The following explains the “Core K’s”, the philosophical underpinnings, of our Tefilla program:

Keva               
This K is primarily learning how to pray and what the prayers mean.  The Lower School’s Tefilla program provides basic familiarity, comfort, and appreciation with the siddur and prayers.  The Middle School Tefilla program enables students to perform and lead the basic prayers from the daily services; helps students develop an understanding of the meaning of all of the prayers from each of these services; and helps students begin to explore the personal relevance of each of these prayers. In the Upper School, students spend much more time focusing on Kavanah (see below)—how to make Tefilla personally meaningful and relevant.  Not that Keva is ignored…indeed, the classic interplay between Keva and Kavanah is explicitly taught in the 9th grade Spiritual Tefilla curriculum.

Thus, one of our explicit goals is for each student to have the traditional skills to pray from a siddur, and to understand the basic meanings of the prayers.

Kavanah
There are two primary ways that our students make their Tefilla meaningful and personally relevant, which is the focus of this K.  First, every student in every grade studies Tefilla and how to create meaning in their Tefilla.  We take seriously our responsibility as a school to educate our students about Tefilla--liturgy, philosophy, history, and theology. A central goal is to encourage the students to see the Siddur as a source for spirituality, but we also introduce non-Siddur-based Tefilla experiences.  Especially as the students grow older, they learn about a great variety of approaches (Kavanot) to prayer, as expressed in classical and modern writings.  When the act of praying becomes a meaningful personal experience, the student will find a way to arrive at his or her own method of worship.  In addition to the formal Tefilla curriculum, our Judaic Studies staff also is available for one-on-one counseling and learning opportunities. 

Second, our experiential Tefilla program provides our students with options to explore, practice, and create meaningful and spiritual Tefilla experiences. When students have the chance not only to learn about Tefilla as an intellectual endeavor, but also get to experience it in engaging ways, they learn to value and appreciate Tefilla. 

Kedushah
Tefilla, no matter what its form, must evoke a sense of sanctity and holiness.  For Tefilla to really work, it can’t be something perfunctory.  It doesn’t matter whether that sanctity comes from connecting with the Divine, or the Tradition, or the Community, or if it’s “just” a general feeling of spirituality.  What matters is that students connect.  There are many philosophers and rabbis throughout Jewish history who feel that fostering a sacred connection to something larger than oneself is the heart of Judaism; this concept is at the core of our Tefilla program.

Kehillah
Our Tefilla program is also designed to bring the school community together through authentic and relevant Jewish experiences.   We want Tefilla not only to be an individually transformative experience, but also a vehicle to enhance communal experiences.  This happens most often in the various smaller Tefilla groups (such as in the classrooms), it happens every Friday during Kabbalat Shabbat, and it also happens a number of times per year when the entire comes together for school-wide communal Tefilla experiences. 

Kavod
One of the core values at the school is respect.  This value plays out in a great many ways at the school.  Here, we are referring to the respectful environment that is essential to creating a strong Tefilla program.  If the students don’t respect the Tefilla environment, and more specifically their fellow students, the Tefilla program will falter.  This means that even though a particular student doesn’t want to pray or engage in discussion on prayer, that student still must respect his or her fellow students and the Tefilla environment. We do not mandate that students actually pray, but we do feel strongly that students must be respectful of those who do want to pray and engage in the various Tefilla experiences, and must not behave in any way which would undermine the overall Tefilla experience at the school.

When these five K’s are all in place and at work, the school Tefilla program will succeed.