Temple B’nai Torah proudly maintains very high standards of excellence in our B’nai Mitzvah program. Our students excel in mastering skills that will not only serve them on their Bar or Bat Mitzvah day, but will remain with them throughout their journey as adult Jewish members of the community.
Preparing for a young person’s Bar or Bat Mitzvah is a process that begins in third grade as our children begin to study Hebrew and learn their first prayers. Family workshops, prayer comprehension, service attendance and weekly t’fillah study leads up to the year B’nai Mitzvah begin their formal tutoring.
Our students meet with Rabbi Bar-Nahum and Cantor Timman approximately seven months before their date and chose their verses from their Torah portion. Using their Student Workbook, music files of their Torah and Haftarah, their siddur and Torah booklet they have individual weekly tutoring sessions with the Cantor and one of our B’nai Mitzvah Assistants. In addition to studying prayers and Torah cantillation, they also each dedicate significant time to doing mitzvot: completing a Mitzvah Journal. Finally, they study their Torah portion with Rabbi Bar-Nahum in preparation to write a teaching (d’var Torah) for their service.
On their Bar/Bat Mitzvah day, our students lead the entire prayer service, chant both Torah and Haftarah passages and offer a d’var Torah. They are our teachers and our role models! These students know that by becoming a Bar or Bat Mitzvah they have reached a significant milestone in their Jewish journey, but that it is only a step in their lifelong Jewish education. Many of our B’nai Mitzvah go on to our high school program and Confirmation, teach in our Madrichim program, join our temple youth group (BNTY), sing in our Teen Choir, and come back to chant on the bima as part of the TBT Torah Corp.
And the journey continues…
For more information on our B’nai Mitzvah program, please contact Cantor Timman at cantortimman@tbtwantagh.org.