Summer 2009 - Tammuz 5769 - Maimonides School

SIYUM CULMINATES LANDMARK Gr. 5 YEARMaimonides School’s elementary gradeshave completed their first academic yearas a discrete educational unit, all housedin one building.“I thought the year was great,” said theprincipal, Rabbi David Saltzman. “All theteachers finally knew each other, andthat gave us that sense of community. Itallowed not only for collegiality but alsocommunication among the faculty.”All sections of Kindergarten throughGrade 5 were accommodated in theBrener Building, as sixth grade joinedseventh and eighth in a new MiddleSchool configuration on Saval Campus.That arrangement “empowered the fifthgraders to be the leaders of the school,”Rabbi Saltzman noted. “We saw the fifthgraders really take that mantle. Theyrose to the occasion and were role modelsfor the rest of the school.”The year culminated for the 45 studentsJune 17 with the school’s first Fifth GradeSiyum. The theme of the celebration wasleadership, which has been the emphasisall year long, according to RabbiSaltzman.“Throughout the year,” he related, “fifthgraders show their leadership skillsthrough the Chesed L’Chaverim programwith younger students, running programswith them, mentoring them throughoutthe day, being their friend when they seethem in the hallway.”“That culminated with the leadership presentation,”he continued. “There was adivision of labor for what each child hadto do. That all came together. Everythingthat they learned throughout the year,and actually experienced themselves,was something they presented.”Highlighting the siyum were presentationsby nine student teams on famousleaders in Jewish and American history,ranging from Moshe, Esther and Hillel toMartha Washington, Alexander Hamiltonand Deborah Sampson (a RevolutionaryWar soldier for whom a street is named inSharon). The students not only undertookthe research and prepared oral and visualpresentations, but also gleaned leadershipqualities from each subject.Rabbi David Reisman, Grade 5 Judaic studiesteacher, praised the students in hisEnthralled as they watch the classvideo during the Grade 5 siyum are,from left, Adin Feder, Ethan Turk,Moshe Saltzman and Yaakov Brody.opening dvar Torah. ”All year I have beenimpressed with your desire to know,”he said. “True greatness may start in theclassroom but it does not end there,” hesaid, noting that the group’s conduct at arecent field trip to the State House “demonstratedwhat it means to be a religiousJew” and a Maimonides student.Fifth grade diplomas were presentedby Rabbi Saltzman, who shared thepodium with Rabbi Reisman and generalstudies teachers Elaine Geracht andAvi Pittleman. The siyum also included avideo tribute to the grade and a musicalrendition by the students. The fifth gradersalso produced their own yearbook,with guidance from their teachers.ADMINISTRATOR AIMS TO ENHANCE “CULTURE OF LEARNING”Barry Ehrlich, Maimonides School’s firstdirector of curriculum and instruction, sayshis two primary areas of emphasis beginningthis September will be curriculumdevelopment and review, and professionaldevelopment.“I think both fall into the category of creatinga vibrant learning community thatreflects the mission of the school, whereteachers and students learn in excitingand engaging sorts of ways, and, ideally,parents are part of that learning communityas well,” he said in an interview.Mr. Ehrlich joins the administration as partof the school’s participation in PeerlessExcellence, a five-year grant throughCombined Jewish Philanthropies tostrengthen area day schools. Consistentwith the school’s strategic plan, “emphasiswill be placed on curriculum review andimprovement and on professional developmentand mentoring for teachers,” saidRabbi Yair Altshuler, principal.Mr. Ehrlich is already meeting professionalcolleagues and laying some groundworkfor his new position from his home in metropolitanNew York, and expects to be onthe scene at Maimonides in August. It willbe a nostalgic experience, as Mr. Ehrlichgrew up on Gardner Road, around thecorner from the Brookline campus, andsaid he spent countless hours fishing andrelaxing alongside the Route 9 reservoir.The new director said he looks forwardto “further developing Maimonides’ cultureof learning,” integrating the work ofteachers across disciplines—from Judaicand general studies, from Kindergartenthrough Grade 12—“to foster learningas a more holistic enterprise… I havebeen in a lot of situations as an administratorand as a teacher in which I havebeen part of this kind of culture-buildingmission,” Mr. Ehrlich said.He was a founding administrator anddirector of general studies at SAR HighSchool in the Bronx, and was foundingprincipal of a school for children withAsperger’s Syndrome that was part of theChild Study Center at New York University.He also worked as a gifted and talentedinstruction coordinator and history teacherat school districts in the Merrimack Valleyof Massachusetts and New Hampshire. Mr.Ehrlich earned his undergraduate degreeat Trinity College in Hartford, a master’sdegree in educational psychology fromthe University of Virginia, and his J.D. fromBoston College Law School.At Maimonides, he hopes “to build aninfrastructure so collegiality will be naturallypart of a teacher’s life,” always gearedtoward the ultimate objective “to help kidsbecome more successful learners.”“I am excited that he will be joining us andlook forward to collaborating with himas we focus on the important work thatlies ahead in curriculum and professionaldevelopment,” Rabbi Altshuler said.