Tfillot in the Learning Center

Tfillot is a significant part of our curriculum. We want our students to feel comfortable praying with our community. We believe that prayer is best experienced. Therefore, we offer several prayer experiences for our students. Each Sunday morning, K-2^nd grade and 3^rd -6^th grade join together for a community service. On Tuesdays, 6^th & 7^th grades gather for the afternoon service and conversations about what it means to have a prayer life. These services are led by Cantor Sharon and Rabbi Ari. We also strongly encourage frequent attendance at Shabbat morning services.

We also believe that our students need to the opportunity to learn about the meaning of the prayers. Each time we learn about a prayer in the classroom, we have the same four goals:

Students should be able to

1.     Understand the basic meaning of the prayer

2.     Read and sing the prayer

3.     Explain the place of the prayer in our liturgy

4.     Identify key root words

Here is a list of prayers that we focus on in each grade:

Kindergarten & First Grade              Modah Ani,  Mah Tovu, Oseh Shalom, Friday night Shabbat brachot, Four questions

2^nd Grade                                             Havdalah, Bracha over the study of Torah, Adon Olam, Shema & Va’ahavta

3^rd Grade                                              Brachot for holidays, Shabbat & Mitzvot, Birchot Hamazon (first paragraph), Four questions, Shema

4^th Grade                                               Bar’chu, Va’ahavta, Mi Chamochah, Amidah, Eyn Keloheinu, Yotzer Or

5^th Grade                                               Ein Kamocha, Av Harahamim, Kee Mitziyon, Barchot Hatorah, Barchot Hafaftorah, Aleinu, Kiddish, Prayer for the state of Israel

6^th Grade                                               Review of all previously learned tfillot, Ashrei          

Mitzvah Heroes

Planting Trees in St Louis City Parks

Parents getting into the Mitzvah Hero action

Building bears to donate to Give Kids a Smile Clinic

Mitzvah Heroes. That is what we call our 8th grade class. Each Sunday morning 22 students learn about how their actions can help make this world a better place. Then they get up, get moving and get working. Here are some of their recent projects.

World Wide Wrap

 Each year we partner with our Men's Club to participate in the World Wide Wrap. This year about forty of our 7th, 9th & 10th graders joined the Men's Club this past Sunday to wrap t'fillin and enjoyed a delicious brunch.

Men's Club members getting into the action

Making sure the fit is just right

All of our wrappers!

It was a great Tfillin refresher for many of our students. We had a parent come and wrap Tfillin for the first time and some of our 10th grader commented on what a nice connection to the community the morning was.

Hazzan Sharon helping our student wrap

Helping a family in our community

A few weeks ago I shared with the students the sad story of my friend Lisa Klein, mom of three month old Annie, who found out she had fatal cancer. I asked the school if we could dedicate our October Tzdekah money to a fund that was established to ensure that her husband and baby had enough financial support to make it though the next few difficult months. As many of you have heard, since that time Lisa did pass away. Thomas and Annie are dealing with their new reality.

Our Gan students painting their own Tzdekah boxes

 I am so proud of our school, during the month of October we collect $425 to send to Thomas and Annie. Todah Rabah!

Morah Debbie talking to our Gan students about Tzdekah

Sunday Morning T'fillah

Parents, this year we are examining how the whole world revolves around Prayer, Study and Acts of Loving Kindness. Come share a prayer experience with your child at the Meyer Kranzberg Learning Center. 

 Each Sunday morning our 3rd (and some weeks 2nd) through 6th graders begin their day in the sanctuary experiencing the morning service. It is a wonderful way for our school to start the week. We sing, prayer, and learn a little from Rabbi Kaiman. Parents are invited to come and experience some moments of prayer with your child. We especially encourage parents of 2nd-6th graders to join us the second Sunday of each month (next one is on Nov. 11th). We will daven together from 9:00-9:30 and then there will be a parent breakfast at 9:30. Following breakfast you are welcome to meet other parents, leave for the morning or stay for our Lomed Parent class (but RSVP first to Jennifer as space in the class is limited.)

Hope to see you Sunday, November 11th!

Reflecting on improving

The ten days between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur are spent reflecting on how we have acted during the past year and what we can improve in the coming year. Our 12th grade class, who attend our Gesher Seminar, spent some time reflecting on behaviors they would like to improve in the upcoming year. Here is what they came up with...What are you working on in 5773? As an individual, as a Jew, as a family, as a community? This is a great dinner discussion with your family tonight or tomorrow night.

Welcome to year five of B'nai Amoona's religious school!

There has been much success in these five years, much of which we should be proud. And we have great plans for the future. But let's pause for a moment. Elul is the time in our calendars when we pause; we pause so that we can spiritually prepare ourselves for the year ahead. As we enter our fifth year, we paused and decided that we wished to find a better way to honor our namesake. Starting this September, we will be calling our religious school, our pre-K through Twelfth grade religious education program, the Meyer Kranzberg Learning Center. This new name, and new logo, allows us to show proper Kavod, honor, to Meyer Kranzberg, the man for whom our school is named.

Not only will this change allow us to properly remember Meyer Kranzberg, but it will also help clear up some confusion we inadverently created calling religious school Pardes while at the same time referring to our educational umbrella, or in this case our educational orchard, Pardes. Pardes is now the orchard for Jewish living and learning at Congregational B'nai Amoona. Within the Pardes orchard is the Early Childhood Center, The Alfred Fleshman Summer Camps, our Youth Department, Holiday and Family Education, and the Meyer Kranzberg Learning Center. 

We have a beautiful orchard of learning growing at B'nai Amoona.