THE LION`S ROAR - Milwaukee Jewish Day School

VOLUME 2, ISSUE 4
JANUARY 22, 2016
THE LION’S ROAR
THE STUDENT NEWSPAPER OF MILWAUKEE JEWISH DAY SCHOOL
Meet the new Head of School!
by Ariana Rosenfeld
Everyone has heard about the new Head of
School, Gev. Primakow. But who is she?
Gev. Primakow may seem like a new name
to you but she has worked at MJDS before, as
the Director of Development and Admissions.
She worked at MJDS for 10 years.
Gev. Primakow has also worked as a
community planner for the Milwaukee Jewish
Federation and as a school counselor at
Whitefish Bay Middle School. She went to
college at the University of Rhode Island and
studied communications and education and the
University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee for her
graduate degree in educational psychology.
Gev. Primakow loves to read, kayak, snorkel
and take bike rides.
Gev. Primakow has two grown sons who
went to MJDS, Evan who graduated in 1995
and Jordan who graduated in 1997. She loves
to spend time with her grandchildren. One of her
grandkids is in senior kindergarten at MJDS.
So why did Gev. Primakow decide to come
back to MJDS? ”I think MJDS is a very
important place in the Jewish community. I have
also seen that the impact that MJDS makes on
a student stays with them long after they leave MJDS. I cannot think of a better place to work. I
love working with kids, and to me a school is the best place to work, and that is the truth!” she
said. Her goal is to make MJDS the best Jewish day school it can possibly be. She would also like
to make all the students, parents, and teachers feel wonderful about being a part of MJDS.
What are some of the Head of School's duties? Is she a principal or a dean? According
to Gev. Primakow, the Head of School has many jobs, like representing the school, working on
money and fundraising, and making sure the teachers have what they need. She is also the chief
cheerleader for MJDS and everyone at MJDS.
When asked how MJDS affected her life, Gev.Primakow said, ”I think that when I worked
here the first time and when my children went here, it helped me practice Judaism. It also led me
to my career of doing work for the Jewish community.”
So, remember to say “hi” to Gev. Primakow in the hallways!
And what is Adon King’s new job? Adon King is now the director of innovation.
Mummified chickens: stinky but educational
by Dara Carneol
Sometimes learning stinks. Literally. Have you ever
smelled a putrid stench in the upstairs hallways? It’s
Adon Kaufman’s mummified chickens!
Adon Kaufman’s sixth grade class is studying
ancient Egypt, and what better way to begin this project
than by mummifying something just like the Egyptians
did! The sixth grade prepared a chicken for
mummification and let the chicken sit for 45 days! What
do the sixth graders think about this? “It’s good and
bad. It’s good because it's hands-on learning, but it’s
bad because it's a little gross. I won’t need mummifying
skills in the future, and it makes the school smell like
rotten chickens and Febreze!” says Ariana in sixth
grade.
Adon Kaufman created this project because
reading about mummies isn’t very fun. Making a
mummy is a brand new experience, and it helps the
students do
lots
of
learning about
how things are
mummified. Everyone knows about mummies, but not
many people know how they’re made.
The steps of mummifying are: First, get a raw
chicken, pour rubbing alcohol over it and pat dry.
Then, take one carton of salt and one carton of
baking soda, and coat and stuff the chicken with the mix.
Repeat for ten days. Then, once the chicken is practically
leather, take all the salt and baking soda off, and stuff with
herbs that have a pleasant smell. Then wrap in plaster
and sports wrap, and BOOM! You’ve got yourself a
mummified chicken!
I asked Adon Kaufman what he would do differently
next time, and this was his response, “I would make things
more systematic and have everyone have a job every
day.”
So the next time you smell that horrible smell,
remind yourself that learning is going on!
Meme by Ariana Rosenfeld
Editorial
The middle school schedule needs changes!
By Haley Shamah
Hey middle school, are you satisfied with your schedule? Well, I’m not. I have some
suggested changes. The overall schedule is good, but there are some flaws. Here are a few of my
ideas.
For one, the day of hadracha. Hadracha was a fun cool-down from the long week at school.
Now, during early dismissal, we still have hadracha, but it’s on Tuesdays. Because of this, for most
people, hadracha is not as special. I propose that hadracha be changed back to Fridays.
A cool thing that MJDS has started doing this year is Exploring the Core. (To learn what ETC
is, see The Lion’s Roar, volume 2, issue 1.) I personally really like ETC, and I look forward to it
every week. But last quarter both ETC classes each week were made shorter to make room for
study hall while only one omanut class was made shorter. I find this is really unfair because ETC is
just as important, if not more important, than omanut. So if we are making classes shorter, take the
same amount of time from each class. And why are we making classes shorter in the first place?
As far as I am concerned, the extra time was just added to the class beforehand.
Has anyone ever had to remind your teacher what time class gets out? Or are teachers
spending too much time looking at the clock to make sure they get the dismissal correct? I have a
simple solution. Bring back the bells! There are no bells this year because the schedules are not
aligned, but why not align them? With bells, teachers can spend more time teaching their students,
and all the students will be on time to their next classes. It’s a win-win! It’s also important that
schedules are aligned because otherwise students going to their next class disturb classes already
in session. Almost every day when I go to Hebrew, Gev. Milbeck opens her door and tells us to be
quiet. She has good intentions, but let’s be realistic. It’s just not possible for students to be quiet
when transitioning. Locker doors must be closed, and transition time is one of the best times to
talk. Not everything can wait until lunch!
As an avid bookworm, I find it really annoying that the library isn’t always open when I want
to check out a book. Right before school the library is locked, and three days a week the library is
closed right after school. These are the best times to browse and check out books, and the library
is not open! I propose that the library be open 15 minutes before school every day and that the
library should be open for at least 15 minutes after school, except on Fridays, when the library
should be open for 10 minutes after school. That way, everyone gets a chance to go to the library if
he or she can’t find a time during school hours.
These are just a few of my suggestions about the schedule. I think if these few issues are
fixed, middle school will have a pretty awesome schedule.
Cartoon by
Eden
Goldenberg
Heard in the Hallways
What’s your favorite sport? Who’s your favorite athlete?
Interviews and Photos by Ellie Sprinkmann
Yael (JK): Dance because it’s fun.
Breeanna (3rd): Swimming because I like water.
Leo (JK): Tennis because I like to hit the ball.
Hallie: (SK): T-ball because it’s fun.
Gavin (3rd) : Hockey because I love to ice skate.
Maddie (4th): Dance because it makes me happy.
Joe (4th): Soccer because I can play it when I am
older.
Jessi (5th): Soccer because I get to run a lot.
Sam (5th): Tennis because it is one of the things
that I know how to play. Aaron Rodgers is my
favorite athlete
Dara (6th): Ballet because it builds lots of muscles
for the future. Michael Phelps, the swimmer, is my
favorite athlete.
Peyton (SK): Hockey because I get to skate.
Mariela (1st): Swimming because I get
to go in the pool. Gabby Douglas is my favorite
athlete.
Braden (1st): Baseball because I get to run the
bases. Ryan Braun is my favorite athlete.
Simon (2nd): Basketball. Stephan Curry
favorite athlete.
is my
Noah (6th) : Soccer because I like to kick stuff.
James Harden, the basketball player, is my favorite
athlete.
Sara (7th): Tae kwon do because my dad is the
head instructor. Bruce Lee the martial artist is my
favorite athlete.
Daniel (8th): Football because it is violent.
favorite athlete is Messi, the soccer player.
My
Danya (8th): Dance because it's fun and it’s not
easy. Chloe Lukasiak from Dance Moms is my
favorite athlete.
Forensics team prepares for successful season
by Eden Goldenberg
Forensics. What do you think of when
you hear this word? Public speaking? Medals?
Fun? Competitions? Rivalry? From first years
to veterans, these people love forensics!
”Forensics is a public speaking
competition,” says Adon
Kaufman. This year there are 24
students in forensics. “It’s a lot of
kids! This is awesome!”
“There are 16 different
categories. For students who
think they’re very funny, there’s
Humorous Solo,” says Adon
Kaufman. Humorous solo is
when you memorize a piece that
is a form of comedy. “For those
who want to work with friends
there is Group Interp,” which is
when you use your script, but are
not allowed to look at each other.
He explains,
“For those who
have a skill that they want to
showcase,
there’s
demonstration. For those that
just want to read a challenging
story, there’s Prose.” Some
examples of prose pieces are
Junie B. Jones and The Diary of
Anne Frank. “Poetry is all about
reading your favorite poems or
poet’s works.”
Adon Kaufman decided
to coach because, “I’ve coached
at every school I’ve been at, and
it’s a great activity to learn how to
speak actively in public.” When
and where are the meets? “The
meets are all over the state of
Wisconsin. We are competing at
three tournaments, he explains.
”There are generally 3-25
schools per meet. “The first
tournament we’re going to is at
Golda Meir School on February
4. Our second tournament is at
Whitefish Bay on March 13. Our
third tournament is on March 20 at MJDS. We
also have dual meets that we have set up with
other schools,” said Adon Kaufman A dual
meet is “us against them,” or basically MJDS
vs. another school.
MJDS will also have a Forensics
Showcase in conjunction with the
eighth grade Poetry Night on
Tuesday, Feb. 16.
What is going to be
different this year about forensics
from in the past? “We have more
than one meet, and there are
multiple coaches this year, says
Adon Kaufman. What is your
favorite part about forensics?
“Seeing everyone get better at
public speaking,” he explains.
How many school/teams have you
coached so far? “I have coached
three different teams so far,” he
says.
“Moments in History” is
Adon Kaufman’s favorite forensics
category. However, he says that
Moments in History is the least
popular, and Group Interp is the
most popular this year.
A forensics veteran, Sara
Gendelman says that her favorite
part about forensics is “probably
working with friends and having
fun with them, and getting into the
script and becoming a character.”
Taliah Lansing, who is
new to forensics this year, says
the best part about it is “learning
how to do public speaking, having
fun with your friends, making the
script come to life and making it
your own.”
The team hopes to win another
first place trophy like last year’s
team. (Photo by Haley Shamah)
Where are they now? Updates on our shin shinim
by The Lion’s Roar Staff
Moshe Shmueli was the 2012-2013 shin shin. After MJDS, he
went to the army to be a combat fighter in the Golani brigade. He became
a sergeant, which is the commander of twelve soldiers. “Being a
commander means that you are little bit of a friend, mother and father to
your soldiers. You get to know them better than anyone else.” Now he is in
officer’s school. Once he is done, he will be in charge of 30 soldiers. After
the army, he would like to go to school to become a doctor. To the left is a
photo of Moshe in the army.
Maor Edri is studying industrial engineering and management at
Ben-Gurion University in Beer-Sheva. He spent last semester at Drexel
University in Philadelphia as part of a student exchange program. In the
army, he was a combat soldier with a special infantry force in the Nahal
brigade, serving in the West Bank and Gaza. “Since I finished my shin
shin year I have met a lot of former MJDS students in Israel. It’s very
impressive to see how many MJDS kids come to visit in Israel,” he wrote.
“Eight years later, I can still say that my year of service in Milwaukee was
one of the best experiences I ever had.”
Yaniv Carmi is in his first year of college at Tel-Hal in the north
of Israel. He is studying education and history and hopes to become a
high school teacher. In the army, he served as a fighter in one of the
intelligence units. “I can easily say that being a shin shin totally changed
my life! It is one of the reasons I chose to study education,” Yaniv wrote.
“After being a shin shin I started to learn more and more about Judaism,
and I am now taking an active role in the Hillel on my campus. And more
than everything, thanks to my year in Milwaukee I met my girlfriend at Interlaken.” He hopes to be in
Milwaukee this summer.
Snir Shoshany just finished the army last month; his job was confidential. He is currently working
in kibbutz agriculture. He had the opportunity to visit with some teachers in the summer. He also was in
Milwaukee for the Maccabi games last summer and saw the previous eighth graders in Israel last year.
Below is a picture of him in the army.
Itamar Shahar was a shin shin in 2014-2015. He is currently in basic training for an intelligence
unit. His job is very secret. Itamar said,”The shin shin year made a huge impact on me. I learned so many
new things, and I got to see and meet so many awesome people! The year helped me to be more mature
and to improve my skills in almost everything.” He hopes to come back to Milwaukee soon.
Yonatan Ben-Ari was a shin shin in the school year 2013-2014. Right now he has finished basic
training and is sailing on the Israeli Naval Ship Eilat. “We sail a lot, which sounds nice but can be difficult
when there are waves over 10 feet high or when you spend 10 days in a row at sea. My number one plan is
to go traveling after my service and
see as many new places as I possibly
can. I do miss MJDS so much!
Nitzan Livni is still in the army
in an intelligence unit. She is training
to be an officer. She will be in charge
of lots of soldiers and will have lots of
work to do. She says it is a big
challenge, but she is very excited for
it. In Israel she saw last year’s eighth
graders. The year she was a shin
shin, she learned how to speak in
front of an audience. Most
importantly, she learned a lot about
herself and got to meet amazing
people. She is planning to visit the
U.S. soon.
Second graders help Ronald McDonald House
By Ali Salinsky
Gev. Dowling and the second graders came up with the idea to collect items for the Ronald
McDonald House. They picked this project because it involves kids helping other kids in our community.
“Kehillah is our theme this year, and it seemed like a good fit,” said Gev. Dowling. Also, their needs were
items that Gev. Dowling felt would be easy to collect.
The Ronald McDonald House is a “home away from home” for families whose children are
receiving medical care at Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin or other area hospitals. It offers a place to call
home at little or no cost, so families can stay together. Meals and community spaces are provided so
families can have some fun and be a part of a community of families who form friendships and support each
other during difficult times. The house can serve up to 70 families each night. There is a fitness center,
music room, computer area and pedestrian bridge that
links RMHC with Children’s Hospital.
The second grade is starting to the project
this month by making fleece blankets. At the Ronald
McDonald House they have movie nights for the kids,
and during movie nights the kids will use the blankets.
In February the second graders are going to
collect the items for sibling bags, which include
journals, markers, crayons, stickers and activity books.
In March, they are going to collect new books and toys
for the Magic Room. When a child arrives at the Ronald
McDonald House, they are given a key to the Magic
Room, which is a place to escape the pressure of
hospitals, doctors, medicines and treatments.
In April the second graders are making
welcome bags, which will include toiletries, shampoos,
toothpaste, toothbrushes and snacks for movie night.
In May, the second grade is going to visit the
Ronald McDonald House to see firsthand where their
donations have gone, get a tour and see their special
“Secret Garden.” They will also collect aluminum pop
tabs and make cards for occasions such as birthdays
and holidays.
The seventh graders are helping the second
graders collect these items. A couple of weeks ago,
they made signs to put on a box when they deliver the
items.
Want to get involved in doing a mitzvah? This
is a perfect mitzvah: collect for the Ronald McDonald
House and put smiles on the kids’ faces.
Bringing you the news: The Lion’s
Roar staff
The Lion’s Roar
is written and edited by students in Milwaukee
Jewish Day School’s Explore the Core Program
Editor in Chief: Gev. Wright
Contact us at lionsroar@mjds.org