At BSS Cheder, we are keen for our pupils to learn Hebrew and Jewish Studies so that they are fully prepared to take on the Beit Mitzvah program when they reach School Year 7.
Our Jewish Studies curriculum has been written for Years 1 to 6 by our Head Teacher, Caroline Loison, and offers lessons on both Chagim (Festivals), as we move through the Jewish year, as well as various projects that are taught age appropriately and aim to offer pupils some Jewish history, some Belsize liturgy and some Jewish general knowledge as well as teaching them about Israel and Israeli culture.
| Years 1 & 2 | Succot/Autumn 1 | Succot/Autumn 2 | Pesach/Spring 1 |
| Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, Succot and Simchat Torah The story of Creation project | Chanukah The story of Creation project | Tu b’Shevat Shabbat project | |
| Pesach/Spring 2 | Shavuot/Summer 1 | Shavuot/Summer 2 | |
| Purim and Pesach Shabbat project | Yom Ha’atzmaut, Yom Yerushalayim and Lag b’Omer | Shavuot Jewish symbols project |
| Years 3 & 4 | Succot/Autumn 1 | Succot/Autumn 2 | Pesach/Spring 1 |
| Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, Succot and Simchat Torah My Jewish identity project | Chanukah My Jewish identity project | Tu b’Shevat A Jewish home project | |
| Pesach/Spring 2 | Shavuot/Summer 1 | Shavuot/Summer 2 | |
| Purim and Pesach A Jewish home project | Yom Ha’atzmaut, Yom Yerushalayim and Lag b’Omer | Shavuot Brachot project |
| Years 5 & 6 | Succot/Autumn 1 | Succot/Autumn 2 | Pesach/Spring 1 |
| Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, Succot and Simchat Torah Biblical characters project | Chanukah Biblical characters project | Tu b’Shevat Tefillah project | |
| Pesach/Spring 2 | Shavuot/Summer 1 | Shavuot/Summer 2 | |
| Purim and Pesach Tefillah project | Yom Ha’atzmaut, Yom Yerushalayim and Lag b’Omer | Shavuot Kashrut project |
Hebrew is taught through the “Aleph Champ” reading scheme and has proven to be hugely successful for all of our pupils. Lessons use the Aleph Champ workbooks and pupils are provided with their own Aleph Champ reading books to take home and practise reading during the week. Starting at white level, pupils work hard to obtain 1 or 2 stripes as they go through each colour level book, before they complete the colour level and are awarded a certificate and the corresponding coloured wrist band. Eventually, pupils should have a rainbow of wrist bands to wear from white to red to orange to yellow to green to blue to purple to brown to grey. And, if they reach grey and are fluent enough, we have recently introduced the black Aleph Champ which teaches pupils Script and is the next step after fluent reading 🙂
This year, we have also introduced “Ivrit club” which takes up the last 15 minutes of the Hebrew lesson and is our way of ensuring pupils are aware that Hebrew is not just a language to read at Synagogue; it is actually spoken by many people in Israel and all around the world too! Ivrit club teaches children 5 or 6 pieces of vocabulary in much the same ways as pupils learn other modern foreign languages at school nowadays. Teachers introduce the vocabulary, usually focussed around a central theme such as a festival or a topic, and these are then reinforced (subconsciously) to pupils using fun and games. Examples of vocabulary topics covered so far include greetings and goodbyes, Rosh Hashanah, Succot, numbers and places and pupils seem to have really taken to this new club and are responding brilliantly and most enthusiastically too!
BSS Cheder is extremely proud of the subjects that we teach our pupils on Sunday mornings and the creative ways that we share our passion for Judaism and Jewish education too. If you would like to see our Cheder in action, please get in touch with Caroline Loison, Head of Cheder and Youth, for more information and to book a visit – Members and non-members are welcome!
“BSS Cheder means fun activities like cooking and Aleph Champ!” Sam, 9 years old