T’filah Talk: A Year Long Course for Teens and Their Parents to Study Tough Issues Through T’filah

Ahavat Achim Synagogue, Atlanta, GA. Students and their families meet five times a year, outside of regular religious school hours, as a group based on geographic location, to celebrate and learn about mitzvot.

Congregation Beth Am Israel, Penn Valley, PA. Shabbat Beit Midrash grew to replace Sunday morning learning. An array of learning choices for adults and children surrounding participation in weekly Shabbat morning worship builds an intergenerational community.

Congregation Tifereth Israel (CTI), Glen Cove, NY. CTI learners and their families participate in hands-on experiential learning. The curriculum focuses on Jewish values learned through our stories (both modern and ancient).

Mensch-ify is an alternative learning program that is held twice a month for families with children in Pre-K to 6th grade. It is a developmentally appropriate program, built upon the parent-child co-learning experience, that combines stories, songs, art, movement, and play to provide families with the tools they need to live a Jewish life that works for them.

Mayim, our initial example of "Additional" Models, could be placed in a Multi-aged, Project-Based Learning, or Experiential Learning bucket. Mayim is a K-5 learning community in which depth of relationships and depth of learning are intentionally fostered and visible everywhere.

Temple Shaaray Tefila, New York, NY. MASA (the Hebrew word means journey) is an innovative year-long Jewish educational “journey” for groups of 25 families with children in grades K-7.