Parent Survey Deadline Extended - We Want to Hear from You!

We are now in the middle year of our five-year strategic plan, Destination: Gesher!  We have added or strengthened a number of aspects of our school program in response and we are looking for your feedback as to whether and to what degree these have added value to a Gesher Jewish Day School education.  We also are looking at a few new ideas and would like to know what you think about them.  Please follow the link here to the parent survey. The survey will be open until midnight next Sunday, January 22.  Every Gesher parent may fill out his or her own survey- or if you prefer you may work as a couple.  One way or the other, we look forward to hearing from you!  Your responses will be incorporated into our VAIS (Virginia Association of Independent Schools) accreditation process.  

Parents Meeting

Join Dr. Schoenburg and Gesher School President, Miriam Berkowitz, a week from Friday, for a Parents' Coffee on January 27 at 8:30 a.m. in the Chadar Ochel (cafeteria).  We will have preliminary findings of our Parent Survey to share.  We also wish to discuss with you  where the school stands in relation to our five-year strategic plan.  We look forward to your participation!

Jewish Day School Tanach Standards and Benchmarks Project

Our Jewish Studies faculty hosted a day-long workshop today in collaboration with the Jewish Studies faculty of Jewish Primary Day School (JPDS).  The workshop was led by Marcia and Rabbi Alvan Kaunfer of the Melton Research Center.   Teachers learned how to enhance Torah text comprehension through a four-part process: guided reading, direct instruction, deeper understanding, and synthesis.    

Tu B'Shevat, the original "earth day" is coming.  Known as the "birthday of the trees," it has come to stand for how we interact with our environment, and how we can improve our stewardship of the earth.  One way Gesher Green plans to celebrate the holiday this year, is by focusing on recycling.  The first obvious connection here is with paper, a product made from trees.

So here are some statistics:

Making one ton of virgin paper requires 3,688 pounds of wood, 24,000 gallons of water, 216 pounds of lime, 360 pounds of salt cake and 76 pounds of soda ash. We then have to treat and dispose of 84 pounds of air pollutants, 36 pounds of water pollutants and 176 pounds of solid waste.  But what about paper made from recycled paper?  According to the EPA, making new paper from recycled materials results in 74% less air pollution, 35% less water pollution, and uses 58% less water, than making paper from virgin resources.  Each ton of recycled paper saves about 4 barrels of oil, and 4200 kilowatt hours of energy. 

How much paper do we use?  Each year the US uses 85.5 tons of paper, and only recycles 22% (19 million tons).  We discard 4 million tons of office paper alone each year, enough to build a 12 foot high wall of paper from NY to California! 

Clearly, everyone should recycle their paper if they care about the environment.  Here at Gesher, we recycle paper at in every classroom. We also use bathroom paper made from recycled fibers and printing paper made with 30% recycled content.  It is easy to do at home as well.  Please do your part to help our environment by both recycling paper, and buying new paper made with recycled content. 

The Environmental Sustainability Committee meets about once a month, usually on Monday mornings.  If this topic interests you, we'd love to have you join our group.  Contact jleckert@gesher-jds.org.

As previously mentioned, Kitah Bet recently provided books and puzzles for children at the Kate Hanley Family Shelter to take back to their rooms and keep as their very own.  Check out the link to the Thank-You letter they received back.  Great work 2^nd grade!

Get Caught Wearing Purple...Don't forget to show your school spirit by wearing purple and/or white on Fridays.Those in need of GesherWear may contact Naomi Hutchins at neshicot1029@verizon.net.

Stay in touch with Gesher through Facebook and our new Twitter Feed on our homepage at  www.gesher-jds.org  

Community Family Fun Mitzvah Day at Gesher!

SAVE THE DATE for Family Fun Mitzvah Day on Sunday, March 25 from 1-4pm.  Enjoy the funky sounds of the Mama Doni Band LIVE and participate in a number of community service projects that will be geared to families with young children.  What a great way to celebrate our 30th anniversary year by helping others!  If you are interested in participating in the Family Fun Mitzvah Day planning committee and/or volunteering that day, we need you!  

The Mama Doni Band!

The Washington Jewish Week is now available for purchase from the newsstand in the office for $1.

Embassy of Israel Cultural Calendar

Camp Ramah Parlor Meeting  

The Jewish Federation Wants to Help! If you are in need of financial   

assistance at t his time, or if you know anyone in the community who 

is in need, please do not hesitate to contact the Jewish Federation's Warm Line at 1-866-950-4AID.

Condolences to Wendy Golden on the death of her father.   

Jconnect.org is the one place where you can go to find information on everything Jewish in the Greater Washington community. This new community site features a robust community calendar that's easy to navigate for both posters and users. Please check the website often as the site is ever-changing!