|
For Adults
Our Adult
Education Program offers weekly programs on current events, Jewish
intellectual thought and discussions on rituals and practices for a Secular
Jewish family. These include subjects on holiday celebrations,
traditions, secular bar/bat mitzvah, birth, death and other life cycle
events. Regular adult education, cultural and social programs are
held on Friday nights. A Yiddish class for adults is held on Sunday mornings
at our school before our Sunday morning adult program.
For Children
The I. L.
Peretz Community Jewish School offers courses in social studies (history),
literature and culture of the Jewish people. Both the children's classes
and adult discussions are held between September and May on Sunday
mornings. The role of religion in Jewish life is dealt with in its historic
framework.
The teaching of Jewish history emphasizes the struggles for freedom and
equality in the past and relates those events to the present-day struggles
for civil and social rights. Literature includes the Bible and poetry,
stories and folk stories from various Jewish cultures throughout the world
and throughout the ages. Conversational Hebrew is taught in the children's
classes and Yiddish words are added through songs, stories and sayings.
Singing in Hebrew, Yiddish, Ladino and English, and dancing are part of our
holiday celebrations.
The I. L. Peretz Community Jewish School shares these views of North
Jersey's Jewish Cultural School and Society:
"We want [our children] to grow up imbued with those values and
qualities which characterize the Jewish tradition and which are
particularly pertinent today -- the thirst for knowledge and truth, a
dedication to the achievement of peace and freedom, an active concern for
the needs of fellow human beings. It is important that our children
understand the background of oppression which resulted in the mass
migration of Jews and other minorities throughout the world and throughout
the ages. It is our intent that they should appreciate the relationship
amongst themselves and fellow Jews in Israel and other countries. We want
our children to be familiar with the contributions of Jews to American life
and history, and to be prepared to make their own contributions as
responsible citizens, with a full awareness of their Jewish roots."
Our social studies curriculum covers the legends and history of the Jewish
people. Our goal is to impart an overview of Jewish history -- including
early Jewish folklore, holiday practices, current events, and ethical
considerations -- to all classes so that upon graduation, students will
have a good background in this area to enable them to help define their own
relationship to their Yiddishkeit or Jewishness.
Our curriculum at each level
The youngest
children focus on their Jewish identity and holiday celebrations. They
learn about holidays and culture through storytelling, crafts, games, singing and dancing.
Level two includes children up to grade three. Over the course of two
years, the children learn about the history of their immediate ancestors as
well as life in other Jewish communities throughout the world. They make a
family tree and study life in Eastern Europe in the ghetto, the shtetl and then the immigrant experience. The
children also learn about the history of Israel and about life in Israel
today. Finally, they study Jewish life cycle events and Jewish values and
folklore, customs and traditions.
Level three includes children up to grade five. Over the course of two
years, these children focus on Jewish legend and history from Abraham up
through 1492.
Level four includes children up to grade seven. In one year of the two-year
curriculum, they continue Jewish history from the 18th century to modern
times, including an age-appropriate examination of the
Holocaust. Special emphasis is placed on the Jewish experience
in America, including the role of Jews in the labor and civil rights
movement. In that year, the students also study the many branches of Judaism.
In the other year, students study comparative religions, discuss ethical
and moral issues, and learn about Zionism and the development of the State
of Israel.
Children at all levels have a weekly class in literature that exposes them
to great Jewish thinkers and writers. The literature curriculum is linked
to the social studies curriculum so that students will often be reading
material from or about the time period they are studying.
Hebrew
language instruction begins with the youngest children and advances as the
children advance through each level. The children learn the Hebrew alphabet
and vowels, learn to read and write in print with
basic words, all the time learning basic conversational Hebrew.
Each week the children also participate in a culture
period. They sing, dance and prepare for holiday celebrations. They also
learn about the role of Jews in American culture -- comedy, film, theater,
sports, science. Learning culture involves participation and fun.
|
