Youth activities keep children busy
BETH OLSON
Staff Writer
Once children start religious school or day school, the classroom often becomes the center of their Jewish world. Local Jewish organizations, however, provide a multitude of activities to keep school-age children connected to their Jewish friends and community outside of the classroom.
Both the Valley of the Sun Jewish Community Center and the Tri-City Jewish Community Center offer after-school programs, from sports and art to music lessons and cooking. This fall the VOSJCC will even hold classes in Web design and digital animation.
"A lot of time these kids go to Jewish preschool and then they go to their public school and they don't have that daily contact with their Jewish friends," says Kim Biggard, VOSJCC youth director. "This is a way to come back together with your Jewish friends."
For parents who want to participate in classes with their children, the Bureau of Jewish Education started a new program last year for children ages 6-10 and their parents. An extension of the BJE's Training Wheels program that meets monthly for activities relating to the Jewish holidays, the Training Wheels program puts a special emphasis on Jewish values and family education.
"We give families ideas for ways to lead a Jewish life and incorporate Jewish values into everyday living," says Linda Feldman, family life educator.
In addition to religious school, many synagogues offer youth groups for elementary-age children.
Jeffrey Wolf, youth director at Har Zion Congregation, says the synagogue has a very active youth group for fourth- through sixth-grade students. Kadima is part of the United Synagogue Youth, the youth group of the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism.
The group's two to three events per month include social and Jewish events. Once a month the group has an event at the synagogue in the youth lounge, where the participants can relax and hang out with their friends, using the pool tables, television and ping-pong.
The Beth El Congregation chapter of Kadima will host the Kadima Midbar Shabbaton for Far West Region in January. The weekend will bring Jewish youth from around the Valley, Tucson, Las Vegas, Salt Lake City and Albuquerque to the synagogue for the weekend.
"Primarily it's informal Jewish education and socialization, primarily focusing on the socialization because we're hoping that they're involved in religious school or Jewish day school education that gives them the formal education," says Jeffrey Frankel, synagogue administrator of Beth El.
Frankel estimates that Kadima has about two events per month, and that 65 percent of the participants are Beth El members.
The VOSJCC also offers youth groups - Club 56 for fifth- and sixth-graders is held on Monday nights. Saturday Night Out, a monthly program for sixth- through eighth-graders, takes the pre-teens on outings - everything from a limousine scavenger hunt to rock climbing to bowling. Biggard estimates that 75 percent of the participants are VOSJCC members.
Temple Chai's Chai Kids program caters to students in fourth through sixth grades. They also have a third-grade program, Katan-ty, that meets a few times a year in preparation for participation in the Chai Kids program, according to Joan Brodsky, the program coordinator.
"The goal is to get them to know some of the other children better. They meet Jewish kids in preschool, but a lot of times they have no other contact. This gives them more contact, a way to establish friendships," says Brodsky.
Chai Kids meets monthly for social activities, including trips to Rawhide, the bowling alley, movies and Castles and Coasters. Each grade does one or two mitzvah projects a year. Past projects have included working at the Watkins Overflow Shelter and tie-dyeing shirts to donate to Mitzvah Corps, which runs programs for disadvantaged youth.
Brodsky teaches fourth grade at Temple Chai and she says that she sees a big difference in the children who participate in the youth group and their ability to make friends in their religious school classroom.
"The main goal is for them to have fun," says Brodsky, "and to nurture their friendships with other Jewish children."
Contact the writer at beth_olson@jewishaz.com.
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