Yavneh Academy’s Middle School students got into the Adar spirit last week with three intense days of competition and camaraderie in this year’s color war! With competitions ranging from Memory Lane Monday (Duck, Duck, Goose; Musical Chairs; Mother May I?) to a building-wide Apache Race to Quidditch (of course we play Quidditch!) and many more, Yavneh’s students demonstrated a wide range of talents and drive over the course of the three days.

Of course, the real heart of any color war are the various events and presentations that help to display the theme. This year, the four teams represented the four models of leadership described in the Torah—Melech, Navi, Kohen, and Sanhedrin—and the students had ample opportunities to learn about and deploy a variety of skills in discussing those models. A fierce four-way debate saw students arguing over which type of leader was most important; a “silent” cheer doubled as a rhythmic demonstration of each team’s theme; beautiful banners depicting the theme were thoughtfully designed and presented; and a final musical presentation featuring every student on every team helped to conclude the color war with an amazing level of ruach.

Perhaps most important of all, this event allowed Yavneh middle school to further develop as a cohesive unit, bringing together many students who perhaps never had the chance to work together previously, and often bringing together the entire student population to cheer, to sing and to celebrate together.