2012 B'nai Mitzvah Educator Training

Revisioning Bar and Bat Mitzvah: New Principles, Methods & Materials: A Preconference Intensive given as a master class by Rabbi Goldie Milgram

Spirituality, meaning and motivation - national studies show these are what B'nei Mitzvah students and their families want and need. In this intensive you will experience and receive all necessary materials for effective turnkey methods and programs that will enable you to transform the season of B'nei Mitzvah into a process rich in these qualities by means of the following processes and programs: 
 

- Bar/Bat Mitzvah Action Plan (BMAP) involves a simple, yet profound process that deepens parent/child compassionate listening skills, while eliciting and building upon the emotions being experienced by students and families in anticipation of bar/bat mitzvah. All participants will receive a free copy of Rabbi Milgram's Make Your Own Bar/Bat Mitzvah: A Personal Approach to Creating a Meaningful Rite of Passage (Jossey-Bass Publishing), based on extensive research and used by congregational and day schools world-wide.

- B'nei Mitzvah Talent Adventure where the interests and skills of our students and their families are applied creatively throughout the b'nei mitzvah process. Discover how to make activities central to your students' lives directly B'nei Mitzvah relevant. We're talking from soccer to horseback riding to guitar, and much much more. Student attention to tasks, as well and pride and depth of accomplishments will soar.

- The Power of Chaver: You'll delight in the rapid rapport possible through a process that allows students to better appreciate who is "in the inner circle of their lives," the importance of being part of a community, and what the essence of healthy friendship can be.

- D'var Torah Olympics where the power of metaphor, a key portal to meaning for B'nei Mitzvah-age students becomes an empowering interpretive tool, bringing families closer to Torah for life.

-Mitzvah-Centering. The Talmud views this rite of passage as demonstrating students know how to live mitzvah-centered lives. We'll show you best practices for incorporation of meaningful mitzvah mentoring into your process and you'll receive a free deck of Mitzvah Cards to get you going with ease. Soon your students will every minute of the day in a mitzvah-centered, rather than self-centered way.

-Reach each student at the level of soul. While self-centered isn't the Jewish way, neither is the intention to become selfless. Rather, the path of mussar is needed to complement mitzvah, the cultivation of self as a vessel for healthy and holy living. You will also experience and add to your toolbox, methods drawn from the field of Jewish spiritual direction that help guide a young person across the threshold of childhood into empowered Jewish young adulthood.

-(At least)Ten Sacred Developmental Shifts are possible during the B'nei mitzvah season, our process together will reveal them and show you how to ensure success in all four dimensions of this rite of passage: physical, emotional, intellectual and spiritual.

Register for NewCaje and Buy the new release from Reclaiming Judaism Press:Mitzvah Stories: Seeds for Inspiration and Learning