| HEADMASTER'S MESSAGE | |
This week we begin Sefer Vayikra, the third book of the Torah. Parshat Vayikra opens with the words, "And Hashem called to Moshe." This apparently innocuous statement actually gives rise to an interesting question. Why, throughout the entire Torah, is Moshe called Moshe? The name given to him by his mother, Yocheved, was Toviah, which means "the goodness of G-d." In addition, the Talmud states that Moshe was given several other names during his lifetime. But Moshe is never referred to by any of those names. Instead, the Torah consistently utilizes the name that an Egyptian princess bestowed upon him when she discovered a three-month old infant floating in a reed basket along the riverbank. Why is the name Moshe so significant? Rabbi Yaakov Haber explains that Moshe's primary mission in life was to serve as the leader of the Jewish people and to serve as a conduit and mediator between Hashem and the nation. Moshe devoted every ounce of his time, energy and strength to this mission. That is why the name Moshe is perfectly fitting for him. When Pharoah's daughter spied a Jewish baby in the floating basket, she knew that she would be risking her life to save him. Nevertheless, she did not hesitate for a moment. She immediately picked up the child and decided to adopt him as her own. It was then that she called the child "Moshe," based on Egyptian words that mean, "he was drawn from the water." The princess's act of supreme self-sacrifice became the perfect symbol of Moshe's life of supreme devotion and self-sacrifice. Therefore, the Torah uses that name exclusively, even though Moshe's other names also carried their own depth and meaning.
Shabbat Shalom!
Rabbi Zvi Kahn
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The pages of Dateline are designed to update and inform you on the happenings at CTA each day. Dateline is in addition to the communications you receive from the teachers and administrations, in Lower School Friday Folders and in periodic updates from Norma. While it is hard to stay on top of everything, the information is shared with you, so please take a moment to find out what is going on. We want you to know! There are so many wonderful teachable moments that occur with our students and we thank you for sharing your children with us each day. Here are a few pictures from Grandparents and Special Persons Day last week. Many more can be seen & ordered on our school website at http://www.torahacademy.smugmug.com. It was priceless to see all the students in grades 1-6 singing the Welcome Song.
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Monday, March 18: Pizza Bagels-Volunteer: W. Almasanu
Tuesday, March 19: Chicken Nuggets-Volunteer: D. Koppes
Wednesday, March 20: Pizza
CTA Twirlers, 4-5pm
Thursday, March 21: Turkey Pastrami-Volunteer: O. Gerberg
Friday, March 22: PTO Sponsored Model Seder-Chicken Cutlet
Volunteer: S. Lubow
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March 25-April 3: Passover Vacation - No School
Thursday, April 4: School Resumes
Friday, April 5: NOTE DATE CHANGE: End of 3rd Quarter
Tuesday, April 9: 7th Grade QSP Magazine Sale Kick-Off
Friday, April 12: Spirit Day and Lower School Dress Down Day
Monday, April 15: Executive Board Meeting, 7:30pm
Friday, April 19: 4:00 p.m. Friday Dismissal Schedule Resumes
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SCRIP UPDATE - PLACES TO PURCHASE SCRIP
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CTA Scrip Office, 864-0299 ext. 112
Monday-Thursday- 7:30am-4pm; Friday- 7:30am-1:30pm
The Scrip Office keeps a variety of available scrip on hand. Special order scrip from hundreds of stores is available by sending your request to [email protected]. To see a complete selection of all of the Scrip choices, go to www.glscrip.com. To benefit CTA with online purchases, register at www.iGive.com.
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In preparation for our -- WONDERFUL -- FUN -- AWESOME -- upcoming Spring Fling Family Festival, on Lag Ba'Omer, Sunday, April 28, we will need volunteers, from 11am to 8pm! If you are interested in volunteering and getting Give & Get hours which go towards your annual $2,000 family commitment, please email Kim Abelman at [email protected]. If you have any questions, suggestions or ideas etc, please email Shari Herszage at [email protected].
Reminder: We have a new Call & Deliver Program for Scrip. Email [email protected] or call 864-0299 to order scrip and have it delivered to your home!
The $2,000 per family Give & Get commitment for 2012-2013 is fulfilled through donations, Scrip purchases, solicitations and volunteering. Send a record of all G&G volunteer hours to [email protected].
If you would like to Volunteer, contact Volunteer Coordinator, Kim Abelman, at 855-5195 or [email protected]. Volunteer time is worth $25 per hour towards Give & Get.
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NEWS FROM THE LOWER SCHOOL JUDAIC STUDIES DEPARTMENT
By Dror Karavani, Lower School Judaic Studies Coordinator | |
Chumash: Rabbi Hauser's second grade Chag HaChumash celebration took place this past Thursday. The learning of the parshiot in order of the Torah begins in second grade. During the first half of the year, the students start to develop basic skills, using a Chumash workbook and a Chumashone from the Tal Am program. This combines an understanding of the pesukim in Hebrew in a simple and friendly way. The last part of the year, the students will start to use their actual Chumash and study from the text in order to accomplish these goals. In their festive costumes and crowns, singing and dancing was part of their special production called, "The  Dispute of the Mountains", which was about the reasons that Hashem chose the humble Har Sinai for the giving of the Torah. The children even memorized all of the 54 names of the parashiot! Kol HaKavod! Special gifts in honor of this occasion were sent to each of the students from their friends at the Shiloh school in Israel. The students also decorated the covers of their Chumash with their parents and concluded their celebration with delicious, personalized treats. May the sweetness from these festivities remain with the students throughout their further learning experiences in their lives. Special thanks go to Rabbi Hauser and Morah Malka for their dedication to and love of teaching our students on a daily basis. Mazel tov!!
Rosh Chodesh Nissan: Nissan is already here and we can feel spring coming. Our students already know what to expect in honor of this special day. However, this month, in addition to the decorations and healthy treats, they received a small gift from their friends in the Shiloh school.
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SAY IT IN HEBREW
By Galit Golan, Hebrew Language Coordinator |
 In Hebrew class students have many opportunities to speak and express themselves in Hebrew. Ninth and 10th grade students are reading stories in Hebrew about different topics, such as folk stories, history related stories and more. After reading a story a couple of times and going over the new vocabulary words, each student has to tell the story to his group in his/her own words. This is a great opportunity for the students to incorporate grammar rules, sentence formats and vocabulary words that they have learned when they retell the story to their friends. In Morah Kelly's 6th grade class, the students have the opportunity to express themselves in Hebrew in a different way. Students Become Teachers - By Morah Kelly Adar  This week the 6th graders were excited and surprised to hear that they were becoming teachers for a day. In order to prepare for the "big" event they were given all the traditional textual learning materials. However, this time, they were asked to integrate self-learning techniques, which they have already experienced in my Hebrew class, to be their guiding tools as teachers later this week. The students were divided into groups of four and had to each choose their role within the group between the following: "narrator", "interpreter", "work guide" and "poet'. When finishing their work, each group will "teach" the class and get points for their achievements. The students were very excited and busy while working, they barely paid attention when class was over. Doesn't time fly when you are having fun??  
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ON THE UP & UP
NEWS FROM THE UPPER SCHOOL JUDAIC STUDIES DEPARTMENT
By Rabbi Zecharia Weitz, Upper School Judaic Studies Coordinator |
 Bon Appetite
Just when you thought Mrs. Tanenbaum's lunch menu couldn't get any better...it's about to! As we conclude our first ever Hichot Berachot (laws pertaining to blessings) mini-course, our tenth grade will be contributing to the lunch menu. However, these extra chefs will not spoil the broth, but rather enhance it with vivid, user-friendly posters for the gamut of items served in our cafe. Besides for the proper beracha, the posters provide succinct explanations for the more complex items on the menu. It  is our hope that these posters will provide plenty of food for thought. In addition to their contribution to lunch, the 10th grade is posting updated cereal-beracha lists to "garnish" the breakfast entr�es.
Food for Thought: One could only imagine PETA's reaction to animal sacrifice. But leaving PETA aside, Parshat Vayikra begins the thorough discussion of sacrifices, a topic that is so foreign to us on its simple level. Do the offerings of the Mishkan and Beit HaMikdash have meaning and relevance to you? Have you found explanations that make the idea of sacrifices resonate?
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| PTO DONATION OFFER |
Christine's Garden, located at 2733 E. Main Street, will donate 10% of every order (up to $5.00) to the CTA PTO. The offer expires 12/31/2013. For on-line purchases, log onto www.osuflowers.com and enter the code FHGM05CTA. For in-store or phone purchases (235-4510), give the code to the salesperson.
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MAZAL TOV TO:
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Beata Kushner (Class of '05) on her marriage to Alex Dymanis
Rabbi Andrew Berenstein (8th Grade Class of 1983) upon the Bar Mitzvah
of his twin sons Yehuda and Yaakov
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Dr. Lara and Gary Blumberg, Eddie and Jodi Karmia, Albert and Jaki Keri, Joey and Lindsay Schottenstein and Seth and Lisa Stavsky for sponsoring this month's delicious Rosh Chodesh Faculty and Staff Appreciation Lunch.
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| SAVE THE DATE - SUPPORT CTA |
Please mark your calendars for Wednesday, April 10 at 7:30 pm for a Donor Reception in support of Jewish day school education at CTA. CTA's Annual Giving Campaign for 2013-2014 is currently underway and this special event will give donors an opportunity to express their support for our school. Parents and faculty are encouraged to make a gift to the 2013 campaign by contacting a board member or Shari Herszage at [email protected] For parents, donations can applied to your annual Give & Get commitment of $2,000.
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| THE VOUCHER PROGRAM |
Parents who are on the voucher program may be eligible to do volunteer work at the school in lieu of tuition payments. There are two basic conditions for this to become a viable possibility. First, the volunteer work must be a type of activity that is already being done at the school by school employees. Second, the parent volunteer must be fully qualified to engage in the specific type of work. Please contact Sara Shatz (864-0299 ext. 100 or[email protected]) for further details.
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| IDITAROD |
 Mush, mush! The first graders held their annual Iditarod C.T.A. race last Friday. The weather was cold but beautiful, and the ground conditions were muddy and snowy with plenty of puddles. A perfect day for the race! The 6 teams, which each included one musher to ride in the team sled, ran the race course as quickly as possible, stopping at checkpoints along the way. After figuring out the math, science, social studies, and problem-solving challenges presented to them, the teams progressed through the checkpoints until finally crossing the finish line. Grades K-6, along with the first grade families, were on hand to cheer for the teams and help keep the race running smoothly. This year's fastest team was The Cheetahs - Roni Delman, Basie Andrusier & Ephraim Szatmary! Iditarod C.T.A. is the culminating event for the 5-week first grade study of Alaska and the Iditarod. The students learned on Wednesday morning that in the actual Alaskan Iditarod, Mitch Seavy won. This is his second time winning (his first was in 2004). His son, Dallas, won last year.
 
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| HOUSING NEEDED |
Want to help grow our student population? We have a potential 9th grade male boarding student for next year. If you are interested in housing this potential student, please contact Shari Herszage at [email protected]. Boarding families should be Shomer Shabbat.
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| SPRING FLING FAMILY FESTIVAL |
The Spring Fling Family Festival will be held on Lag BaOmer, Sunday, April 28. The welcomes the entire community to the CTA campus to enjoy a fun filled day for all ages. The event will feature an Amusement Rides, Food, Talent Show, Music, Bonfire, Face painting, Arts & Crafts and more. Everyday more activities are being added so watch for updates. If you would like to help on the planning committee or volunteer the day of the event, please email [email protected] Lawn signs will be ready in the next few weeks so be ready to pick yours up! There is already a facebook event so start letting all your friends and neighbors know about this most awesome CTA event!
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| SPRING FLING FAMILY FESTIVAL | |
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| SEEKING ACTS FOR TALENT SHOW |
CTA's Got Talent will again be held at the Spring Fling Family Festival on Lag BaOmer, Sunday, April 28. The show will be held at 4 pm and we are currently accepting applications for acts. Tryouts will be held beginning on April 12. Applications and detailed information are available at the front desk and are also included in the Dateline this week.
Not all acts will be included in the Talent Show, but we are excited to see the range of talent that is willing to audition. All acts must have an adult sponsor (parent or faculty) who is willing to accompany the act during rehearsals and at the live show. Applications should be received by April 10.
Questions or to have an application emailed to you, contact Bob Goldstein at [email protected] or Shari Herszage at [email protected].
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| TEACHERS PARTICIPATE IN e3smart PROGRAM |
Second grade General Studies teacher, Mary Lynn Buster and 8th Grade Science teacher, Lara McCormick, participated in an AEP funded program that teaches energy concepts and energy conservation strategies correlated to the National Science Education Content Standards and the Ohio Department of Education Science Standards. In this program, the teachers' students learn about energy at school, and then have the opportunity to apply their knowledge at home. Both teachers received over $500 in science equipment and supplies for use in their classroom. The e3smart program helps residential and business customers of AEP save money through energy efficiency. We commend Mrs. Buster and Ms. McCormick for bringing this opportunity to CTA.
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| KROGER COMMUNITY REWARDS FOR PASSOVER |
CTA is a recipient of the Kroger Community Rewards program which means that our school receives a check quarterly because individuals have signed up. If you have not signed up, please do it today before you begin shopping for your Passover foods! Visit the Kroger website at:
http://www.krogercommunityrewards.com It's easy to do and counts towards your Give & Get!
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| WEXNER SERVICE CORPS |
Apply for the new Wexner Service Corps! A chance for Columbus Jewish teenagers (currently in 9th-12th grades) to participate in a free service trip to New York June 9-14, 2013 with Hurricane Sandy relief work, learning, kosher food, and New York City fun, followed by a year of continued volunteering and WSC meetings in Columbus. All WSC volunteer hours will benefit Kids Here and There, raising $10 corporate dollars for each hour volunteered for a clinic in Zambia. Service. Jewish. Fun. Apply by April 12th at http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/WexnerServiceCorps2013.
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| JUNIOR HIGH MENTSCH OF THE MONTH |
Congratulations to Rochel Kaltmann, mentsch of the month of Adar. Rochel received a $10 gift card for her behavior and good middos towards teachers and fellow students. Other nominees include: Basya Fedorovskaya, Dasha Kuperberg, Yaakov Metz and Shosie Wasserman.
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| CJDS AND CTA WORK TOGETHER ON TZEDAKAH PROJECT |
 Students and teachers from Columbus Jewish Day School and Columbus Torah Academy are working together to collect used or unused pencils for children in Africa. Pencils for Africa is an organization that works with a network of humanitarian agencies and university faculty to both access children in conflict areas and deliver pencils to these children so that they can illustrate their stories and their perceptions of events that they have witnessed and endured. "Pencils for Africa" was launched with the intention to promote a unique human connection as a means to foster creativity and literacy throughout Africa," stated Karim Ajania, Founder of Pencils for Africa. "We are delighted to collaborate with CTA in this act of loving kindness - the most powerful tzedekah for our students is child to child," said Judy Miller, Head of School at CJDS. "The act of reaching out to help a less fortunate student in another country, by giving them the tools to learn and express themselves is a high level of tzedekah indeed." Rabbi Zvi Kahn, CTA Headmaster, echoed these sentiments, "We are very excited to have our students join their friends at CJDS in participating together in this special mitzvah." Collection boxes are located in each classroom at CJDS and CTA and in the front lobby. The entire community is invited to participate. CTA parent Kim Abelman, has volunteered to pick-up the collected pencils and send them to their new homes in Africa, in May.
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| CTA FIT CLUB FOR GRADES 4-6 | |
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1. Who does the word "eilav" in verse 1:1 exclude?
a. Aharon.
2. Name all the types of animals and birds mentioned in this week's Parsha.
a. Cattle, sheep, goats, turtledoves (torim) and doves (bnei yona).
3. What two types of sin does an olah atone for?
a. Neglecting a positive command, and violating a negative command which is rectified by a positive command.
4. Where was the olah slaughtered?
a. In the Mishkan Courtyard (azarah).
5. What procedure of an animal-offering can a non-kohen perform?
a. Ritual slaughter.
6. Besides the fire the kohanim bring on the altar, where else did the fire come from?
a. It descended from Heaven.
7. At what stage of development are torim (turtledoves) and bnei yona (young pigeons) unfit as offerings?
a. When their plumage turns golden. At that stage, bnei yona are too old and torim are too young.
8. Why is the term "nefesh" used regarding the flour offering?
a. Usually, it is a poor person who brings a flour offering. Therefore, G-d regards it as if he had offered his nefesh (soul).
(Parsha Vayikra Quiz originally appeared on the
Ohr Somayach website, www.ohr.edu)
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As part of our partnership with the Shiloh school in Israel, we will be receiving riddles each week relating to the Parasha. You will notice this each week on this back page. The goal is to have the parents and children discuss the parasha, while trying to figure out the connection between the picture and the parasha. All answered riddles should be given to the Judaic teacher on Monday. The names of the winners will be announced and sent to our friends in Israel.
What is the connection between the picture and the first word of the parasha?
 The winner of this week's Riddle is Dotan Even.
Moreh Dror Karavani will collect all of the submitted answers, put them into a box, and save them for the big raffle! You will hear more about this very soon. Keep your answers coming.
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