Hebrew school

Last updated

Hebrew school is Jewish education focusing on topics of Jewish history, learning the Hebrew language, and finally learning one's Torah Portion, in preparation for the ceremony in Judaism of entering adulthood, known as a Bar or Bat Mitzvah. Hebrew school is usually taught in dedicated classrooms at a synagogue, under the instruction of a Hebrew teacher (who may or may not be fluent in Hebrew), and often receives support from the cantor for learning the ancient chanting of a student's Torah portion, and from the rabbi during their ceremony since they must read from a Torah scroll, which has no Hebrew vowels, and very close together text and minimal line spacing; making it very challenging to read from.

Contents

Hebrew school can be either an educational regimen separate from secular education similar to the Christian Sunday school, education focusing on topics of Jewish history and learning the Hebrew language, or a primary, secondary or college level educational institution where some or all of the classes are taught in Hebrew.The first usage is more common in the United States, while the second is used elsewhere outside Israel, for example, in reference to the Colegio Hebreo Unión in Barranquilla, Colombia, or the Associated Hebrew Schools in Toronto.

Background and history

According to an article in the Jewish Quarterly Review entitled "The Jewish Sunday School Movement in the United States" and printed in 1900, "the exact beginning of the American Jewish Sunday schools is obscured by uncertainty and difficulty of opinion", [1] though it is largely credited with the works of Rebecca Gratz, a Philadelphia native, who sought to provide Jewish schooling to those most in need. As students received secular schooling, Gratz understood the need to provide Jewish history and Jewish traditions to those most lacking a basic understanding in Jewish education. In fact, Jewish Sunday school grew largely in response to Christian Sunday school, as a means of providing proper Jewish education to students who otherwise lacked any religious grounding in Jewish traditions and history or lacked the financial means necessary to attend such a school. [1] As a devout Jew, Gratz dedicated her life to helping the poor and neglected. In 1818, "under the sponsorship of the Female Hebrew Benevolent Society of Philadelphia, the Hebrew Sunday School Society of Philadelphia was created on 4 March, her birthday, with about 60 students". [2] To this day, Rebecca Gratz is referenced as "the foremost American Jewess of her day". [1]

Curriculum overview

Hebrew school is typically taught on Sunday and on one day of the week – either Tuesday or Wednesday – in the late afternoon, following secular education in private or public schools. Hebrew school education developed in the 1800s and is largely credited to Rebecca Gratz.

Today, typical Hebrew school education starts in kindergarten and culminates in the 10th grade with confirmation. [3] While the idea of confirmation largely grew out of Reform Judaism, it is largely practiced by both the Reform and Conservative movements today. It is based in the Reform and Conservative movements and therefore not practiced in the Jewish Orthodox movement. Instead, Orthodox students attend daily religious schools such as yeshivas, where they study Jewish texts like Torah and the Talmud in greater depth. Orthodox schooling often prepares young boys to become rabbis and involves a deeper level of study than Hebrew school education provides. Whereas both boys and girls study in Hebrew schools in a co-educational environment, education in the Orthodox community is based on single-sex education, with greater emphasis placed on traditional roles for men and women. Some Orthodox congregations offer Hebrew school for non-Orthodox students, such as the TAG Hebrew schools common in Chabad houses.

Kindergarten and first grade

During kindergarten and first grade, students are introduced to major Jewish holidays and the aleph-bet (Hebrew alphabet). Usually learning at this young age relies on a number of hands-on activities such as crafts, music, cooking and storytelling to engage young learners. Children will often sing songs in Hebrew to improve their Hebrew speaking skills and memory of Hebrew words. Additionally, students might learn the aleph-bet through puzzles and other fun activities. [4] In addition to learning the Hebrew alphabet, children will also learn how to count to ten, how to identify major body parts, learn their Hebrew names and be able to recite prayers such as the blessings for Shabbat. In first grade, students will learn Torah stories such as Adam and Eve, and Joseph in Egypt. First grade is sometimes referred to as "grade aleph", corresponding to the first letter in the Hebrew alphabet.

Second grade through fifth grade

During these years, students build on a variety of skills and knowledge they have learned as youngsters while learning new skills like reading Hebrew, reciting common prayers such as the Shema and V'ahavta, and learning by heart the blessings over the candles, wine and bread. Students learn the concept of tzedakah (charity), become acquainted with Jewish rituals and customs, and gain a better understanding of Jewish history and the land of Israel. [5] Classes may also include lessons on Jewish ethics and morality. In the earlier years of Hebrew school, children will explore God, spirituality and ethics. For example, God is one, God created the world, and God brought us out of Egypt. In order to make Hebrew school a fun atmosphere for learning, and to teach children the mitzvot of Judaism, children will bake challah for Shabbat, have class in a sukkah during Sukkot, or light candles during Hanukkah. These experiences teach children about the holidays and mitzvot better than just reading about them.

Bar/Bat Mitzvah preparation

One of the most important events to take place during Jewish education is the celebration of the Bar and Bat Mitzvah. Bar/Bat Mitzvah education begins in the 6th and 7th grade, when students are provided with an instructor – usually a rabbi or cantor – and begin studying their torah and haftorah portion [6] by learning to use cantillation, a system for chanting sacred texts. [7] Oftentimes children will attend Hebrew school with the sole purpose of learning how to read Hebrew for their Bar/Bat Mitzvah. In these cases, the students will mostly learn the Hebrew words that are in the Torah portion they will be reciting.

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Women in Judaism</span> Role of women in Judaism

Women in Judaism have affected the course of Judaism over millennia. Their role is reflected in the Hebrew Bible, the Oral Law, by custom, and by cultural factors. Although the Hebrew Bible and rabbinic literature present various female role models, religious law treats women in specific ways. According to a 2017 study by the Pew Research Center, women account for 52% of the worldwide Jewish population.

<i>Bar</i> and <i>bat mitzvah</i> Jewish coming of age rituals

A bar mitzvah (masc.), or bat mitzvah (fem.) is a coming of age ritual in Judaism. According to Jewish law, before children reach a certain age, the parents are responsible for their child's actions. Once Jewish children reach that age, they are said to "become" b'nai mitzvah, at which point they begin to be held accountable for their own actions. Traditionally, the father of a bar or bat mitzvah offers thanks to God that he is no longer punished for his child's sins.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Torah study</span> Studying the Torah, Talmud or other rabbinic literature

Torah study is the study of the Torah, Hebrew Bible, Talmud, responsa, rabbinic literature, and similar works, all of which are Judaism's religious texts. According to Rabbinic Judaism, the study is done for the purpose of the mitzvah ("commandment") of Torah study itself.

In its primary meaning, the Hebrew word mitzvah refers to a commandment from God to be performed as a religious duty. Jewish law in large part consists of discussion of these commandments. According to religious tradition, there are 613 such commandments.

<i>Cheder</i> Traditional school of Judaism and Hebrew

A cheder is a traditional primary school teaching the basics of Judaism and the Hebrew language.

A seudat mitzvah, in Judaism, is an obligatory festive meal, usually referring to the celebratory meal following the fulfillment of a mitzvah (commandment), such as a bar mitzvah, bat mitzvah, a wedding, a brit milah, or a siyum. Seudot fixed in the calendar are also considered seudot mitzvah, but many have their own, more commonly used names.

Bereavement in Judaism is a combination of minhag (traditions) and mitzvah (commandments) derived from the Torah and Judaism's classical rabbinic literature. The details of observance and practice vary according to each Jewish community.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Torah Umesorah – National Society for Hebrew Day Schools</span> Network of Jewish Orthodox schools

Torah Umesorah – National Society for Hebrew Day Schools is an Orthodox Jewish educational charity based in the United States that promotes Torah-based Jewish religious education in North America by supporting and developing a loosely affiliated network independent private Jewish day schools.

A Jewish day school is a modern Jewish educational institution that is designed to provide children of Jewish parents with both a Jewish and a secular education in one school on a full-time basis. The term "day school" is used to differentiate schools attended during the day from part time weekend schools as well as secular or religious "boarding school" equivalents where the students live full-time as well as study. The substance of the "Jewish" component varies from school to school, community to community, and usually depends on the Jewish denominations of the schools' founders. While some schools may stress Judaism and Torah study others may focus more on Jewish history, Hebrew language, Yiddish language, Jewish culture, and Zionism.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jewish education</span> Overview of education in the Jewish world

Jewish education is the transmission of the tenets, principles, and religious laws of Judaism. Jews value education, and the value of education is strongly embedded in Jewish culture. Judaism places a heavy emphasis on Torah study, from the early days of studying the Tanakh.

The City Congregation for Humanistic Judaism is a Humanistic Jewish congregation and synagogue at 30 West 26th Street in the NoMad neighborhood of Manhattan in New York City, New York, United States. It is the first Humanistic congregation in New York City to be led by a Humanistic rabbi.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">East Side Hebrew Institute</span> Jewish day school in the United States

The East Side Hebrew Institute was a traditional Jewish day school, in the East Village/Alphabet City area of Manhattan, New York City. It was "once one of the major institutions of the Jewish East Side".

Rabbi Goldie Milgram is an American rabbi, educator, and writer. She is best known as the "rebbe-on-the-road," for her travels worldwide as a seeker and teacher of Torah, Jewish spiritual practices and she is a specialist in the fields of Jewish experiential and spiritual education. "Reb Goldie" founded (2000) and heads the 501C3 non-profit Reclaiming Judaism, serves as editor-in-chief for Reclaiming Judaism Press, and in 2014 she founded a three-year distance-learned training program for Jewish educators titled Jewish Spiritual Education (JSE): Maggid-Educator Training.

Mesivta is an Orthodox Jewish yeshiva secondary school for boys. The term is commonly used in the United States to describe a yeshiva that emphasizes Talmudic studies for boys in grades 9 through 11 or 12; alternately, it refers to the religious studies track in a yeshiva high school that offers both religious and secular studies.

An aliyah is the calling of a member of a Jewish congregation up to the bimah for a segment of the formal Torah reading. A person receiving an aliyah is called an oleh (male) or olah (female).

Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender (LGBT) affirming denominations in Judaism are Jewish religious groups that welcome LGBTQ members and do not consider homosexuality to be a sin. They include both entire Jewish denominations, as well as individual synagogues. Some are composed mainly of non-LGBT members and also have specific programs to welcome LGBT people, while others are composed mainly of LGBT members.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Beth Shalom Reform Synagogue (Cambridge)</span> Reform synagogue in Cambridge, England

Beth Shalom Reform Synagogue is a Reform Jewish congregation and synagogue, located on Auckland Road, in the City of Cambridge, England, in the United Kingdom.

Or Emet, officially the Minnesota Congregation for Humanistic Judaism, is a Humanistic Jewish synagogue and congregation in Minneapolis – Saint Paul, Minnesota, in the United States. The congregation is a member of the Society for Humanistic Judaism. It is a community of cultural Jews, secular Jews, Jewish humanists, and other humanists, united by a commitment to humanism and by respect and support for Jewish culture, traditions, and Jewish identity, and by those traditional Jewish values most consonant with humanism — tikkun olam, social justice. Or Emet embraces a human-centered philosophy that combines rational thinking and scientific inquiry with the celebration of Jewish culture and traditions.

An adult bar/bat mitzvah is a bar or bat mitzvah of a person older than the customary age. Traditionally, a bar or bat mitzvah occurs at age 13 for boys and 12 for girls. Many adult Jews who have never had a bar or bat mitzvah, however, may choose to have one later in life, and many who have had one at the traditional age choose to have a second. An adult bar or bat mitzvah can be held at any age after adulthood is reached and can be performed in a variety of ways.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Judith Kaplan Eisenstein</span>

Judith Eisenstein was an author, musicologist, composer, theologian and the first person to celebrate a bat mitzvah publicly in America.

References

  1. 1 2 3 Abrahams, Israel and Claude Goldsmid Montefiore, ed. (1900). "The Jewish Sunday School Movement in the United States". The Jewish Quarterly Review. 12. New York: MacMillan Company.
  2. ↑ "Rebecca Gratz".
  3. ↑ "Curriculum". Temple Emanu-El. Archived from the original on 21 April 2009. Retrieved 9 September 2009.
  4. ↑ "NSHS Hebrew School for Children Grades K - 6". Archived from the original on 3 November 2006. Retrieved 9 September 2009.
  5. ↑ "Curriculum". Archived from the original on 19 May 2009. Retrieved 9 September 2009.
  6. ↑ Carol K. Ingall (1993). Bar/Bat Mitzvah: Policies and Programs. Denver: A.R.E Publishing, Inc. ISBN   9780867050318.{{cite book}}: |work= ignored (help)
  7. ↑ "Eicha". 23 July 2007.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.