Noar Blog

Join us as we say "Shalom" to a new Noar (Youth) year! To kick off our professional development, all of our Noar educators and educators from other Atlanta area synagogues joined the Jewish Education Collaborative, an education initiative led by the incomparable Rabbi Elana Perry through the Jewish Federation of Greater Atlanta.

The theme for the day was "Sparking Creativity" and facilitators included creative Jewish professionals such as our local, soulful Eliana Light, and others from organizations across the country like LEV Kids Museum, Jewish Studio Project, Maven Tree, and more. The talent in the Zoom boxes sparked a new love of teaching and learning for all who participated. 

New and veteran Noar teachers jumped in immediately and were completely engaged and present in all sessions, however, a session called "Hands On Judaism" resonated with a few of our teachers. At Noar, one of our pillars is "Hands-on learning," making Jewish education accessible to all children. This year, as we take our experiential model and move it outdoors, teachers are already planning on being more creative in order to hit all learning modalities for all students.

One of our educators, Liz Reynolds, said "it's so validating to be in the Hands-On Judaism session [with LEV Kids' Museum], and the activity we did was the same one as one of the first lessons I wrote when I was still so new to Judaism." 

Samantha Berinsky, our Senior Manager of Congregational & Community engagement, was an active participant in idea sharing during the Hands On session. She uses Alef Bet yoga and Alef Bet Marco Polo to engage her Hebrew learners in a fun and kinesthetic way. 

Heather Dittus, one of our veteran educators, used her art skills to create a Hanoch Piven style picture with the concept of "Kehilah Kedosha" (community) and plans to be a creative role model for her students this year.

On a personal note, it was so meaningful to come together to be creative in such a difficult year and half. I walked away from the session proud of the Noar team for their resilience, courage, and resourcefulness every day and I am looking forward to the new Noar year! We can't wait to see the students on August 29th!

Sincerely,

Rachel Moldovan, Director of Youth Learning & Engagement