A Bigger Community
As of the 2011-2012 school year, Ner Shalom's
Dor Hadash Religious School has joined forces with the Newman School of
B'nai Israel Jewish Center of Petaluma. By so doing, we have doubled
the size of our student body and parent community. We will be able to
offer our children a strong peer group and good critical mass in their
classes to help make learning fun and exciting. The school includes
learning opportunities for young people from pre-school through high
school.
Educational Goals
In the Community School for Jewish Learning
(CSJL), we help our young people learn Jewish values, develop strong
Jewish literacy, deepen their sense of spirituality and develop lasting
friendships with their classmates.
At CSJL, our
younger grades study
mitzvot,
Torah stories and
holidays, and learn basic Hebrew reading. Our older classes learn
Hebrew prayer, Jewish values and Jewish history, all in a way that
allows them to bring their own life experience to bear in understanding
what our tradition means to them. The 5th-7th class also prepares
Bar/Bat Mitzvah students through learning prayer, melodies, Torah
trope, and ways
to understand and relate to Torah content. The program also includes
young
people who have chosen not to have a B-Mitzvah ceremony.
Understanding the role of an adult in the Jewish community and in this
world is relevant to all our kids.
Special Needs Track
CSJL is proud to offer a special course of
engagement for young people with severe disabilities and their
families. Now in its fifth year, the Celebrations Program, in
partnership with the Jewish Community
Federation (JCF) of San Francisco, the Peninsula, Marin and Sonoma
Counties, offers a pioneering program for children
with
special needs who cannot comfortably participate in a traditional
religious school setting.
Click here
to find out more about the "Celebrations" class and community.
Where, When & How
CSJL meets Sunday mornings from 9:30-12
(parents are invited to stay for
Tefilah
Circle
for from 9:30-10) and, for fourth grade up, Thursday afternoons from
4-6. The year will begin with Sundays at Ner Shalom and Thursdays at
B'nai Israel. First day of school is Sunday, September 18. Watch this
spot for a full schoolyear calendar.
For more information on CSJL,
contact our School Director, Dave Lefson
via email or by phone at (707)
762-0340, ext. 1. Tuition scholarships may be available for families in
need.
