Vision for Conservative Early Childhood Programs: A Journey Guide

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Family Education and Learning Fact: Teaching Torah to toddlers can lead to a lifetime of Jewish learning. Fact: Jewish preschools serve as a gateway to Jewish life for the entire family. (Sue Fishkoff, Beyond Torah for Tots, 2006, JTA special report http://joi.org/bloglinks/Preschool,%20JTA.htm) The importance of the family in early childhood education has been validated by many educators, because early childhood education provides the ultimate opportunity to reach these young Jewish families. They are there, seeking a school with a good reputation, enrolling in Jewish programs and thus taking the first step to connect to the Jewish community. In many instances, consciously or subconsciously, gaining the skills and knowledge they need to create a Jewish life for their families is a key reason they pursued a Jewish early childhood experience for their child (Defining Excellence in EC Jewish Education: 2002). For others, the Jewish education components become an added benefit, but not their primary goal in selecting a Jewish preschool. In either situation, as Ilene Vogelstein, in her role of special projects director of CAJE, explained, “the early childhood experience, as the start of Jewish practices at home and the understanding of Jewish values, is the gateway for families to move into future Jewish experiences.” The fact that preschools have a profound effect on the Jewish life of the entire family highlights the need to bring parents into the preschool process. This may be many young parents’ first connection or reconnection with Judaism in any way since their own childhoods. It is therefore most important to be open and welcoming to all Jewish families, support these families, and nurture that connection, thus leading to continuity for both the child and the family. We know that the family’s relationship to Judaism can positively influence the child’s own relationship to Judaism, and that the child’s exposure to formalized Jewish learning can inspire parents to start thinking about their own relationship to the Jewish community, practices, identity, and life. Early childhood programs often become mini-communities and offer support while bridging the gap into Jewish institutions and the larger Jewish community. “Teach the child – reach the family” surely is the strongest statement supporting family involvement. Giving parents the tools they need to take their family on a Jewish journey must be a priority in a Conservative early childhood program. This means providing parents with the tools, time, and opportunities to learn everything that their children are learning, and more. It means crafting easy ways for parents to take home what their children are learning in school. It means meeting parents where they are, and drawing them into a journey of Jewish learning. It means connecting parents to the synagogue and to the broader Jewish community, so that the learning continues when their children leave the early childhood program. Vision for Conservative Early Childhood Programs: A Journey Guide USCJ Department of Education Maxine Handelman Handelman@uscj.org 75
Expanding Knowledge The literature emphasizes the importance of educating parents so that they are able to participate in Jewish life and be role models for their children. The goal is to give parents the opportunity to expand their own knowledge by making these experiences comfortable, available on all levels, nonthreatening, and fun. This can be done in a variety of ways, appealing to different parents’ various learning styles. Workshops, small groups or chavurot (small group of families who gather to share Jewish experiences in an informal setting), Torah study, and family friendly activities frequently are successful. Low-impact strategies: • Provide a list of internet sites that are user-friendly and can be read and used at the parents’ convenience. • Send written information home with the child on the various holidays; the packet should include both adult- and child-friendly material. These sources can provide information about what is being done in the preschool and suggest activities that can enhance the holiday celebration at home. • Send home information about adult education programs sponsored by the synagogue or the community. High-impact strategies: • Invite parents to join other preschool families in chavurot and learning groups defined by their interests. • Set up workshops with hands-on activities to familiarize the adults with the rituals and symbols of the various holidays. (For example, run a model seder.) • Invite interested parents into a Torah study group taught by a member of the professional staff. • Make available or set up Hebrew study groups for parents interested in learning the language. • Encourage parents to explore courses offered by the Melton Parent Education Program or others. Fostering Community Because people often live far from their immediate families, preschools can fill an important community-building function. Early childhood programs give families the opportunity to meet others in similar situations, as they get together informally and form bonds that last long after the affiliation with the preschool is completed. Jewish early childhood programs can take this one step further, infusing these social interactions with Jewish content, often leading to further Jewish community involvement, commitment, and synagogue affiliation. Any activity that makes families feel welcomed and supported in their daily lives most likely will be successful. Vision for Conservative Early Childhood Programs: A Journey Guide USCJ Department of Education Maxine Handelman Handelman@uscj.org 76
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Vision for Conservative Early Child
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Vision for Conservative Early Child
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Introduction Early childhood educat
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clergy and other synagogue professi
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Ethical Behavior “Justice, justic
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How to Use This Section Jewish valu
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“I would like to have a drink of
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they shared the wheat equally each
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For class discussion: 1. How could
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Then one day, Jacob was walking nea
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Dima ben Netina and the Ruby: A Sto
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Made with Love: A Story of Ma’ach
Page 25 and 26: Aaron and the fighting friends: A S
Page 27 and 28: That night, when the sun disappeare
Page 29 and 30: The next morning King Solomon woke
Page 31 and 32: So Abba and Ima went back to their
Page 33 and 34: All the other parts of the body lau
Page 35 and 36: For class discussion: 1. Why couldn
Page 37 and 38: Impatient Abraham: A Story of Teshu
Page 39 and 40: Stone Soup: A Story of Tikkun Olam
Page 41 and 42: Rabbi Zusya and the Birds Who Would
Page 43 and 44: The Holy Miser - a story of Tzedaka
Page 45 and 46: “Almost perfect?” questioned th
Page 47 and 48: Jules, Jacqueline, The Hardest Word
Page 49 and 50: Values by story - grid 1 continued
Page 51 and 52: God and Spirituality Among the most
Page 53 and 54: Preparing Yourself for Wrestling wi
Page 55 and 56: their questions. Do not avoid the c
Page 57 and 58: • Celebrate and acknowledge life-
Page 59 and 60: 5. We are thankful for God’s gift
Page 61 and 62: • Morning Brachot The rabbis tell
Page 63 and 64: • Shabbat Tefillot Fridays are an
Page 65 and 66: Barchu Barchu et Adonai ha-m’vora
Page 67 and 68: Informal Ways to Invite God into th
Page 69 and 70: Bibliography and References Coles,
Page 71 and 72: Jewish Learning Raise up a child in
Page 73 and 74: Children’s Learning The goals for
Page 75: Low-impact strategies: • Post pho
Page 79 and 80: Low-impact strategies: • Suggest
Page 81 and 82: what we teach in class with real li
Page 83 and 84: Low-impact strategies: • Offer ti
Page 85 and 86: Low-impact strategies: • Provide
Page 87 and 88: Continuity The most valuable early
Page 89 and 90: Ritual Observance and Halachah Ritu
Page 91 and 92: Kipot A kipah, also known in Yiddis
Page 93 and 94: There are many ways to explain the
Page 95 and 96: Kashrut - Dietary Laws The dietary
Page 97 and 98: Netilat Yada’yim -Ritual Hand Was
Page 99 and 100: Food Blessings In the words of the
Page 101 and 102: Cakes , Crackers And Cookies - Bore
Page 103 and 104: Birkat ha’Mazon- the Blessing aft
Page 105 and 106: Bringing Shabbat into the Early Chi
Page 107 and 108: Challah On Shabbat, we put two loav
Page 109 and 110: Havdalah Havdalah is the second sid
Page 111 and 112: 3. Spices We lift the spice box and
Page 113 and 114: Rosh Chodesh - The New Month Young
Page 115 and 116: Bibliography and Resources Dosick,
Page 117 and 118: Appendix A - More Kashrut Details B
Page 119 and 120: Appendix B - Sample Letter from the
Page 121 and 122: Staff Handbook one example Our scho
Page 123 and 124: Working With Clergy (and Other Key
Page 125 and 126: Rabbi Jonathan Lubliner of the Jack
Page 127 and 128:
Creating a Jewish Environment The e
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• Hebrew labels transform a print
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Conclusion In the summer of 2007, e
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