Please call the Religious School office at 302-762-5858 to begin the registration process for new students.Click here to update your mailing address and email address with the Temple office.
Congregation Beth Emeth is a vibrant and exciting Jewish community where people come together to be moved by Jewish values and experience and, in turn, to move the world to something better. In order to best appreciate the power of the Congregation Beth Emeth community, its members must have Jewish knowledge, skills and orientation to the world. We, at Congregation Beth Emeth, are committed to cultivating in our students an appreciation of themselves as Jews and as individuals. We want our students to know and understand their tradition and values, applying them critically and thoughtfully to their daily lives. Our educational programs are designed to develop the knowledge, skills and orientation to help our members participate fully in Jewish life.
Our goal is to create Jewish adults; the Religious School is where that process begins. Please click on the following programs to learn how the process of educating for Jewish adulthood begins.
Scroll down for information on Shabbat Service Attendance, Behavior & Code of Conduct, School Closing, Early Dismissal, Visitors, and Parking & Safety.
Dismissal Procedure: ALL STUDENTS in ALL GRADES will remain in their religious school classrooms when the bell rings. You MUST park your car and come into the building to pick up your child(ren). Hebrew students will be dismissed into the hallway, but will NOT be allowed to leave the building until their ride home arrives. Thank you for your cooperation.
Wednesday, September 22, 4:00-5:30 @ Beth Emeth. Sukkah Raising including 8th Grade Class. Come help decorate the Sukkah!! Crafts, music, food, and lots of fun! Sukkot service immediately following program. Cost: Free!!
9:00-10:30 AM Religious School, 10:45 AM - 12:15 PM 9th & 10th Grades
Religious School Schedule
Sunday Schedule:
9:00 - 10:30 AM Religious School
10:30 - 10:45 AM Break
10:45 AM - 12:15 PM Hebrew School
9th & 10th grade: 10:45 AM - 12:15 PM
Tuesday Middletown Satellite Hebrew Program:
4:00 - 5:30 PM Hebrew School
Wednesday - Bet thru Dalet (2nd - 4th years of Hebrew):
4:00 - 5:30 PM Hebrew School
Religious School Policies
SHABBAT SERVICE ATTENDANCE
Congregation Beth Emeth is a warm and caring congregation. One way we share with one another is through worship as a community. We encourage all of our students and their families to join us for services throughout the year. As part of our academic and attendance requirements, we expect our students to attend services as stated below.
Grades K, 1, 2, 3, 4.....4 services
Grade 5.....................5 services
Grade 6.....................6 services
Grade 7.....................7 services
Grade 8.....................8 services
Grade 9.....................9 services
The above number of services are exclusive of the High Holy Day Services and the Purim Services. Those students completing their mitzvah requirements for Bar/Bat Mitzvah can count towards those.
BEHAVIOR AND CODE OF CONDUCT
While our school is primarily a House of Study and is devoted to religious studies, it is also a House of Worship. We encourage an attitude of respect from our students not only for our building, which is the property of all our members, but for our teachers and for their fellow students. Students attending Congregation Beth Emeth’s Religious School and Hebrew School are expected to adhere to the following rules and regulations:
Respect the bodies and belongings of others.
Follow safety rules.
Be polite.
Be prompt.
Do not leave the Congregation Beth Emeth grounds.
If a student’s misbehavior in class prevents the other children from learning, that student must be removed from class. If a student’s misbehavior affects the safety and well being of that student as well as others, the student must be disciplined. If the misbehavior persists, the procedure followed is:
Teacher will phone parents and document the misbehavior.
The child will phone his/her parents from the office and explain why he/she had to be removed from class.
We will confer with the child, teacher, and parents.
Parent will be expected to attend class with the child in order to control the child’s behavior.
SCHOOL CLOSING
In the event that school is cancelled due to inclement weather, the following local radio stations will broadcast an announcement: WDEL (1150AM), WILM (1450AM) and WJBR (99.5FM). The message on the Religious School Office’s answering machine will also be changed to reflect the school closing. We follow the inclement weather policy for the Brandywine School District. When they are closed due to inclement weather, we are closed too.
EARLY DISMISSAL
A student requesting early dismissal must present a written request from a parent. Parents may pick up children in the classroom after they are signed out in the Religious School office. It is understood that an entire carpool will not be expected to leave because one student needs an early dismissal. The child needs to be signed out in both the Religious School Office and the classroom.
VISITORS
We are delighted when your children want to bring a guest. We ask that you notify the Religious School teacher prior to bringing a guest. You must check into the office before class. Your child’s guest will be admitted only with a note from his/her parent giving permission for their child to attend class at Beth Emeth. In addition, we ask that you bring your guest to the school office and sign them in so we know who is here and where they are.
PARKING AND SAFETY
Due to the high volume of children entering and leaving the parking lot at any given time, the following rules are enforced for their safety:
Parents are to drop off their children in the drop off area directly in front of the building. That is the only approved entrance.
Parents are to pick up their children in the building. Students will wait inside for the parent to come up to their classroom. No students will be permitted outside of the building to wait for a parent.
Under no circumstances are students to wait for parents outside of the building.
Bar and Bat Mitzvah Program
It is the duty of every parent to train their children in the practice and precepts of Judaism. Proverbs 22:6 states: “Train up a child in the way one should go.” Jewish parents throughout history have realized this and so the congregation’s religious school has taken on considerable importance in the lives of our people. Students in our Religious School who attain the age of thirteen, who have completed all of the Religious and Hebrew School requirements, and who have completed the Mitzvah Program, are accorded the privilege and option of Bar or Bat Mitzvah. Our congregation’s requirements in Hebrew and ReligiousSchool studies must be implemented by positive, reinforcing attitudes obtained in home and family atmosphere. These ceremonies and continuing Talmud Torah – study of Torah – serve as a prelude to the goal of Confirmation.
All Bar/Bat Mitzvah candidates must successfully complete four years of midweek Hebrew and ReligiousSchool classes. It is mandatory that students complete the Dalet year. Each candidate for Bar/Bat Mitzvah is asked to perform work on a Mitzvah project during the months prior to the ceremony marking the Bar/Bat Mitzvah. Another mitzvot is observing the Sabbath – by attending a minimum of ten (five must be here at Congregation Beth Emeth) Friday evening and/or Saturday morning services with their parent(s). All services should be written down along with a brief outline of the Mitzvah project. This is handed to the Rabbi at the first meeting about six weeks before the Bar/Bat Mitzvah date.
Approximately eight months before Bar/Bat Mitzvah, our students begin lessons with our Bar/Bat Mitzvah coordinators. The child meets with the coordinator every other week or more frequently at the discretion of the coordinator. Once the Torah portion is mastered, the child will meet with our Cantor on a weekly basis to learn the chanting of the Haftarah portion. About six weeks before your date, your child will meet with the rabbi to begin writing their speech. A parent is required to attend the first speech writing session with the child. The parents and child will meet with the rabbi the week before the Bar/Bat Mitzvah to run through the entire service.
Should there be any unusual circumstances, they must be brought to the attention of the rabbis for consideration. We urge parents to interest themselves in their children’s progress in their religious education.
Planning your event in our social hall? Save this Social Hall Diagram to your computer as an Excel document, then use it to plan your table arrangement. Send it to the temple office.back to top
Hebrew Program
As a vital component of a sound Jewish education, Hebrew is an integral part of our ReligiousSchool. The Hebrew Program is designed to equip students with solid reading and prayer skills, sufficient for full participation in all temple and related Jewish activities.
All students in our ReligiousSchool classes are exposed to a variety of Hebrew during their studies. Starting in the Second Grade, students begin to learn the alef-bet, the Hebrew alphabet.
Students generally begin their Hebrew studies when they enter the third grade. Our third grade students participate in their aleph class on Sunday morning following their Religious school class from 10:45 -12:15 AM. All other Hebrew students are enrolled in mid-week Wednesday afternoon Hebrew classes, 4:00 to 5:30 PM. Students must attend both ReligiousSchool and HebrewSchool classes.
We offer our mid-week Hebrew Program on Tuesdays from 4:00 to 5:30 PM at Brickmill Elementary School. This program is for our members who live in the Middletown and south area. The students are still required to attend Sunday morning with the rest of their grade here at the Religious School. back to top
Pre-Confirmation
As adolescents, students in Grades eight and nine have very specific needs regarding religious education; they require set limits and expectations, while at the same time they demand a great deal of autonomy and stimulus. Our programs were created to meet this broad spectrum of goals and needs in a flexible and educational structure.
Eighth grade meets once a month for an hour and a half on Sunday morning. The students explore different aspects of Judaism as it relates to their lives as they meet with the Rabbi and some specialized guest teachers. The traditional classroom model is ignored as students partake in activities that involve imagination and fun.
Ninth grade meets on Sunday mornings. The main emphasis is the study of Comparative Religion. They explore the different branches of Judaism as well as other faiths with the Rabbi. They study Hinduism, Buddhism, Islam as well as Christianity. They learn what these other faiths share with Judaism and how they differ. The focus is to help the young adult develop their own understanding of their Jewish identity. back to top
Confirmation
Confirmation is more than just a ceremony, it is an opportunity to take a deeper and more mature look at Judaism. Our hope is that it will lead students to want to publicly confirm their commitment to Judaism. We have several unique experiences that will make Confirmation year powerful and memorable.
Confirmation class is taught by our clergy. These classes will unlock some of the values and ideas that have made Judaism powerful and influential and revered. Entrance into this class is achieved by completion of the two preceding years of study in pre-confirmation (grades 8-9). In addition, students must also have regular attendance at Sabbath services during the year.
During the fall, our Confirmation Kallah allows us to create magical moments that can only be created through shared experiences. Our kallah is a time for confirmands to develop friendships and feelings of Jewish faith and identity. We celebrate Shabbat together and elect our class officers. Attendance at the kallah is mandatory in order to be confirmed at Congregation Beth Emeth.
Our Confirmation Service takes place on the festival of Shavuot where our young men and women publicly take their place among the adult Jewish community. They affirm their loyalty to God, Torah, and the responsibilities to the Jewish community. It is more than a celebration; it is a moment of transformation. back to top
