Our Objectives

We want our children to be proud of being Jewish. 

We want them to feel that they are part of something which is special, which has made a significant contribution to the world and which continues to have something of worth to offer both to them as individuals and the larger community as a whole.  Pride comes from a sense of who one is and where one came from, what hardships were overcome, and what joys and wonders were experienced by ancestors both recent and ancient.  We want our children to be familiar with our history in all its variety and beauty.

We want our children to be comfortable in synagogue.

Whether or not they choose to regularly attend synagogue later in life, we want them to feel that the synagogue is a place where they are welcome. We want them to be able to walk into any synagogue in any place in the world and feel a connection with the people, the liturgy and the “dance” which is the synagogue service.

We want our children to have a knowledge of Hebrew. 

Some children will go on to read Torah in the synagogue.  Some children will be able to follow the service in the synagogue.  Some children will learn to say the blessings in their homes.  Many things divide modern Jews.  Hebrew unites us.  We want our children to have the sound of Hebrew in their ears and the taste of Hebrew in their mouths.

We want our children to have a sense of the wide and wonderful range of Jewish thought. 

We want them to know the difference between Torah and Talmud, to recognize the names of people like Maimonides and Rashi as well as Abraham and Moses, and know what their contributions were to what has become modern Judaism.  We are only the most recent addition to an ever-evolving tradition.  We want our children to feel that they are a part of that evolution rather than simply passive bystanders.

We want our children to understand that Judaism is more than the service in the synagogue. 

It is a way of life, one which encompasses both the rituals we practice in our homes and the way in which we conduct ourselves in the world.  “You shall recite them at home and away…” says the liturgy.  We want our children to understand what that means. 

A supplementary school is exactly that - supplementary.  It augments and, in turn, supports the learning children do in their homes, with their friends and families, in their secular schools, and in the synagogue.  It is a partnership between children, parents, teachers and the larger Jewish community.  Jewish learning never ends.  We, the partners in this endeavor, set a child’s feet on a path that will last a lifetime.