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Teen Madrichim — Teen Guides

Teens come on Sundays from 9:30–11:30 am to be madrichim (guides or helpers) in our Religious and Hebrew School. They volunteer in the following ways:

  • They assist classroom teachers by being a buddy for a child who needs extra support, being role models to the younger children, leading icebreakers and other activities and helping the teacher will classroom projects. 
  • They help in our Children’s Library with book sorting, checking in and out books and they even read books of video that can be enjoyed by children inside and outside our Temple walls.
  • They help with documenting and sharing our school program by taking pictures and videos of Sunday school.
  • They create bulletin boards and visuals that bring Jewish sayings and content into our space in interesting and engaging ways.

Teen Limmud — Teen Learning

Teens can stay for Teen Limmud (Teen Learning) from 11:30–12:30 pm. They eat lunch together and take on interesting, modern challenges bringing Judaism into their real lives and identities in meaningful ways. From Instagram pictorial displays of Judaica around the Temple to learning about Mussar, to talking about the Jewish response to events in the news, the teens enjoy continuing their Jewish involvement and learning. 

Teen Trips

Our teens have the opportunity to attend the RAC L’Taken trip in Washington D.C. with hundreds of other Reform Jewish teens from around the country. They learn about major causes coming before our state legislators and lobby for attention to be paid to their cause using Jewish values as their guiding principles. From environmental issues to gun control to protecting LGBTQ youth, this is a transformative experience.

Teen Giving Circles

TBE teens have participated in a giving circle as part of Teen Limmud. They learned about working as a group to pull their resources for more impact. They reached consensus as the charity they wanted to support and raised their own money which was matched through a program from the JUF. They allocated $4000 to the Chicago Food Depository and Viator House for Hospitality. They also took the seniors in our community through their own giving circle and sent funds to Chicago Cares.

Tue, March 19 2024 9 Adar II 5784