Posts in Israel and Hebrew
Israeli emissaries at US summer camps wonder how best to serve

PALMER, Massachusetts — At Camp Ramah in New England this weekend, Israeli emissary Yakov described feeling very far away from what’s happening in Israel while sitting in the idyllic Massachusetts forest surrounding his Jewish sleep-away summer camp. He spoke about a disconnect with his otherwise peaceful town of Nazareth Ilit as tires burn in the nearby Arab village where he usually eats “the best shawarma in all of Israel.”

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In Hebrew Immersion Day Camps, Summer Fun Augmented With Learning

It used to be that parents who wanted to expose their children to conversational Hebrew over the summer had to travel to Israel. Now a growing number of American Jewish day camps are offering Hebrew-immersion programs, where kids do the standard day camp activities — swimming, arts and crafts, music, zip-lining and field trips — but “hakol b’ivrit.”

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Introducing Mishlachat 2012

I just returned from an exciting and inspiring trip to Israel with a delegation of Ramah directors and assistant directors. We spent five days at Kibbutz Shefayim, training the 250 shlichim who will be working at Ramah camps in North America this summer. During our time together, we talked about the core values of Ramah, the prominent role of Israel within our camps, and how shlichim can successfully integrate within our communities.

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