Adult Learning Neziner Hebrew School Laurie Wagman Playschool Abigail R. Cohen Preschool
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A Word About The Words
The Hebrew terms on this site represent core principles (Middot) of Jewish belief. To us, they are words to live by. For a translation and examples of how we live our faith, mouse-over the words on each page.
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BZBI operates both the Neziner Hebrew School, a supplementary religious program for grades K-7, and the BZBI Hebrew High School for grades 8-10.
The Neziner Hebrew School provides the knowledge and experience necessary for its students to make a commitment to live a Jewish life. It seeks to develop in its students a deep and abiding faith in God, Israel, and Torah; a positive identity as Jews; an understanding of Jewish beliefs, values and ethics, and history and facts as defined in the curriculum. Our school also seeks to motivate students to continue their education after Bar/Bat Mitzvah and to use what they have learned for the benefit of the Jewish community at large.
Five core values guide instruction:
Throughout the school year, students experience the joy of being Jewish and celebrating the chaggim (Jewish holidays). Students learn our customs and traditions by participating in hands-on activities like cooking sufganiot (Hanukkah donuts), creating arts and crafts, planning booths to run at the Purim carnival, and more. Kids experience havdalah not by watching their teachers do it, but by getting their hands on the candle, the wine, and the spice box.
Zionism is woven into the curriculum at every grade level. Children sing Hatikvah at the end of tfillot, celebrate Yom Haatzmaut (Israel Independence Day), eat Israeli food, and write personal notes to place in their own Western Wall.
Students learn to care for family and community and do the mitzvot required of all Jews.
Every year, our students participate in BZBI Community Day: a time set aside for the entire school to come together outside the classroom. Students help with a special sidewalk sukkah, hold joint Shabbat services with other congregations, and work cooperatively on group projects. In the process, our kids learn the values of tikkun olam (repairing the world) while having fun with their parents and friends.
The doing of mitzvot is something we take seriously at BZBI. The Mitzvah Moments program, designed to reinforce that concept, takes many forms. When our young children perform a mitzvah they create cut-paper Mitzvah Hands that are displayed all over our school walls. Older students often interact with younger ones during prayers and help them with siddur skills. High school students come to school early to support each other in preparations for b’nai mitzvah. Kids raise money for the needy through raffles and tzedakah projects, and cook and deliver food for the elderly.
The BZBI Hebrew High School (8th through 10th grades) covers a range of topics such as Jewish role models (past and present); social action; pirkei avot (ethics of the fathers); mitzvot; stories from the Torah, Jewish holidays, and the Jewish lifecycle.
Our focus in 2010 will be social action. The students will be challenged throughout the year to think about how they can as a group and individually apply the principle of tikkun olam and "repair the world." This year, the class is concentrating on the mitzvah of bikkur holim (visiting the sick).
To fill out an application online, click here or for more information on Neziner Hebrew School, please email Principal Cindy Kushner at principal@bzbi.org or call 215-735-5148.
"I have been so impressed by what my daughter has learned in a short time in Neziner. She’s learned some difficult concepts, and I can tell she really understands them because of the way she applies them to our family and her own life. It’s also such a nurturing environment -- both as far as the teachers she’s had, as well as the friends she’s made. I expect some of these friendships will be life-long." - Ellen Solloff
"Our son, Eli, loves going to Hebrew School. He always looks forward to it and doesn't want to miss a day. I love hearing what he is learning in school about prayer, fundamentals of Hebrew language, and Jewish studies. Neziner provides a warm, friendly learning environment for students. I can see my child's Jewish identity developing as a result of what he's learning in the program." - Sharon Hoffberg