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A GUIDE FOR PARENTS AND

STUDENTS

4657 Hood Road

Palm Beach Gardens, Florida 33418 p (561) 694-2350 f (561) 694-9518

rabbi@davidpaskin.com education@templebethdavidfl.org

Our Vision A learning community that engages and empowers every soul. Our Mission To inspire each learner through dynamic Jewish learning and living; providing them with the tools to guide their daily lives according to Jewish values and create their own Jewish memories. Contents What is Personalized Learning?

Kehillot ­ Learning Communities

Tracking Progress ­ Reaching Goals

Reaching Goals and Attendance

Let’s Learn ­ Resources for Learning

Google Apps and Google Classroom

Chromebooks

PrayDate

Family Learning

Chagigot ­ Celebrations of Learning

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What is Personalized Learning Personalized learning is an emerging trend which seeks to support student­centered, 21st century teaching and learning. A growing body of research suggests that overall student achievement is likely to increase when students are able to learn at their own pace with a variety of teaching styles and formats available to them. Personalizing students’ education enables them to access a unique learning experience based upon their individual needs, rather than receiving instruction through a standard, paced curriculum.

At Temple Beth David, learning is crafted with an appreciation for each child's unique approach, pace, and style of learning and developmentally appropriate goals are set that both support and challenge the learner. Each child has a Personalized Learning Plan that tailors our school’s curriculum to the child’s needs and strengths.

Students set personal learning goals and regular assessment enables them to receive consistent feedback on their progress. Research demonstrates that positive feedback, such as the progression toward a chosen goal, is highly motivating to students. Additionally, students who track their own progress toward these goals are more likely to make greater gains toward reaching their goals than students who do not.

As each new year begins, each family has a meeting in their home with Rabbi David and David Sherman, our Coordinator of Education and Engagement. At this meeting we get to know each other and talk about some of your family's learning goals.

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Personalized Learning means: Putting the needs of students first; Tailoring learning plans to individual students; Supporting students in reaching their potential; Providing flexibility in how, what, when, and where students learn;

Supporting parent involvement in student learning; Encouraging relationships between student, parent, teacher, school, and community;

Preparing students to be life­long learners; Engaging and motivating students by supporting their learning in a way that is relevant to each student’s life, interests, and goals.

Kehillot ­ Learning Communities Our program is structured around learning communities that allow students to learn from one another, see where their learning is going, serve as mentors and role models, and allow teachers to collaborate with one another. A multi­age classroom is not the same as a multi­grade classroom where students are still taught as separate grade levels even though they are in the same room. Multi­age classrooms use flexible grouping and differentiate instruction according to each child’s needs without distinguishing students by grade level.

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At Temple Beth David we have four learning communities each with a teaching team of two teachers and one assistant.

שורשים

Roots (K and 1st) ניצנים

Sprouts (2nd/3rd) אילנות

Small Trees (4th/5th) עיצים

Large Trees (6th/7th) Tracking Progress ­ Reaching Goals Learning at Temple Beth David is goal oriented and mastery­based. We work with our students and families to set challenging learning targets and then assess students on an ongoing basis through both formative (informal and ongoing) and summative assessments to help students reach their learning goals and show mastery. In our radically connected world, content is readily accessible and so our focus is on helping students build a skill set that will allow them to access and interpret information, feel confident with Jewish ritual and tradition, and find their own voice in the eternal conversation between God and the Jewish people through Torah and sacred text. Student progress is measured and tracked by both the student and their teachers. Student progress is shared on a regular basis with parents.

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Reaching Goals and Attendance At Temple Beth David, a student’s success is determined by how they progress in reaching their learning goals. There are many factors that help students succeed in this respect. One of these is regular attendance. When students come to Religious School they have the support and resources they need to work on their goals. They also find a community of learners all working together toward success and mastery. When students have to miss a session we will do everything we can to help them stay on track. Thanks to Google Apps and Google Classroom, students will have all of their materials and work readily available. We expect that when children have to miss a religious school session they will find other times during the week to continue their work and will reach out to their teachers through Google Classroom with questions or for support. Let’s Learn ­ Resources for Learning We want to make learning as easy and accessible as possible for all of our students, parents and members. That is why we are creating rich and comprehensive resources on our website to make reviewing, enriching or enhancing learning easy. Just visit our website, www.templebethdavidfl.org and choose the “Let’s Learn” link under the “Learn” tab. There, you will be able to find resources for all of our Yesodot ­ foundational learning subjects. There is audio to listen to, video to watch, and interactive learning throughout.

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Google Apps and Google Classroom Google Apps is a suite of digital productivity tools including email, word processing, illustration, audio and video recording, and collaboration. At Temple Beth David each student has their own @templebethdavidfl.org email address and Google Apps account. Your child’s email address is his or her first name, the first letter of his or her last name @templebethdavidfl.org. Using these accounts students are able to work together on projects, use specifically designed educational applications, access their work from home, and communicate with their classmates and teachers all in a safe and secure environment. Google Classroom is a relatively new addition to the Google Apps ecosystem that allows each Kehillah (Learning Community) to have their own website with easy access to all of their resources and work. You can access your child’s Google Classroom at classroom.google.com (you will need to log in with your child’s @templebethdavidfl.org email address and password. Chromebooks Chromebooks are “internet­only” laptops used in schools throughout the country to boost collaboration, creativity and productivity. Using their Google Apps accounts, students are able to access online resources to enrich their learning and use the suite of Google Apps tools to bring a new level of creativity to their projects and activities.

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Chromebooks are meant to be shared with easy log­in so students can access all of their work with a click. Because Google Apps is a cloud­based solution, students will also be able to access their accounts and all of their work from any internet connected device in or out of school. PrayDate Coming to Religious School is like practicing for the big game. We learn, review and practice all to put our hard work to use in the big game. The big game for Jews is Shabbat and Holidays. Coming to synagogue is a great way to “play the Jewish game.” It can also be a bit uncomfortable for those who aren’t regular shul­goers.

That’s where PrayDate comes in. As kids we have playdates with our best friends. PrayDate is a spin on the same idea.

Each year, students in Ilanot (4th­5th) and Eitzim (6th­7th) are required to make six PrayDates. A PrayDate is when a student invites one of their friends to come to synagogue on a Saturday morning. The friend doesn’t need to be a member of Temple Beth David but should probably be Jewish for his or her own comfort level. When students and their friends arrive (by 10am), they will be met by one of our teachers who will engage them in the service.

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Before your child’s PrayDate, we will look at their Personalized Learning Plan to see what prayer they may want to participate in leading. PrayDates need to be scheduled and you can do so on the temple website. Family Learning Some of our most memorable experiences are ones we create with our families. That’s why learning at Temple Beth David is more than just a journey for our students ­ it is an opportunity for the entire family. Throughout the year there will be many opportunities for parents and family members to learn with us and with our students. Sometimes we will be together at synagogue and other times we will be in your homes. Wherever we are, family participation in our learning is vital to the success of each of our students. Here are some family learning opportunities you should definitely mark on your calendar:

Extreme Makeover: Sukkah Edition, Sunday, September 27 Hanukkah Candle Lighting Parties: Wednesday, December 9 Passover University: Sunday, April 17

If you’d like to host one of our family learning opportunities in your home please email education@templebethdavidfl.org. We also want to celebrate with you all the ways that your family is living and learning Jewishly. You can post pictures of your family’s

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Jewish memory­making activities to our Temple Beth David Facebook page or send them to us and we’ll post them for you. Chagigot ­ Celebrations of Learning Every year, the eldest students in each age group share a milestone celebration. Aleph (1st): Chagigat HaShabbat Shabbat Celebration The value­theme that guides our learning in Shorashim (K­1) is mishpacha ­ family. One of the most beautiful ways to celebrate Shabbat is with our family and so our celebration as students transition from Shorashim to Nitzanim (2­3) is a family Shabbat celebration.

Gimel (3rd): Chagigat HaSiddur ­ Siddur Celebration The value­theme that guides our learning in Nitzanim (2­3) is kedusha ­ holiness. With Hebrew as the lashon kodesh ­ the holy language; and prayer as a way of giving voice to all that is sacred in our world, our celebration as students transition from Nitzanim to Ilanot (3­4) is a celebration of the siddur.

Hay (5th): Chagigat HaKehillah ­ Celebration of Community The value­theme that guides our learning in Ilanot (4­5) is kehillah ­ community. As our children begin to form their own communities of friends and come to understand the value of participating in the Jewish community, our celebration as students transition from Ilanot to Eitzim (6­7) is a celebration of community.

Zayin (7th): Chagigat HaAliyah ­ Celebration of Moving Up The value­theme that guides our learning in Eitzim (6­7) is mitzvah ­ obligation. As students approach their bar/bat mitzvah and begin to take on obligations as young adults and Jews, our celebration as students transition from Eitzim to higher Jewish learning (3­4) is a celebration of aliyah ­ moving up.

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We are really excited to learn with you this year. Our greatest hope is that you will share in our joy and partner with us to build a learning community that engages and empowers every soul. Thank you for joining us on this wonderful journey and we look forward to celebrating all that Judaism has to offer throughout the year!

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