Return to Education Newsletter main page!

C.A.M.P: Community Accessible Meaningful Prayer

By Gabi Cohn, ISJL Education Fellow
 
A large group of children swarm into the space. They each find a seat, chatting with their friends, smiles across their faces. The children cover a wide range of ages, yet all are together. The younger kids look to the older kids, keeping an eye on what their role models in the older grades do. The whole group joins together in song, beginning their prayer experience. Where are they? Summer camp.
 
Every year we strive to create the energy found in camp at our synagogues. Often, we fall short. There is something inherently special about the atmosphere of camp, specifically the passion and engagement that it fosters. Kids are thrust into a positive Jewish environment where Judaism is shown to be fun and relevant to their everyday lives. While this experience may not be able to be duplicated in our synagogues, that does not mean we cannot get closer than we are now. In order to look at how to create camp style services we need to know what makes camp services so special. Here are three aspects of a camp service that we can all bring into our communities.
 

1. Peer led services: Watching a sibling or friend lead services for a large group gives each child a connection to the service that is currently occurring. Additionally, when every child gets an opportunity to help lead some part of services, they feel an ownership over the service and it shows in their participation. Different age groups are able to lead different amounts of a service. Younger students can lead the sh'mah (hear/declaration of faith), bar'chu (praise/call to worship), or sing a song. Older students may be able to lead the whole service, write introductions to various prayers, or plan out a themed service.

 

1. Connect prayers to memorable songs: Every camp has different traditions of songs that they like to include in their services. Ask your students what their favorite songs from camp are, and bring them into the service. An entire service experience can be defined by the music and melodies that are chosen for it. Think about the melodies you use. Are they high energy? Do the kids enjoy them? Is there a way you can add hand motions to any of them?

 

1. Continuity… but also deviation: While at camp, kids learn the rhythm of services. There is often a ritual associated with various parts of the service. For example, students could spread around the room and find their own space for the amidah (standing prayer) every time to enter a new head space. However, camp is not just about continuity, it is also about the creativity and new experiences. Experiment with the location of your services. Try going outside if the weather is nice, or turn the whole service into a walking experience going to different locations for different prayers. The balance of new to normal is 30% new. What 30% can you change this week?

---