http://bnottorah.com Mon, 06 Feb 2012 07:52:55 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en This past Bayit Cham, at the home of our Chonechet, Ricki Leybovich, proved to be a combination of the wacky and the serious, the calm and the crazy, the light and the deep! You see, in our group, we can plan events, but things don't always go as planned. It all started calm and normal enough. We were greeted with the wonderful aroma of hearty tomato soup (with rice of course) and fresh, home baked bread. As we all settled down and enjoyed our "family" meal, there was light chatter, some laughter and comfortable shmooze (with consistent refilling of the bread basket). After we were all warmed up from the soup and pleasantly satiated, Ricki brought out a beautifully sculptured bundt cake-- Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cake (whole wheat of course!!) YUM!!! After we had worked our way through our cake and tea/coffee, we said goodbye to those who had to leave for Chumash project tutoring. So sad to see you go! Those who stayed decided that instead of playing our planned game... Click “Read More” to read the full description and see all the slideshow pictures!!]]> http://bnottorah.com/blog/2012/02/05/warm-tasty-supper-at-our-chonechets-house/ We rushed to our Chonechet’s house, and tried to change quickly into fun and chilled Bayit Cham mode. We tried and tried, but our minds were still flooded with thoughts of that Chumash paper we had due. We stepped into her cozy apartment, and almost immediately our minds went to sleep and our senses took control. Yummm… the mouth watering aromas of soup, delicious food and all the hallmarks of an awesome night with our Chonechet. Appropriately, the night’s theme was to de-stress, relax, and pamper yourself. Wow, that was exactly what we needed! We sank down into the couches and each made ourselves a delicious Panini dinner, using an assortment of freshly cut vegetables and fillings. Tuna melt paninis were a big favorite, consisting of cheese, tuna fish, tomatoes, corn, peppers, carrots, onions etc. This was combined with a scrumptious French onion soup, complete with croutons and the trademark melted cheese. We finished off by baking some delicious hot peach muffins, and cooling off from the soup with drinks of refreshing lemon water. Click “Read More” to read the full description and see all the slideshow pictures!!]]> http://bnottorah.com/blog/2012/02/02/chumash-paper-themed-bayit-cham/ While we are formally no longer in the month of Teves anymore, and have just completed celebrating Rosh Chodesh Shevat, everyone is still very much abuzz and happy for all of the Teves S.T.A.H.R. Award winners! There were over 20 girls hailing from Los Angeles to Baltimore, to New York to Seattle, and even some girls who are repeat S.T.A.H.R. Award Winners. The entire school was gathered for a mid-morning celebration complete with Rabbi Sharfman's famous hot chocolate as well as cinnamon and chocolate rugelach! Next, Rabbi Sharfman presented certificates to every S.T.A.H.R. Award winner! In fact, there were even 2 girls who scored 100% in every aspect of the Sharfman's Torah Academic Honor Roll—or more simply put the S.T.A.H.R. Program! You see, at Sharfman's, each and every year, we are constantly striving to create more cutting edge innovation to further inspire and empower our girls with new ways to maximize their potential as Jewish women! As first announced last year, we have launched the new and exciting program known as: Sharfman's Torah Academic Honor Roll—or more simply put the S.T.A.H.R. Program! This program Click “Read More” to read the full description and see all the slideshow pictures!!]]> http://bnottorah.com/blog/2012/01/30/meet-the-teves-s-t-a-h-r-award-winners/ http://bnottorah.com/blog/2012/01/29/parshat-bshalach-the-test-of-manna/ Every year around this time, we are all in full swing working towards the final steps of the Chumash Paper. And so, our Beit Midrash is full of vibrant life and really one of a kind! There are so many of us who are researching our own personal topic. By now we have spent countless hours pouring over various sources and texts ranging from a Ramban to a Rav Dessler. In fact, many of us have stayed late into the night or researched on Motzei Shabbat various Seforim that we have available in the comfortable confines of our Bnot Torah Beit Midrash. Plus, we have had many weeks to work on it and tons of help from the many knowledgeable Chonechet's and Beit Midrash Tutors who are ready to assist you to help you understand the depth of of our heritage. These amazing... Click “Read More” to read the full description and see all of the slideshow pictures!]]> http://bnottorah.com/blog/2012/01/26/inspiration-growth-through-the-chumash-paper/ If I had to make the difficult choice of choosing which week has been the most exciting week in school until now, I would probably vote for Bein Adam L'Chaveiro Week somewhere in My Personal Top 5! For 7 days we celebrated Bein Adam L'Chaveiro Week in unique Sharfman's style. It started when the school assigned each girl in the school a "Nutty Buddy." In order to show the girls how much there is to gain from an unexpected friendship, Sharfman's matched up girls who really didn't know each other well. Each "Nutty Buddy" was to shower her "Buddy" with small daily presents during the course of the week. The results far exceeded the expectations :-) Girls spent a lot of time finding out about their Buddies so they could find cute inexpesnive gifts which suited the recipient. In the process, they discovered how distinctive each individual girl is. Gifts ranged from a jump rope for a Buddy who is into physical fitness... Click “Read More” to read the full description and see all of the slideshow pictures! ]]> http://bnottorah.com/blog/2012/01/23/ben-adam-lchaveiro-week/ Wow!! What a Shabbaton! We left early in the morning and toured various locations in the Kinneret. Plus, we even got to go bowling and bowl against the various faculty members who joined us for this unforgettable Shabbaton held in the gorgeous Kinar Hotel overlooking the luscious banks of the famous Kinneret. Joining us for the magical weekend were 10 Faculty members, including Rabbi Sharfman, Mrs. Sharfman, our Mechanchot, Mrs. Haymann and Mrs. Fuld, as well as a surprise array of teachers!! When we entered our rooms, we saw that the extra "Sharfman's Warmth" was even placed into our rooms, as we found an assorted array of Shabbos treats that were placed in our hotel rooms ahead of time, just for us!! Plus, throughout Shabbos there were inspiring Shabbos meals, a Friday Night Tish, led by Mrs. Chana Silver, that seemed to last into the early hours of Shabbos morning :) What's more, the Kinar Hotel Shabbaton also featured unique discussion groups for us to continue our quest to further our knowledge as highly educated young Jewish women. On Motzie Shabbat we enjoyed a lovely... Click “Read More” to read the full description and see all of the slideshow pictures!]]> http://bnottorah.com/blog/2012/01/19/inspirational-kinar-hotel-shabbaton/ Yummm...freshly baked homemade delicious Challah! For this Rakezet Wednesday Night Activity, we all had a blast making our own Challah. Mrs. Zweig brought and showed us everything we will ever need to know about baking Challah in our own home. From how to make your challah fluffy, to the best way to knead the dough, she didn't miss a beat! She taught us 7 different ways to shape our Challah and even demonstrated each one of these various techniques. In fact, each girl got her own piece of dough and got to practice all the beautiful different ways to make their own unique Challah. All the girls really got to demonstrate their creativity, and we all did a great job!! Indeed, Mrs. Zweig told us that she was very impressed with what we all came up with. After the activity, we all went back to our apartments and baked the Challah so that we could enjoy the fruits of our labor. Best of all, we had our freshly baked Challah... Click “Read More” to read the full description and see all of the slideshow pictures!]]> http://bnottorah.com/blog/2012/01/15/mrs-zweigs-famous-challah-baking-workshop/ http://bnottorah.com/blog/2012/01/11/parshat-shemos-making-a-name-for-yourself/ At Bayit Cham Events, all of the girls really felt right at home in the local homes of our Chonchot who live literally minutes away from school! Best of all, we had surprise birthday parties for Daniella Yasinov of St. Louis and Sora Ruchel Jaffe of Queens, New York!! Happy birthday wishes to them both and may they only continue to have a year of happiness and hatzlacha! What’s more, we started our Bayit Cham Supper with fresh and warm whole wheat bread from the oven. Then we had cream of butternut squash soup and a wonderful salad bar where everyone chose from any type of vegetable. Plus, girls could choose tuna, corn, croutons, grilled sweet potato, and balsamic thousand island and Italian dressing! After that we had fresh and tasty lasagna that our Chonechet brought right out of the oven! We also heard great Divrei Torah from our fellow students! A good time was had by all as we all had a great time simply hanging out and getting to bond until finally the evening came to a close. Click “Read More” to read the full description and see all of the slideshow pictures! ]]> http://bnottorah.com/blog/2012/01/10/a-special-birthday-bayit-cham-2/