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BJEP BLOG: The Very Latest from BJEP Teachers
- Grade 4 Hebrew Teacher, Eliana Light, reflects on Grade 4 Havdalah.
- Teacher Shares Her Love of Shabbat with BJEP 2nd graders – by: Yael Annis
- Reasons Why I Will Always Be a Kindergartener at Heart by:Staci Rosenthal
- Marking the Beginning of a Jewish Education – by Gabriella Feingold
- Teaching Israel at BJEP – by Rebecca Pollack
- A bit about Grade 6 by: Gali Gordon
- Perspective from a Veteran Teacher – by Rachel Weinstein
- Fourth Graders & their Parents Decorate their own Siddurs
- Impression of the Grade 6 Visit to a Mikvah
- Reflections from BJEP’s Music Teacher, Jon Muchin
- The Best Part of BJEP – By: Daniel Albert
- Jewish Camps are Great by:Ariel Kay
- Rosh Hodesh Comes to BJEP!
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BJEP at a Glance
* Grades K through 7
* Sundays only from 9:30 a.m. - noon
* Taught by dynamic Brandeis students
* Directed by a strong team of professionals
* Committed to developing positive feelings about Jewish identity
* Emphasizes Jewish traditions, values, and culture
* Teaches Hebrew language, Torah stories, and Jewish history
* Celebrates and teaches about Jewish holidays
* Offers Jewish theater, music, dance, and art programs
* Supports opportunities for adult learning
* Provides Bar and Bat Mitzvah support
* Runs inclusive High Holiday services
* Welcomes families from all backgrounds
* Builds a feeling of community with the Jewish people- _________________________________
Support Our Jewish Journey
Consider donating to BJEP to support our mission to instill children and families with a love of Jewish tradition, values, culture and learning. Your tax deductible contribution can be paid using Paypal. Select the button below to donate directly to BJEP using Paypal.
Frequently Asked Questions
Community
Q: Does BJEP have a sense of community?
A: BJEP creates a sense of community among its families through a welcoming culture and a plethora of activities. On Sunday mornings, parents are welcome at the BJEP Café for free coffee and bagels and at any of our adult learning classes. There are family programs offered during the year, from class-based Sunday lunches and Shabbat dinners to apple picking outings and Charles River clean-ups. In addition, thanks to opportunities to volunteer at events and on the board, parents seeking community have a very easy time of finding it.
Q: Are interfaith families welcome at BJEP?
A: Yes. All families interesting in raising Jewish children are welcome. We have many interfaith families in our community.
Bar and Bat Mitzvah
Q: How do you help with planning a Bar or Bat Mitzvah?
A: The BJEP curriculum gives a child the background and skills needed to prepare to become a Bar or Bat Mitzvah. In addition, BJEP offers informational meetings every spring for parents of students in grades 5 and 6 to discuss steps in planning for the celebration. At this meeting, parents can meet an array of professionals who will work with families to prepare for the event, from tutoring to catering. Some of these professionals will be very familiar to BJEP families through a host of BJEP programs. At this meeting, parents can also hear from BJEP parents who have already planned a Bar or Bat Mitzvah at BJEP. While many BJEP families choose to have their event at Brandeis University through Brandeis Hillel, many others choose to have them elsewhere. We have a number of relationships with local synagogues for families seeking to have their child celebrate becoming a Bar or Bat Mitzvah at a synagogue.
Q: Do you have Bar or Bat Mitzvah tutoring?
A: BJEP offers private Bar or Bat Mitzvah tutoring for a reasonable fee. Generally, a number of children in grades 6 or 7 take advantage of this service.
Education
Q: How can you teach all kids what they need to know in just 2½ hours on Sunday mornings?
A: Judaism is so vast that people spend their entire lives learning and growing Jewishly. At BJEP, we help children, and by extension, families grow on their own personal Jewish journeys. We believe that it is way better to provide a quality one-day-a-week education program that children actually like than a multi-day program that is not compatible with today’s busy children and families. We also believe that, as an outcome of actually liking Hebrew school, our graduates are open to other Jewish possibilities. Many of our graduates go on to Jewish high school programs.
Q: What is it like having college aged students as teachers?
A: The best part of BJEP is our teachers. Brandeis students are eager to teach at BJEP and, as a result, BJEP gets to choose the best ones for our program. Our teachers are enthusiastic, hard-working, knowledgeable and great role models for the BJEP students. The teachers typically have already worked with children whether at their own synagogues or at Jewish summer camps. The teachers come from all walks of Jewish life (Reform, Conservative, Orthodox, Secular, Humanist, other) and share their passion for being Jewish with the children. They are regularly coming up with great ideas that they learned from other Jewish settings. In addition, the BJEP director is committed to teacher training and works closely with every teacher to ensure a quality lesson.
Q: What is the typical class size?
A: We commit to classrooms of no more than 16 students. In actuality, however, most classes have between 8 and 12 students. As most classrooms have two teachers (or a teacher and an aide), the teacher-to-student ratio is excellent.