Year in Review: Straight from the Students

In Jewish tradition, we come together at the culmination of a unit of study to celebrate the learning, recognize the accomplishment, and affirm our commitment to keep going! When we finish a section of Jewish study, we host a festive gathering, a Siyum. Usually, the person or people who have studied the unit share some words of Torah based on their learning and recite the "Hadran." Reflecting on the recently concluded 5786 school year, we have much to recognize and celebrate. We asked all K-8 students to reflect on their learning this year. I invite you all to enjoy the inspiration and nachas by reading student reflections on this school year (in their own three to fourteen-year-old words).

The Year in Review: End-of-Year Survey Responses

2025-2026 | 5786

What new skill did you learn this year that makes you feel proud?

Gan (Preschool)

• Understanding and speaking some Hebrew.

• Doing the white blocks, because the white blocks look like subway blocks.

• I love playing with my mommy. I love my teachers. I love doing tefillah. Me and a friend were fighting with lots of toys, and we built a house for a teacher.

• To eat.

• I'm proud that I can climb.

• Counting numbers in Hebrew.

• How I play with all my ideas - first you do your idea, and then you do my idea.

• I am excited to go to school and have fun with friends and teachers. At the beginning, I was sad and missed my Mom and Dad, but now I’m excited.

• I'm proud of my soccer skills because you have to catch something. 

• Praying!

• Building without crashing.

• Climbing on stuff that felt scary at Hippo (Playground).

• Climbing up the structure at the playground.

• To sing Hebrew songs.

• I learned to do Reading Buddies.

• The ability to draw my hand, how to take turns, and share.

• How to make a wind chime. 

Kevutzot (Elementary School)

• Reading!

• Counting by ten

• Literacy and Math

• I learned how to read Hebrew!

• Learning to write.

• Speaking and reading English.

• Learning different sounds in literacy.

• Learning how to skip two bars on the monkey bars.

• Math - ways to count

• Math problems because I am good at math.

• Reading Hebrew words more smoothly, with feeling.

• I learned that different letters can make different sounds.

• Reading paragraphs

• Reading Torah and making new friends.

• Multiplication and division

• Being able to study and write big paragraphs.

• Learning to read Torah and learning more about the Torah, including Lech Lecha.

• Writing in cursive 

• Making a book

• I learned about the physics of balance and motion.

• Writing script!

• Rashi script

• Hebrew, Navi

• I learned how to effectively write a consistent and complete narrative. 

• Getting better at understanding myself.

• I learned that it's better to have shorter sentences most of the time. 

• How to type 

• Having more confidence in myself during school.

Chativah (Middle School)

• Density, mass, and volume 

• Fractions 

• Decimals

• I learned a lot of strategies in different subjects that helped me.

• Using a Chromebook

• How to measure matter

• Dividing fractions

• How to add and subtract decimals

• Rashi script

• I learned how to write an essay.

• Algebra

• The ratio topic

• Neat handwriting

• All the parts of an essay

• I learned how to complexify my sentences and how to write an introductory paragraph.

• Everything that has to do with variables in math

• Reading תורה

• I learned how to memorize facts and commentaries from each parshah because of the “GO” tool.

• How to turn a parsha into a poster

• I learned some more spoken Hebrew skills, and feel like I really improved.

• I learned how to make a very detailed parashah into a beautiful and organized poster. I am very proud of how mine came out.

• How to lobby effectively for a cause I care about

• Simplifying algebraic expressions

• How to handle fights between my friends

• How to handle making a huge project

• How to connect and relate current events to what we are learning in class

• I learned how to manage time a little better, and that makes me feel proud.

• How to write Dvar Torahs

• How to research an organization

• How to write a good essay

• How to navigate through and learn a page of Talmud

What subject did you learn this year that you really enjoyed? Why?

Gan (Preschool)

• WE LEARNED ABOUT ALL THEM! Science, art, animals, magical creatures!

• Music (songs I learned) and holidays

• Ya'ara's performance for chanukah (video that was made during school and shared on Google Photos).  

• I liked being the siddur holder.

• Playing with the white subway blocks

• Making the rainbow because I did a lot of colors. I made a few colors. I liked the afternoon activity. I loved when I learned about leopards (today). 

• I loved learning about the animals that the kids picked to learn about.

• Science, because there can be explosions, and you have to be brave, ready, and see what happens. It's so fun, you can do drip stuff and so much stuff to explain and learn. 

• Playing with friends and writing the first letter of my name

• Israel, because I love the Israelites, because they are nice.

• Recess because we get to play, and today I really loved recess because I got to play with my reading buddies at the end of lunch for a little bit, and I walked back with mine. 

• I enjoyed math and taking the math cubes and learning.

• Arts and crafts- because I enjoy the process.

• Purim. We made hamantaschen.

• Israel- because it was fun.

• I liked learning about the Dead Sea. I don’t know why. 

Kevutzot (Elementary School)

• I liked learning for my Torah ceremony and translating.

• Math because it is fun to be able to add.

• I liked Explorations because it taught us how to study and answer questions by looking back in the pages to find the answers.

• Math because figuring out the answers is fun.

• Holidays- because we got to learn the Hebrew months.

• Math because I've always liked it. 

• I liked adding and subtracting big numbers.

• Math because some parts are easy, and some parts are hard, and I love getting a challenge in math.

• I learned number patterns. 

• Math because I am really good at it.

• Navi- because of all the strategy they used.

• Math because I really evolved.

• I really like Math 

• Hebrew- because it was fun, and I was good at the tests.

• I didn't really struggle in Math, so it felt kind of calm. 

• I enjoyed it when Avi made jokes about the words in Literacy.

• LIteracy because every once in a while, we got to learn a new sound.

• Chumash is very interesting. It has all sorts of stories like Avraham in Lech-Lecha. 

• I liked translating pesukim.

• Chumash because it was fun to doodle and interpret texts.

• Math because it is fun to be able to add.Chumash because my teacher is a good teacher, simple as that.

• Torah reading- it wasn't that hard once I learned the trope.

• Science- because magnetism is cool!

• Science because got to do fun experiments. 

• Art because it's fun.

• Art is REALLY fun and nice.

• I liked learning about "Farm to Table" because we got to make yummy pasta.

• Learning where food comes from. I really enjoyed it because we got to make pasta.

• Math because I learned how to count and more new numbers.

• Math because I get to solve problems.

• Explorations- because it's mostly kind of like a "choice time”.

• Recess- because I get to play.

• Math because I get to do early finisher work.

Chativah (Middle School)

• Hebrew because I worked a lot on the skills that I needed to, and it was more challenging than in past years.

• Humanities I liked learning about Puerto Rico and the human timeline. 

• Science because we have fun experiments that really relate to what we are learning.

• Science because of all of the experiments and projects we did.

• Tanakh because every day was the same, meaning that I was able to know what we were going to do each class. Even though I like to not do the same thing all the time, it was nice to have one class that had a routine.

•  Math because I feel confident in my math skills.

• I really enjoyed learning about the Stone Age in Humanities because it was interesting, and the project we did at the end of the unit was really fun.

• I really enjoyed learning about where my family comes from in Humanities, and I REALLY loved showing that in the heritage fair.

• Humanities. We had a lot of cool topics.

• Humanities because we did Anu (Heritage Museum Project).

• The Heritage Museum in Humanities.

• Math because our teacher taught things in a way I understood.

• Math because I think I did better in a smaller math class.

• Humanities because I loved learning about my family heritage. 

• History is really interesting and because it's a lot more open than some other classes.

• Humanities because I loved learning emotional writing with my open letter.

• Science because my teacher is really fun.

• Science because I liked all of the fun projects.

• Sheirut Kehillati because I like helping people, and I think it is good to know more ways to help people.

• I learned chemistry and physics, which are both things that I enjoy.

• Science because I think it is super cool how different chemicals can rearrange and react in such interesting ways. I enjoyed rearranging chemical formulas myself and also thought the trip to Columbia was fun and interesting.

• Science because of all the fun labs and experiments.

• Math because it really pushed me. Last year, math was really easy, and I needed a challenge. 

• Math. It has been really difficult for me in past years and not enjoyable, but this year I was able to learn many new concepts while having fun.

• Math because my teacher was amazing, and I believe graphs are fun.

• Humanities because did a lot of fun exercises and read a lot of interesting books.

• Math, and I was able to show my knowledge in the Regents test.

• Math because I liked most of the things that we learned.

• Art- because I liked my projects. 

• Math because I haven't been very good at math until this year, and I feel proud.

Did you learn anything new about yourself this year, either because you changed or you never realized it before? 

Gan (Preschool)

I learned…

• How to become better at sharing.

• that I like digging trucks.

• That I like to have friends in the clubhouse. 

• That you have to love yourself. 

• that I can swing on the monkey bars!

• That sometimes you have to be silly; sometimes you have to be serious; sometimes you have to be in between. 

• About skin colors, like they could be white, black. My skin is whiteish peach. I never realized my freckles before, and now I see freckles on my body. I had them since I was born, I think. 

• That I really like to draw.

• I have a good imagination.

Kevutzot (Elementary School)

I learned that…

• I used to be silly every second, and now I'm only silly sometimes.

• I like to read.

• I can leap.

• I'd be able to read Hebrew stories.

• I can love doing the hard things before the easy things.

• I can make new friends.

• I feel happy meeting new friends. :)

• I liked to pretend that I like to be a scout (in Glitter-Slime Monster).

• I've gotten better at stuff like subjects. I'm very smart.

• I’m good at running fast. 

• I am good at climbing. I learned that during recess on a field trip, when we went to a different playground when we went to the Skyscraper Museum.

• I'm better at knowing what I'm feeling and why.

• I can use my voice and say how I feel.

• I am a writer and a reader. 

• I can do things even if they are very hard.

• I could draw a new type of hair.

• I can do something that is hard. When something was hard or I couldn’t remember, I was patient and thought. Then, I remembered. 

• I like the Harry Potter series.

• I have really neat handwriting if I try. 

• I am good at typing.

• I'm kind of good at typing.

• I am really good at writing.

• I like long division.

Chativah (Middle School)

I learned that…

• I could play frisbee and play catch with a real ball in the park.

• I'm very impatient.

• I can throw a forehand and a backhand in Frisbee.

• I like making up silly games with my friends.

• I love Zen Art.

• I can think and find out new stuff.

• I love art, especially Zen Art with Stephanie every Wednesday after school.

• Fidgets help me learn better.

• I need a more open environment.

• I have been able to further establish and identify my likes and dislikes.

• If I try hard, I can do it.

• My friends are great.

• I love poetry! I also realized that I have amazing talent with writing and poetry.

• I really like reading תורה.

• I was able to memorize things and that it really helped me with tests, etc.

• Rage was a lot higher on my emotional chart than I thought.

• If I am persistent and try to find the solution to a problem that I don't understand, I can figure it out. (This came up in math, but I bet I can also apply it to real life.)

• This year, I learned that I am a leader and a person people look up to in all aspects of my life, even when I don't try to, so I need to make sure that I show people the part of me I am proud of.

• I can be productive when I am in a rush.

• I am very good at writing essays (in my opinion).

• When I put my mind to it, I can do whatever I want to.

• I really need a template before starting a project.

• I can be a very good Torah scholar.

• I can do difficult things even if I don't want to.

• I should manage my time better. 

What did you learn about our Beit Rabban community or the world this year?

Gan (Preschool)

I learned…

• The Beit Rabban anthem.

• The B, the D, the C, and the R subway.

• That the head of school gives really good hugs.

• That there’s no talking loudly at school.

• That you cannot touch other people's bodies unless they say yes.

• We do Shabbat b’yachad because we see pictures of ourselves and sing special songs.

• That Beit Rabban is a kind school. 

• That at Beit Rabban, we speak English and Ivrit.

• That the world sometimes has different maps, and the world has experience.

• EVERYTHING!!!

• about earth.

• That on some days I did it Gan-Varod style, which is I get the backpack, and then they call you to the door where you're going.

• That Jews live in Israel, and the Israel flag, and today we talked about Israel flags. I learned that Palestinians live in Israel too.

• About the states this year in a game.

• That sometimes we do not have class.

• About kindness, and filling other people's buckets, and how to help my friends.

• That in Israel, the Dead Sea water isn’t good to drink because it’s too salty, but the lake is good to drink. 

Kevutzot (Elementary School)

I learned…

• People who live in different countries wear different things

• That the world is green and blue. 

• That on the fifth floor, there is a double classroom for the fourth graders.

• That one person can change the world.

• That the world revolves around everyone and not just us. Everyone is important and needs to be listened to.

• That Benei Israel were slaves once Pharaoh was mad. He didn't want Jewish babies to live. Moshe's mom didn't give him to the Pharaoh. She put Moshe in a tub, and then the tub went to Pharaoh's house. The end.

• About Stephanie’s costume closet this year and that Beit Rabban has 8 grades.

• That Beit Rabban is a lovely place.

• That Beit Rabban is kind.

• That our class logo was a unicorn. And also that horses chew something, and then it comes back up, and then they chew it again. 

• That New York City is important to a lot of people in the world.

• That people take care of me. Like when I got a cut, and Ilana helped me get up and told the teacher that I got hurt.

• That we do musical tefillah every Tuesday.

• That in Israel, there are flowers that when you pick them, they are still red.

• About the transit system.

• That the world is home to very different animals and people.

• About other countries in the world and about their flags, food, and religions.

• Everybody counts in a community!

• So many things about a place I've been to in Explorations.

• That you need to take care of the world.

• That it's a very good place!

• About countries and about biomes such as the rainforests, deserts, grasslands, wetlands, oceans, and the arctic. 

• That when we honor someone, we really honor them. We don’t just say “yay”; we get really excited, and we do stuff for them, like when we honored Stephanie.

• That Beit Rabban is the best.

• That the world is flat. :) I also learned that books are fun. I learned that Beit Rabban doesn't learn a lot of tefillot.

• That Beit Rabban helps make friends by making Lunch Bunch.

• That being a reading buddy is really fun because then you get to make a new friend.

• That there is summer reading

• That over 6 million people died in the Holocaust. 

• That during healthy living, we are allowed to "curse".

• That Beit Rabban's good, but the world is a seriously messed-up place.

• About what happened in Denmark during the Holocaust.

• More about the holocaust this year.

• That a long time ago, it was so bad for the Jews. 

• I learned about Chidon Hatanach, which I want to do next year.

Chativah (Middle School)

I learned…

• More about the world.

• More geography.

• That the world is kind.

• That the Chativah is very welcoming

• That PARDES trips are really fun.

• That here, I don't feel pressured to be someone that I'm not.

• That there are a myriad of things that I will never know, more even than I had thought in prior years, and I'm okay with that.

• That community is important.

• That we have been a school since the 1900s.

• That so many people are living really terribly in certain places, or if they are trying to immigrate.

• That the Beit Rabban community is so welcoming. 

• That there are a lot more kids here than I thought - I used to know everyone in the school, and now I don't.

• That although the North didn't have slavery, they had racism too. 

• A lot about how things are composed, held together, change, and interact.

• About the conflicts of the past. 

• A lot about many topics, such as our government and wars in other countries, from Humanities where someone would find an article about current events in the world and explain it to the class every week. 

• That the Beit Rabban community lets all people come to visit and help the community with whatever the community needs.

• How important it is to advocate for myself, as well as others.

• A lot about non-profits and lobbying.

• That Beit Rabban is one of a kind, and it will be hard to find myself in a new place, but I know that I can always come back.

• That there are a lot of people who really want to do good in the world and help other people.

• That the Beit Rabban community is extremely accepting of the LGBTQIA+ community!

• That people have different opinions for many different reasons.

• So much about how non-profit organizations work, including Beit Rabban.