Jewish Education
EducationExperiential Jewish Education
Living Tree Alliance is a kibbutz-inspired community reimagined for the modern world. Our hands-on education offerings are designed to build connection to self, the earth, community, ancestral wisdom, and spirituality. Programs promote critical thinking, cooperation, and universal Jewish values.
Cultivate your community’s sense of place and enhance their appreciation for earth-based Judaism with
- regular visits to LTA’s educational farm
- onsite garden development and outdoor education at your own community
- our online webinar series
We are a resource for schools, spiritual communities, and families for spiritual nature experiences that teach skills for a resilient community and serve as an answer to the global climate crisis. Scroll down for details about our upcoming Jewish education events.
Interested in our Jewish summer camp experiences? Check out all our camp details here.
Increasing the Light: A Chanukah Celebration | December 29
Celebrate the Festival of Lights!Join Living Tree Alliance, PJ Library of Vermont and Jewish Communities of Vermont for an intergenerational...
Available Programs
Multi-generational Programs
Gleaning Program
Plant a row or glean produce from the farm for donating to the food shelf. Work together on the farm for community building and make a difference as we grow and harvest food for those that need it. Learn about the mitzvah of Pe’ah, saving the four corners of your field for the poor and the Jewish value of tikkun olam, repairing the world.
Shabbat Farm Preparation
Prepare for an immersive Shabbat experience on the farm. Make everything from scratch on the farm for a homemade Shabbat. Challah prep from milling the wheat to grinding the flour to baking challah. Collect fresh eggs. Arrange flower bouquets to beautify the day. Prepare fresh salads and learn the benefits of growing your own food. Harvest berries for dessert. Dip beeswax candles for Shabbat and Havdalah and safely observe the honey bees. Connect farm activities for a Shabbat like no other. Stay for evening and celebrate Shabbat together.
Forest Ecology Walks
Connect to the forest through sensory exploration, play, and contemplation. We’ll search for life in the forest or the river and gain insight into the value and beauty of our natural world and what our ancestors had to say about protecting the earth. Integrate prayers and ancient Jewish practices of connection while in the forest.
Agriculture, Mitzvot & Jewish Values
Learn about the mitzvot related to growing food and caring for animals. Embody Jewish values while working together on the farm. Investigate the science and wonder around growing food. Decipher what these mitzvot may mean to us. Explore Jacob sheep, shepherding, and animal husbandry as part of Jewish history. Learn about caring for animals and what our tradition has to teach. This program can be focused on plants +/or animal husbandry.
Connect to the Cycles of the Season with Ritual
Earth Based Judaism celebrates the connection to the seasons and earth. All of our holiday celebrations link back to the agricultural cycles and seasons. Join us for a program that explores the special mitzvot of the season that links them to the farm cycles. Together we design meaningful rituals that link earth, spirit and tradition. For example: join for Sukkot preparation/harvest, or to find the first fruits of spring for Shavuot)
Jewish Stories & Values Around the Fire
As we work around the farm and rest around the fire we will engage in crafts and story telling that link us to our ancestors and Jewish values. As we link stories to Middot – Jewish values, and embrace them in our day. We will share songs and learn what it takes to create a peaceful village. This can be a one day program or a 5 day camp, or come multiple times for experiencing different seasons. Embodied and accessible Judaism for all!
Service Learning / Customized Programming
Conservation in Action! A great addition to a program or an option for a stand-alone visit. We can customize trips to the farm to explore specific standards, themes, or topics. We’re happy to work with you to see how to make your topic come to life! Projects occur on Living Tree Alliance’s 91 acre homestead and can include perennial and annual plantings, woodlot management, or erosion prevention on the Mad River.
Elementary School Students & Family Programs
Developing Jewish Gratitude Practices (K-2 grades)
Reverence and gratitude are practiced attitudes that we can teach our children. This workshop exposes families to the ‘secret of saying thanks’ and introduces families to Jewish spiritual practices for prayer, meal rituals and creating nature museums in the home. All families leave with a book of blessings and a special Kiddush cup for children.
The Ritual of Bedikat Chametz: Establishing cleaning routines for your family (1-2 grades)
The Passover season provides us a chance to reflect on our spring cleaning and the routines we set as a family to keep our houses tidy. Spend time sharing and learning tips for establishing family cleaning routines while learning the kabbalistic ritual of Bedikat Chametz, the mysterious treasure hunt of Passover that your children will love!
Families Wake up! Jewish Morning Routines (3-4 grades)
We’ll take tips from our ancestors and look at the ways Judaism encourages us to wake up with gratitude, mindfulness and intention. Then we’ll get to work and sort out our ideal morning routines with reflection and sharing designed to support kids, parents and families in developing ways to wake up their mind, body and soul. Caffeine included!
Assimilation (4-5 grades)
Undoubtedly, one of the main themes of Chanukah is that of Jews living in a non-Jewish world and the related issues of lifestyle and assimilation. This family program uses the Chanukah story to invite students and parents to reflect on the modern issues of assimilation. Parents will have time to share their own challenges and questions about developing Jewish family identity in Vermont especially during this holiday time when these definitions face more cultural pressure.
Developing a Sense of Place / Israel and Vermont explorations of place and identity (3-6 grades)
In this family workshop, we’ll explore the definitions of home and homeland through an experiential sharing of the homes and lands we have in our life. We’ll extend this conversation into the practical ways that Israel serves as a homeland for the Jewish people by introducing its flowers and food. Our time together will center around a short hike where we will share blessings over spring ephemerals, new blossoms, and deep gratitude for our shared sense of place and community.
Families Wake up! Jewish Morning Routines (3-4 grades)
We’ll take tips from our ancestors and look at the ways Judaism encourages us to wake up with gratitude, mindfulness and intention. Then we’ll get to work and sort out our ideal morning routines with reflection and sharing designed to support kids, parents and families in developing ways to wake up their mind, body and soul. Caffeine included!
Tikkun Olam and Tzedakah in your Family (5-7 grades)
This family class is a precursor for preparing your children for next year’s mitzvah projects. As young adolescence, middle schoolers begin to encounter the world more fully through a developing inquisitive nature and a growing desire to find truth in the world around them. By reflecting on their own lives and the places that each family and child uniquely interact with their communities, participants will develop a more clear and more personal perspective on how to initiate change. As well, we will look at Jewish teachings and prayers that help us to remain hopeful- and therefore active- healers of this world of which we are a needed and vital part.
VTeen: Vermont Teen Initiaive
VTeen is a state wide program that offers expanded opportunities for teen connection, leadership, friendships and creative Jewish experience.
Leadership Development Program
Teens will develop personal definition and understanding of leadership. They will begin to understand their own leadership style within their local Jewish group, and learn from models of leadership in Jewish text.
110 Living Tree Lane
PO Box 532
Moretown, VT 05660
info@livingtreealliance.com
(603) 387-8697