‘Grow in Greatness’ will feature a different fundamental midah, as seen through the teachings and actions of a specific gadol B’Yisrael, each month.A dynamic new program is bringing excitement and enhancing growth at the Girls Division of the Klurman Elementary School! This year’s ‘Grow in Greatness’ program, brought to KES by Mrs. Ruchie Berkman, was introduced at the recent KES girls’ division school-wide assembly. This monthly midos development plan was designed by Mrs. Talia (Goldberg) Turk of Baltimore, YTCTE’s very own alumna! As always, Rabbi Baumann began the meeting by reciting a perek of tehillim together with the faculty and students. This was followed by a description of the program. ‘Grow in Greatness’ will feature a different fundamental midah, as seen through the teachings and actions of a specific Gadol B’Yisrael, each month.
This was followed with a story told by our special guest Rabbi Bentzion Chait, founding Rosh HaYeshiva of YTCTE, which showed that loving mitzvos is a most important outcome of Torah study.
Mrs. Berkman then presented the girls with beautiful binders for them to scrapbook activities and lessons learned throughout the year.
The fifth grade girls, our official Program Ambassadors, performed a catchy song and dance, featuring a theme song created specially for YTCTE.
Our assembly concluded with a story told by Mrs. Berkman about this month’s gadol, HaRav Yisrael Meir Kagan, the Chofetz Chaim. A woman asked the Chofetz Chaim how to undo damage caused by hurtful words she had spoken. The Chofetz Chaim instructed her to take a feather pillow and empty it on a windy day in the marketplace. Subsequently, he told her to go back and retrieve all the feathers.
At this point, Mrs. Berkman emptied a sack full of feathers and used a leaf blower to blow them all over the auditorium. 
The girls tried to gather all the feathers, and were unsuccessful. This was an exciting, interactive way to teach the important lesson taught by this month’s gadol: Once a harmful word is spoken, it is impossible to take it back completely.
We look forward to watching as our girls increase their achdus, enhance their middos, and take pride in the responsibility of being the next link in the chain of our mesorah, through collaborating together in the weeks and months to come.
