This Week at YLS
News and Updates from Yeshiva Lab School
12 Iyar 5776
A Message From the Principal
Dear Parents,
This past shabbat, Rabbi Dr. Jay Goldmintz, a master educator and renowned expert on emunah and tefillah, was visiting his daughter, who happens to be my neighbor. As we walked home together from shul, Morah Rachael and I shared with him some of the incredible conversations and learning experiences that have taken place in our YLS classroom community this year related to emunah, bitachon, tefillah, and Hashem. He implored us to continue discussing God and our belief in God as our students grow, because doing so has a tremendous impact on a child’s spiritual development.
In Parshat Emor, Hashem commands us to count the omer, “And you shall count for yourselves, from the morrow of the rest day from the day you bring the omer of the waving- seven weeks, they shall be complete. Until the morrow of the seventh week you shall count, fifty days; and you shall offer a new meal-offering to Hashem. (Vayikra 23:15,16)”
As adults, we often focus on the logistical and concrete counting of Sefirat Ha’Omer. We make sure to say the correct number each night with the bracha, working hard not to miss a single night. In addition to just counting Sefirat Ha’Omer, it behooves us to work on enhancing our relationship with God during this seven-week period. There are those that maintain that this can be done by improving our own neshamot utilizing seven of the ten sefirot mentioned in Divrei HaYamim I, 29:11, or aspects of Hashem’s character, as a means through which to grow: chesed (kindness), gevurah (justice and discipline), tiferet (compassion), netzach (endurance), hod (humility), yesod (bonding), and malchut (leadership).
In their book, Sefiros- Spiritual Refinement Through Counting the Omer, Rabbi Yaakov Haber and Rabbi David Sedley suggest that understanding the sefirot provide an understanding of oneself. “For as much as the sefirot reveal about God Himself, they also hold the key to understanding what it means to have been created in God’s image. And just as we must apply a unified understanding to the personality of God, we must strive to round out our own personality with the lesson of each sefirah. Therefore, the keys to our opening, maintaining, and repairing our relationship with God are bound up in understanding these sefirot … Our goal, therefore, during these forty-nine days is to examine how each of the sefirot affects our connection to God, our relationship with each other, and our understanding of ourselves.”
We should all take this time during Sefirat Ha’Omer to not only “count” the omer, but to also improve our relationship with Hashem by working on the development of our neshama, our spiritual self. Then, most importantly, be sure to talk about it with your child. Share with your child what aspects of yourself and your relationship with God that you are working on, how it feels rewarding and/or challenging, and explain why you are working on it. By doing so, you will be modeling for your child and will help them strengthen their own unique connection with Hashem during this important period on the Jewish calendar.
Shabbat Shalom,
Mrs. Becky Troodler
Possible Sponsorship Opportunities!
Many companies have similar programs through which they sponsor, match donations, or donate to their employee's preferred charity or children's school. Does your employer have a similar program? Please check with your human resources department and let us know!
We have an upcoming event to begin the year, which will support our Parents Association. Having a large and generous sponsorship to help defray the costs will enable the Parents Association to raise funds for even more programming and events for our families next year.
Please let us know if your company has such a program, and if you would be interested in using the funds to support YLS!
Important Calendar Dates
Thursday, May 26- Lag B'Omer
Monday, May 30- Memorial Day, No School
Sunday, June 5- Yom Yerushalayim
Friday, June 10- Last Day of School- 1:00 pm Dismissal - No LM Busing
Sunday-Monday, June 12-13- Shavuot
Wednesday- Friday- Teacher Professional Growth and Collaboration
Yeshiva Lab School
Email: office@yeshivalabschool.org
Website: yeshivalabschool.org
Location: 612 Montgomery Avenue, Narberth, PA, United States
Phone: 6102063926
Facebook: www.facebook.com/yeshivalabschool
Twitter: @yeshivalab