Leslie Feldman
Children build shelters in the forest while singing and learning the words of Mah Tovu: “How wonderful are your dwellings, oh Jacob.”
Sixth graders whittle a yad (pointer) they will use to chant their Torah portion at their b’nai mitzvah.
Parents join their kids in crossing the “Sea of Reeds,” the stream that runs through the backyard, to participate in a literal and metaphorical crossing from slavery into freedom for Passover.
These are just a few snapshots of Congregation Beth Am Israel in Penn Valley’s education program, Jewish by Nature.
“There is more to outdoor education than playing in the woods,” said Cantor Jenn Boyle, the synagogue’s education director. “Through connecting kids with nature in the ya’ar (woodlands) that grows in the synagogue’s backyard, we are giving them the gift of a hands-on and nature-based Jewish education experience like no other.”
Boyle and Rabbi Aya Baron created a Jewish curriculum centered around themes of blessings, prayers, Torah, values and holidays. Students this coming school year will do a deep dive into different middot (values) in three units that follow the rhythm of the Jewish calendar and the seasons. Students engage with these topics at tefillah time, during schoolwide celebrations and in age-based cohorts using mediums such as nature crafts, quiet contemplation, environmental projects, guided meditation and exploration of the woods.
Within Jewish by Nature, there are Nitzanim (sprouts) for kids up to five years of age, Shorashim (roots) for grades K-7 and BAI Teens for grades 8-12. In Shorashim, they haven’t just taken Hebrew school outside but reimagined the approach to Jewish education.
“The woods are our classroom,” Boyle said. “Time outside is critical for the development of children and, after a long day of school, the last thing many kids want or need is to spend more time inside. Our kids learn by connecting with the natural world around them.”
Boyle said kids love attending Shorashim on Thursdays, many of them jumping out of the carpool line to get there. Attendance each week is near 100%, and kids skip other after-school activities to be there.
“When I reminded Julia that this was the last week of Shorashim, she was visibly upset and sad,” parent Debbie Sasson said. “She and her friends have developed such a strong connection, and it brings us so much joy to watch all of them continue to learn and grow together and for us to strengthen our bonds with the kids and their families. We have found that reaching kids in ways that excite them about learning foster a love of Jewish community that will last a lifetime.”
Beth Am Israel’s Hebrew approach also integrates the values into its outdoor program.
Onward Hebrew combines Hebrew through movement, Jewish life vocabulary, weekly tefillah and delayed decoding to maximize student engagement and interest, Boyle said.
Students learn Hebrew by doing, by speaking, by singing and, eventually, by reading the words themselves.
Hazzan Harold Messinger leads students each week in tefillah by guiding them in not just the melodies of the prayers but also inviting them to ask questions about what the words mean and to connect with the prayers on a personal level.
“Our education program works best because it connects to the values already present at Beth Am Israel,” Boyle said. “We are involved in a variety of environmental causes. A solar panel powers our Ner Tamid. We compost and recycle. Congregant Phyllis Blumberg recently led our synagogue in switching all our lights to efficient LED models. We care deeply about the environment, and it’s important to us that future generations inherit a world that we have worked to make better and that they have an investment in protecting it, too.”
As a facilitator of earth-based Jewish experiences for almost 15 years, Baron’s favorite days are those when students get a bit lost. Lost in activities, lost in the forest and lost in the moment.
“Nothing subverts and corrects the constriction of our modern-day, plugged-in, productivity-centered world. Nothing rings success more than getting lost,” Baron explains.
“Veering off the path, veering from the plan, finding our way to somewhere we did not know we would go, and letting ourselves arrive there b’shalom, in peace. So many minutes in our days, especially for 4-7 graders, are directed, with little room for divergence.”
Leslie Feldman is a Philadelphia-area freelance writer.