinda & Stephen Schaffzin, In Memory of Brookes JacobsCheryl & Matthew SchechterDana & Michael Schimmel

Nina & Justin SchwerlingBianca SenkerDema SeoaneJennifer SerettiMorgan & Michael ServetnickLilla & Jerry SherAmy SiamaBarbie SidanSharon Singer & James StephensonAmy & Ben SmallNoe & Carlos SolisLee & Eric SolomonDjamille & Dan SragoviczRenee & Eddie SteinmanSusie & Shmuel SternSusie & Shmuel Stern, In Memory of Brookes JacobsHope & Daniel SternNina & Kenneth StoweOrit TahanDiane TaubSarah TeryhedenGrettel & Freddy ThompsonMeredith TrattlerPaula TucciTheresa & Thomas TurchinPeter TzanetatosZuleika Vela (Willis)Jose VelazquezNatalie VolovelskyRachel & Ethan WassermanJackie Weiner & Simon StojanovicChloe & Maxwell WiesenfeldRubina WilliamsMarianna ZaliganAyala & Shlomo ZeevDemi & Nicholas ZeitlinMark ZhukDana & Peter Zuckerman

as of 7 February 2013

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Music Is What Feelings Sound LikeMichael Day, Music & Theater Arts Specialist

“Even if… I had a particular word or words in mind, I would not tell

anyone, because the same word means different things to different people. Only the songs say the same thing, arouse the same

feeling, in everyone—a feeling that can’t be expressed in words.”Those are the words of Felix Mendelssohn (1809-1847), German Romantic composer, pianist and conductor, and also the grandson of Moses Mendelssohn, Jewish scholar, philosopher often called the ‘father of Reform Judaism.’

I went in to teaching to ‘arouse the same feeling’ in every child, to transcend the ambiguity of words for the encounter with music. Playing or singing music takes the kind of effort that engages children; when an entire

room of students is playing guitar together, the students are creating a moment of magic as those marks on paper become sonorous and melodic. Music can be educational and aesthetic at the same time. Through the integration of content, skills, and appreciation, our

Core Knowledge curriculum allows for both.Our youngest students, for example, are introduced to the joys of music through fun, as well as cultural icons, as they learn nursery songs, folk songs, and memory songs. As they practice

Mr. Day in Pre-K

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the songs, they also do developmentally appropriate movements and marching which help them learn about rhythm and other musical conventions.

In Kindergarten and 1st grade, students are introduced to the glockenspiel and notes and melodic skills. This year they mastered the difficult memory song, “Under the Sea.”

In 2nd grade they move on to the flutophone, a rudimentary version of the recorder, so they can learn to play songs with five notes. They begin to learn to read music and understand something about composing simple tunes.

In grade 3 they move on to the more complex recorder, which allows students to play an entire octave, eight notes—together and separately.

Throughout students are singing, both in music class, in many class presentations and, of course, in their joyous t’fillah. They are also learning the appropriate music history that aligns with their Core Knowledge historical period as part of their music appreciation

units. This aligns with the music theory that they are learning as they begin to play their instruments at each grade level.

In grade 4 they are introduced to the guitars that line the music room shelves,

and by 5th grade students gain full knowledge of all six strings and, because they have learned to read music, they are now able to strum tunes. The satisfaction in their

4th graders rock!

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skill level at this point is worth the progression.

And for those who want more, we cannot leave out musical theater which involves students from grade 3 and up—the extra-curricular extravaganza that will happen next week when we take to

the stage with this year’s production, Willy Wonka.

When children are 100% engaged singing, playing, creating music, it indeed arouses feelings. For me, it is a privilege to be a part of that every day at Lehrman.

The cast of Willy Wonka, an enthusiastic group of 3rd through 5th graders led by Mr. Day (far right), Amy Siama (far left), and Sarah Terheyden (not shown).

Grease was the word in 2011-2012

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reminders^GTue/Wed Feb 12-13 Willy Wonka ✪

Mon Feb 18 NO SCHOOL President’s Day

Wed Feb 20 1st Grade Haggigat ha-Siddur

Fri Feb 22 Purim Celebration at Lehrman

Sat evening Feb 23 Rabbi Billet reads the Megillah at Temple Moses…and you’re invited! ✪

Sun Feb 24 Purim Carnival at Temple Menorah RSVP at LehrmanSchool.org/partytime ✪ Food, Games, Festivities…Join us!

see our complete calendar online:LehrmanSchool.org/calendar ✪

Break a leg!Broadway on Dickens

Alumni UpdateLiving history for local students

A number of local high schools organized student trips to Washington, DC for the Obama inauguration. Among them was Miami Country Day School which sent 22 students—including Lehrman alumni Jordan Karp and Matt Kanter—to a program organized by the Close Up Foundation, a nonprofit organization that brings students and teachers to Washington, DC to see the inner workings of the government. The MCDS group, accompanied by two teachers, spent six days in Washington attending political workshops and seminars, as well as the inauguration.

Past years have seen Beauty and the Beast (top, 2010-2011), Aladdin (bottom, 2009-2010), The Wiz (2008-2009), Joseph & the

Technicolor Dreamcoat (2007-2008), Annie (2006-2007), Oliver! (2005-2006).

Jordan Karp (light blue shirt) and Matt Kanter were among the 22 MCDS students at President

Obama’s inauguration.

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