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In the last few weeks I’ve really come to know the B’nai Moshe Family! I’ve been enrolling students/ordering books for our L.I.F.E. Religious School, planning curriculum/recruiting students for our new ATID high school (please call me if you have any questions), meeting with our L.I.F.E. teachers, hiring a staff to supervise High Holiday classes and services, and planning Family Education Programs (save the date: May 1-3, 2009 for our Family Shabbat Retreat at Camp Tamarack). Wow! So much to do and so much to look forward to!

Our K-6 L.I.F.E. Program begins on Saturday (9:30 a.m. - 12:00 noon), September 6th with our Shabbat classes and service, and our 7th grade L.I.F.E. Program begins on Monday (4:30 p.m. - 6:30 p.m.), September 15th. We are also excited to introduce the Midrasha Holocaust Program for our 7th graders that will meet on Friday nights (5:00 p.m. - 9:00p.m.) once-a-month starting September 19th, including a dinner hour, speakers, and a special lesson on the Holocaust presented by long time B’nai Moshe educator par excellence, Ahuva Newman.

It is also our pleasure to inform you of our continued participation in the Opening the Doors Special Education Partnership Program with the Federation’s Alliance for Jewish Education. It is a program designed to meet the special learning needs of the students currently enrolled in our religious school. As a partnership school, we receive support services from the Alliance and receive funds from the Jewish Federation of Metropolitan Detroit.

To achieve our goals, we have on our teaching staff Judy Pearlman, who has a Bachelor of Science degree in both special and elementary education from Eastern Michigan University. This is Judy’s 3rd year at B’nai Moshe. She will be consulting with our classroom teachers regarding appropriate recommendations for our diverse learners. We are quite excited about this partnership, which enables us to continue to provide a positive educational experience for all our students.

My door is always open to discuss any concerns or suggestions you have about the L.I.F.E. Religious School or Family Education Programs. Let’s work together to make this a fabulous year!

Wishing you a Shanah M’tukah (Sweet Year),

Gail Gales
Director of Education and Youth