FAQs

Shabbat Supervision Launches February 2025!
Part of our vision for our community is to make Beth El a place that feels like a second home for our kids. We love seeing children in shul, their presence infuses the synagogue with energy and a sense of vitality. We cherish our families and believe that there are few sounds more sacred than the voices of children echoing through our hallways. We’ve spent years trying to create a warm and welcoming environment for all of our families. We are so grateful for your presence. At the same time, we want to balance feeling at home with other, equally important values for our community, like instilling a sense of kavod (honor) for moments of reflection and prayer. In an attempt to try to create a better balance for everyone, we are excited to share a few updates to our Saturday morning youth activities. We hope these additions will create a more structured and engaging experience for our children, and enable parents to join us in the main sanctuary so you can also find moments of self-reflection and prayer. 

Youth Activities Schedule
Both Tots Service (Ages 0-5) and Mini-Minyan (Kindergarten – 5th Grade) will be held in their usual locations from 10:30 to 11:00am.

NEW* Supervised Free Play Time (All Ages)
When youth services conclude, we are providing a supervised space for kids to play. We will have toys set up in the Kasakove and teen volunteers will supervise the play space from 11:00am to 12:00pm to ensure that the kids are safe and having fun. Our Teen volunteers will meet the children after youth services and bring them to the Kasakove for you. Our Teen volunteers will also bring the children to the Sanctuary for the end of services, where they will meet you.

Outdoor Play
On pleasant weather days, children can play outside on the playground under the supervision of our teen volunteers.

Special Shabbatot with B’nei Mitzvah
During these occasions, all children will remain with the volunteers until parents notify the teens to bring the kids to the sanctuary during the Haftarah reading. This allows our kids to continue playing without worrying that they will miss out on collecting candy. We want to make sure that the older kids can join in on the fun and celebrate with the b’nei mitzvah, while also not interrupting the b’nei mitzvah kids who worked hard to prepare for their service. After the kids collect their candy, they will return to the Kasakove until the end of services when a parent will bring them back into the sanctuary for the end of services and kiddush.
We hope that having a supervised space for our children to play will not only enhance their fun but will also enable parents to participate more fully in the main sanctuary service without worrying about what’s happening with their children.
And, even with these additions, we want to remind you that children are always welcome to join you in the sanctuary, where books and toys will be available at the back of the room. Thank you for your support as we continue to experiment with different ways to create a meaningful Shabbat experience for everyone.

Teen Volunteers
We also need our high schoolers (9th grade and up) to volunteer for this program on Saturdays from 11 am-12 pm! We are happy to offer service hours.

Teen responsibilities include:

• Pick up the children from their services (Den, Levenson Chapel, or Youth Lounge).
• Walk with them to the Kasakove or to the playground.
• Play with them and supervise them in the Kasakove or playground, making sure that everyone is safe, respectful, and behaving appropriately.
• Bring the children back to the Sanctuary at the end of the service (or for b’nei mitzvah candy).
• Clean up the Kasakove or playground during the end of the service, before you go to Kiddush.

To volunteer, please email Alyssa at aberman@bethelnr.org with your availability.