VIRTUAL LEARNING AND INNOVATION AT TEMPLE ISRAEL By Roberta Bergstein and Fallon Rubin When the Clergy and Education team first learned of COVID-19 and it became clear how serious the virus was, we realized we needed to shut down in-person programming and move online. We agreed that our central goal must remain the same: to provide a meaningful Jewish education while building a joyful and connected community. In March we did just that, bringing our Religious School and teen programs virtual in just a few days. While the virtual learning environment was certainly new to us, our educators did not miss a beat, and they rose to the occasion and redesigned our curriculum to fit the virtual environment. Our Zoom rooms had an exciting and palpable energy. The Sunday morning energy and busy hallways of 477 Longwood wasn’t gone, it just moved onto Zoom! For the fall, we are holding on to that energy and our central goal of creating a joyful and connected community. We are spending our summer creating a meaningful and joyful Jewish community that is flexible, creative, and also responsible. In both the religious school and teen program, we will have hybrid models: meeting both on zoom and in person where possible. Temple Israel is a loving, supportive place for your child and family and, during this pandemic, we are committed to responding to the crisis in real time and doing our very best to meet each student where they are.
FRANCES JACOBSON EARLY CHILDHOOD CENTER UPDATE ON REOPENING The faculty, administration, and the FJECC Board of Directors look forward to welcoming children back to the classroom in the fall for the 2020-2021 school year. The health and welfare of our community continues to remain a top priority in our planning to reopen our school. As such, we are in constant contact with the Massachusetts Department of Early Education and Care (EEC) and other local health agencies. Hundreds of hours of research, design, and debate have been invested in the planning phase to reopen our school. The plan FJECC has put into place far exceeds the latest guidelines provided by our regulating authority. Classes will be much smaller with only ten students and two teachers at the helm. While there will be many new protocols put into place in order to help keep our students and staff safe, it is nevertheless with a great deal of excitement and anticipation that we look forward to reopening our center!
Congratulations! Congratulations to the FJECC Preschool for being selected as a 2020 Family Favorite in Boston Parents Reader's Choice awards, for the second consecutive year, in the following categories: • Childcare Facilities • Faith-Based Preschools • Large Preschools (Total Capacity 31+ children)
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Living Judaism together through discovery, dynamic spirituality, and righteous impact.
