Kehilla School: 1st Through 6th Grade
Lovingly embracing the wholeness of each child through Jewish education and community.
Kehilla School is a kid-centered community of Jewish life and learning where students engage the cultural, historical, spiritual, intellectual, social, artistic, and religious dimensions of their growing Jewish identity.
Our school community is Jewish and multi-faith; it includes Jews of Color, LGBTQ folx, people of all genders, blended families, families created through adoption, and many more. Our school community reflects Kehilla’s vision of spiritual practice and social justice work. Check out this letter from May 2023 that explains how we are thinking about building structures for racial equity and decentering whiteness in Kehilla School. Additionally, Kehilla has a justice based relationship to Israel/Palestine and as a community we are guided by the values statement adopted in 2016.
Our faculty are vibrant educators who love sharing their enthusiasm for contemporary Jewish life with our kids. Kehilla School meets every Thursday afternoon from about September to May.
A typical day at Kehilla School is as follows:
3:30 – 4:00 pm
Snack is available, students arrive and prepare for class.
4:00 pm
Kehilla School starts! All grades will spend about 20 min of the day T’fillah (prayer), and the rest of the day in their classes (broken up by grade). During T’fillah we give the students an opportunity to express gratitude, we sing a few prayers/songs, and finally have a discussion that relates to Torah.
6:00 pm
Dismissal
Our curriculum takes a Jewish Renewal approach to Torah, Jewish history, social justice, spiritual practice, celebration of Jewish festivals, and community building. Our curriculum is thematic by grade, with an open invitation to teachers to share their creativity.
Curriculum Themes
Kitah Aleph (first grade) Cycle of the Jewish Year
Kitah Bet (second grade) Exploring Mitzvot
Kitah Gimel (third grade) Learning about life through Torah
Kitah Dalet (fourth grade) Tzedek (justice)
Kitah Hey (fifth grade) Ark of Jewish history & global Jewish diversity
Kitah Vav (sixth grade) Honing tools for drawing wisdom from Torah & modern Jewish identities
Kehilla School approaches Hebrew as a sacred language of Jewish spiritual practice and traditional text. Our focus is on decoding and reading (we do not teach modern language or conversation Hebrew). Students in most grades get some exposure to the Hebrew Aleph Bet. In 5th and 6th grades there is a dedicated 20-30 minutes per week of Hebrew instruction.
School tuition, which covers both spring and fall semesters, is on a sliding scale of $1000 – $1,400 per student for members of Kehilla and $1,700 per student for non-members. Non-member enrollment is available through 4th grade. Financial aid is available – please contact us for information.
Please note that membership in Kehilla Community Synagogue and two years’ attendance in Kehilla School, level 5th & 6th grades, is a prerequisite to enrollment in the B’ Mitzvah program.
For questions about Kehilla School, please contact Kaiya Garcia, Kehilla School Director (kaiya@kehillasynagogue.org).
Kehilla Youth Programs Calendars:
2023-24 Kehilla School Calendar (Thursdays, 4-6pm):
September: 7, 14, 21, 28
October: 5, 12, 19, (off 26) *student-only 6th grade retreat: 10/27-29*
November: 2, 9, 16 (off 23), 30
December: 7, 14, (off 21 and 28)
January: (off 4), 11, 18, 25
February: 1, 8, 15, (off 22), 29
March: 7, 14, 21 (Purim Spiel!), Purim Carnival on Sunday 3/24 (off 28)
April: (off 4), 11, 18, 25
May: 2, 9, 16
Stay tuned for 2023-24 Joyfully Jewish calendar!