Our Classes
Beth El Hebrew Congregation Religious School
Classes begin when students enter Kindergarten and continue through 12th grade. Our Teen program from 8th-12th grade engages our teens beyond B'nei Mitzvah, through Confirmation, and up until high school graduation. Many of our 8th-12th grade students choose to continue their involvement in Religious School by serving as madrichim (Teaching Assistants) in our classrooms.
Primary grades (K through 3) meet on Sunday mornings from 10:00 a.m. to noon.
Grades 4 through 7 meet on Sunday mornings from 10:00 a.m. to noon and ALSO on Wednesday evening from 6:00 to 7:30 p.m.
We have a special program for non-members to introduce pre-K through second grade children to Religious School. Non-members should contact the Religious School office at 703-370-9400 for assistance registering.
Beth El Hebrew Congregation Religious School Curriculum
Hebrew K-3:
K-Hebrew letter introduction
1-Hebrew letters and vowels introduced
2-Hebrew letters and vowels mastered, short syllable decoding
3-Hebrew letters and vowels review. Short word decoding. Short prayer introduction.
Hebrew 4-6:
4-Hebrew letters and vowels, decoding mastered. Short prayers mastered.
5-Hebrew prayers continued.
6-All Hebrew prayers for BM mastered.
Hebrew 7:
All Hebrew prayers for BM mastered and reviewed. Modern Hebrew and Hebrew through Movement introduced.
Judaics Curriculum overview:
We strive for our children to get a deeper sense of what it means to think, feel, and do Jewish. We apply critical thinking to Torah, history, and Jewish texts. We apply creative thinking by exploring the stories and traditions of our people and how they can apply to our lives. We explore our feelings of connection to each other, God, the people of Israel, and to our sacred community. We deepen our connection through moments of community building in prayer, joining together over meals, through shared language, and values. We do Jewishly by living out our traditions as a community and as individuals. We perform mitzvot, celebrate holidays, lifecycles, and share our culture with one another. We do Jewishly by repairing the world through sacred service and Jewish living.
Main Topic Areas Covered:
Torah and Texts
Holidays
History
God
Prayer
Middot-Jewish Values
Israel
Hebrew language: Prayer and Modern
Mitzvot-Commandments
Lifecycles
Jewish culture
Community
K-7 Curriculum Overview
Kindergarten-Intro to Torah stories, Jewish holidays, Jewish values
1st Grade-Intro to figures in the synagogue, Jewish values, more in depth on holidays. Introduction to Israel as a place. We use Shalom Learning's curricula as a guide. (Direct to link)
2nd Grade-Torah stories from Genesis through Numbers. Jewish holidays in depth. Jewish values. Deeper exploration of Israel and its people. We use Shalom Learning's curricula as a guide. (Direct to link)
3rd Grade-Torah stories through the end of Moses’ life. Focus on on the Writings (Ketuvim) and Prophets (Nevi’im). Touch on holidays.
4th Grade-Jewish Lifecycle events (Baby Namings and Brit Milah, BMitzvah, Confirmation, Wedding, Conversion, Death), Parashat HaShavuah (weekly Torah portion), and deep dive into Israel.
5th Grade- On Sundays, World Jewish history from Abraham our ancestor to Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel, from the Shtetl to Shanghai. Intro to American Jewish history with a focus on Beth El’s history in particular. On Wednesdays, 5th grade explores big questions about God (Who is God? What is God’s name? Where is God? Does God understand Hebrew best? Does God know what I’m thinking? How do we know there is a God? Is Israel a special place for God?) helping them to develop what they think about God through discussions, art projects, and debates.
6th Grade-American Jewish history with special focus on Jewish immigration to America. Introduction to the Holocaust and antisemitism. Exploring what it means to become a BMitzvah.
7th Grade-Explore becoming BMitzvah through the Moving Traditions curriculum, the book Recipe for Disaster by Aimee Lucido. Learn about ways to do mitzvot and sacred service through year long tzedakah projects. Learn about Middot-Jewish values and how to apply them to their lives. (Moving Traditions website)
Fri, November 1 2024
30 Tishrei 5785