Author Archive: Heather Renetzky
B’Nai Mitzvah Cohort Connects Modern Issues to Torah
Three students walked into a room for their B’Nai Mitzvah. Here’s what we learned. Familiar sights and sounds broke through the chill of a crisp Saturday morning. Enthusiastic clapping echoed through the hall as the guitar chords of “Oseh Shalom” reverberated. The crinkle of anticipatory candy grew louder as proud smiles grew wider and guests […]
Continue ReadingStill Bee-ming about Purim and Pollinator Gardens
If you see wildflowers springing up near you and bees looking happy, the source may just be a wildflower seed ball made on the Brandeis campus last month. Learn more about our program, collaboration with the Lemberg Children’s Center and an this opportunity to help our pollinator friends. Read on our post with JewishBoston here.
Continue ReadingOn Jewish Community
We gather for BJEP Sundays to remind ourselves and our children of the power and importance of Jewish community, and to dive into the wisdom that Judaism has to teach us. We know that depending on how you and your children have reacted to Colleyville, you may or may not have already chosen to broach […]
Continue ReadingThank you trees and nature !
Can you imagine if every single person had the same birthday? There would be a lot to celebrate on that one day! In Judaism, we have a special day to mark the birthday of all fruit trees—Tu BiShvat—which is the 15th of the Jewish month of Shevat. Find an exciting all family activity and learn […]
Continue ReadingHanukkah Learning Lab & Checklist
My parents still have hanukkiyot from my childhood displayed on the shelves in our living room. Many years later, my memories of getting covered in glitter and glue while making these keepsakes hasn’t quite faded. I wanted to bring that same hands-on experience to our families at the Boston-Area Jewish Education Program BJEP. It felt full […]
Continue ReadingStudents Vote Song of the Year, Rabbi Myra as Guest DJ on WERS
2021: Listen now to keep BJEP spirit in your home on Sunday mornings and hear Rabbi Myra’s latest guest appearance on Chagigah radio, hosted by Emerson’s WERS 88.9. Voted favorite break hit song of the year by our BJEP students, Elana Jagoda’s “Oseh Shalom” reminds us that in weeks of unrest and violence in Israel […]
Continue ReadingLauren’s Desk: DIY Family Tree
Shared in the spirit of Father’s Day, Pride Month and getting to spend extra time with our families this summer, 2nd Grade teacher Lauren shares a DIY Family Tree Project! I’d like to share one of our favorite at-home activities from BJEP’s first and second grade classroom: the etz mishpacha (family tree). The etz mishpacha […]
Continue ReadingJewish Values Scavenger Hunt for Earth Day
While Earth Day isn’t technically a Jewish holiday, there is definitely a Jewish value to celebrating! Check out Rabbi Myra’s blog post on Jewish Boston for an Earth Day scavenger hunt and learn Jewish values along the way.
Continue ReadingBe an Upstander, Let the World Hear Your Voice
Lindsay Biebelberg, BJEP Interim Program Director, reflects on the Jewish values of questioning, speaking up, and standing up for yourself and others, and how BJEP shares these tenets in our classrooms. On February 28, BJEP had the pleasure of welcoming Billy Planer as a guest educator for our BJEP@Home Sunday program. Billy is the founder […]
Continue ReadingMLK Day / On Renewing Commitments and Guide to Repair the World
Rabbi Myra shares some prose on MLK Day. As Jews we are part of a proud legacy of strong ties between the Black and Jewish communities, with many Jews having been intimately involved in the Civil Rights Movement. This past year however, has shown us that our work is far from over, and that the […]
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