Teaching towards Connection: A Jewish Pedagogies Symposium on Peoplehood and T’fillah
When Jewish learning is rooted in peoplehood and prayer, connection deepens. Over the past year, Jewish Peoplehood and T’fillah Fellows have explored how to teach toward these aims with intention and creativity.
Join us to learn from their pedagogy and take away new ideas and resources for your own educational practice.
VIRTUAL
20 RESEARCH FELLOWS
March 18, 2026
12:00-2:30 pm ET / 9-11:30 AM PT / 6-8:30 PM Israel
Symposium HIGHLIGHTS
Welcome & What are We Teaching Towards?
Beginning with Silence
with Mira Weill
My Israeli Story: Between Hope and Reality
Dr. Yakir Englandar (Peoplehood)
Na’anua: A Pedagogy of Jewish Transformative Movement
Rabbanit Dalia Davis (Wellbeing)
A Pedagogy of Rootedness: Reclaiming a Sense of Belonging
Dr. Dominika Zakrzewska (Peoplehood)
Kissing the Sages: Cultivating Peoplehood Through Talmud Torah
Laynie Soloman (Peoplehood)
Speaking Jewish: A Phraseology of Peoplehood
Rabbi Josh Weinberg (Wellbeing)
Facing Difference and Fostering Belonging
Maia Ferdman (Wellbeing)
Life Meets Text: Sara Bareilles and Song of Songs
Rabbi Jen Gubitz (Wellbeing)
Kol Demama: A Pedagogy of Nuance
A Letter to your Ancestor
Laynie Solomon
BREAK
Let’s Farbreng: The Original Farbrengen Game
Hashaliach Peretz Chein (Wellbeing)
Embodying My Jewish Story
Dr. SAMANTHA VINOKOR (PEOPLEHOOD)
Kaveh: A Pedagogy of Hope
Rabbi Amitai Fraiman (Peoplehood)
Amplifying Minority Voices Through Storytelling
Dr. Bezawit Abebe (Peoplehood)
Cultivating Curiosity
Rabbi Paul Cohen (Wellbeing)
Building Interpersonal Connection Through Wonder
Fraidy Aber (Wellbeing)
Speaking Jewish
with Rabbi Josh Weinberg
Parsha Play as a Portal to Regenerative Torah
Aura Chaya (Wellbeing)
Hineni: A Call to Humble Action
Rabbi Aytan Kadden (Peoplehood)
What Do We Owe Each Other?
Rabbi Josh Mikutiks (Peoplehood)
A Pedagogy of Responsiveness
Dr. Sandra Anusiewicz-Baer (Peoplehood)
Cultivating Joy: Mitzvah Gedolah Lehiyot BeSimcha
Jessie Gindea (Wellbeing)
Shtika: Reclaiming Silence for Embodied Jewish Ethics
Mira Neshama Weil (Wellbeing)
Practicing Joy
with Jessie Gindea
Closing: From Jewish Education to an Education that is Jewish
with Rabbi Lisa Goldstein
Fellows' Resources
Each fellow’s brand new Jewish pedagogy – created alongside scholars, artists, and content experts – will be available for download to infuse your work and uplift your practice.
THE PRESENTERS
M²’s Research Fellowships are generously supported by The Covenant Foundation and Taube Philanthropies, and are delivered in partnership with The Z3 Project for Pedagogies of Peoplehood and The Hadar Institute for Pedagogies of T’fillah.