Section archive - Informal Education

Nine Jewish day camps across the country are running a unique Hebrew program known as Kayitz Kef. Supported by The Areivim Philanthropic Group, in collaboration with Foundation for Jewish Camp (FJC), ”Kayitz Kef” represents the fun process campers experience during summer camp as they acquire Hebrew without even noticing.

Some 2,500 Israeli pupils and volunteers from Modiin-Maccabim-Re’ut participated in an archaeological excavation in their own community, coming away with a new sense of history — and a treasure trove of 900-year-old Crusader-period jewelry. The 4th- through 12th-grade pupils engaged in a cultural-educational archaeological excavation as part of a joint Israel Antiquities Authority and municipality venture at Givat Tittora over the past year. Alongside the pupils, volunteers of all ages were also uncovering their town’s history and heritage — and having good, dirty fun in the process.

Against this backdrop, the New York Jewish Teen Initiative was launched in 2014. This ambitious effort to create new models of summer programming for Jewish teens, and to increase the numbers participating in Jewish experiences, is a partnership between UJA Federation of New York and the Jim Joseph Foundation within the framework of the Jewish Teen Education and Engagement Funder Collaborative, which includes national and local funders from ten communities. The Jewish Education Project serves as lead operator of the Initiative, which is being evaluated by a team from Rosov Consulting. Ahead of a third summer of programming, it is appropriate to take stock of what we’ve learned so far. A full report is available here.

Leshomra is a two-year-old Israeli organization that helps plant gardens at nursery schools, kindergartens, schools, and community centers in ultra-Orthodox neighborhoods in an attempt to connect children in a tactile way to nature and how things grow. It aims to build environmental awareness and green practices from the bottom, through a real understanding of Haredi culture and how best to relate to people in that community.