Registration Announcements

Frequently Asked Questions About School Programs and Policies

How will the construction affect the religious school program?

From this summer until early 2009, construction will limit our access to parts of the building, so we will have fewer classrooms available than usual. To accommodate all students, we will offer an early and a late session for Religious School on Sundays. Families can choose either Early Session or Late Session depending on their preference. The Hebrew School and Hebrew High programs will not be impacted.

How long will split sessions last?

We don't know for sure. In December, we will have a more precise sense of when construction will be fully complete and will update you about when we will return to the regular 9:30-noon schedule, or whether split sessions will last for the whole school year.

When do Religious School, Hebrew School, and Hebrew High meet?

Religious School meets on Sundays in two shifts. Early session meets from 9 am to 11:10 am and Late session meets from 10:25 am to 12:35 pm.

Hebrew School meets either Tuesday or Thursday from 4-6 p.m.

Hebrew High and Confirmation meet on Tuesdays from 7-9 p.m.

How often does my child have to attend?

Regular attendance is the foundation of every educational program and is essential in building a spirit of community. It is the policy of the religious school that all students attend at least 2/3 of the class sessions. Special arrangements can be made with the board or Rabbi Levenberg for independent study if there are special circumstances. It is the policy of the Hebrew School that a child who misses any session needs to contact the teacher or class peers to make up missed work. If there are three absences in a row, the family may be required to engage a tutor to assist with the missed material.

What type of family education programs does the school offer?

Each grade has a family education day once a year, in which parents attend and learn together with their children. In addition, this year we are offering a seven-week parent-child education module for 4th-6th grade, in which parents attend for 45 minutes and learn together with their children on a special topic.

I know that Jewish learning is a partnership between the home and the school. What should we be doing as a family to strengthen our child's Jewish identity?

Because the split sessions mean that each Sunday session is 20 minutes shorter than usual (2 hrs 10 minutes instead of 2.5 hours), we are offering a new Family Journal program. At the beginning of the year, we will provide a list of dozens of Jewish experiences from Shabbat at home to reading books to temple-based activities to visiting Jewish museums. Families are invited to choose activities from the list and write a brief summary of their adventures. All participants will be recognized on a regular basis and there will be special honors for students who participate all year long.

My child has special learning needs. Can I enroll him/her?

Yes. 1) Please be certain to complete the Special Needs form; we will make every attempt to meet your child's needs. If we are not able to accommodate your child, we will work with you to find alternative ways to strengthen your child's Jewish identity. 2) In our Hebrew School program, we have a specially trained instructor who runs the "Learning Center." She works with students who need individual or small group instruction. However, students spend most of their time in the regular classroom. 3) We are also assessing how we could improve our programs to better meet the broad range of needs of our families. Please offer us your input in this regard.

What if our family cannot afford to pay Religious School tuition, or we are behind in paying our dues or other congregational fees?

If you need financial assistance with the Religious School fees, please fill out a scholarship application (available in the office or on our website www.shirhadash.org). No one will be turned away for lack of funds. At the same time, only members in good standing are eligible to register their children for Religious School. If you're behind in your dues commitment, please contact our Executive Director, Art Scher, to create a workable solution for your family. If you are behind and have not worked out an arrangement with Art, your student's registration will be put on hold.

Can I get a refund if my child doesn't attend the whole year?

No. Unfortunately we cannot give refunds after the first three weeks of school. At that time, we've already hired teachers, bought supplies and established class sizes based on the numbers we expected.

When do students start attending Hebrew School during the week?

The first year of Hebrew studies is the Kitah Aleph class, which starts in the 3rd grade. Kitah Bet is 4th grade, Kitah Gimel is 5th grade and Kitah Dalet is 6th grade. If a child does not start at the appropriate time, they may be placed with younger students or tutored to catch up.

Does my child have to go to both Hebrew School and Sunday School? Can we get Hebrew tutoring instead of enrolling in Hebrew School?

We encourage all children to go to both Hebrew School and Religious School unless they are currently attending Jewish day school. Both Hebrew School and Religious School are required to progress toward Bar/Bat Mitzvah. Attending Hebrew School is far preferable to Hebrew tutoring, because we are better able to ensure the integrity of the curriculum and assess student progress. During Hebrew School, students also take part in Tefillah and build friendships within their Jewish community. Some students have special circumstances, and, if tutoring is the best solution, arrangements must be made with the Educator. A $75 fee is assessed for students who are tutored instead of attending the school program, to cover assessment and monitoring.

What if my child is older than the other students in the Hebrew class?

Some students don't mind that their age doesn't coincide with the rest of the class. In this case, we are happy to enroll them in their appropriate Hebrew level. If the age difference is a barrier to learning, parents can decide to tutor their students rather than enrolling them in class. The cost for tutoring is paid by the family. We provide a list of possible tutors who are knowledgeable about our curriculum, and we assess a $75 fee to cover our assessment and monitoring of the students' progress.

What other requirements does the Hebrew school have?

Hebrew School involves weekly homework and reading practice (20 minutes, 3 times a week). All students receiving Hebrew instruction attend at least five Shabbat services during the year. Students in Kitah Aleph or Bet normally pick five Friday night services and students in Kitah Gimel and Dalet are encouraged to pick five Saturday morning services. Additionally, each class participates in leading one Shabbat service during the year.

What's next after Religious School and Hebrew School?

The Hebrew High School program for 7th-9th grades consists of 30 sessions on Tuesday evenings from 7-9 p.m. It also includes social and educational programs with other teens around the community. For students who are not able to attend on Tuesday nights, we are offering an alternative Hebrew High option on Sunday mornings. Confirmation is our 10th grade program. The year is spent investigating Judaism and growing as Jews. It includes a confirmation retreat/weekend and culminates in the Confirmation service itself on Shavuot. All students who become B'nai Mitzvah at Shir Hadash pledge to continue on to Confirmation.

Is Confirmation the end of formal Jewish instruction?

No, Confirmation isn't the end! It is our hope that students will become life-long learners of Judaism. We offer special programs and trips for our 11th and 12th graders as well.