We are excited to embark on our 4th year of Religious School at Congregation Etz Chaim. We hope that the following information will be helpful to you.
About the Curriculum:
We utilize the rich educational services of the Goldring/Woldenberg Institute of Southern Jewish Life (ISJL). The ISJL is a non-denominational umbrella institution serving Southern Jewish Communities, many without Rabbis or professional Jewish educators. The curriculum is designed for communities like our own, where our teachers are committed lay leaders. We are full of enthusiasm and drive to instill a strong sense of Jewish identity, knowledge and skill in our children.
Content areas which will be studied include; Hebrew, prayer, celebration of Jewish Holidays, G-D, Torah, Israel, Jewish values, history and culture. Each week has a prepared lesson for the grade being taught. The curriculum is "spiraled", in that students will revisit content areas in various degrees at different age levels.
Parent Involvement & "Parent on Duty":
In order for our Religious School to thrive we count on the volunteer participation of our parents and congregants. This year we will to continue to involve parents who are not teaching by assigning them class time to serve snacks and be an extra set of hands in class and around the building. This is our "Parent on Duty" program. On your assigned week, please plan to arrive at 9:45 a.m. and then stay until 12:30 to help clean up. "Parent on Duty" only includes families with students that attend religious school weekly, not families who only have children in our Torah Tots group.
There will also be other areas to show your support – from planning family events to substitute teaching.
In order to reinforce the skills your children are learning and help prepare for their B’nai Mitzvah, we are asking that as families you attend all Shabbat services that are held at Etz Chaim. We also encourage you to attend a Shabbat Service when you are visiting relatives out of town. This is a great opportunity to share a religious experience with your children and have them see different ways that Judaism can be celebrated.
Please help reinforce what your children learn in class. Teachers will be sending periodic notes home. Additionally, Take 5 For Hebrew is a simple way for your children to practice five minutes of Hebrew or Jewish Content. We will have our "Take 5 for Hebrew" Raffle each week as an incentive.
Torah Tots preschool group:
This is a montly program (please see religious school calendar for monthly dates) for children in preschool. A parent is required to attend with your child. Program meets from 11:30am to 12:30pm in the synagogue. At 11:30 your preschooler will join the rest of the students from religious school for a song session. You will stay for our regular religious school wrap-up and then the Torah Tots group will go to class for an activity.
At the beginning of the year all families involved in this group will volunteer to be in charge of a session or sessions depending on how many students we have. Each session will have a predetermined theme, usually following along with the Jewish holiday calendar. Each family will organize an art activity and story or any other creative idea for your day. There is no teacher for this class, rather each parent acts as a teacher on their assigned day.
Post B'nai Mitzvah Group:
New this year is a once monthly class for our students who have had their bar or bat mitzvah. This class will cover history of the Holocaust and the history of Israel. This class will meet once monthly at 7pm on a Wednesday night (calendar to be provided) at Panera Bread Company in Bentonville. This class has been generously underwritten by an anonymous donor, therefore there is no charge for this class. Students will be responsible for the cost of their own food and drinks.
This group is not expected to attend religious school on sundays.
Student Expectations:
We want the Etz Chaim Religious School experience to be a positive one for your family. This should be a place of learning, friendship and fun. We expect that your children will respect the teachers, fellow students and the synagogue itself.
Students will be provided with books and other materials. We ask that all books that are sent home for homework be returned each week. Lost books are the responsibility of the student and parents. We would ask that you buy the replacement on your own.
Arrival and Departure:
Arrival time will begin at 9:45 a.m. We will begin class at 10:00 a.m. Please walk your children in and say hello to the teacher. Unless it is your week to stay, we ask that you please exit so our students can begin learning. Due to our limited space we want to keep things quiet. We will have a short all-school gathering at the end of each week. Please plan to arrive at 11:45 a.m. No children will be dismissed outside on their own due to safety and liability.
Contact numbers:
Etz Chaim phone number is 464-8001 if you need to reach us on Sunday morning, primarily while class is in session. Please do not leave messages on this answering machine during the week.
If no one answers the Etz Chaim phone on Sunday and it is an emergency please call Wynnie’s Cell.