By Ellie Blanchard and Nava Chameides, 6G

            When we first heard about the Earth Day science fair, we were excited to be able to prepare a project.  It was difficult to decide which topic to choose, because there are so many interesting topics on the earth.  We finally decided on composting.  Composting is when you take organic objects and put them in soil and watch them go away.  As we watched everyone presenting their topics, we developed a deeper appreciation for the earth's natural resources and beauty.

            On Earth Day, we were excited to share our information with the third and fourth graders.  The day before Earth Day, everyone brought their creative boards down to the lunchroom, and we had a peek at the many interesting topics.  During the fair, many parents and younger students came over and asked us to explain our project.  It was fun to answer everyone's questions.  Seeing everyone in green made us feel like trees.  After the fair ended, our project was not yet over.  Mrs. Korn took us to the park to plant the remains of our project.  Then when we got back, we ate green apples, green pears, and green grapes.  The whole day was great!

By Ariel Inker

On Earth Day, Mrs. Khanna held a science fair.  All the projects in the fair had to do with Earth Day.  This year, I worked with Shoshana Skydell.  Our project was how a living organism or ecosystem reacts to pollutants.  We used yeast as our ecosystem, and salt water and liquid soap acted as our pollutants.  We filled four test tubes with yeast, one with inactive yeast, three with active yeast, and we added pollutants to two of the tubes with active yeast.  As we observed the growth of the yeast within the tubes, we saw that the yeast that was contaminated with pollutants did grow and thrive, but then the yeast began to die!  We gathered from this that an ecosystem will fight against pollutants, but the pollutants will ultimately win.  Our project relates to earth day, because just as the yeast died, we think that many other types of vegetation are prematurely dying due to pollution. 

By Noadia Steinmetz-Silber

            For my earth day project, my partner and I tried to make energy out of water.  We put two test tubes in a beaker which was half-filled with water.  We connected two wires and put each one in a test tube and noted which one was negative and which one was positive.  We poured some salt in the beaker and let the beakers sit for about 40 minutes. 

            After 40 minutes, we found that the water had turned a bluish-greenish color and the negative test tube was 1/3 empty, while the positive was mainly full.  Our hypothesis was that the gas in the negative was the hydrogen, and the gas in the positive was oxygen.  To prove that, we quickly put a burning match into each of the test tubes.  The negative made a huge pop, which indicates that hydrogen can burn and in fact can be used for energy.   The positive only made little crackles, which shows that oxygen can only be used to help burn other things. 

            To summarize, we separated the water into different glasses, hydrogen and oxygen.  The hydrogen can be used for energy, but oxygen can't.  With the help of natural energy, the world can become a better and healthier place.  My partner and I had a lot of fun doing this experiment. 

By Zoe May

My partner and I created biomes in baggies.  A biome is when you grow a plant in a closed environment.  We  put a half inch of soil on the bottom of a plastic container.  Then we added an inch of soil.  After that, we put seeds on the biome.  We watered the seeds once with either a quarter, half, or three quarters of a cup of water, then we put the biomes in a ziplock bag.  We put the biomes in either the sun or shade.  After five or six days, they began to grow, and we had little buds of basil or wildflowers, even though we had only watered the plants once!  By the time of the science fair, we had real basil leaf, but you could not recognize what the wildflowers were.  By the end of the experience, we had a great time and learned a lot of important things about the earth!

By Eden Rebibo

            In my earth day experiment, we germinated seeds.  The process was that we took two pieces of paper towel and made them damp with tap water.  We laid out 100 carrot seeds on the edge of each paper towel.  Then we took two containers, and we filled one with vinegar and the other with water and placed the paper towels filled with seeds in them.  Then we waited 14 days, checking each time whether the seeds had germinated.  We wanted to see which ones would germinate faster, and we figured out that the ones with vinegar did.

            Different people did fascinating experiments on topics such as the greenhouse effect.  We all worked very hard and put a lot of effort in our experiments.  It may have taken a lot of time to conduct the experiments, but it was worth it.  We all were very happy with the presentations.  We knew Earth Day would be fun, because we had conducted experiments last year.  Earth Day is very important to us.

By Sara Fruchter

For my Earth Day experiment, I did a project about solar energy.  I did this project by taking a white sheet of paper and putting it in a cone shape.  After that, I wrapped tinfoil around the white cone.  Then, I wrapped black paper around the tinfoil.  After this, I put an apple on a stick and put it in the cone.  Then I wrapped the cone with the apple in it with clear wrap.  Finally, I put the entire cone in a clear cup.  When I completed these steps, I went to the park on a really hot day to see if the apple would cook.  After an hour and a half, the apple ended up cooking!  This project worked because the tinfoil reflects sunlight onto the apple, the black paper absorbs the heat rays, and the clear wrap doesn't let the sun's rays out of the cone.  My project relates to Earth Day because by cooking from the sun, we are saving tons of energy.

By Adina Rosenberg and Chava Segal

            This year at Manhattan Day School, we decided to celebrate Earth Day.  Everyone was given a website to find a topic and experiment that related to Earth Day.  After some research, we decided to test which shoe grows and withholds the most bacteria.  We made agar (bacteria food), wore the shoes for five hours, and then swabbed them.  We rubbed the cotton swabs onto the petri dish and waited a few days until our answer could be calculated.  We prepared our presentation board, decorated it, and brought it into school.  

            April 22^nd finally came!  It was Earth Day!  Everyone came into school excited and wearing green.  Right after davening, everyone went into the lunchroom to put the finishing touches on their boards.  The parents from the fifth and sixth grades and students in the third and fourth grades were allowed to come.  Everyone sat in front of their boards while parents and students came to ask questions about their experiments.  Some people gave demonstrations of how their projects were done.

            After the presentations, everyone cleaned up and returned to their classes.  Mrs. Tenzer stopped by and distributed green snacks.  She gave green grapes and apples to everyone.  In Mrs. Dahan's class, we wrote poems about earth day and about our wonderful experience.  Thank you Mrs. Khanna for coordinating this program for us.  We had a blast!

         The Messenger recently caught up with sixth grader David Dweck, who spearheaded a recycling program at MDS.  Here is his explanation about the genesis of his project: Everyone recycles nowadays at home and everywhere, and I wanted us to be able to participate.  I really like science; I won the science fair last year as part of a team on Electro-Magnetism.  So to bring recycling to MDS, I researched if the city would give our school bins and supplies - posters, learning materials, etc.  The city supplied the posters, but we had to buy the bins.  A teacher and I went from floor to floor, and counted how many classrooms and offices would need bins.  We looked at where papers were not being disposed properly, like the photocopying machine.  We looked around where the cans need to go.  Green labeled cans are for paper, and the blue labeled bins cans and plastic.  I asked Mrs. Melzer for permission for the project, and I went to Rabbi Besser with her approval.  We ordered the bins from Home Depot with the support of Rabbi Besser.

            Mrs. Melzer and I went from classroom to classroom for grades 6, 7, and 8, to talk about using the bins.  I also spoke at a teacher's meeting for grades Kindergarten to 5 to distribute videos, lesson plans, book marks, comic books, and coloring books about recycling.  I followed up and went to third and fourth grade classrooms to talk about recycling.  The younger kids are especially excited about recycling because it's very kid-friendly.

By Noam Marciano

Do you know how we can stop global warming?  We can make the world a better place if we reduce, reuse, and recycle.  I will reduce the amount of water that I use by turning off the water when I am not using it.  I will reuse my water bottle every day.  I will recycle my mom's sauce cans by putting them in the recycling bin.  By reusing these things, global warming will stop. 

By Spencer Fischman

We could help our planet by reusing the same things over and over again.  This will reduce waste on our planet.  To stop global warming, we need to start recycling.  I will start by using the back of my paper instead of getting a new piece.  When I am done with it, I will put it in the recycling bin.  Let's work together to stop global warming by reducing, reusing, and recycling. 

By Esther Blum

It is important to stop global warming by reducing, reusing, and recycling.  If we don't, it will ruin our planet.  I'm going to stop global warming.  I will teach you how to do it.  I'll reduce the amount of electricity and power I use.  I will reuse paper, and when I am done with it, it will go in the recycling bin.  Recycling is important because it helps stop making new things.  Now you know how to keep the planet from getting ruined by global warming. 

By Jonah Elzweig

I will reuse paper bags by taking them to the store again.  I will reduce the amount of water I use when I brush my teeth by turning off the faucet.  When I bring snacks to school, I will bring them in containers.

   In celebration of Earth Day, students in Mrs. Kastner's art classes did a special project which was to design BUTTON PINS to wear on Earth Day.  First, students discussed various ways of going green and preserving our planet.  Besides the usual stop pollution or save the polar bears, the students realized that there are more things that they can do personally in their everyday life to make planet earth a better place to live.   Here are some of their ideas: 

• take shorter showers to save water
• use reusable tote bags instead of paper or plastic bags
• hang wet clothes over the shower rod instead of using the clothes dryer
• use rechargeable batteries
• walk where possible 
• use recyclable items
•  rent movies or borrow books to  - go paperless
•  use green household cleaning products 
• use filtered tap water and refill your plastic bottle instead of buying many bottles of water 
• eat organic produce
•  use energy saving light bulbs and turn lights off when you leave a room.
• Promote world peace to rid the planet of dangerous weapons
• Start an herb garden

The list goes on and on and MDS students did a great job of raising awareness of this important issue.  But even more important, the kids really honored MOTHER NATURE AND FATHER EARTH with their outstanding artistic button designs!  

Earth Day

By Chava Segal, 6G

Earth Day

My favorite day

Me

The star of

The show

People

Taking care

Of me

Recycling my trash

No extra electricity

I'm getting better

Less pollution

Less trash

On this day

I'm happy

It's over

Now

I'm sad.

Happy Earth Day!

By Adina Rosenberg, 6G

Green, everywhere

Happy faces-

waiting

The time comes,

the door bursts open,

a green sea of kids files in

Colors,

on every board

Eyes are telescopes,

zipping past one board after another

Energy, earthquakes, bacteria

Pins gleaming on everyone's chests

Green,

Recycling,

EARTH DAY!!!

Earth's Special Day

By Talia Ritholtz, 6G

You wake up

Feel the morning air

Giving you chills as you

Step outside

Earth's reminder saying

It's my special day

You drive to the mall

It starts to rain

The earth is crying,

"grow seeds don't make me polluted".

In the evening the

Day is ending you

Go outside a tulip

Is dying, it's weeping

"feed me...after all it's

Earth's special day."

Mother nature is whispering,

"save my planet."

She's crying.  She is crying

For years now each year

For there are trees dying

The earth is warming, water is scarce

Listen closely you will hear

The earth's cry on its

Special day.

Yashar koach to the following students who correctly answered last week's challenge: Olivia Ajdler (N4A), Eric Ajdler (2A), Shaina Davis (2A), and Shmuel Halpern (2A).  Here are some of their incredibly creative answers!

1)  1 i+ 1v= IV                                     2) 1 square + 1 square = 1 rectangle

3) '1' + '1' = '11                                    4) 1 baseball team + 1 baseball team =1 baseball game

5) 1 pint + 1 pint = 1 quart                  6) 1 whirl + 1 wind = 1 whirlwind 

7) A sea + a horse = a seahorse          8) 1 M + 1 M = 1 M&M (candy)

9) 1 husband + 1 wife= 1 Couple        10)1B +1B= Bibi (Israel's Prime Minister)

The following explanation of why 1 + 1 does not always equal 2 was submitted by, Mrs. Sarah Kloepfer, a parent in MDS:  In the binary number system, used internally by computers, there is no "2", only "0" and "1". In binary arithmetic, 1+1=10, where the 0 is in the 1s place and the 1 is in the 2s place. (1+1 is still 1 more than 1, but it is represented as "10".

Good luck with this week's challenge, Go Fly a Kite!  Muffy, Carlos, Doug and Shay are flying kites.

• Muffy's kite is 75 feet higher than Carlos's kite.
• Doug's kite is 25 feet higher than Carlos's kite but 75 feet lower than Shay's kite.
• Carlos's kite is 100 feet from the ground.

How far off the ground is each kite?

Email your answers to mwolf@mdsweb.org by Tuesday.  Any student who answers the challenge of the week will receive a prize!

• Mazal tov to Rebecca Barnett on the engagement of her sister Alison to Avi Block.

• Mazal tov to Lynette Heller on the forthcoming marriage of her son Jonathan Shabtai to Batsheva Kanefsky.

• Mazal tov to Deborah and Yehuda Zeffren on the birth of a baby boy.

• Mazal Tov to the Joseph and Tamar Magnas and Avital (K5C) on the birth of a baby girl.

• Mazal Tov to the Charly and Miriam Darwich and Jenny (N4B), Mark (4B), and Sam (2C) on the birth of a baby girl.

• Mazal Tov to Steve and Arezu Sohn and Oliver (K5A) and Rosalie (3A) on the birth of twin boys.

• Mazal tov to Yehudit Robinson on the birth of a nephew to Ahuva and Joshua Sclair.

• Weeks of March 15-May 2nd: In honor of the Yahrzeit Shimon ben Moshe (grandfather of Noam Marciano).  Bronze sponsorship by the Marciano family.  

• May 3                      ECD Lag BaOmer Celebration

• May 5                      Grade 5 trip to Museum of Jewish Heritage in Battery Park City

• May 5                      For Kindergarten Parents: Transitioning to 1st Grade, 7:30 pm
  

• May 7                      7B Bar Mitzvah Breakfast Celebration

• May 7                      Toddlers Mother's Day Program

• May 10                    Free vision screening for students in Kindergarten, 1st Grade, and 1st Graders in Primary
  

• May 12                    Yom Yerushalayim

• May 12                    Kindergarten trip to Theatreworks production of Seussical

• May 12-13               Grade 7 Boston trip

• May 13                    Rosh Chodesh Lecture Series for Women

• May 14                    Rosh Chodesh Sivan

• May 14                    Nursery Alef Mother's Day Program

• May 17                    Last day of Monday afterschool clubs

• May 17                    Memorial Day Ceremony and Program
  

• May 18-21               Shavuot recess

• May 19-20               Shavuot

• May 23                   Salute to Israel Parade

• May 24                   Afterschool clubs: Make-up class for Readers Writers Cafe
  
• May 25                   National History Day Presentations + Art Fair
  

• May 25                   Last day of Tuesday afterschool clubs

• May 26                   Last day of Wednesday afterschool clubs

• May 27                   Last day of Thursday afterschool clubs

• May 28                   Last day of Friday afterschool clubs

• May 28                   Nursery 4B Mother's Day Program

• May 31                   Memorial Day

• June 1                    Grade 7 Parents: Orientation evening to prepare for eighth grade

• June 2                    Afterschool clubs: Karate Graduation / Belt Promotion
• June 2                    Afterschool clubs: Make up date for all Wed. afterschool clubs: Yoga, Karate, JV Girls
  
• June 3                    Afterschool clubs: Make up date for Mixed Media
  

• June 1-3                 Grade 8 Washington Trip

• June 11                  Kindergarten End-of-Year Program
• June 11                  Grade 4 Play, 9:30 am in the Beit Midrash
  

• June 12-13              Rosh Chodesh Tammuz

• June 17                  Grade 8 Graduation

• June 18                  Last day of Preschool

• June 20                  Father's Day

• June 21                  Last day of school grades 6-7

• June 22                  Last day of school grades 1-5

• June 29                  Fast of Tammuz

• We are delighted to let you know about a brand new weekly chessed project, Zeidy and Bubby Chat at the Esplanade. 
  
• Parents Tehillim group meets each morning at 8:15 am in the library
• We are continuing to collect cell phones in the lobby for the Major Stuart Adam Wolfer Cell Phone Drive.  These phones will be exchanged for calling cards which Jewish U.S. soldiers can use to call home. 
• Please label your childrens' clothing and other items.  We have a large lost and found for misplaced items.
• Thank you for keeping our school nut-free.

1. (a) (1) Why does Hashem prohibit the kohanim from coming in contract with human corpses? (2) Why does this prohibition not apply to females (i.e., a kohen's wife or daughter)? (b) (1) When the Torah describes the laws relating to kohanim, how does the phrase "kadosh yi-hiyeh lach" ([the kohen] shall be holy to you) teach us that there are occasions when a kohen must be given priority over others? (2) What are 6 instances where a kohen should be given priority? (3) What requirement does this phrase place on beit din? (4) Why does the Torah prohibit a kohen from marrying these women? (Vayikra 21:1,7-8)

(a) (1) Since kohanim had to be pure of tuma for the avoda, they had to separate from the tuma clinging to dead bodies that is spiritually transferred to people through physical contact with or being under the same roof as a corpse (Chizkuni). (2) Since women do not perform the avoda, they do not have to maintain the same purity level as male kohanim; (b) (1) Since a kohen's sanctity is greater than a non-kohen's, a kohen merits priority in ritual and non-ritual occasions (Gittin 59b). (2) A kohen is first to: (i) be called for a Torah aliya; (ii) speak publicly at events; (iii) recite kiddush and (iv) hamotzi at a meal; (v) be served food; (vi) lead birchat ha-mazon (Mishna Berurah 201:2). (3) If a kohen marries a woman forbidden to him, [a zona  (immoral woman), chalala (daughter of a forbidden relationship), or gerusha (divorcee)], beit din must force him to divorce her (Rashi). (4) Since a man's thoughts are influenced by his wife, the Torah wants to maintain the kohen's kedusha by directing him to marry a woman with an excellent background, to support him in his holy work.

2. (a) The verse ve-lo te-chalilu et Shem kashi (you shall not desecrate My holy Name) teaches that a person must relinquish his life rather than commit which 3 sins? (b) In which 2 situations must one sacrifice his life rather than violate any mitzvah? (c) How can we fulfill the mitzvah of kiddush Hashem on a daily basis (2 ways)? (Vayikra 22:32)

(a) Murder; idolatry; immorality; (b) (1) if the purpose is to degrade the Torah and his sin would be observed by 10 or more Jews, one must be willing to sacrifice his life rather than sin publicly; (2) during a period of shemad (religious persecution), one must sacrifice his life, even if challenged to sin privately; (c) one performs a kiddush Hashem if: (1) he is faced with a choice of whether to commit a sin but refrains, not because of pressure or to gain a reward, but solely for Hashem's sake; (2) one conducts himself in such a manner that observers are struck by the greatness and dignity of a Torah-observant Jew (Rambam - Hilchot Yesodei haTorah 5:1-4,10-11).

3. (a) Concerning designating the Yomim Tovim, why does the Torah command Bnei Yisrael twice, in verses 2 and 4, "asher tikre-u" (which you shall designate)? (b) When the Torah calls the Yomim Tovim that Bnei Yisrael are required to designate "mikra-ei kodesh" (holy convocations), why is Shabbat, which Bnei Yisrael do not declare, mentioned first? (Vayikra 23:2-4)

(a) Verse 2 commands Beit Din to designate a 13th month when required; verse 4 commands Beit Din to sanctify each new moon (Rashi). (b) One could think that the Yomim Tovim, whose dates are designated by beit din, are not as important as Shabbat, which Hashem established at Creation; the Torah teaches us that violation of Yom Tov is as serious as Shabbat violation, and one who properly celebrates Yom Tov is rewarded like one who correctly observes Shabbat (Rashi).

4. (a) Why does the Torah command that the omer be offered on Pesach? (b) (1) What is counting the omer's purpose? (2) Why do we begin counting on Pesach's 2nd day and not on the 1st day? (3) When the Torah says to begin counting "mi-macharat haShabbat" (from the day after the Shabbat), how do we know that we begin on Pesach's 2nd day, and not on Sunday after the 1st Shabbat after Pesach begins (4 explanations)? (c) Why do we celebrate Lag ba-Omer (4 explanations)? (Vayikra 23:15-16)

(a) The success of farmers' grain is judged on Pesach, and Bnei Yisrael thank Hashem for causing the crops to grow (Vayikra Raba). (b) (1) Yetziat Mitzrayim's goal was to free Bnei Yisrael from slavery and accept the Torah; we count the 49 days between yetziat Mitzrayim, on Pesach's 1st day, and matan Torah, on Shavuot, to show our yearning for receiving the Torah; (2) on Pesach's 1st day, we celebrate yetziat Mitrayim; with the principle of ein me-arvin simcha be-simcha (we do not mingle 2 joyous events), we do not blend the joy of matan Torah with the joy of yetziat Mitzrayim (Sefer haChinuch - Mitzvah 306). (3) (i) The Torah states that we should count 50 days and 7 full weeks; the Torah teaches that there are instances when we count 50 days that are not 7 full weeks; i.e., when Pesach starts on a weekday, and when we count 7 full weeks; i.e., when we start on the Sunday of Pesach that begins on Shabbat; (ii) the Torah tells us to count the days from Pesach to Shavuot; if we begin counting on the Sunday after Pesach begins, there will be more than 50 days from Pesach to Shavuot; (iii) we would not know when to start counting because there are 52 Shabbatot during the year; there is only one day on which Pesach begins; it must be the day after Pesach begins that we start counting; (iv) The Torah states: "You shall eat matza for 7 days" (Devarim 16:3); the Torah then states: "you shall eat matza for 6 days" (Devarim 16:8), teaching us that while we eat matza for 7 days, there is some matza we may eat only for 6 days, i.e., matza from new grain, after the korban omer is brought; thus, the omer must be brought and counting begin on Pesach's 2nd day (Menachot 65b-66a). (c) (1) On Pesach, 12,000 pairs of Rebbi Akiva's students began dying and stopped dying on Lag ba-Omer (Orach Chaim 493:1-2). (2) On Lag ba-Omer, Rebbi Akiva gave semicha to 5 talmidim who did not die - Rebbis Meir, Yehuda, Elazar, Nechemiah, and Shimon bar Yochai - through them, the Torah was disseminated; (3) It is Rebbi Shimon bar Yochai's yahrtzeit, and on this day he revealed the Zohar (Sdei Chemed). (4) Lag ba-Omer celebrates the mon beginning to fall in the midbar - after yetziat Mitzrayim, Bnei Yisrael traveled to Midbar Sin on 15 Iyar (Shemot 16:1); they complained about lacking food on 16 Iyar; on 17 Iyar, Moshe told them that Hashem would provide food tomorrow; the mon began to fall on 18 Iyar, the 33rd day of the omer (Chatam Sofer).