You Are Invited: the 2012 ISJL Education Conference

Join the Institute of Southern Jewish Life on June 24-26, 2012, as we launch the tenth year of our religious school curriculum/education program. This past year, our Education Department worked with the 77 congregations using the curriculum. The curriculum includes 10 key content areas: Jewish holidays; Bible; Jewish values; God; Prayer; Israel; Jewish history, culture and community; and basic Hebrew. Designed as a spiraled curriculum, the program revisits these key content areas in different grades. This technique reinforces the material, and allows students to encounter these topics with increasing sophistication. Music, art, and technology supplement reading-based learning to engage students and to provide multiple avenues for student expression. The ISJL curriculum provides class-by-class lesson plans for each grade, which include both the big picture (goals and objectives) and the details (things to prepare and supplies needed). We have even provided a script and a time allocation for teachers who want further guidance in the classroom.

Although we have been out of pilot for four years, we are always seeking to improve this evolving curriculum to address communities' needs. This year at the conference we will be distributing our newly revised Pre-K through 3rd grade curricula, as well as distributing new additions to our High School and Ivrit Enrichment supplements.

We encourage congregations to bring their entire teaching staff to be part of this enriching educational conference. At the conference, the ISJL's professional staff along with guest faculty from across the country will provide both an overview of the entire program and specific age-appropriate instruction for returning and new communities. Attendees will have the opportunity to choose sessions that address the needs of their specific classrooms or schools.

The conference is an excellent opportunity for you to discuss the material, ask questions, and network with other teachers from schools similar to yours. After the conference, the ISJL education staff will continue to help you implement the program. Education Fellows will serve as educators-in-residence, visiting congregations for Shabbat, providing adult education, teacher training, in addition to cultural and religious school programming. Staffers will also be available by phone and e-mail as curriculum “tech support.” We’ll be eager to answer your questions or to discuss problems you encounter in the classroom.

This annual conference and curriculum are part of ISJL’s overall education program. There is no registration fee for the conference, only room and board. However, there is an optional $50 registration fee to help ISJL with its costs.

The ISJL’s goal is to make excellent Jewish education available for all Jewish children, no matter where they live, no matter how small the community.

Bo ul'mad, tzei ve lameid—come and learn, go and teach!