Beth El Religious School Happenings

JNF Tree Challenge coming in time for Tu B’shvat

Let’s hear it for the trees!!

Tu B’shvat is coming, and it’s the perfect time to relish all things nature! It may still be winter weather here in Richmond, but in Israel flora and fauna are springing to life. The Jewish National Fund supports so many important projects in bringing life to Israel, including planting trees, irrigating fields, and maintaining national forests and supporting agriculture in Israel.

This year you can be a part of greening the world (a great way to help combat climate change) by dedicating a tree in honor of your student. This year, we encourage you to celebrate Tu B’Shvat by planting a tree in honor of each student in your school.

This is also a beautiful opportunity to frame tree planting as a gift to Israel—helping the land grow, flourish, and thrive.

Visit the url below to access the Temple Beth-El Religious school personal page to honor your child.

https://my.jnf.org/tu-bishvat-in-schools/Member/MyPage/9115526/Brown-Religious-School-Henrico-VA

What immersive and creative Jewish Education Looks Like

At our religious school we take making our students’ education interesting and fun very seriously.

Lessons are carefully crafted to engage multiple learning disciplines and to immerse students into sensory experiences that make grasping big ideas tangible and memorable.

Recently our 2nd and 3rd grade students were learning about Jacob and Esau, the selling of the Birthright and Jacob’s deception by disguising himself as Esau, the story came to life by tasting different kinds of lentil soup and also through a tactile activity that had them try to identify between different coins, and between fur and skin while unable to see.

This led to deeper conversations about whether Esau gave up his birthright too easily for a bowl of soup (even a delicious one) and if Isaac was really fooled or was he just going along with ruse to avoid making a harder choice between sons.

The activity moved the students from learning merely the pashat, the literal meaning to the pasuk, finding deeper meanings and interpretations in the text. This is the learning that will stay with students long after the soup has gone cold.

Young Family Shabbat takes place on Friday, February 6, at 5:30 p.m.

Free and open to the community

Shabbat is our Favorite “Challah Day”!

Join Ramona Brand and Rabbi Rachel Salston for a musical family Shabbat designed for the wiggles. It is open to the entire community.

Shabbat services alternate on Friday evenings and Saturday morning from month to month. A Tot friendly dinner or brunch follows each service. Young family services are open to the public.