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Curriculum

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CURRICULAR APPROACH

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For decades, the Jewish Education Center (JEC) has led innovative curriculum development to meet the needs of Cleveland’s Jewish educational programs in early childhood, congregational and day school settings. While originally developed for specific programs, the curricula are easily adaptable to different settings and can be adjusted for a range of age groups. We are proud to share this work with colleagues beyond Ohio. 
 

Our curriculum is guided by key principles:

  • Focused on big ideas in Jewish life, often using the Understanding by Design framework
  • Rooted in both traditional and non-traditional Jewish texts
  • Based on constructivist theory, empowering learners and positioning teachers as facilitators
  • Enhanced by hands-on learning and the integration of technology

The rich library of materials remains fully accessible:

  • All resources are free to download on the JECCMarketplace
  • Immediately accessible curricular materials via numerous websites listed below. 
  • Please note, our ground-breaking approach to Hebrew #OnwardHebrew is supported by a generous grant from the Jack, Joseph and Morton Mandel Foundation.

 

WEBSITES

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We have numerous websites, for teachers and for students, that provide more information and resources about the curriculum, some offer experimental Jewish educational models. All JEC curriculum is available for free download from the JECCMarketplace.
 
#ONWARDHEBREW: The JEC has been the catalyst for this initiative that is changing the traditional Hebrew learning approach in-part-time/congregational settings. The website contains many resources including background information and supports for making change. Click here to join the Facebook group.  
 
Hebrew Through Movement: This is the main website for Hebrew Through Movement. The homepage includes an overview video of HTM and the curriculum guide (free download; it's also available from the middle of the homepage). The rest of the site contains videos and other resources. Want to learn how to teach Hebrew Through Movement? Check the REGISTRATION tab for access to our 10 module online seminar. Click here to join the Facebook group. Annually, over 15,000 children run and jump to learn Hebrew using the HTM model. 
 
I Left with Moses: Developed as an experimental blended learning format - students can work on this in class, as well as at home. There is a page for parents as well.  All is based on the big idea from the haggadah, "In every generation we have to see ourselves as if we left Egypt." The website includes videos, clickable activities and short short readings that supports both the big idea AND student preparedness for the seder.
 
I'm Coming Clean: A website on the theme of t'shuvah (repentance) for use by pre B'Mitzvah age children at the time of the High Holidays. There are also pages for parents, with the hope that the learning extends beyond the classroom, to the home.

 

I'm Gonna Stand Up: A website for 5thish graders that explores the main ideas behind the evening Amidah, the "standing" prayer.  Each blessing includes a Gold and Silver challenge, background videos, the chance to earn badges and become part of the I'm Gonna Stand Up photo gallery.  

 

Immediate Response Curriculum: A site that offers educators a variety of ways to respond to crisis, whether natural disasters or those caused by humans.  

 

Israel: Heads, Hands and Hearts: A specific set of Immediate Response pages designed to help with crises in, or related to, Israel.
 
Israel: Six Lenses: An update of the "IsraelNOW Solidarity Curriculum" with a focus on the following six big ideas:
  1. Israel is a special place for Jews worldwide.
  2. Just as we stand by a friend in times of trouble, the Jewish community stands by Israel at this difficult time.
  3. It is important to be "critical consumers" of media, carefully evaluating the veracity and slant of the news about Israel.
  4. Israel anchors the Jewish people as a spiritual, national, and cultural center.
  5. To equate the actions of the Israeli army with those of Hamas terrorists draws a moral equivalency that does not exist.
  6. There are specific actions we as American Jews can do to support Israel.

 

JEC MARKETPLACE: This e-commerce site includes lots and lots of materials from the Teacher Center, Curriculum Department and Ratner Media and Technology Center.  While many items are available for a nominal charge, most of the Curriculum Department's materials are available for free and immediate download. 

 

jPRAYER: A website that offers the most recent work of the JEC related to prayer, especially teaching sound-to-print. Student learning integrates meaning-making, vocabulary via Hebrew Through Movement, and decoding practice. Features, among other innovations, the use of the Flashmob - a group of teens that flash into a classroom to work one-on-one with students for 15 minutes, and then flash out again. 

 

La-bri'ut: To Our Health and Wellness: The La-bri'ut curriculum, developed in the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic is posted to this website, along with all the resources that support its teaching. 

 
The 3+3 Project: Jewish educational programs made huge educational and curriucular shifts as a result of the pandemic, and then seemed to be heading back to pre-pandemic "business as usual." The "If Not Now, When?" initiative, developed in the spring of 2021, took up the challenge of if-we-do-not-make-changes-now in part-time/synagogue learning, when will we do it? 
 
The Gifting Framework reimagines Jewish education as a process of offering meaningful “gifts” to learners—ideas, experiences, values, and connections that they can explore, question, and make their own. It shifts the role of the teacher from one who “tells” to one who guides, creating space for curiosity, choice, and ownership. Rooted in deep respect for learners, the framework encourages active engagement and personal relevance in Jewish learning.