Ruth Schapira
Three Jewish Teens: Tons of Time? Not
What clock do these teens use? I’ll paint the picture. Last night I chatted with a group of three 9th grade teenage boys, hanging out in...
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Ruth Schapira
- 3 min
Does the Jewish Community Connect Teens to a Jewish Network?
Are we reaching high enough? I doubt that anyone would say that mentoring teens during the coming-of-age years is not a good thing. It’s...
Ruth Schapira
- 2 min
Are we reaching middle school students?
When did things get so serious for middle-schoolers? A new Gallup poll studied factors related to student engagement, optimism, and...
Ruth Schapira
- 2 min
Why do buildings substitute for substance for Jewish teens?
It used to be Culture vs Content. Now is it Building vs Substance? I call this the IMBY* Phenomenon: In My Back Yard. It’s the reason...
Ruth Schapira
- 2 min
Let’s hope Jewish parents are smarter than this
Are we just being stupid or stubborn? There are some obvious signs that parents might not be as smart as we’d like them to be. Do you...
Ruth Schapira
- 3 min
From Jewish Camp to Synagogue: Five No-brainers
The more things change, the more …..well, you can fill in the blank here. This is on my mind as we approach the summer and thousands of...
Ruth Schapira
- 3 min
Hiring Jewish teen aides? Five things to know
The title of this post offers you some tips, however first, I’d like to ask you for some advice…..to a student named Rachel. Here are...
Ruth Schapira
- 1 min
Yizkor and Memorial Day: An American Jewish Experience
northwestjewishartists.org I don’t remember experiencing the juxtaposition that occurred today: there were so many strong emotions...
Ruth Schapira
- 2 min
‘Wow, You’re Soooo Jewish!”
Is it the consummate Jewish nebbish, portrayed here by Woody Allen? The words “You’re soooo0 Jewish”, said in that tone of voice, from...
Ruth Schapira
- 1 min
Why some teens ‘get it’ but their parents don’t
I just came back from visiting a synagogue with an enviable number of teens in their Confirmation Program. What number, you ask, counts...
Ruth Schapira
- 3 min
Jewish Teens Need Us to Work as a Team
Secretly, I hope they’ll do something about what I’m telling them, but that hasn’t happened yet. So, here I am, blogging to you. At...
Ruth Schapira
- 2 min
Jewish Teens Reinvent the Synagogue
I’m so lucky. We Jewish educators trudge uphill a lot of the time, just to keep pace. Yet, every week I get inspired from the Jewish...
Ruth Schapira
- 2 min
Judging Jewish Education by Fun
Jewish communal organizations have been in consumer mode for some time. As individuals progressively decrease their involvement in...
Ruth Schapira
- 2 min
Jewish Teens:The Young and (thankfully) Restless
Image via Wikipedia With a nod to the TV show, I recently encountered a unique version of the restless young; amazing and energetic young...
Ruth Schapira
- 1 min
“Jewish Education? I’m Done!”
You gotta read it to believe it. The following is an actual dialogue (with a name change) I had a few days ago with a student, now a...
Ruth Schapira
- 2 min
Jewish Teens Need More
We need to define Judaism more broadly. The Jewish teens I work with in a Jewish community high school are looking for more ways to...
Ruth Schapira
- 2 min
What today’s Jewish teens are ‘okay’ with
My weekly experience working with a class of 8th graders serves as a counterpoint to the doom and gloom I’ve read about lately in studies...
Ruth Schapira
- 2 min
News Flash! A Collaborative Model in the Jewish Community
I’m by nature an optimistic person (I’m a Jewish educator, after all). But, there’s no doubt that when I consider the topics I’ve...
Ruth Schapira
- 1 min
“(any name here)……A Synagogue You Can Believe In”
Image via Wikipedia I kid you not. The headline is exactly what the large billboard sign posted on the edge of the synagogue’s property...
Ruth Schapira
- 1 min
Just in case versus Just in time.
It’s fascinating to think that these manufacturing terms, originally dealing with inventory, have been recrafted for the digital...
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