EXPLORE Ma`ayanot Co-Curricular Activities

Ma’ayanot Co-Curricular Activities
Athletics
Photography
EXPLORE
DISCOVER
Mock Trial
Chess
Journalism
Dance
Ma’ayanot Co-Curricular Activities
Dear Parents and Students,
Student activities at Ma’ayanot are designed to offer each and every student a chance to develop or
strengthen skills, talents and interests that may not be highlighted in their academic classes. Our committees,
clubs and teams are also a place to make new friends and have fun in a more relaxed and flexible
environment. At the same time, students are encouraged to work hard and taste success in areas that have
personal meaning for them. Committees, clubs and teams are the perfect places to develop and expand
every student’s leadership capabilities; students are encouraged to take active leadership positions, while
being guided by a supportive faculty member.
At Ma’ayanot, we are proud of the variety of co-curricular options that we offer, which include ones as diverse
as art, academics and social activism. Our students are also encouraged to seek out ideas for worthwhile new
projects; our list of clubs and programs continues to grow, powered by the excitement and interests of our
students. Student activities also provide valuable learning opportunities, several of which are geared to
professional careers. Most importantly, the underpinning of all of our extra-curricular activities is to
encourage our students to see that Torah values are not limited to the classroom.
This booklet provides you with a comprehensive listing of 41 co-curricular opportunities available at
Ma’ayanot. And please remember that new options are always possible; students, faculty and administrators
work together to make more opportunities that match the needs of our students. If you have any questions,
please contact Elana Flaumenhaft at 201-833-4307 ext. 115 or [email protected].
Sincerely,
Elana Flaumenhaft
Assistant Principal of Student Life
Ma’ayanot Co-Curricular Activities
Table of Contents
Athletics
Model UN Team
ACT/SAT Prep Class
Musical
Art Club
MYPAC Committee
Chesed Committee
Pay it Forward
Chess Team
Photography Club
College Bowl
Poetry Slam Club
CPR Certification
Remembrance Committee
Dance Team
Sambatyon (literary journal)
Debate Team
Science Olympiad
Drama
Shakespeare Experience
Fashion, Tech and Tinkering
The Source (student newspaper)
Global Awareness Committee
Stock Market Challenge
Heartbeats
Student Council
HEC Committee
Talilei Orot (parsha newsletter)
History Bowl
TAP Committee
Intramural Basketball
Tefillah Committee
Journalism
Torah Bowl
Ma’ayanei Torah (holiday publication)
Yamim Committee
Math Team
Yoga
Mock Trial Team
Zumba
Model Congress Team
Ma’ayanot Co-Curricular Activities
Athletics
Ma’ayanot is a member of the Metropolitan Yeshiva High School League.
The goal of our athletic program is to offer a rewarding athletic
experience and to develop the athletic potential of our students.
Ma’ayanot athletes are encouraged to develop a sense of positive
sportsmanship, integrity, values, ethics and derech eretz, and to display
these qualities on and off the field. Development of leadership, personal
responsibility, self-esteem, sensitivity and compassion towards others are
equally important goals of the athletic program. The students learn to
excel as individual players as well as members of a team.
Ma’ayanot teams include Varsity Basketball (Coach: Atara Polinsky),
Junior Varsity Basketball (Coach: Ken Ashby), Hockey (Coach: Leora
Kook), Varsity Soccer (Coach: Moshe “Ziggy” Zahrnest), Junior Varsity
Soccer (Coach: Resat Cazsimoski), Softball (Coach: Yoni Lieber), Swim
(Coach: Esther Isser), Tennis (Coach: Marina Demidova), Track (Coach:
Marta Baez), Varsity Volleyball (Caoch: Dan Crespo), Varsity Volleyball B
(Coach: Miriam Motechin) and Junior Varsity Volleyball (Coach: Chaim
Tauber).
Practice takes place after school and tryouts are open to all interested
students.
Tryouts for fall sports take place in September. Tryouts for spring sports
take place in November/December. Detailed information about specific
tryout dates and times will follow.
Ma’ayanot Co-Curricular Activities
ACT/SAT Prep
We are thrilled to partner with Tutoring Solutions Group to offer separate
SAT and ACT introductory courses for Ma’ayanot students for just $50.
These courses provide an introduction to the SAT or ACT and guide
students for subsequent study after the culmination of the course.
The 6 sessions will be taught during club hour on Wednesdays and are
open to all interested students.
Art Club
The Art Club, led by Mrs. Natalia Kadish, helps students see and
experience the beauty of artistic compositions and guides the
development of their own abilities of artistic expression, including the
ability to give expression to their spiritual selves through a medium other
than the written or spoken word.
Art Club meets during club hour on Wednesdays and is open to all
interested students.
Chesed Committee
The Chesed Committee, supervised by Mrs. Ivy Weiner, showcases
opportunities for students to share their time and energy with those in
need. It plans and organizes individual and school-wide chesed projects,
sending delegates to assist in community-based programs and initiatives.
Students learn to plan creative, innovative programs that improve the
lives of others and develop sensitivity for and empathy toward those who
are less fortunate.
The committee meets regularly during the year and the students are
informed by email when volunteers are needed.
Ma’ayanot Co-Curricular Activities
Chess Team
The Chess Team, led by Mr. Slava Koza, who comes to us from the
International Chess Academy, is part of the Metropolitan Yeshiva High
School League. Ma’ayanot is proud to be the only all-girls high school to
be in the league. Participants compete in matches against other Yeshivot,
culminating with the chess playoffs.
The chess team practices during club hour on Wednesdays and is open to
all interested students.
College Bowl
College Bowl, led by Ms. Sarah Gordon, is a quiz-show format league
competition against other metropolitan area yeshiva high schools. We
have a junior varsity and a varsity team. The competitions test students’
knowledge in variety of content areas such as history, literature,
geography and current events.
The College Bowl team practices during lunch throughout the year.
Tryouts for the College Bowl team will take place after Sukkot.
CPR Certification
The CPR certification club provides students with the skills and tools
necessary to provide life-saving assistance for a person during an
emergency. Students learn how to recognize and care for a variety of first
aid situations, and how to respond to breathing and cardiac emergencies
until more advanced medical personnel take over. The club is taught by
an Emergency Medical professional.
CPR certification meets on Wednesdays during club hour and is open to
all interested students.
Ma’ayanot Co-Curricular Activities
Dance Team
The Dance Team, led by Ms. Alexandra Finkelstein, is an opportunity for
students with a passion for dance to express themselves. It enables
students to discover their own innate capacity for the communication of
ideas, thoughts, and feelings through the medium of dance. They will
learn creative dance forms and techniques and a routine to present at the
Rikudiah competition in November.
The Dance team meets during club hour on Wednesday and is open to all
interested students.
Debate Team
The Ma’ayanot Debate Team engages in competition with other Yeshiva
high school teams in the Metropolitan area. Participants master
arguments regarding some of the most controversial issues of our time,
including physician-assisted suicide, gun control, abortion, nuclear war,
and others. Students' facility with assigned topics is fully and fairly
tested through strict debate procedure and they work on skills such as
researching a topic, writing a presentation, and presenting it in a strong,
competent voice.
The Debate team meets during club hour on Wednesdays. Tryouts will be
held after Sukkot.
Drama
Ma’ayanot puts on a drama performance every spring under the
supervision of Mr. Matt Okin of Black Box Studios. The drama is a
creative outlet for theatrically minded students to participate in all
aspects of play production. These include performance, direction,
design, technical support and publicity. Students will learn how to
interpret key scenes in a story, develop improvisation skills and
techniques and stage plays while having a lot of fun.
Practices take place during club hour on Wednesdays and become more
intensive as the performance approaches. Auditions take place in
December.
Ma’ayanot Co-Curricular Activities
Fashion, Tech and
Tinkering
Global Awareness
Committee
Heartbeats
The Fashion, Tech and Tinkering club looks at how technology in the
world around us works, and tries to recreate it in ways that can be used in
our daily life. Students make working speakers for our phones, touchsensitive gloves to wear in the cold weather, and stop-motion movies.
Tinkering with the technology of every day is what makes the club
exciting.
The Fashion, Tech and Tinkering club meets during club hour on
Wednesdays and is open to all interested students.
The Global Awareness Committee, supervised by Ms. F, fosters awareness
in Ma’ayanot of tragedies occurring worldwide. The students on this
committee feel that information about current events needs to be
available and disseminated to the student body so that they are
knowledgeable and educated about the world around them. In order to
effectively accomplish this goal, the committee will organize campaigns
and create videos and programs.
The committee meets regularly during the year and is actively looking for
new members. All interested students may apply after Sukkot.
Heartbeats is a student- initiated, student-created, student-directed and
student-performed “night of song, dance and connection." Our directors
this year are Ellie Blanchard, Gabi Lerner, Tamar Nissel, Davida Respler,
Adina Rosenberg, Avigayil Schiff, Abby Stiefel, Denny Tammam, and Chana
Waintraub and the performance will be on Wednesday, June 1st, 2016.
Each year Heartbeats organizers choose a charity to which the proceeds
of that year’s performances will be donated. In the last three years
almost $25,000 has been donated to a variety of organizations that work
to benefit Israel and children, including Save a Child’s Heart and the Lone
Soldier Center.
Practices will take place once a week during lunch and during club hour
on Wednesdays. Tryouts will take place in September before Sukkot.
Ma’ayanot Co-Curricular Activities
HEC Commmittee
The goal of the Holiday Enhancement Committee, led by Rabbi Zev
Prince, is to develop programming designed to ensure that all students
are intellectually and emotionally prepared to celebrate or commemorate
both secular and Judaic holidays as they occur throughout the year.
Whether by decorating the lobby and MPR, giving out small gifts, or
planning craft activities, this committee enhances the festive spirit of the
school all year long.
The committee meets regularly during the year and the student body is
informed by email when volunteers are needed.
History Bowl
We are excited to bring the History Bowl to Ma’ayanot. The National
History Bowl is a buzzer-based history quiz competition for teams of up
to 6 students. The National History Bowl, led by Mrs. Chani Rotenberg,
hopes to foster an interest in history that will give present-day students
an appreciation for the past that will serve them and their country and
world well in the future. Additionally, the substance and style of
questions used in The National History Bowl reward students who can
make connections across eras, places, and themes in history; thus
students enhance their understanding of history through preparation and
competition.
The team will practice every other week during lunch. Tryouts for all
interested students will be before Sukkot.
Intramural Basketball
This will be the inaugural year for our Basketball Intramurals. Students
have the opportunity to join the intramural league with separate leagues
for junior varsity and varsity. The participants are divided into teams and
will play games during lunch. Each team will play one game per week.
Coach Jen Sanders will serve as the coach.
The students will have the opportunity to sign up for the intramurals
before Sukkot and the games will begin when we return from Sukkot
vacation.
Ma’ayanot Co-Curricular Activities
Journalism club
The Journalism club, led by Mrs. Enid Goldberg, is the opportunity for
students to learn how to write articles that editors love to publish. It is
for those with no experience who are interested in learning about
journalistic writing, layout, and photography. The meetings will also be
open to more experienced students on a drop-in basis for those wishing
to brush up their knowledge in certain areas. They will gain the skills that
will enable them to write exciting news articles, fascinating features, indepth editorials and more. They will hone their interviewing, writing and
editing skills as well as come up with interesting ideas of their own.
There will be the chance to learn about online layout as well as photo
journalism. Students will be able to submit articles for publication in
Ma’ayanot’s new, amazing online publication: ThE-Source!
The Journalism club will on Wednesdays during club hour and is open to
all interested students. Any freshman who wants to join the newspaper
staff must sign up for the Journalism club.
Ma’ayanei Torah
Ma’ayanei Torah is Ma'ayanot's holiday journal of Torah articles published
before each holiday. Ma’ayanei Torah, led by Mrs. Shifra Schapiro and
supported by a strong team of student leaders, is a compilation of divrei
Torah written by our students and faculty. It is distributed to synagogues
throughout the tri-state area. Students interested in writing Divrei Torah
should contact the managing editors, Tamar Schwartz at
[email protected] and Margalit Silver at
[email protected].
Math Team
The Math team, under the supervision of Mr. David Tanke, is for students
who are interested and enjoy math and would like the opportunity to
explore math further. There will be the chance to prepare math problems
that are exciting and fun that aren’t covered in the standard high school
curriculum. The club will enable students to train and compete in the New
Jersey Math League competitions.
The Math Club meets once a week during lunch. It is open to all
interested students.
Ma’ayanot Co-Curricular Activities
Mock Trial Team
Mock Trial is an imitation trial and courtroom competition sponsored by
the New Jersey State Bar Association. The team consists of lawyers,
witnesses and jurors for both prosecution and defense. The students
compete against other schools in the county and are judged by volunteer
attorneys. Ma’ayanot has made it to the Bergen County finals many times
and hopes to be the Bergen County champions next year and then
compete on a state-wide level.
The Mock Trial team meets every Wednesday during club hour and
practices become more intensive as the competition approaches. Tryouts
for all interested students will be before Sukkot.
Model Congress
Model Congress is a program organized by HAFTR high school that
simulates a congressional conference where students are placed in
various congressional committees, which allows the students to
experience American government firsthand. Students prepare and debate
bills pertaining to important issues facing our nation today. Students
debate bills in committees such as appropriations, armed services,
banking, housing and urban affairs, education and labor, energy and
commerce, environment and public works, ethics and many more. Led by
Ms. Caryn Keller, the students take on the role of chair people of these
committees. They learn how to conduct research, articulate persuasive
arguments and improve their writing skills while gaining knowledge of the
political process.
Model Congress meets once a week during lunch beginning in December.
It is open to all interested students.
Ma’ayanot Co-Curricular Activities
Model UN Team
The Yeshiva University National Model United Nations (YUNMUN) is a
student-run simulation of the workings of the real United Nations that
gives students an opportunity to experience and learn about the complex
landscape of international diplomacy. Playing the roles of delegates to
actual United Nations member nations, participants represent a variety of
positions, often ones with which they may not agree. In advocating for a
given country, students must conduct thorough research of that country's
interests and policies across a wide range of issues and concerns, adding
both to their knowledge of world affairs and to their appreciation of and
facility with research, preparation, communication and critical evaluation.
This year’s competition will take place February 21 – 23, 2016.
The team will practice during lunch every week. Tryouts for all interested
students will be after Sukkot.
Musical
Our musical performance combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting, and
dance. The story and emotional content of the musical – humor, pathos,
love, anger – are communicated through the words, music, movement and
technical aspects of the entertainment as an integrated whole. Mrs.
Joyce Heller and Mrs. Beth Selter work tirelessly with a superb cast of
both actors and non-actors to present excellent theater such as My Fair
Lady and Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat.
Practices take place during club hour on Wednesdays and become more
intensive as the performance approaches. Tryouts for all interested
students are before Sukkot.
MYPAC Committee
MYPAC (modeled on AIPAC), led by Ms. Sarah Gordon, provides students
an opportunity to study and better understand both the America -Israel
relationship and how to engage in political activism on Israel's behalf.
MYPAC students utilize this knowledge to help organize advocacy
programming on behalf of Israel throughout the school year.
The committee meets regularly during the year and is actively looking for
new members. All interested students may apply after Sukkot.
Ma’ayanot Co-Curricular Activities
Pay it Forward
The Pay it Forward club started in the fall of 2010 and it provides an
opportunity for Ma’ayanot students to give back to their community by
tutoring elementary and middle school children. Supervised by Mrs. Ivy
Weiner, our students learn with these youngsters to help them keep up
their Torah learning and act as mentors to these club participants as well.
The children actually look forward to doing their homework each
Wednesday and hanging out with their ‘big sisters’. Pay it Forward
enables our students to spend club hour in a meaningful way.
Pay it Forward meets every Wednesday during club hour and is open to
all interested students.
Photography Club
The photography club is where students of all backgrounds and skill
levels can come together and explore the medium of photography and
related media. The club will specialize in improving students’ skills with
digital cameras. They will learn the techniques involved in taking
aesthetically pleasing pictures such as exposure and lighting. The
students will have the opportunity to creatively express their passion for
photography.
Photography Club meets during club hour on Wednesdays and is open to
all interested students.
Poetry Slam
We are excited to form a Poetry Slam team under the guidance of Ms. Sam
Kur, which will participate in the Yeshiva Poetry Society. The team will
compete against local yeshiva high schools over the course of the school
year. At the competitions, the students compose and perform original
works of poetry in various forms. Students will be judged for their use of
language, their adherence to the stated poetic form, their approach to the
theme, the quality of their performance, and their overall success at
moving the judges and the audience. Awards will be given to the top four
poets. The judges are published poets, writers and educators.
The Poetry Slam team will meet during lunch once a week and is open to
all interested students.
Ma’ayanot Co-Curricular Activities
Remembrance Committee
Sambatyon
Science Olympiad
The Remembrance Committee develops ceremonies and other
programming that help Ma'ayanot students and faculty to appropriately
commemorate important memorial events, both secular and Jewish, as
they occur throughout the school year. The Remembrance Committee has
developed programming to mark 9/11, Kristallnacht, Memorial Day and
Veterans Day, to name just a few.
The committee meets regularly during the year and is actively looking for
new members. All interested students may apply after Sukkot.
Sambatyon is Ma’ayanot’s award winning literary journal supervised by
Mrs. Enid Goldberg. It affords students the opportunity to showcase their
original poetry, short stories, photography and artwork. Sambatyon is
student run and they work very hard to recruit, organize, plan, design,
edit and publish the journal. The publication is a wonderful forum for our
students to express their creativity.
Contributions can be submitted as soon as school begins. Editors are
chosen the previous year for the current school year.
The Jewish Education Project/Lander College Science Olympiad provides
the opportunity for high school students in Yeshivot to compete in events
that test both knowledge and skills. Our team is supervised by Mrs. Gillian
Cofnas. Science Olympiad consists of twelve events drawn from National
Science Olympiad publications and will address various aspects of
biology, chemistry, earth science, physics, and applications of
engineering and technology. The team practices during lunch over the
course of the year. Interested students may apply after Sukkot.
Ma’ayanot Co-Curricular Activities
Shakespeare Experience
The Shakespeare Experience is a new club at Ma’ayanot, led by Mrs. Enid
Goldberg. Its objective is to focus on one Shakespeare play in depth
during each school year. This year, the play will be the comedy A
Midsummer Night’s Dream.
The club will study the play, act by act, and then begin rehearsals for a
“reading performance” of the play for the entire Ma’ayanot student body
in the spring.
The reading will be accompanied by a pantomime performance of the play
by club members. One scene will be memorized, so that Ma’ayanot may
join other Yeshiva League schools in participating in the Yeshiva League
“Envision Shakespeare” competition in March.
The Shakespeare Experience will meet during lunch once a week. It is
open to all interested students.
The Source
The Ma'ayanot student newspaper, The-Source, will be an entirely on-line
publication next year, called The-Source. The faculty advisor to TheSource is Mrs. Enid Goldberg. Students learn the principles of journalism,
gain experience in gathering information and reporting new stories, and
have a forum where they can express their opinions on school and world
issues.
Senior editorial positions have been assigned for the 2015-16 school
year. Junior editorships and staff writing, layout, and photography
opportunities are available to both experienced and non-experienced
students at all grade levels. All freshmen interested in staff positions
must sign up for the Journalism Club.
Those interested in joining The-Source should contact one of the Editorsin-Chiefs, Shana Adler at [email protected], Carmit Kaye at
[email protected], or Hannah Siegel at [email protected], or the
Associate Editor, Dena Winchester at [email protected].
The-Source
Ma’ayanot Co-Curricular Activities
Stock Market Challenge
The objective of the Stock Market Game is to introduce its participants to
the fundamentals of investing. Each student is given a virtual $100,000
and taught how to invest it so that they can grow it and learn how their
money can work for them. The Stock Market Game is a tool that helps
students build a fundamental understanding of investing while providing
them with real world skills practice in math, English Language Arts,
economics, social studies, and other subjects. Most importantly, The
Stock Market Game will help the students develop positive money habits
and prepare them for their future.
The Stock Market Challenge Game meets during club hour on Wednesdays
and is open to all interested students.
Student Council
Serving on the Ma’ayanot G.O. is a great opportunity for students to get
more involved in Ma’ayanot and step up as leaders of the student body.
Ma’ayanot G.O. is comprised of a wonderful group of students who have a
lot of school spirit and want to work toward making Ma’ayanot a more fun
and friendly place for themselves and their fellow students. Ma’ayanot
G.O. members take an active role in planning and implementing programs
throughout the year, including Shabbatonim, grade bonding events, and
special holiday celebrations. Through this experience, G.O. members learn
about themselves and their leadership abilities, as well as the value of
working as a part of a team.
There are a number of different positions open on G.O. for students of
different grades, including President (a senior), Vice President of
Programming (a junior), Vice President of Publicity (a sophomore or
junior), Treasurer (open to students in any grade), Secretary (a
sophomore), as well as two class representatives from each grade.
Elections take place in May. Freshmen Class Representative elections
take place after Sukkot.
Ma’ayanot Co-Curricular Activities
Talilei Orot
Talilei Orot is Ma’ayanot’s weekly parsha newsletter filled with student
divrei Torah. The strength of Talilei Orot is its student leadership; it was
originated by student initiative and is executed exclusively by students.
They collect, write, edit, lay out, design and distribute the publication with
strong dedication and commitment.
Divrei Torah are needed every week and interested students should
contact Elisheva Cohen at [email protected] and Chana T. Fisch at
[email protected].
TAP committee
The Torah Activities and Programming Committee, led by Ms. Ora Laufer,
provides Ma’ayanot students with opportunities for additional Torah
learning. The committee conducts after-school mishmar programs, “lunch
and learn” events, and siyyumim. No year would be complete without
Mishmover or Torahton. Committee members also publicize learning
opportunities in various communities and create learning programs in
conjunction with synagogues.
The committee meets regularly during the year and the students are
informed by email when volunteers are needed.
Tefillah committee
Students on the Tefillah Committee, led by Mrs. Leah Herzog, help
organize daily tefillot, making them more inspiring. Members explore and
design different ways to make tefilla moving and personal, and educate
the student body about appropriate tefillot on special days. The
committee also determines Ma’ayanot tunes for Hallel and organizes
tefillot for those who are ill.
The committee meets regularly during the year and is actively looking for
new members. All interested students may apply after Sukkot.
Ma’ayanot Co-Curricular Activities
Torah Bowl
The Torah Bowl team competes against other yeshivot in the Metropolitan
Yeshiva League. The competition follows a quiz show format similar to
College Bowl with a team of four students competing at one time. The
students study the pshat and Rashis of selected parshiot in the Torah.
The students learn a lot of extra Torah independently and also hone their
memory and recall skills. Breadth, depth and speed as well as
sportsmanship and teamwork are all skills that the successful Torah Bowl
Team member must use.
The Torah Bowl team meets during lunch throughout the year and is open
to all interested students.
Yamim committee
The Yamim Committee, led by Mrs. Dena Block, develops programming
that helps Ma'ayanot students and faculty appropriately celebrate Yom
Hazikaron and Yom Ha'atzmaut, including decorating the school in order
to generate the appropriate atmosphere, creating meaningful ceremonies,
and educating the student body about the historical events that produced
the holidays.
The committee meets regularly during the year and is actively looking for
new members. All interested students may apply after Sukkot.
Ma’ayanot Co-Curricular Activities
Yoga
The Yoga club, led by Ms. Carol Berlin, is a practical, methodical, and
systematic discipline or set of techniques that have the lofty goal of
helping human beings to become aware of their deepest nature. It is the
embodiment of focus, discipline, and unwavering concentration. The
students are devoted to the perfection of the poses breath control
exercises and they challenge their mind and bodies to achieve a ‘higher
state of being’.
Yoga meets during club hour on Wednesdays and is open to all interested
students.
Zumba
The Zumba club, led by Marta Baez, is a class that disguises exercise as
fun.
Zumba is a dance workout phenomenon that was created by accident by
Alberto “Beto” Perez, a fitness instructor from Colombia, in the mid-90s
when he forgot the traditional aerobics music for a class. He improvised
with the music he could find, and a new workout was designed. Zumba
combines Latin and International music with an enjoyable and effective
workout system. The goal of Zumba is to provide accessible fitness
without the strain and sacrifice of traditional exercise.
Zumba meets during club hour on Wednesdays and is open to all
interested students.