Religious school starts at 9:30 a.m. Sunday, Sept. 11. Before coming into the sanctuary, make sure to check the posted class lists to see who your child's teacher is. We'll begin the morning with some opening day announcements and then dismiss everyone to class. Pick-up is at 12:30 p.m.

We have so many new and exciting things planned for this school year! The first big change you'll notice is that we have said goodbye to Babylon. We have secured five classrooms at St. Albans School to reduce the overcrowding in our building. Sixth grade through high school classes now will be at St. Albans. Pick-up and drop-off will remain at Temple Micah.

Our next big adventure will be Chavaya: Jewish Life Experience. Chavaya is an experiential curriculum that has three components: Ulpan (Hebrew Language), Derech Eretz (Jewish Ethics), and Family Minyan (Prayer). Students in all grades except high school will participate in one of these three courses for 45 minutes every Sunday morning. They are designed to extend the Jewish experience beyond the classroom. In Ulpan, students will find themselves immersed in Hebrew as they explore life in Israel. In Derech Eretz, students will learn what it means to be, in the words of Rabbi Zemel, "morally scrupulous." And Family Minyan will allow parents to join their children in a worship setting to learn about prayer and its role in a Jewish life. Watch your mail for more details about this exciting program.

I've spent the summer working on ways to improve the quality of our midweek Hebrew instruction. I want to be sure that in our eagerness to expose our students to Hebrew as a spoken language we don't let reading instruction fall by the wayside. I've sought out materials for both students and teachers that I believe will allow us to stay true to our commitment to modern Hebrew while still taking time to focus on the basics.

Our high school program will build upon its success last year by once again offering students a challenging and thought-provoking curriculum. The focus this year will be the Holocaust and it will include multiple visits to the Holocaust Museum, as well as an in-depth study of the portrayal of the Holocaust in media. Rinat Manhoff, our high school teacher, has spent the summer combing through a mountain of resource materials in preparation for this school year. High school families will soon be receiving a syllabus along with a recommended reading list that parents and students are encouraged to make use of together.

I will once again be holding a series of mini-courses designed for parents of religious school students (although anyone is welcome and encouraged to attend). The first two classes will be held from 10:15 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. on Sept. 25 and Oct. 2, and will focus on preparing for and participating in the High Holy Days. Finally, there are number of families that have not sent in their religious school registration forms and/or their signed copies of the Covenant of Conduct. If you have not sent in your materials (or if you are not sure you have sent them in), please contact the temple office. It is very important that I have up-to-date contact information for every child.