Religious School
Early Bird Registration for Religious School is Now Open!
Our Mission
Our mission is to inspire our children to look at the world through Jewish eyes and ideals. Our responsibility is to give them tools for life while making Judaism meaningful. Our goal is simple…for our students to love Judaism and use it in their daily lives
Who We Are
The value of Jewish education is the key in keeping Judaism alive, and our role at Temple Kol Ami Emanu-El’s religious school is instrumental in making Judaism meaningful and joyful for our children. We are touching our students’ lives by giving them a strong Jewish foundation, along with the tools to make it a conscious, value-based choice in life.
Our Project-Based Learning curriculum* is centered around teaching our children to look at the world through Jewish eyes and ideals. Developing a core sense of Jewish spiritual and ethical values will empower our children and help guide them throughout their lives.
Our goal is to be relevant. Learning Torah is great, but applying the lessons from the Torah to our daily lives is even better! Learning prayers is part of our curriculum, but finding meaning in prayer and embracing the love of prayer is much more powerful. Likewise, developing Hebrew reading skills is a key element of our curriculum, but understanding the meaning and loving the language that bonds us from generation to generation is our ultimate goal. These mindful and intentional goals are the foundation of our school.
Family Educational Programs are key components of our program. All grades will participate in annual programs with the clergy and our religious school director.
Annual Field Trips are scheduled at the beginning of the school year per grade. Each field trip is related to the Project-Based Learning students are focusing on.
Why PBL @ TKAE?
The benefits from implementing a PBL approach are extraordinary and reinvigorating. Our learners come to school ready and eager to work on their projects. Our learners delve into the Jewish content with a sense of purpose and determination while also developing essential lifelong skills. According to Wagner, “Education needs to help our youth discover their passions and purpose in life, develop the critical skills needed to be successful in pursuing their goals, be inspired on a daily basis to do their very best, and be active and informed citizens.” Through its emphasis on student-driven learning and creation of a supportive, nurturing learning environment, PBL has changed the way our learners, their families, and our educators engage with TKAE, with Judaism, and with one another.
We also implement a backwards planning design that helps our teachers know where we want to see our students at the end of the school year. This approach helps us be realists, set clear goals for the year, and be intentional. Every Sunday before students come to class, our teachers spend hours planning for their lessons. We strive for fun, experiential and meaningful learning that will help our students build positive connections to Judaism.
Characteristics of Project Based Learning
- Learner centered
- Teacher as a “guide on the side”
- Promotes team work
- Builds on students’ interests and expectations–They bring their voice and choice
- Self-directed learning and use of resources
- PBL produces independent, life-long learners.
About our PBL’s
- Kindergarten: The Cycle of Jewish Holidays, Mitzvot and Artifacts
- 1st Grade: Ulpan Alef
- 2nd Grade: My Synagogue
- 3rd Grade: Biblical Stories
- 4th Grade: The story & history of the Jewish people
- 5th Grade: Post Biblical Heroes
- 6th-7th Grade: Bnai Mitzvah Journey & Holocaust Part 2
Schedule of Classes Kindergarten through 6th Grade:
Sundays: 9:00 am – Noon
Extra Hebrew Hour – 3rd – 6th Grade Online During the Week
Schedule of Classes Kindergarten through 6th Grade:
Sundays: 9:00 am – Noon
Extra Hebrew Hour – 3rd – 6th Grade Online During the Week
Online Extra Hebrew Hour for 3rd Grade & Up How do we teach Hebrew?
At TKAE Students are exposed to the sights and sounds of Hebrew throughout their Religious School experience. This contact may be in the form of direct formal Hebrew study, or it may be informal through music, worship and the use of Hebrew words for concepts of Jewish religious experience.
The main focus of the Hebrew program is to provide students with synagogue skills. There is an emphasis on reading skills and vocabulary recognition as related to T’fillah (prayer) and celebrations.
The Hebrew Program will include: Hebrew for prayers and blessings and Modern Hebrew. Hebrew is seen as a central thread, linking world Jewry, past, present and future
Capit Hebrew @ TKAE for Kindergarten, 1st and 2nd Grades
CAPIT provides Visual Mnemonics for every letter and vowel in the Hebrew Language. A Visual Mnemonic is like “cognitive super glue,” magically and quickly pairing together “Sounds” and “Spellings” to one another with a lasting bond. Research and experience indicate that Visual Mnemonics are an efficient and fun method of helping students remember the relationship between the sound of a letter and its visual representation.
By the end of the school year, students will be able to recognize the sound of each letter.
Capit Hebrew @ TKAE for Kindergarten, 1st and 2nd Grades
CAPIT provides Visual Mnemonics for every letter and vowel in the Hebrew Language. A Visual Mnemonic is like “cognitive super glue,” magically and quickly pairing together “Sounds” and “Spellings” to one another with a lasting bond. Research and experience indicate that Visual Mnemonics are an efficient and fun method of helping students remember the relationship between the sound of a letter and its visual representation.
By the end of the school year, students will be able to recognize the sound of each letter.
Hebrew @ TKAE for 3rd GRADE and Up
Students will be recommended to a Hebrew class prior to the beginning of the school year. Students will be divided into 3 groups based on students’ levels.
¡ Beginners : students who need a foundation for basic Hebrew decoding skills. Students will use the Derech Bina.
¡ Intermedium: students who can recognize most of the sounds of the letters and vowels but needs to master them. Students will be using the Shalom Book.
¡ Advanced: students who mastered their Hebrew reading skills and are ready to work on prayers. Students will be using the Hineni workbook.
Tefillah
Encountering prayer in Hebrew allows our souls to surpass language itself, linking us to the Jewish people, and facilitating sharing the beauty of our people’s prayers transcending time and space.
Goals of community Tefillah
- Have an opportunity to learn and pray together
- Develop a sense of partnership and belonging
- Find a common language with our children
- Be role models for our children
- Enjoy peaceful and inspiring moments as a family
The intention of our community Tefillah will be to begin our day by having an opportunity to look inward and ask what it is that each of us , in our own hearts and minds, wants to explore so that we can face the day with an open heart and clear mind.
Tefillah will be on Sundays from 9:00 to 9:45am and parents will be encouraged to stay.
Throughout the year, the expectation will be that different classes will lead us in a different a
Prayer.
Prayer is enriched by the relationship between Keva (structure) and Kavannah (personal meaning), therefore it will be extremely important to emphasize the meaning of each Prayer. We will maintain the same structure and niggunim to build a structure that will help everyone learn the prayers, and develop a sense of comfort and connection with the ritual. Our weekly Tefillah will end with an Havdalah Ceremony.
Our Professional Team
Our teachers bring the school programs to life by using the most creative and current methods. They meet regularly for professional growth seminars, to hone their teaching skills and study Judaism. They are committed to the important process of educating our children and transmitting our precious Jewish values to them
For questions, please contact Valeria Michanie
At [email protected] or at 954-472-1988 ext. 222
For questions, please contact Valeria Michanie
At [email protected] or at 954-472-1988 ext. 222
