LOOK NV
ROADBLOCKS
Even though your family may be sufficiently packed for their journey, this does not mean that you will be able to avoid all the roadblocks.
After all, each leg of the journey will bring new and exciting challenges. However, if you are able to keep your eye on the road, the
potential roadblocks will become easy to spot and should not serve as a deterrent to participation.
"We really do not have the time."
Each family has numerous ways in which it can spend their time. However, investing the time to enable your family to live a fulfilling
Jewish life is a gift that will keep on giving. Once a life is framed in a Jewish context, other secular components of daily existence become
Jewish events. For example, soccer, band and school all become opportunities to exemplify Jewish values.The business week becomes an
exercise in time management according to the Jewish calendar. Family time becomes sacred time. Participating in Jewish experiences with
your family incorporates many of the other "fun" activities you may have thought you were missing out on—it gives you the chance to
sing and dance, draw and read, meet new people and re-introduce yourself to your Jewish soul. It provides a connection to your Jewish
past, a link to your present Jewish community and a glimpse at your bright Jewish future.
"My kids just can't sit still."
Jewish Family Education bears in mind the developmental needs of all its participants—from infants to grandparents.
Most J.E.F.F. programs provide many hands-on interactive activities because it is proven that most meaningful Jewish
memories are created through experiential learning opportunities.Yet each activity has a specific educational goal in
mind—this is not simply play time, but rather informal education with a purpose.
"But my kids go to religious school."
And that is great! But when you drop your child off at your congregation, who is continuing to educate you about the vastness which is
Judaism? Jewish learning is a lifelong endeavor. Imparting the value of a Jewish life is everybody's job—not just the rabbi's or the religious
school teacher.Attempting to teach a child about being Jewish without educating a parent about being Jewish is like trying to heat a
home with the windows open.The Detroit Jewish Community has created a mosaic of organizations committed to providing Jewish
educational opportunities regardless of the level of one's educational background.
FUEL TANK
RESOURCES THAT ARE AVAILABLE TO YOU
Even though J.E.F.E is committed to being with you every step of the way, it is expected that there may be some curves in the road or
even breakdowns once you have hit the road.Therefore, you may want to store some of the following resources in your trunk (next to
the jumper cables and flares):
IN CASE OF EMERGENCY, PLEASE CONTACT:
J.E.EF. office number—(248)645-7860
Your rabbi's phone number (for many of your questions about Judaism)
www.jewishfamily.com a website which strives to help families apply Judaism and Jewish values to their everyday lives by
providing user-friendly, family-oriented information and entertainment.
www.jewish.com your Jewish place in cyberspaces. Includes links to "ask a rabbi", "Torah", and "The Jewish Store".
www.Whizin.org the home-page of the Shirley and Arthur Whizin Institute for Jewish Family Life with information on hot
Jewish Family Education topics, and new Jewish experiences.
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To learn more about the fundamental principles of Jewish Family Education, read:
"Introduction to Jewish Family Education" found in Learning Together:A Source Book on Jewish Family Education, edited by Janice P.
Alper,A.R.E. Publishing, Inc. Denver, Colorado: 1987.
To learn more about the benefits of participation in family education programs, read:
"Home is Where the Heart Is: Families in a Jewish Learning Community" by Victoria Koltun Kelman found in First Fruits:A Whizin
Anthology of Jewish Family Education, edited by Adrianne Bank and Ron Wolfson,The Shirley and Arthur Whizin Institute for Jewish
Family Life, Los Angeles, California: 1998.
While there may not be one formula—words that can be spoken, feelings that can be invoked—that will ensure a rich and
meaningful Jewish life for your family, opportunities do exist that increase the likelihood for infusing your daily life with Jewish
content and for framing it in a Jewish context. J.E.F.F. looks forward to serving as your partner on this Jewish journey.
"...Hear our supplication, for You listen to prayer and supplication. Praised are You, Lord who hears prayers." Amen.
Jewish It' t '
6735 Telegraph Road, P.O. Box 2031
Bloomfield Hills, MI 48303-2031
Phone (248) 645-7860 • FAX (248) 645-7867
e-mail: jeff@ajedetroit.org • www.ajedetroit.org/jeff.htm
A Department of the
Agency for Jewish Education
"Take a Jewish Journey with J.E.EF." is a monthly addition to the Jewish News.
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