Learn with FEAST
FEAST stands for Family Education At Sinai Today. It’s a veritable Jewish smorgasbord!
Our youth education program is rooted in joy, meaning, and Jewish values that honor our heritage and lays a strong foundation for our next generation.
The curriculum is customized each year based on the number of children and their age ranges and is designed to engage children and teens with age-appropriate material that integrates Jewish texts, holidays, history, Hebrew language, and ethical teachings.
Teens are mentored as madrichim who lead, serve, and support younger students, serving as role models and helping with classroom activities.
Sinai established FEAST as a means for families to experience Shabbat together. Adults attend services while the kids learn. All come together at the conclusion of Shabbat service in the main sanctuary to sing Adon Alom. Then, reunited as a family, they enter the social hall for Kiddush and lunch.
Hebrew School
Hebrew is the language of the Jewish people.
Having a rudimentary understanding of our sacred language and an ability to read (or decode) the Hebrew characters with ease are essential to participating in Jewish life. Sinai’s Hebrew education program is focused on creating and sustaining long-lasting ties to Jewish community and synagogue life.
Students attend Hebrew School one day a week. Our Hebrew education program is based on the innovative Hebrew through Movement program. We begin by working with the students to develop auditory knowledge of Hebrew language, and move to decoding and reading afterwards, the way all children learn language.
6th grade students assist in leading the Torah service in preparation for Bat/Bar Mitzvah. This furthers our community’s goal of creating future ritual leaders and helping our students appreciate that Hebrew studies are not solely to be able to “get through their Bar Mitzvah,” but the lingua franca of a spiritually rich Jewish life.
Adult Education
Adult education at Sinai is delivered through many different forums.
Every day at our daily minyanim, short divrei Torah or divrei Tefilah (lessons on the Torah portion or prayer) is offered, sometimes by the rabbi, sometimes by participants.
Formal Hebrew or Judaism classes are offered on weekday evenings.
We occasionally have opportunities to engage visiting scholars.
Lunch and Learn classes on Torah or the Bible have had long followings.
Basic Judaism classes are offered to all interested. We are pleased to say that many have taken these classes as a gateway to joining the Jewish people.