Curriculum Overview

 

Curriculum Overview

Chabad Hebrew Schools of the North Shore

September 2003

 

 

Objectives:

 

• To provide every Jewish child, regardless of background or affiliation, with a experiential Jewish education, in a warm and spirited learning environment.
• To provide a serious environment for students to receive a broad knowledge of Judaism, in a stimulating and challenging venue.
• To instill our students with a pride in Judaism, in Israel, and in being Jewish.
• To nurture each child's soul through song, prayer, spirit, and doing Mitzvahs.
• To provide our students with hands-on Jewish experiences that will enable them to live Jewishly and to teach others.
• To inspire our students to explore their own spirituality through conversations about G‑d, about our purpose in the world, and our connection to others.
• To provide Hebrew language instruction so that our students can read and participate in services.
• To incorporate modern conversational Hebrew into every part of our curriculum, thus giving our students a greater affinity towards Israel and a sense of belonging to their people.
• To infuse our school with a Jewish camp spirit to ensure that our students are excited about coming to school and enthusiastic about learning.

 

 

 

Educational Outlook:

 

Atmosphere:

 

Our students come to us after a full day of school.  Our challenge, therefore, is to find ways to open the minds and souls of our students so that they will want to learn.  Thus, at Chabad Hebrew School, we have developed a curriculum that moves from a focus on teaching, to a focus on learning.  A new and creative learning environment replaces the traditional Hebrew School setting.  The atmosphere has to be upbeat, fun, and inspiring so that our students like being with us. 

 

Staff:

 

We believe that our staff has to be living role models for our students.  In addition to the Rabbis and Rebbetzins, we have Mrs. Marla Mindel, recipient of the Grinspoon-Steinhardt Awards and the Jewish Federation's award for Excellence in Jewish education.  Each year, we bring in teachers from around the world, participants in a Chabad teaching network.  These hip young women are wonderful role models for our students, and have the energy and enthusiasm to bring spirit and warmth to our school.

 

 

Innovative Teaching Methods:

 

We believe that children will only listen to an answer if they are interested in the question.  Rather than impose a set curriculum on our students, we allow children in our older division to choose their own courses from a menu of class choices.  Class choices are determined by the overall 7 year curriculum that is attached.

 

Since each child learns differently, we believe that students should be grouped by interest, ability, and style of learning, rather than grade level.   At Chabad Hebrew School, students can choose topics that interest them and will learn in a multi-level (two or three grade span) environment. 

 

We believe that children learn from doing and that frontal teaching does not work in an after-school setting.  Our students learn through engaging their artistic abilities or by an actual hands-on lesson.  For example, we teach blessings on foods, through Jewish Holiday cooking and Shabbat through art.  When our students learn life-cycle events such as a Bris, they get on a van and attend one.

 

Parent participation:

 

A child’s primary educators are his/her parents.  Our role is that of facilitator, guiding parents in their role as Jewish educators so that the child receives a seamless message from home and Hebrew school.  “Horim/Yeladim,” (Parents and kids), a new and exciting family learning initiative, parents and their children learn together one Sunday morning each month.  These fun workshops will give parents the tools to communicate with their children and create a Jewish home life.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

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