At the heart of our educational ethos is the belief that learning is a lifelong journey. Our Cheder program is designed to instil a love for Jewish heritage and an understanding of Hebrew from a young age.
Beyond the classroom, we engage our youth with dynamic programming that combines Judaism, fun and community service; helping to cultivate the next generation of Jewish leaders and active community members.
Cheder classes are open to all Jewish children in School Years 1 -6*, irrespective of whether their parents are members of the synagogue. The Cheder meets on Sunday mornings from 10:00am – 12:00pm. There are three terms a year, roughly corresponding to school terms.
*If your child is in Reception, they can join in the Summer Term prior to joining Year 1. If you would like to register your child for Cheder please fill out and return the form here.
Highgate’s Cheder blends a relaxed approach with a structured learning system. The Cheder aims to make Sunday mornings exciting, enjoyable and stimulating. There is a structured framework of curriculum content based on the Tribe curriculum with regular assessment of general knowledge and reading ability, rather than with formal examinations. Sephardi pronunciation is used throughout.
The curriculum attempts to provide a broad Jewish knowledge in an age-related way to cover the following areas: Hebrew Reading, Synagogue, Tefillah And Berachot, Shabbat, Chaggim, Parsha, Kashrut and Middot.
We have over 200 young members and oer an array of exciting and inclusive events for them to get involved in. Our aim is that they feel part of and connected to our wonderful Community.
Events run throughout the year and are organised by our Youth Director, Zev Dickson. Children’s and Youth Services are held over the Chaggim and we have re-introduced monthly Shabbat Children’s service, followed by birthday cupcakes for those celebrating their birthdays that month.
Recent events have included making grati inspired Succah decorations, Chanukah art festival, movie night, Krav Mag sessions, Purim parties and Challah makes.
We encourage our younger members to get involved with Highgate’s volunteering opportunities such as baking and packing Chaggim parcels for members in the community. The volunteering, alongside the Krav Maga, can be done as part of the Duke of Edinburgh Award Scheme.
Most events are organised by year groups, the rest are open to all age groups. We also have pre-Bar Mitzvah fathers’ and sons’ groups, and pre- Bat Mitzvah mothers’ and daughters’ groups that run once month. They are great fun and wonderful way for parents to enjoy quality time with their children and learn Jewish values at the same time.
Our commitment to education extends to adults of all ages and stages in their Jewish journey.
Our adult learning programme includes Shabbat morning special guests and debates; Sunday morning discussions and weekday evening talks.
We run a series of term time evening adult ‘Education &’ sessions which generally take place twice a month hosting external speakers as well as weekly Sunday morning discussions led by Rabbi Liss on a range of topics.
Previous speakers to Highgate include Sir John Major, Tony Adams, Luciana Berger, Lord John Mann, Dame Esther Rantzen and many more.
Sir Martin Gilbert – a long-standing member of our Shul – was a master chronicler of the twentieth century, with a remarkable ability to bring history alive to his audiences. Perpetuating this legacy, the Sir Martin Gilbert Learning Centre offers a wide programme on the subjects Sir Martin spent his life exploring: modern Jewish history, Israel, the two World Wars, the Holocaust, and Sir Winston Churchill.
We are delighted that the Learning Centre is housed within the Shul building.