Rockland Hebrew School Offers Camp-Like Fun in Classroom

Chabad Lubavitch of Rockland now offers a Sunday Hebrew school for New City children. In the camp-like, fun learning environment, kids learn the Alef Bet, Jewish traditions, and prepare for their bar/bat mitzvah.

During the first week of class, each student prepared
his or her own Challah to take home, bake,
and share with their family for Shabbos.

Chabad Lubavitch of Rockland launched its Hebrew school Jan. 6. The curriculum includes the Hebrew alphabet, which takes up a third of the class time, learning about Jewish heritage and holidays, and preparing students for their bar/bat mitzvah. But, according to school director Rabbi Rimler, its not just another Hebrew school. “Really, it should be called Hebrew camp," he says. "It’s a place where the kids are going to be excited and will want to live what they learn.”

At the Hebrew school, the focus isn’t on homework; it’s on learning in a fun environment. That is achieved through Alef Champ—the system the school uses to teach the Alef Bet, which has levels and achievements similar to a martial arts program—as well as fun activities such as preparing for Shabbos via a relay race and a prize system through which students are able to log into a website to see how many points they have and purchase fun prizes.

The Hebrew school holds class every Sunday from 10am-12:30pm for boys and girls ages 5 to 11 and is open to all Jewish children—membership at Chabad Lubavitch of Rockland is not required. Although the session has already started, the school has rolling registration because new students can easily catch up. “With the Hebrew reading, the students each read on their own level,” Rabbi Rimler says. “We split them up into smaller groups and each child can be on their own page…on their own level and can learn the language properly.”