Susie Chalom (Mon/Wed & Tues/Thur):
Dear Vav (6th grade ) parents,
I am Susie Chalom, and I will be teaching your child at Talmud Torah this year. There are two Vav classes: Monday/Wednesday class that meets from 6:00-8:00 pm and Tuesday/Thursday class that meets from 4:30-6:30. I will be assisted on Tuesdays and Thursdays by a new teacher to TT, Jeff Miller, who will teach t’fillah and reinforce reading skills. I am very excited to be teaching the Vav classes this year. Since I taught a lot of them last year, I know and really like your children and I am excited to meet those that I didn’t teach last year.
This year in our Vav class, we will be covering:
Sacred texts - Neviim - the books of Joshua, Judges and Samuel
T’fillah - The structure and choreography of the Torah Service and develop an understanding of the main prayers that it contains.
We will also be reinforcing their reading skills weekly to help them as they prepare for their Bat/Bat Mitzvahs.
Holidays - We will be deepening our knowledge of the customs and ceremonies of the holidays as we journey through the year.
Etgar project - What Jewish texts have to teach us about our life (the topics will include friendship, our pets, the food we eat, and how to treat the sick and elderly).
The Monday class will start every week with a short but meaningful Havdalah ritual with the 7th grade class. The Tuesday/Thursday class will participate in a Mifgash program that will include Havdalah every Tuesday
Jeff and I look forward to creating a strong partnership with you as we strive to create a strong and loving community together!
B’shalom,
Susie Chalom
Jeff Miller (Tue/Thur):
After 24 years away from Minneapolis, living primarily in Chicago, Manhattan, and two years in Israel, I am pleased to have now returned to my hometown of Minneapolis, to help build and further strengthen our Jewish community here. Throughout the years, I have devoted much of my personal and professional life to Jewish education and the faith.
I have taken numerous Hebrew language classes (ulpanim), both while living in Israel, and studying at Tel Aviv University. I also have a degree in Jewish Studies from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Years ago, I taught English to Israeli children, via Camp Kefiada (a Partnership 2000 program), based in Givat Olga. And, while living in Chicago, I was active in the Glass Leadership Institute program through the ADL.
By way of the Jewish Agency, I also participated in the yearlong "Project Otzma" program (a volunteership based in various cities throughout Israel), and I spent a portion of that year teaching English to elementary school students in Tiberius, Israel.
I endeavor to strengthen Jewish identity among the younger generation of our people, while remaining approachable and engaging in my teaching methods. I strongly believe that the future of the Minneapolis Jewish community is incredibly bright.
I am thrilled to be back in Minnesota, reconnecting to our community, and I look forward to an exciting and educational year of Talmud Torah!
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