STEAM@Akiva
The Fayer Innovation Lab acts as the central hub of innovation at Akiva. Ideas are conceptualized and turned into reality in this rich space. Browse some of our extensive STEAM (Science-Technology-Engineering-Arts-Mathematics) curriculum at Akiva.
The Science of Camouflage
Grade 1 wraps up their investigation of animal camouflage by creating their own classroom-camouflaged moths. Students learned about colour, pattern, and blending to keep their moths hidden in plain sight.
Center of Gravity
Grade 2 gets hands on with the concepts of balance and an object's center of gravity. The students explore how a plumb bob can help them find the center of gravity for different objects and built their own acrobatic self-balancing paper robot.
Let the Games Begin!
Grade 5 works on designing their sumo wrestling robots. The physical design of the robot is just as important as the code that decides how the robot behaves. A low center of mass and a well programmed light sensor helps the robots stay in the ring and win the...
Bridging the Digital Divide
Grade 6 learns how to bridge the gap between digital and physical objects. The MakeyMakey teaches the basics of circuits and allows students to use their coding knowledge to create unique and interactive projects.
The Atmosphere
Under the unit of Earth & Space, Grade 6 students learn about gravity, and pressure within the different atmospheric layers. They also learn to relate to different objects that could be found travelling through these atmospheric layers.
Energy & Sound Waves
As part of the topic of energy, Grade 5 students represent their understanding of the fundamental properties of sound waves. They also experiment with how sound propagates through a variety of different materials.
Putting Design at work- The Akiva Environment
Grade 2 students use tools designed and constructed in STEAM time to help keep the Akiva outdoor yard clean and promote an eco-friendly environment.
Herbs and Culture
Akiva students from different grade levels plant take part in the creation of an herb garden. The herb garden utilizes the new Akiva plant growth station to grow a variety of herbs including basil, chamomile, chive, cilantro, dill, oregano, parsley, rosemary,...
Scratch Programming – Robotics-Gr5
Grade 5 students learn to code using Scratch and EV3 educational Robotics. They use collaboration and problem-solving skills to solve challenges and create educational simulations.
Our Solar System
Grade 2 students learn about the solar system through hands on art-crafts activities. The focus of this activity was on the earths movement around the sun.
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Rabbi Grossman’s Blog Corner
Rabbi Grossman's Corner
A knife to Canadian Jews – The Times of Israel Blog Post
(Post appearing in The Times of Israel Blog, March 11th, 2024) As an opening gambit in their war against the Jews, in the early 1930s the Nazis ended shechitah, Jewish ritual slaughter. At a time when antisemitic incidents reminiscent of pre-war Germany are exploding...
Morality from the Sewers
As appeared in The Times of Israel Blog... Visiting the Dachau concentration camp on a trip to Germany this summer, I was drawn to an exhibit on Nazi medical experimentation that illustrated the brutal procedures performed on inmates at Dachau and other camps during...
Rosh Hashanah Message from the Head of School 2023
Same Time, Next Year We are familiar with the story of Jews and Egyptian oppression: The suffering slaves flee their bondage and escape to the desert where God speaks to them and makes them a great nation. This story also appears in the Torah reading of Rosh...
Akiva High Holiday Message 2022
Not by Punishment For our annual Father’s Day outing this June I asked my sons if I could take them to the Kingston Penitentiary. They agreed, but only after my assurance that they would be returning with me to Montreal afterward, and that the prison has been...
Message from Rabbi Grossman – Long Live the Queen
In antiquity, the passing of years was numbered by the reign of the living monarch, thus we find in the Bible, “In the twentieth year of Jeroboam king of Israel (1 Kings 15:9),” or “In the first year of Cyrus king of Persia (Ezra 1:1).” The death of a sovereign meant...
Elijah and our Children: No Trouble at All
Any child who has been called a troublemaker can take comfort in being the victim of the same accusation that was hurled against Elijah the Prophet (Eliyahu HaNavi). Ahab, the wicked King of Israel, dubbed Elijah the “Troubler of Israel” for opposing his policies of...
Sanctuary and Sacrifice – Message from the Head of School
The Torah contains an odd number of books perhaps in order that one book be in the middle and thus allow us to say: here is the center of God’s message to us. That book is Leviticus, and its central message is Sanctuary and Sacrifice. Leviticus, which we begin to...
Chanukkah Message – A Small Glimmer of Light
The world seems to have become very dark. As we enter the winter months the darkness of night encroaches upon day, stealing increasing minutes of light each week. Were we not to understand the cycle of the sun, we would fear, like the ancients, that darkness would...
When They Call On Me, I Will Answer Them
There is much to celebrate this week. As Jews in Quebec, the past days have been filled with bounty and blessing. COVID cases are at record lows, and vaccination rates are high. The province and its businesses are opening up, and restrictions are down. We are...
The Tragedy in Meron – A Message from Rabbi Grossman
I have set before you today life and death, blessing and curse. Choose life. (Deuteronomy 30:19) When given the choice, the Torah tells us to choose life and blessing over death and curse. While this may seem obvious, the world of ancient Israel was filled with pagan...