TIME IS RUNNING OUT...

Dear Parents, Alumni and Friends,  

         ..........

TIME IS RUNNING OUT...

                     …to ensure that we meet our Annual Dinner campaign goal.

The Frisch School Dinner, honoring Tammy and Ken Secemski, Tammy Schaum and Rabbi Yaakov Blau  is only three weeks away and  only 6 days after our winter break ends.  While the school staff will be in the office during vacation ensuring that all details of the dinner are taken care of, if you have not already done so, please submit your donation  and dinner reservations before the break.

As indicated on the  list below, many of you have already demonstrated your generous support of our school and we are very grateful.

The dinner is our school’s largest annual fundraiser and if you have not already sent in your contribution, we urge you to become part of this essential effort and help us reach our goal.  Your donation, at any level,  can and will make a difference for our children.

In addition to the regular mail, you may visit  www.frischdinner.com  to submit your ad online, fax your ad to 201-261-9342, e-mail dinner@frisch.org or call with your pledge and reservations to 201-267-9100 ext. 205.

Please recall as well, that if you plan on attending the dinner you must either return the envelope received with your invitation or submit the RSVP form online at www.frischdinner.com.

If you have already donated and responded, we are grateful for your continued support and look forward to greeting you at the dinner on February 4th.

Sincerely,

The Committee                            

Kol HaKavod

Visionary

Jill and David ’77 Blumenthal

Monique and Mordecai Katz

Tammy and Ken Secemski

Partner

Anonymous

Susan and Michael Edwards

Master Bond

 Chai Benefactor

Drazie and Ben Ashkenazy

Alissa and Sam Zagha

 Diamond Benefactor

Sheryl and Ernest Elias

Hillel Goldstein

 Platinum Benefactor

Hannah-Jean and Bruce Brafman

Mort and Esther Fridman

Anne and Jerry Gontownik

Carol and Rodney Grundman

Jeanette and Martin Heistein

Miriam and Dan Michael

Anita and Jerome Milch

Debbie ‘80 and Sam Moed

Sharon and David Rauch

Florence and Robert Rothman

 Gold Benefactor

Deborah and Ira Palgon

Felicia ’88 and Moshe Zwebner

 Silver Benefactor

Judi and Arthur Goldberg

Irene and Roby Gottesman

Barbara and Simcha Hochman

Robin and Mark Hoenig

Janet and Kenny Hoffman

Julie and Richard Lobel

Tammy and Kenny Schaum

Ronnie and Marc Schlussel

Sharon and Jonathan Sherman

Sheryl and Stanley Turitz

Alan Wasserman

Benefactor

Amlon

Beth ’79 and Sam ’79 Bernstein

Amy and Myron Eagle

Rebecca ’94 and Gil Feldman

Alisa ‘89 and Jonathan ’89 Gellis

Ilana and Stuart Goldberg

Ruth and Ed Lubat

Aviva and Paul Rolnick ‘87

Michele and Joseph Safra

Rena Donin and David Schlussel

Patron

Mindy and Eli Davidoff

Marvin Eiseman

Susan and Kenny Greif

Janet and Lior Hod

Shira and Seth Levine

Meryl and Joseph Mark

 

Sara ‘80 and Richie Schlussel

Elana and Jonathan Silber

Cindy and Abe Steinberger

Chai Sponsor

Shari and Robert Alter

Dr. and Mrs. Henry Anhalt

Felicia and David Bieber

Sara and Rabbi Yaakov Blau

Joshua ’96

 and Aryeh ’04 Buchsbayew

Esther and Ben Chouake

Caron and Steve Gelles

Elissa '90 and Michael '87 Katz

Alisa and Jeffrey Kigner

Tanya and Gary Krim

Ruth Borgen and Simmy Lauer

Mr. and Mrs. Kevin Lemmer

Sheryl and Aaron Liberman

Batya and Nachman Paul

Dena and Sheldon Pickholz

Chavie and Ira Roth

Denise and Marc Setton

Andrea and Ronald Sultan

Sunday Morning Alumni Basketball

Susan and David Tessel

Amy and David Turner

 Sponsor

Patty and Sam Borodach

Faye and Doron Cohen

Lisa and Steven Gronowitz

Aviva Appleman and Yitzhak Jacobowitz

Karen and Bruce Lerman

Janice and Saul Levine

Quality Frozen Foods

Riki and Robert Rimberg

Ruth and Phillip Roth

Rena

 and  Douglas Soclof

Norman Sohn

3nom Solutions- Abe Sasson ‘98

 Supporter

Alle Processing

 Astoria Realty – The DiBella Family

Dial Global

Michele ’82 and Jody ’82 Bardash

Renee and Howie Blumenfeld

Judy and Martin Braun

Cindy and

 Aaron Dobrinsky

Gail and Richard Dukas

Talia and Michael Farbowitz

Eve and Heshy Feldman

John J Flemm Foundation

Dr. and Mrs. Howard Goldschmidt

Deena ’80 and Daniel Jarashow

Laurie and Jerry Kasdan

Claire and Ben Kershenbaum

Mr. and Mrs. Warren Levie

Ellen and Michael Muss

Deena and Gilad Ottensoser

Suzanne and David Prince

Penny and David Rabinowitz

Noah, Zachary ’09 and Zoë ’13 Rothblatt

Monica and Samuel Shapiro

Sherman and Gordon P.C.

Randi and Michael Silvermintz

Sheva and Edward Solomon

Tammy ‘82 and Howard Spielman

Janet and Mattis Stavsky and Family

Elke and Kalman Stein

Robin and Justin Straus

Want and Ender

Louise and Harvey Wolinetz

Raquel and David Zeitz

 Friend

Bergenfield Women’s Health

Nancy and Eric Fremed

Jay Friedman and Tenafly Psychiatric Associates

Ner Mitzvah

NJ Center for Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery

NK Originals

Primary Key Solutions

REM Holdings

RSN Specialties

Judith Heistein Sabba ’02 and Daniel Sabba

Leah Krakinowski and Andy Silberstein

Sanders and Stein Carpet Company

Penina and Thomas Weinberger

Elaine and Mark Weitzman

ZBS Realty

 Contributor

 

Design N Stitch

Diamond Insurance

Susie and Kalman Fishbein

Beverly and Andrew Geller

Debbie and Michael Gottlieb

Green & Ackerman

Linda and Mark Gruenbaum

Dr. and Mrs. Marc Herman

Lark Street Music

Lincs II

Medical Multispecialty Assoc

Mildan Partners

Sherry and Larry Milstein

Mobile Diagnostic Solutions, LLC

Moonlight Pediatrics

Samad Brothers, Inc.

Mr. and Mrs. Joel Selter

The Homeward Bound Dentist

Tuv Taam

Teaneck Dentist

David and Haya Tepper

Tikvah and Aryeh Wiener

 Listing

 

A & B Gefilte Fish

Mira Abramsohn ‘01

Accurate Alarm

Allison and Elliot Adler

Sheryl and Rabbi Yosef Adler

Agri Star

Alan Party Rental

Amy and David Albalah

Lee and Neal Alexander

ANS Construction

Sara and Edson Atwood

Rhonda and Jeff Avner

BT Electric

Bagel City

Jessica Bartel ‘02

Beigel's Baking

Nettie and Nathan Berenholz

Miriam and Rabbi Elie Berman

Mr. and Mrs. Tzvi Berman

Rabbi & Mrs. Moshe Bernstein

B. Katzman Berry

Drs. Marc and Abrah Bessler

Yvonne Schrenzel Beyer & Howard L. Beyer

Mr. & Mrs. Leon Blankrot

Andrea Blau

Rabbi Binyamin and Mrs. Faith Blau

Rabbi Yosef and Dr. Rivkah Blau

Blue & White Foods

Ilse Blumenthal

Bogota Savings Bank

Lisa and

 Asher Brukner

Burke Supply (Imperial Bag & Paper Co)

Butterflake Bakery

C & H Cutlery

Mr. & Mrs. Ken Carter

Debbie & Chaim Chaimowitz

Marvin Cohen

Compu-Phone, Inc.

Peggy & Art Cottrell

Cross River Bank

Czin Opticians

B. Dinelli fir Hair

Dovid’s Fish

David Elliot

English Department

Executive Estates Maintenance and Management

Express Recycling

Eileen Eyerman

Bina & Yossi Faber

Fantastic

Barbara and Ziv Farajun

Cindy ‘88 and David Feigenblum

Reneé and Avromy Fein

Leora and Martin Feinberg

Deborah and Jeffrey Fine

Valerie Fischman ‘07

Mr. & Mrs. Alex Flamholz

Rabbi Neil Fleischmann

Dr. Deborah Fliegelman

Rebecca and Rabbi Gerald Friedlander

Friedwald Center for Rehab and Nursing

Mr. & Mrs. Moshe Fuchs

Galil Importing

Seth Gerzberg

Susanna and Victor Glass

Shayna and Judah Goldberg

Mr. and Mrs. Raymond Goldberg

Hannah and Bruce Goldman

Harris and Elli Goldstein and family

Lawrence B. Goodman & Co.

Joshua Gotlieb

Elaine Gottesman ‘09

Lesley and Judah Greenblatt

Allyson Gronowitz ‘09

Yitzchak Halberstam

Ahuva Warburg Halpern ‘05

Sharon and Matthew Herenstein

Mrs. Rimone ’05 and Josh Hersch

Hudson City Savings Bank

Kenover Marketing

         Mr. and Mrs. Bruce Klein    

Klein’s Ice Cream

Rabbi Ari and Debby Jacobson

Shari Jawetz ’98

Jewish Media Group

Toby and Abe Kalker

Phyllis and Michael Kann

Betty Kaplan

Rena and Marshall Katz

Katzman Produce

Mr. and Mrs. David Kershner

Goldie and Marvin Kigler, Joshua'07, Gabriella '08, Aaron '11

Rhonda and Jay Klapper

Dr. Robert ' 82 and Naomi Klinger and Family

Leah and Rabbi Jonathan Knapp

Serena and Paul Koppel

Kosher Salads

Mr. and Mrs. Jamin Koslowe

Susan Fader & Larry Krule

Melanie Kwestel

Edye Lang ‘09

Mr. & Mrs. Michael Lang

Ronit and Richard Langer

Lantev Distributing Corporation

Michael Latzer

The Laundress

Alan Leben

Cheryl and Yussie Leiser

Sara and Kenneth Levine ‘83

Mr. & Mrs. Leonard Levy

Nessa Heilpern Liben ‘01

Sandee Brawarsky and Barry Lichtenberg

Zvi Marans MD, Howard Apfel MD, David Solowiejczyk MD, Diane Rhee MD

Mr. Anthony Mastandrea

Dr. David Mayerhoff

Stacy and Elliot Maza

Laura J. Miller, Director of College Guidance

Morty and Barbara Minchenberg

Russell Moskowitz

Rabbi Shimon Murciano

Murphy Carpet Cleaning

Nassau Provision

Natural & Tasty LLC

Sharon and Daniel Nussbaum

Debbie Pine and Mark Orenshein

Oxygen Imports LLC

Kathi and Jeffrey Packard

Julie and David Papier

Paterson Papers

Mr. & Mrs. Drew Parker

Parkview Pharmacy

PediatriCare Associates

Esther & Harold Perl

Gail and Steven Plotnick

Mr. and Mrs. Andrei Rebarber

Tobe and Mitch Rebhun

Andrea and Benjamin Reichel

Zahava and Hank Reinhart

Reisman’s Bakery

REMAX

Shelley Rindner

Mr. and Mrs. Joshua Rochlin

Roses By Mark

Tzipora and Rabbi Aron Ross

Naomi and Yechiel Rotblat

Dr. M Houpt & Dr. E. Rubin

Sarah Rubin ‘03

Elana & Malcolm Samad

Sheryl and Bruce Schainker

Maren Scharf

Shira and Kenny Schiowitz

Brenda and Simon Schlanger

Lipa Schnitzler

Vicki and Steve Schreiber

Jeany and Scott Schrier

Charlene and Myron Schulman

Simi Schwartz ‘04

Joseph & Ruth Schwarz

Mr. and Mrs. Michael Seelenfreund

Sefer Israel

Mr. and Mrs. Daniel Seidman

Shifra and Larry Shafier

Shaimot Le Geniza

Mrs. Irina Shapiro

Deanne and Leonard Shapiro

Shop Rite

Mr. & Mrs. David Siegelman

Mr. Joel Silverman

Miriam & Tuvia Silverstein

Moshe and Atara Silverstein and Family

Simcha Candle Corp

Zena Sky

Dana Small ’01

Rabbi Mark ’87 and Michelle Smilowitz

Judy and Herb Speiser

Debbie and Joel Spier

Springfield Group

Ms. Jenna Statfeld ‘02

Ruthie and Eliezer Stavsky

Debbie and Siggy Stein

Esther and Jeffrey Stock

Strauss Bakery

Bashi and Howard Tepper

Rebecca Tenzer ‘01

Upstate Produce

Roberta ‘84 and Leon Waldman

Phyllis Waterstone

Kathy and Lester Weiden

Moshe Weiss, MD PC

Ilana and Moshe Wertenteil

West Side Foods

Deborah Wilen-Cohen ‘80

Lisa and Mark Wise

Yo-Boys Teaneck Inc

Young Israel of Monsey & Wesley Hills

Zadie’s Bake Shop

Rabbi and Mrs. Michael Zauderer

Shaindy and Harold Zudick    

#FrischShiriyah takes over Facebook (and Twitter too)!!!

It is always so exciting to watch our students using all of their talents for Shiriyah. This year we have added additional aspects to the Shiriyah experience utilizing the world of social media with which our kids are so familiar. We do this with the philosophy that Shiriyah can be an opportunity to model for our students the great power of social media as a tool for constructive sharing, what noted technology thinker Clay Shirky calls Cognitive Surplus.

With that in mind, you might have noticed our ubiquitous presence on our Frisch School Twitter feed sending updates about the various events of this exciting week with the "hashtag" #FrischShiriyah. We have also launched for the first time our Frisch School Facebook Page so we can post even more rich and interactive content about Shiriyah including videos and photos. You can access this page by going to the following direct link: https://www.facebook.com/FrischSchool. While you're on our page, make sure to "Like Us" so you can see our updates during Shiriyah and throughout the school year on your Facebook News Feed (screenshot below).



However, this is only a part of our use of Facebook and Twitter for Shiriyah. We have provided our students the opportunity to use it as well. We have done this by creating Facebook Groups for each grade. These groups are closed to the world at large but open to our students and faculty. This was an experiment, we really did not know what to expect, while we closely monitored this undertaking. I am happy to report that so far our experiment has been a resounding success. The grades have really come together harnessing the power of this new medium to brainstorm, organize, and create.

Each grade has used their groups to post a laundry list of everything needed for the Hallways, Stomp, Project Runway, Cake Boss, and the list goes on and on. They have also found more creative ways to use this online medium. Here are a few specific examples.

• The Freshmen posted YouTube videos of each of their songs for Shiriyah night for everyone to watch and practice at home. 
• The Sophomores have posted photo albums of "The Midbar Experience". 
• The Juniors have posted pictures of various odds and ends that they had around the house (including wood and old dressers) to use for the hallways. 
• The Seniors have been posting to their "Chevra" constant words of encouragement about the stomp, choir/medley, banner, video, and mural.

I wish I could show you the tremendous work and creativity that I am seeing online till late at night, the virtual Shiriyah after the physical building has already been closed for the evening, but these groups are only open to our students (with close monitoring by the faculty) so they can feel comfortable interacting informally with their classmates to help make such a massive undertaking into a reality.

The grades have also utilized public twitter feeds to broadcast to the world their enthusiasm and excitement about Shiriyah. You can view them using the following links: twitter.com/shiriyah9, twitter.com/shiriyah10, twitter.com/shiriyah11, twitter.com/shiriyah12.

Finally, we are excited to announce, as Mrs. Weitzman just emailed, that this year for the first time we will be live streaming Shiriyah night for friends, relatives, and alumni who cannot make it to the Frisch gym but would like to share in the Shiriyah experience. All you will need to do is go to our homepage, http://frisch.org/ and the video should be streaming directly from the website starting at 7:30PM. We are looking forward to seeing all of you Shiriyah night either physically in our gym to cheer on our talented and hardworking students or virtually through Frisch.org.

Kol Tuv,

Rabbi Tzvi Pittinsky
Director of Educational Technology

Shiriyah is less than 30 hours away!

Shiriyah 5772 is only 30 hours away! For those of you who may be unable to attend Shiriyah in person, will be streaming Shiriyah live! Please go to to www.frisch.org on Thursday night, January 12th at 7:30 p.m. to feel the Ruach and experience this wonderful event live!

SHIRIYAH 5772

begins at

7:30 p.m. in our Zayat Athletic Center

Our corridors, each of which is decorated by one of the grades,

will be open for visitor viewing at 6:30 p.m.

You may show your appreciation for the amazing experience your children have had this week by becoming a Shriyah sponsor.

Donations at every level are appreciated and valued.

To become a Shiriyah sponsor, click here.

We thank the following families who have already come forward to sponsor Shiriyah 5772:

Michele and Jeffrey Burbank

Susan and Michael Edwards

Fredelyn and Gil Damari

Susie and Kalman Fishbein

Alsia and Jeffrey Kigner

Batya and Nachi Paul

Elana and Malcom Samad

Adam Schorr

Rena and Douglas Soclof

Alissa and Samm Zagha

We look forward to seeing at Shiriyah 5772!

Shiriyah 5772- Please Join Us

It is our great pleasure to invite the entire Frisch School Community to

SHIRIYAH 5772

The culminating evening of our week-long Shiriyah begins at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday evening, January 12, 2012, in our Zayat Athletic Center

Our corridors, each of which is decorated by one of the grades, will be open for visitor viewing at 6:30 p.m.

Shiriyah is not just a celebration of Frisch spirit, not just an excuse for all of us to have some fun—actually lots of fun—in the midst of the school year. Shiriyah is an integral part of the intellectual religious and communal life of the more than 700 teenagers and adults who spend their days at Frisch. It is an opportunity for each Frisch student to develop and demonstrate his/her talents and skills: leadership, artistic/musical/dramatic/choreographic creativity, Torah study and scholarship, and so much more. Shiriyah also brings grades together in friendship, teamwork and camaraderie. The best part of Shiriyah is the part parents don’t get to see: It’s the incredible sight of hundreds of kids working together, enjoying one another, older grades helping the freshmen, for hours each day and night and all day on Sunday as they prepare for Thursday night’s performances.

As we reported to parents on Friday when we broke Shiriyah, this year’s Shiriyah is based on the unique theme of Sefer Shemot: The Creation of a Nation. The book can clearly be divided into four thematic sections- (1) The exile and exodus from Mitzrayim, (2) the nation's travels and growth in the desert, (3) the awe inspiring revelation at Har Sinai and (4) the book’s culmination with the Jewish nation creating sacred space for God through the Mishkan. Each of these steps was necessary and contributed to the foundation of the Jewish nation as a unified people devoted in the service of God, and each grade has been assigned one of these themes.
Throughout the next week our students will be learning about these concepts in special Shi’urim and learning to express them in song, art, Torah study, and in their daily interaction with one another and with their Rebbe’im and teachers. We hope you’ll be with us on Thursday evening to see the culmination of their efforts, to tour each grade’s specially prepared corridor, and to share the incredible Ru’ach which will undoubtedly bust forth as it does each year.
LOOKING FORWARD TO SEEING YOU ALL THIS THURSDAY EVENING.
Dr. Kalman Stein,
Principal

Shiriya 5772

As many of you undoubtedly already know, we broke Shiriya this morning. I cannot begin to explain the craziness of the break or the extraordinary contributions of so many of the adults who spend their days at Frisch. Ask your son/daughter to describe it for you. I don't need to tell most Frisch parents how wonderful the night of Shiriya is, It's next Thursday evening, "formal" invitation to follow, but for those of you who are new to Frisch this year I assure you that it's well worth your while to spend next Thursday evening with us.

Virtually every one of our students finds his/her niche in Shiriya. But in a school of six hundred it is inevitable that there will be a few youngsters who find it a little difficult to find their place. That's our job to fix. If your son/daughter for any reason is feeling that he/she is not participating in the week's activities in a gratifying way please email Rabbi Ciner and he will make sure that the grade's faculty advisors reach out (quietly and seamlessly) to him/her and find an appropriate avenue to integrate him/her into the flow of Shiriya.

Shiriyah is such an important part of life at The Frisch School that it would never occur to us to sell tickets of admission. But Shiriyah is very expensive. Just setting up the seating, audio-visual arrangements, and decorations in the gym is quite costly as is the extraordinary amount of material which goes into the kids' transformation of the building into a Shiriya theme park. Please consider making a contribution, at Donate.Frisch.org or by check, to help defray this large (but so worthwhile) expense.

Shiriya has many components as our kids demonstrate their skills and strengths in so many areas: Art, music, scholarship, drama, dance, leadership, Torah. It creates a spirit of camaraderie which permeates the school and glows throughout the entire school year. The themes chosen each year reflect an aspect of our Torah Studies curriculum. This year we are all studying Humash Shemot and the theme, therefore, is Sefer Shemot- The Creation of a Nation

Sefer Shemot's unique theme is the Creation of a Nation. The book can clearly be divided into four thematic sections- (1) The exile and exodus from Mitzrayim, (2) the nation's travels and growth in the desert, (3) the awe inspiring revelation at Har Sinai and (4) the book's culmination with the Jewish nation creating sacred space for God through the Mishkan. Each of these steps was necessary and contributed to the foundation of the Jewish nation - as a unified people devoted in the service of God.



9th Grade:

The exile in Mitzrayim brought the nation together in ways that no other event ever has. We suffered together and then joyously celebrated our victory unified in a harmonious song at the sea. The Exodus is the cornerstone for many of the commandments in the Torah and granted the nation a unique respect for our fellow man and our Redeemer, the Almighty.



10th Grade:

The Midbar (desert) experience was no accident or mistake. God purposely led the Jews through the desolate desert and challenged them with test after test. We endured these trials and emerged with a greater sense of what it means to rely on God and how to deal with adversity. The daily miraculous existence in the Midbar afforded the nation closeness with God and chance for self-reflection.



11th Grade:

Approximately two million Jews entered a covenant with God and became known as Jews. The Har Sinai experience, a paradox of love and fear, of closeness and yet of distance, marked us as God's eternal nation. The laws that we received from amidst the thunder and lightning armed the nation with morality and religious law to shape ourselves and the world at large.



12th Grade

Out of metal, wood, precious stone and fabric the Jewish nation transform mundane physical objects and accomplish what our forefathers could only dream of - namely an abode for God. The Jewish nation become neighbors with God and thereby included the Almighty in all our national, religious and personal experiences. Spirituality was transformed from a fleeting sensation to a concrete, realistic, and constant element in every Jew's life.

Shiriya is one of the ways that we help our students experience that the joys of being a healthy teenager, of being an observant yeshiva high school student, of being a Frisch student are so extraordinary, are so much better than the patterns of behavior that have become the norm, or at least the norm as portrayed by the media, for teenage life in early twenty-first century America.

Shabbat Shalom, Dr. Kalman Stein

Today's Day of Learning

Thank you to Rabbi Neil Fleischmann for sponsoring today's Day of Learning in memory of his mother, Frieda Maryam bat Binyamin z"l. May her memory be a blessing.

For information about sponsoring a Day of Learning please contact Elaine.weitzman@frisch.org.

Oedipus Rex Vocabulary Projects for Greek Week

Students in Dr. Anne Berkman's 9H English class have made some creative vocabulary projects based on their studies of the Greek Play, Oedipus Rex. The projects appear below. Enjoy!

Oedipus Vocabulary Unit 3

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OEDIPUS Vocabulary in context

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Oedipus Rex Vocab_Unit_3.ppt

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Vocabulary Unit 3

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The Golden Ratio: A Greek Week Math Presentation

As a part of Greek Week, our 9th Graders saw a presentation today integrating the Geometry they are learning this year in Mathematics with the Greek culture they are studying in Ancient World History and the Biology they are learning in Science. The topic was the Golden Ratio. A summary of this presentation together with its supporting slides appears below.

The ancient Greeks are arguably the single largest contributors to the study of mathematics………

Particularly in the area of Geometry which all the Freshmen are studying this year.

The Greeks appreciated, studied and valued the connections between math, nature, and art. So you might be thinking “ What does math have to do with art?” Few people immediately see how math and art can be connected but I think after my presentation today you will have a greater and deeper understanding of a few mathematical ideas that were pervasive in ancient Greek art and design. Some of which is literally encoded in our bones.

The Parthenon, created by the ancient Greeks has been regarded through the ages as the pinnacle of architectural achievement. Having seen it myself in person, I can attest to its grandeur and regal presence. What is so cool is that it inspiring physical presence is created not only by its actual columns and facades but also by its openness or rather empty spaces. It sits on top of this mountain which I climbed in the heat of August so I remember it. From each opening between the columns you can see the vast and what once the splendid view of ancient Athens. The beauty of the Parthenon it no mere accident though.

See the ancient Greeks were keenly aware of a certain mathematical relationship called the golden ratio. Also known as the golden section, the golden mean, the divine proportion, golden number among other names. The ancient Greeks felt the Golden ratio held the mathematical key to beauty. They incorporated it into not only their study of math but also their art and architecture.

So what is the Golden Ratio? The Golden Ratio is a relationship between the sides of a rectangle of 1 to 1.618.

This golden ratio of 1 to 1.618 was eventually called “Phi” after the creator of the artwork of the Parthenon, a Greek man named Phidias. The first video we are going to watch will illustrate exactly what is the golden ratio and how it was used extensively in the creation of the Parthenon. Some thinkers feel there is no evidence that the Greeks actually thought of the golden ratio in their design of the Partheon but I think it is fair to say it was utilized.

See the golden ratio was not discovered by any one person. It is rather a mathematical fact that revealed itself to many people over the course of history. What is the very cool and mysterious part about the Golden ratio is its relationship to the Fibonacci sequence.

The Fibonacci sequence is a series of numbers where each term is the summation of the ones before it.
1+1 =
1+ 2=
2+3 =
3+ 5 = 8
And so on. This is nothing that interesting in itself until we look at the sequence more closely

1,1,2,3,5,8,13, ……These numbers end up being the natural dynamics of growth of many things in the world Hashem created. As the videos show, 1,1,2,3,5,8,13 is the natural growth of population of bunny rabbits, the bronchial branches in our lungs, the way many flowers grow, and on and on and on…….

When you look at the ratio of the numbers of the Fibonacci series, meaning 2/1, 3/2, 5/3 and so on you would expect the numbers to grow or be random numbers but NO they don’t!

The ratio gets closer and closer to the same number, PHI, the golden ratio.

See encoded in the sequence of numbers that explain the growth phenomena of much of our natural world is the golden ratio.

The entire presentation on the Golden Ratio appears below. Enjoy!



-Mrs. Sabrina Bernath
Math Department Chair

A Typical Day in 10th Grade Engineering

On Wednesday, December 14, students in Mrs. Silverman’s tenth grade engineering course entered the lab to find the instructor’s table strewn with catheters, twenty-pound x-ray resistant medical garb, an assortment of medical appliances, and a demonstration console of the Sensei® Robotic Catheter System. From the outset of the school year, students in the engineering course have become accustomed to visits from engineers, and professionals who work with cutting-edge technology, but this was something else. Frisch parent, Dr. David Feigenblum, a visiting electrophysiologist from Englewood Hospital, brought samples of the appliances he works with in operations on the heart, in order to demonstrate to the students the “real-world” application of engineering.



Dr. Feigenblum opened his presentation with a powerpoint outlining his work. As an electrophysiologist, Dr. Feigenblum is the “electrician of the heart,” and works on curing arrhythmia, or abnormal cardiac rhythms. Dr. Feigenblum explained that in operating on the heart, x-rays must be taken constantly to track the work of the physicians. Outlining the measures taken by electrophysiologists to avoid extended exposure to x-rays, Dr. Feigenblum donned a “suit” made with lead, which protects the body from x-ray exposure. Dr. Feigenblum wore the protective clothing until the concluding slides of the presentation, at which point, after taking questions, he allowed the class to approach the front desk and take a close-up look at the medical instruments.

Students began operating sample catheters and working with the Sensei operation console, which allowed the operator to experience the work carried out by an electrophysiologist. Cellphones were pulled out to take pictures of the medical instruments as well as to take photos of the students as they dressed in the protective layers worn by electrophysiologists. Mrs. Silverman’s engineering class, through lab-work and the help of visiting engineers and medical professionals, has truly been educating the students in the course about the fundamentals of engineering and its practical application.

-By Benjamin Glass, Class of 2014

And the winners are...

You might recall our Sophomore Integrated Day of Learning on the Power of the Book which took place about six weeks ago. This day which was focused on censorship and book-burning was based on the 10th grade summer reading assignments, Zusak's The Book Thief, and Zafon's The Shadow of the Wind. Students studied these topics in a number of different subject areas including Chumash with a lesson on the Tower of Babel as a Metaphor for Anti-Totalitarianism, History with lessons on Book Burning throughout History, Chemistry with a lesson on the Art of Book-Making, Talmud with a lesson on Man as a Sefer Torah, and English with a lesson on Censorship. As a summative assessment of the day, students were asked to make technology-based presentations with the winning group winning an Amazon Kindle and the two runners up winning gift cards to Barnes and Noble.

Today the winning presentations were announced. They appear below. As you will see they are pretty impressive, representing a genuine integration and extension of the information learned in the various disciplines. Here they are.

1st Place: Isabelle Berman and Elisha Penn

Book Burning Integration Day

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2nd Place: Tamar Palgon and Marlee Goodman



2nd Place: Evan Risch and Joshua Fishman

Censorship and Freedom of Speech In Judaism and In America

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The Frisch Africa Encounter, a Memorable Evening

The first ever Frisch Africa Encounter culminated on December 8, 2011. For the month of November, sophomores, whose integrated theme for the year is exploration, explored the continent of Africa. Why Africa? Aside from the fact that the curriculum at Frisch centers mostly around the Western world and so learning about a non-Western society seemed like a good idea, this year at Frisch students are learning Sefer Shmot, which tells us that we shouldn’t oppress the stranger, because we too were strangers in Egypt. By getting to know Africa and its culture, sophomores learned that we were more connected to the continent than we had thought. In fact, Golda Meir pointed out the similarities between Israel and Africa as early as the 1970’s when she said that Israel should help Africa because both had thrown off oppressors, needed to find ways to work a difficult soil and had to build up a land that had had a barely existing infrastructure.



For the Africa unit, students read either The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver or Little Bee by Chris Cleave in English classes; learned about the integration of Ethiopian Jewry into Israeli society in Hebrew classes and through a webinar with Israeli educator Smadar Goldstein; discussed in Hebrew classes the controversy over Sudanese refugees and illegal immigrants in Israel; made silhouettes about the oppression of Bnai Yisrael in Egypt, projects which were based on the artwork of African-American artist Kara Walker; and worked in history on research projects. Each sophomore chose a topic about Africa to explore individually and then to combine into a presentation with a partner for the culminating event. The sophomores shared their presentations on PowerPoints at The Frisch Africa Encounter on December 8.

The Frisch Africa Encounter also included presentations by Sophomores Marni Loffman, Simmy Borodach, Isabelle Berman, Mendy Friedman, Max Milstein and Kayla Schiffer, who explained to the parents at the event how the month’s activities were interrelated among their classes. Ariela Rivkin and Aaron Fox gave a musical presentation, playing a piece that is the national anthem for five African countries. Sophomores and their parents listened that night to a playlist that Tamar Palgon had prepared. The playlist was of songs inspired by African music. The stage in the Frisch auditorium was turned into an African village by Danielle Fishbein, Samantha Kleinhaus and the Activities Committee. An African hut; a classroom complete with chalkboard explaining the effects of malnutrition on Africa’s children; a walk simulating how African women get water; and a multi-media presentation showing an African woman walking six hours to obtain water were part of the stage’s highlights. Other highlights of the “African village” included a display of African fashion made by Julia Scheebaum and Caroline Brauner and an art project by Maayan Mossaiov.

The night also included the results of the sophomore Green-a-thon. Throughout the month, sophomores were led by the Green-a-thon committee, Lea Braun, Isabelle Berman, Marni Loffman, Melissa Maza, Ariela Rivkin, and Kayla Schiffer, in a fundraising event to benefit Jewish Heart for Africa (JHA). Sophomores did green acts in school on November 30 and were sponsored for those acts by family, friends, and Frisch schoolmates. After learning about the plight of Africans, the need to be kind to the ger, the stranger, and the controversy over Israel’s not having enough room for all the refugees who enter its borders, the sophomores were motivated to take action and support JHA. JHA uses sustainable Israeli technologies to improve life in Africa. By doing so, JHA helps Israel and Africa! Rachel Ishofsky, Associate Executive Director of JHA, attended The Frisch Africa Encounter and was blown away by all the Frisch students had accomplished over the month! She thanked the Frisch sophomore grade for their support of JHA and for sharing with her their creativity and energy. In fact, everyone at the event was impressed by the spirit, talents and knowledge that the Frisch sophomores displayed. Go, Class of 2014!

-Mrs. Tikvah Wiener

Last night's Girls Night Out: Packing clothing for Yad Leah

Last night's program was a tremendous success. 45 girls from all grades (many freshmen) came to hear Morah Racheli discuss the double standard of chessed. On the one hand there is a theme of olam chesed yibaneh - this world revolves around chessed, which implies that there are recipients of chessed. On the other hand is the notion of sonei matanos yichye, which seems to not leave any room for doing chessed if one is not to receive it. Morah Racheli then cited Rav Shimshon Refael Hirsch who highlighted that this double standard exists in several places, such as not to withhold wages, but one who is neglected wages shouldn't curse the one responsible for the injustice; the moral imperative not to be judgemental, while at the same time the obligation to judge a person favorably. The true definition of chessed, therefore, is one who does for others but does not expect back in return. Rav Eliyahu Dessler's notion that it is the little things of the day-to-day that is true chessed was highlighted by a series of very inspiring clips that literally had some of the seniors in tears. The feedback from many of the girls afterwards was that Morah Racheli's presentation really moved them.

We then proceeded to the cafteria where hundreds of bags were assembled, collected over a period of 3 weeks. The girls (along with Morah Racheli & daughter) sorted, folded, and packed in a very efficient manner. All in all we packed 45 boxes, ready to be shipped to needy families in Israel. The program was spearheaded by Erika Davidoff and Nicole Edi, and many others helped in various aspects of the program - a team effort where the students really felt empowered by the notion that they were making a difference.

-Rabbi Shelley Morris

The 9th Grade has begun their Mini Art Program in preparation for "Greek Week"

As a precursor to the 9th grade integration and "Greek Week", the 9th Grade has begun their mini art Program. Above are the photos of the first class's work. The presentation introducing this topic appears below. The students were very receptive to this program, and I can't wait to see more classes do this project. The art they have done alters existing clothing and turns it into art that reflects, identity, body image, and understanding the self- body and soul. This exhibit will be displayed at Frisch during Chanukah and "Greek Week".

9th Grade Mini Art Project- Greece

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-Ms. Ahuva Mantell
Art Department Chair, The Frisch School

Lunch and Learn: Designer Genes: Using Science to Pick the Child You Want

Please join us for an

ADULT EDUCATION LUNCH AND LEARN

“Designer Genes: Using Science
to Pick the Child You Want”

Presentation by:

R. Joshua Wald, Mashgiach Ruchani

Monday, December 12, 2011

12 noon

The Frisch School

The Henry & Esther Swieca Family Campus

The Mordecai & Monique Katz Academic Building

120 West Century Road, Paramus, NJ

201-267-9100

RSVP required: Shira.Weiss@Frisch.org