Bar mitzvahs and bat mitzvahs mark the official entry into adulthood for Jewish teens. The day is anticipated and studied for, and remembered forever. In some circles, the parties celebrating the occasion can be the most significant social events in young people's lives-complete with elaborate themes and celebrity guests. But most important, bar and bat mitzvahs are serious religious ceremonies, with rich histories and deep significance for the participants. Here is a warmly written discussion of the time-honored Jewish coming-of-age ritual, its historical background and evolution. Also included are reflections on how this important tradition has affected the lives of those who have participated in it, with a special chapter featuring the reminiscences of well-known actors, television personalities, and sports figures about their own bar and bat mitzvahs. This concise, informative book will help young people preparing for their own big day-as well as their families and friends-understand and appreciate this joyous, spiritual occasion. Book jacket.

The leading thinkers in Jewish education today analyze current practices, reflect on the social and psychological aspects of Bar/Bat Mitzvah, provide examples of programs to replicate, address concerns of those with special needs, outline creative family education opportunities and successful mitzvah programs, and provide strategies for teaching trope. Fifty chapters written by cantors, rabbis, directors of education, and scholars. Results of a survey of Bar/Bat Mitzvah educators included.

In Surviving Your Bar/Bat Mitzvah, Cantor Matt Axelrod provides a practical, humorous guide for Jewish students and their families as they prepare for their “big day.” Breezy and friendly yet reassuring and focused, Axelrod easily cuts through the fear and stress that teens often feel in the months leading up to their bar or bat mitzvah. In addition to helping the student prepare for the bar or bat mitzvah by walking the reader through the service and providing helpful study tips for learning a Torah and haftarah portion, Surviving Your Bar/Bat Mitzvah also helps both students and their families cope with the stressors associated with the planning of the celebration, addressing everything from teens’ fears about making mistakes to time management skills to dealing with family over/underinvolvement. Cantor Axelrod’s experience helping hundreds of teens prepare for their bnei mitzvah will help students and families not just survive but understand and enjoy this important Jewish milestone.

A comprehensive, step-by-step handbook that leads parents through every detail. —Library Journal

This is the sourcebook for families of any Jewish denomination who are interested in celebrating a bar or bat mitzvah in Israel. It provides a good picture of the sites available and the options at each location.

How to manage the process with grace, joy and good sense. A practical guide that gives parents and teens the "how-to" information they need to navigate the bar/bat mitzvah process and grow as a family through this experience. For the first time in one book, everyone directly involved offers practical insights into how the process can be made easier and more enjoyable for all. Rabbis, cantors and Jewish educators from the Reform, Conservative and Reconstructionist movements, parents, and even teens speak from their own experience. • What's it all about? • Preparation for Parent and Child • Tutoring, stress, expectations, enjoyment, planning for children with special needs • Negotiating the ceremony and celebration • Designing a creative service, heightening the spiritual exercise, special issues related to divorced and interfaith families, planning a party that neither breaks the bank nor detracts from the inherent spirituality of the event.

This support pack provides a range of photocopiable worksheets which have been developed thematically to allow teaching and use alongside the topics in the pupil's book. Each topic comprises a cross-reference to pages in the pupil book; narrative background material; differentiated worksheets and information sheets and notes from the author.

The Jewish coming-of-age ceremony of bar mitzvah was first recorded in thirteenth-century France, where it took the form of a simple statement by the father that he was no longer responsible for his thirteen-year-old son. Today, bar mitzvah for boys and bat mitzvah for girls are more popular than at any time in history and are sometimes accompanied by lavish celebrations. How did bar mitzvah develop over the centuries from an obscure legal ritual into a core component of Judaism? How did it capture the imagination of even non-Jewish youth? Bar Mitzvah, A History is a comprehensive account of the ceremonies and celebrations for both boys and girls. A cultural anthropology informed by rabbinic knowledge, it explores the origins and development of the most important coming-of-age milestone in Judaism. Rabbi Michael Hilton has sought out every reference to bar mitzvah in the Bible, the Talmud, and numerous other Jewish texts spanning several centuries, extracting a fascinating miscellany of information, stories, and commentary.

What could be more ingrained in the Jewish psyche as well as pop culture everywhere than the B’nei Mitzvah ceremony? For generations, families have joined synagogues and schlepped their kids to lessons. These hapless pre-teens struggle with cracking voices and unfamiliar melodies, fight with their parents about time spent practicing, and eventually face a couple hundred of their closest friends and relatives to sing for a couple hours in a foreign language. The current model of B’nei Mitzvah training does not resonate with most 13-year-old kids. They do it because they know they have to do it. Their parents and grandparents went through the same thing. It’s time to re-evaluate how our kids learn and prepare to be knowledgeable and engaged members of the Jewish community. Raising the Bar Mitzvah is the book that will lead Jewish professionals as well as lay congregants on a more productive and meaningful path.

Through enjoyable stories from the Torah, this book helps young people learn about Jewish tradition and what it means to be Jewish.