Community Religious School & Bar/Bat Mitzvah Preparation

North Alabama Community Hebraic School – (NACHaS)

NACHaS is an independent, lay-led Jewish school serving grades Kindergarten through Confirmation. It’s a joint project between Temple B’nai Sholom and Huntsville Conservative Synagogue.

The school is supported financially by both congregations, the Jewish Federation of Huntsville & North Alabama, student tuition, and donations. Scholarships are available! Classes meet Sundays from 10-noon at Temple B’nai Sholom.

Co-Principals: Larisa Thomason and Tracy Hurst

NACHaS 2011-2012 Registration Form (PDF) – available through the Temple office

NACHaS Calendar 5773 (PDF)

NACHaS Family Handbook (PDF) – available through the Temple office

“And you shall teach them diligently unto thy children” is written in the Torah.

Parents and teachers form a crucial partnership in completing this mitzvah. Our fine teachers work very hard to provide a fun, challenging and interesting experience for your child. We use many means to help forge a positive and educated Jewish identity. Our classes incorporate drama, art, music, games, films, books, stories, and special guests.

We are very privileged to use a curriculum that was created by the Education Department of the Goldring/Woldenberg Institute of Southern Jewish Life out of Jackson, Mississippi. This manual explains the school goals and curriculum as designed with input from the ISJL, Rabbi, and teachers.

We rely upon your support, constructive feedback and participation. Jewish Education is a family goal, and we are here to help you achieve that goal.

Bar & Bat Mitzvah Preparation Program – BMPP Program

Goals

The goal of the program is to prepare our young people to become capable Jewish adults.
The Bar or Bat Mitzvah ceremony is a milestone used to mark this occasion. Once completed the student should be able to:

• Explain what it means, to them, to be Jewish.
• Have a strong sense of community, including how they can make the world a better place.
• Have a working knowledge of Torah, including its overall structure and how to research and study it.
• Fully participate in the worship services.
• Act as a lay leader for worship services
• Be able to write and present a cohesive short speech.

Skills needed to reach these goals

• Sufficient knowledge written Hebrew to be able to sound out Hebrew words and phrases.
• Have a working knowledge of the service prayers, to allow for fluent reading
• Have a working knowledge of the service prayers, to understand what they mean, what purpose they serve, and how they fit into the entire service.
• Be able to read and/or chant the blessings for Torah and Haftarah
• Be able to read and/or chant a portion of Torah and Haftarah
• Have a familiarity with Jewish reference materials available, and know how to utilize them.
• Be able to write, edit and present their thoughts and ideas
• Understand the concept of volunteerism and how to participate.

Approach

We offer our members a multi-faceted approach that should help your student be totally successful:

• 3 years of classroom (group) study.
• Private Tutor for learning to read/chant their personal Torah & Haftarah portions.
• Private Tutor (Rabbi) for learning interpretation and presentation of the Torah and Haftarah portions, along with the associated reference materials.