Religious School
Temple B'nai Israel's Religious School cultivates knowledge of Jewish texts, mitzvot, history, observances, values, and culture through engaging, experiential learning. Our religious school program fosters a love of Judaism, a sense of belonging, and an appreciation for community.
About our Program
Each Sunday, our students from pre-K to 10th grade come together to learn and experience Judaism. Each classroom brings together a cohort of learners from multiple grades, creating a space that emphasizes growth, mentorship, and connections. While activities vary from week to week, all of our students can expect a hands-on project, an opportunity to engage with Jewish text at an age appropriate level, and enrichment opportunities for students to connect learned concepts in the classroom to their own Jewish lives and practices.
In our younger classes, students bring text alive through plays, games, and crafts. Then, the text is connected to tangible rituals and practices that our youngest learners can take home. For instance, students may take a "field-trip" to Mt. Sinai with Moses where they receive the Ten Commandments, after which the class may focus on the 4th commandment, observing Shabbat, by making their own grape juice or candlesticks.
Our older students are empowered to build their own understandings about text through classroom activities and discussions. By focusing on specific elements in a text, like a person or a thematic connection to a prayer, students ask complex questions and discover the relevance of text to their own lives. Tools such as music and art invite students to think beyond the page.
All students have the opportunity to participate in various community-wide service projects and other events.
Our Curriculum
Our Religious School curriculum is based on a triennial cycle, alternating annually between a focus on Torah, Nevi'im (the prophets), and Kehtuvim (the writings). Thus, our students experience the entirety of the TaNaKh (Hebrew Bible) multiple times during their studies at different levels of depth.
Our year is broken into five modules. During each module, all students will focus on a given book of TaNaKh. Throught a module, students will learn about the big ideas of the book, a role model in the text, a mussar trait (Jewish value) from the book, connections between a prayer in the siddur and the TaNaKh text, and a commandment that comes from the book.
Our oldest learners will also have the opportunity to study antisemitism, the Holocaust, and ways to respond to hate in the present day.
Beyond this, students will learn about other important and relevant Jewish topics including: upcoming holidays, Jewish music, the Hebrew alef-bet, current events in the Jewish world, and more.