- Community - 

The Triangle Family Shule was founded in 1988. As a parent co-operative, we offer an alternative for families who wish to provide a Jewish education for their children based mainly on Jewish culture, history, and ethical values. Parents are involved individually or as groups to encourage nurturing, fun, meaningful activities.

We meet one Sunday morning a month at the Freeman Center for Jewish Life at Duke University in Durham, NC. Classes range from pre-kindergarten through seventh grade and are taught by members of our community. Families gather for socializing, bagels (and other holiday foods), announcements, children's presentations, and occasionally Jewish folk music and dancing.

Curriculum

The Shule curriculum encourages meaningful discussion and activities pertinent to the age and needs of the children. Our curriculum focuses on Jewish heroes and heroines, Jewish holidays and cultural traditions around the world, ethics and values based on the Torah and other Jewish teachings, history, and Jewish music and dancing.

Social Action

We teach our children about the importance of social responsibility and justice. We hope to instill in them a strong sense of Jewish identity, and social and economic justice, and to inspire a commitment to help continue to enliven our Jewish community. Throughout the year, we sponsor group projects that grow out of the children's classroom discussion and Shule families volunteer in conjunction with other Jewish organizations in the Triangle Community.

Holiday Celebrations

The Shule offers programs and celebrations for all of the major holidays.  A favorite of the children is our Hanukkah party where we have our famous menorah contest.  In addition, different classes might present a play, a project, or song for the festivities. And of course, good food is always an important feature in all our celebrations. For Pesach, we host a large communal seder that extends to all families and loved ones in the Shule community. We end the year with community picnic. See the “Celebrations” page for more details on all of our celebrations.

B'nai Mitzvah

Our educational program culminates in a community B'nai Mitzvah ceremony for the seventh graders. Students spend the year exploring their own Jewish identity through class discussions, field trips, community service (tikkun olam), and an independent research project. For the project, each student chooses a topic that has led them to think about their Jewish Identity. They study through the year and present it to our community. The moving B'nai Mitzvah ceremony at the end of the year is attended by extended family and friends, as well as members of the Shule community.