By Laura Seymour

When you are a camp director, the year is divided into two parts — camp and the rest of the year. But when you are a Jewish educator, the year goes round and round. That doesn’t mean learning never ends, but it does change the way it looks — or should it?

“Doing Jewish” with kids means hands-on, experiential learning, and that is the best way to learn. Judaism is a practice rooted in action, and action drives the belief that we can change the world.

This summer at the J Camps, we did a lot of talking and a lot of doing. It confirmed my deepest belief that children have so much on their minds and want to share. We looked at values from all sides and discovered that, by practicing them, we were becoming the people we want to be. Through games, scavenger hunts and art projects, we explored core values and practiced them every day.

What does savlanut — patience — look like to a 6-year-old? Learning to wait for an Otter Pop at the end of the day is one small example. Practicing that small moment of patience can help children understand why patience matters.

Another important part of our camp experiences was taking the learning home. This year, we distributed special bandanas printed with our values and questions to prompt family discussion. Whether families used them as we hoped or kids wore them as headbands, our value bandanas were a hit!

So besides sharing a little of “what I did this summer,” here is a challenge for each of us: Pick a value (there are many), and make a list of how you can practice it in your daily life. Then make it a habit — because what we do shapes who we are and who we become. When we talked about chesed — kindness — we realized that just wanting to be known as a kind person isn’t enough. Deeds of chesed are what truly matter.

As the year of Jewish learning and doing continues its cycle, it is both exciting and challenging to help people of all ages become active participants in Jewish life. And you don’t even need to be Jewish to join in the learning and the doing.

Laura Seymour is Jewish Experiential Learning director and Camp director emeritus at the Aaron Family JCC.