Rabbi Pein, Dir. of Congregational Learning Blog

The vision of the Center for Jewish Learning is to foster and support the growth of its students as Reform Jews, so they may find meaning in their Jewish identity in our rapidly changing world. The CJL curriculum includes Judaica (Jewish values, Jewish ritual, history, and culture), Hebrew, Tefilah (prayer worship), and acts of Tzedakah/Gemilut Chasidim (acts of righteousness and loving kindness) in our mission toward Tikkun Olam (repairing the world). We aim to develop a “Jewish spark” within our students, to develop within them an interest in lifelong Jewish learning so that they will continue to develop and strengthen their Jewish identity throughout their lifetime. 

In keeping with these goals, we have engaged the digital platform, ShalomLearning (www.myshalomlearning.com) to enhance the CJL curriculum and to provide individualized learning for our students. This award-winning program was developed by a team of Jewish and secular educators and curriculum developers. Our school is among 120 partner synagogues making Jewish education more engaging and relevant for our students.  

 Our students spend a significant amount learning Hebrew in the CJL because we believe that Hebrew skills are an essential part of Jewish literacy, but Hebrew reading is a skill, and brain-based research tells us that skills develop best when they are practiced in many short sessions.  The ShalomLearning platform will allow student to learn and review Hebrew reading skills. ShalomLearning can also provide Judaica enrichment for our students. Each of our CJL students has received a unique login and password by mail so that they can access the benefits of this new digital platform. By being able to log in from home (or anywhere), students will experience that learning and Judaism happens everywhere, not just in the Religious School. 

Jewish education should never be stagnant but remain dynamic – we should continually adapt our goals and methods to reach our students. It is my hope that ShalomLearning will help us to fulfill the CJL’s mission to provide an engaging, relevant, and accessible Jewish education for our CJL learning community. 

For more information about ShalomLearning, go to www.shalomlearning.org. For questions about the login process, please contact me (educator@tinw.org) at any time! 

I am looking forward to exploring this innovation in Jewish education with you! 

L’shalom, 

Rabbi Wendy Pein