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| Bar and Bat Mitzvah Preparation |
BAR/BAT MITZVAH CLASS
Students in the 7th grade will be required to attend a weekly Bar/Bat Mitzvah class.
Students will use V’Zot HaTorah as their primary text, and will be asked to write a verse
from each week’s Torah portion in Hebrew cursive, and will discuss the “mitzvah of the
week” as designated in the V’Zot HaTorah.
Students will view at least three videos dealing with the subject of Bar/Bat Mitzvah and its
significance and meaning and will continue to explore the Jewish calendar and the
holidays.
This year the Hebrew School will continue to include the “new component” introduced last
year, inviting parents to attend class once a month with their children. At present, the
syllabus has not been set; however, possible topics include: the meaning of Bar/Bat
Mitzvah from both the parents’ and child’s perspective, writing a dvar Torah (Bar/Bat
Mitzvah speech), meaning of the prayers, Judaism and family, etc. The Rabbi will invite
the class to suggest topics as well.
There will also be a social dimension to the class. Families who may not travel in the
same social and/or professional circles will have a chance to get to know one another
better with the hope that the entire class can become more closely connected, that
everyone will feel included and support each other through the Bar/Bat Mitzvah “process.”
The parent/student classes are scheduled as follows:
October 25, 2007
November 29, 2007
December – No parent class scheduled
January 31, 2008
February 28, 2008
March – No parent class scheduled
April 10, 2008
May 29, 2008
VAV AND BAR/BAT MITZVAH TUTORING
Those students in Vav and Bar/Bat Mitzvah classes are required to tutor twice a
week with the Rabbi and/or an older student in preparation for their B’nai/B’not
Mitzvah. The Rabbi will contact the parents of each student to discuss his/her
tutoring schedule. Generally speaking, sessions with the student tutor can be
arranged at a time and location convenient to both the tutor and the student. The
Rabbi will assign his tutoring times based on the date of the students’ B’nai/B’not
Mitzvah. Those earliest in the year will be given first choice. The Rabbi is
available to tutor by phone or in person, or a combination of both. Each session is
a half-hour in length.
BAR/BAT MITZVAH PROJECT
Each student in the Bar/Bat Mitzvah class is expected to participate in a special
project as part of their Bar/Bat Mitzvah preparation. This project should be
something substantial that requires at least several months of work and that
reflects a particular interest or talent of the student. It should involve “acts of
kindness”: if a student likes animals, for example, he or she may want to raise
money for an animal shelter. Students may “adopt” an older person in a nursing
home or in the community, or volunteer their time at a social service agency. In
short, the project should be a hands-on, serious effort that allows the student to
put his/her own unique stamp on the celebration. Projects must be done in
consultation with Karen Walsh. Project packets are distributed at the May/June
parent meeting. Students and parents should meet with Karen Walsh twice during
the summer and submit formal project plans by November. The work will be put on
display (if possible) on the day of the Bar/Bat Mitzvah or may serve as the topic of
the celebrant’s devar Torah (Bar/Bat Mitzvah speech).
VAV PARENT MEETING
There will be a meeting during Hebrew School for the Vav Class parents in June.
The Rabbi and Karen Walsh will discuss synagogue etiquette, service attendance
and the B’nai/B’not Mitzvah projects. Representatives from the Sisterhood and
Executive Board will discuss information ranging from hiring kitchen help to Bar/Bat
Mitzvah fees. Parents and students will then be asked to meet individually with
Karen some time in June or July to go over the particulars of each project, from
selection to implementation