Jewish Family Life and Learning (JFLL)
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Rabbi Nadia Gold, our Director of Family Engagement, is always eager to speak with our current and prospective JFLL families and WES members at large. Make an appointment with ngold [at] westendsynagogue.org (Nadia) to learn more about our unique brand of Jewish education.

JFLL blends individual choice with experiential and whole family learning. 

Our innovative, "whole family" approach to Jewish education, Jewish Family Life and Learning (JFLL), is a major departure from your parents' Hebrew School, and is making a big impression on kids and parents alike. 

Our progressive educational approach encourages learners of all ages to make personal meaning from all our activities, and our JFLL program seeks to synergize classroom learning with a vibrant Jewish family life.

We believe that children's time in our classes and programs must be just as enjoyable as their best experiences in secular school, as well as their favorite extracurricular activities.  

JFLL Weekday Classes, Tuesdays 4-6 PM

Each JFLL weekday session consists of three elements:

OPENING ASSEMBLY

We begin each session in community as all students gather for an engaging opening experience, which could be an Israeli hip hop video, a story, or a hands-on group project.  

The Opening Assembly serves as a set induction for the day's lessons and is an opportunity for kids of all ages to bond through shared experience.

JUDAICS

Through the lens of the synagogue-wide theme of the year, students engage in learning through art, drama, music, creative writing, debates, group projects and more.  We favor an interactive learning model, so that classroom activities are more like camp than school. 

HEBREW

Using the Hevruta method of study, students of similar skill sets and learning styles work in pairs or small groups, at their own pace. Students in 4^th-7^th grades apply their reading skills to learn Tefilah (prayer) and the basic vocabulary essential to Jewish literacy.

JFLL Family Shabbat Programming

Shirat Shabbat  for families with school age students at 11:15AM:

THIS PROGRAM WILL RESUME OCTOBER 20TH 2018

Every THIRD Saturday of the month from 11:15-12:15 in the morning, join us for a “camp style” musical Shabbat experience and an interactive Torah service for school age children and parents, with Hazzan Ayelet Porzecanski  — an age-appropriate, informal, accessible service designed to learn Shabbat melodies through the magic of song.  Join Hazzan Ayelet and talented lay leadership/musicians for a musical celebration of Shabbat for families!  Then join the WES community for a festive kiddush luncheon.  Visitors always welcome!  

"First Friday at 6" for all families, first Friday of each month, 6 pm