20 | NOVEMBER 17 • 2022 

OUR COMMUNITY

F

arber Hebrew Day School 
opened its doors to the 
community Sunday, Oct. 30, 
for its first-ever Noah’s Ark-themed 
STEM day for children ages 4-8.
Fifty-five families and nearly 100 
children spent up to 90 minutes 
in the school’s multipurpose room 
engaging with eight unique stations 
that touched upon different 
aspects of science, tech-
nology, engineering 
and math, all with 
some kind of 
connection 
to the Torah 
portion of 
Noah. 
“The 
purpose of 
the STEM 
event was 
three-fold,
” 
said Head of 
School Dr. Josh 
Levisohn. “First, 
we wanted to create 
an engaging, fun, com-
munity-building experience, 
especially after two years of such 
limited in-person interactions.
“Second, we wanted to highlight 
our amazing staff, faculty and high 
school students in a rich learning 
environment for our own parents 
and for other parents of young 
children in the area,
” he added. 
“Third, we wanted to promote 
STEM at Farber because of its 
importance in the development of 
young minds and in the future of 
our country.
”
The stations were primarily 
hands-on problem solving, includ-
ing building working boats out 

of recyclable materials to hold as 
many toy animals as possible, pro-
gramming robots to bring “Noah’s 
animals” into the ark, strategic 
thinking to estimate the number of 
items in various different contain-
ers and challenges to create a range 
of colors from the primary colors.
Other stations focused on explo-
ration, including a water station 
that compared how much water 
different sponges could hold and 
what objects can sink or float, and 
an ark-building LEGO table that 
was a particular favorite for many 
children. Other stations demon-
strated how clouds develop and 
rain occurs and how 3-D printing 
works.
“I was impressed with how well 
each of the stations was able to 
interest my children of different 
ages, from my 4-year-old to my 
8-year-old,
” said Miri Gertner, a 
parent of four children at Farber. 
“Having teachers engaging the chil-
dren directly at their own level was 
wonderful!” 
Director of Admissions Andrea 
Strosberg, who co-organized the 
event with science teacher Lisi 
Levisohn, said, “The event suc-
ceeded because of the amazing 
collaboration among the teachers 
and the high school volunteers here 
at Farber. It is so gratifying to pitch 
an idea and have so many of my 
colleagues just run with it.
” 

Submitted by Farber Hebrew Day School, 

a Modern Orthodox day school that 

teaches toddlers through high school 

seniors. The school combines a rigorous 

college-preparatory curriculum with serious 

Judaic studies and a mission to engage 

with and improve the broader community. 

Noah’s ark was the theme 
for a day of fun and learning.

Farber’s 
STEM Day

TOP TO BOTTOM: 
Craig Gertner and his son 
Ezra. Emma Skoczylas. 
Daniel Brystowski and 
his daughter Leora. 
Amy Hager and her son 
Charlie. (All are Farber 
students.)

ALL PHOTOS BY RACHEL LOPATIN

