Rodef Shalom

We are committed to providing warm and positive Jewish learning experiences. Our students should feel that the Temple is “their Temple”—a spiritual home for study, social activities, and worship where they are at ease.

Our teachers are positive role models for living a Jewish life and are invaluable resources to our students. But it is important to understand that a Jewish home—where family is the center of Jewish experiences and observance—is vital to religious education. We look forward to a partnership with you, our parents and families. We hope that you will help your children by taking what they have learned in the classroom and making it relevant in your family practices and rituals.

Jewish education within the Reform movement is intended to deepen Jewish experience and knowledge for all liberal Jews. It means to strengthen faith in God, love of Torah, and identification with the Jewish people through involvement in the synagogue and participation in Jewish life. We believe that Judaism contains answers to the challenges and questions confronting the human spirit. Only a knowledgeable Jew can successfully discover these answers. (URJ Commission on Education)

With these goals in mind, we follow the lead of the Commission on Jewish Education of URJ Goals of Reform Jewish Education, to educate our children to become:

• Jews who affirm their Jewish identity and bind themselves inseparably to their people by word and deed
• Jews who bear witness to the brit (the covenant between God and the Jewish people) by embracing Torah through the study and observance of mitzvot (commandments) as interpreted in the light of historic development and contemporary thought
• Jews who affirm their historic bond to Eretz Yisrael, the Land of Israel
• Jews who cherish and study Hebrew, the language of the Jewish people
• Jews who value and practice tefila (prayer)
• Jews who further the causes of justice, freedom and peace by pursuing tzedek (righteousness), mishpat (justice), and chesed (loving deeds)
• Jews who celebrate Shabbat and the festivals and observe the Jewish ceremonies marking the significant occasions in their lives.
• Jews who have esteem for themselves and others; their own family and the family of others; their own community and the community of others.
• Jews who express their kinship with K'lal Yisrael by actively seeking the welfare of Jews throughout the world.
• Jews who support and participate in the life of the synagogue.
• With active parental, family and Congregational involvement, we will strive to reach these goals with our youth. 

Within our Religious School, we emphasize the study of Hebrew. Hebrew is our holy language. It is the language of the Jewish people, it bonds us, and it provides a living link to our ancestors and Jews around the world. As such, Hebrew must be, and is, an integral part of the Rodef Shalom Religious School experience. Learning Hebrew gives our students the ability to more fully participate in prayer, to study our sacred text in their original language, and to feel more connected with their Jewish heriage.

Students in Kindergarten and First Grade are introduced to Hebrew words and concepts in conjunction with holidays, rituals and life cycle events. They will also encounter Hebrew through music and weekly T'filla (services). Hebrew education becomes more formalized when students reach Second Grade and are formally introduced to the Hebrew alphabet and learn the sounds of the letters through games, activities and an interactive workbook. 

Third Graders learn to read Hebrew letters and how to pronounce the permutations of the vowels. The school year culminates with the students being exposed to basic Siddur and Modern Hebrew vocabulary.

Building on these basics, our Fourth through Sixth grade students delve into a Hebrew curriculum called Hineni, which uses a progressively more sophisticated series of books, workbooks, CDs, and interactive materials. Hineni is a Siddur-based curriculum intended to make students fell comfortable in prayer service and to give them the skills and understanding necessary to fully participate in life cycle events. Being able to participate in prayer allows our students to truly feel part of the Rodef Shalom community. Modern Hebrew is also taught, giving students an appreciation of Hebrew as a living language.

The goals of the Hineni program include developing: 

• Fluent siddur reading
• The ability to understand and translate key root words
• Knowledge of the themes of each prayer studied
• An understanding of the connection between prayers and Jewish values
• The connections between related payers
• The order of a Service – Friday evening Service, Shabbat morning service
• A sense of connection and familiarity in this Temple and in any synagogue where they worship.

The students will have opportunities to “practice what they have learned” during T'filla Services every Sunday morning at 11:20 a.m. and Tuesdays at 6:10 p.m.  We welcome parents to share this experience.

Family Companion worksheets are available to enhance our students’ learning. These worksheets aid parents working with their children to study Hebrew (transliteration is provided). The worksheets also provide thought-provoking questions for families to discuss together related to prayer and worship.

Related Files: 

Enrollment Agreement.pdf

Identification and Emergency Form.pdf