Children, Teens and Families

This is an especially challenging time for kids with special needs. Here is a way to explain the situation and disruption in routine using a visual story created by Ryan Mathew Morin, Constituency Board Member of the University of Miami-Nova Southeastern University Center for Autism and Related Disabilities (UM-NSU CARD).

Beit Issie Shapiro is offering a coronavirus hotline to support those with disabilities

As families stay home together, PJ Library has activities for all ages to learn, laugh and share experiences. Whether it is cooking with kids, listening to podcasts, reading stories or doing arts and crafts, there is something for everyone. Click here to explore all the fun options.

Teens can learn strategies for how to take care of themselves — mentally and physically. They can explore Jewish values in the context of coronavirus and gain coping skills as they manage fear and uncertainty. Click here to read more.

Beit Issie Shapiro, a Federation partner and Israel’s leading provider of innovative therapies for children and adults across the entire range of disabilities, has a special accessible Kabbalat Shabbat in English for kids with disabilities

Keep children with disabilities active during these difficult days

Help spread happiness while social distancing by chalking pictures and messages of inspiration on your daily walks.

The Greater Miami Jewish Federation recently launched Miami.JewishAbilities.org. This user-friendly gateway links individuals with disabilities and their families to services, support groups and includes a special section on COVID-19. Click here to visit the site.

Gather the family around the computer and join in Jewish Telegraphic Agency’s (JTA) weekly quiz show focused on Jewish news and pop culture. Read more.

Join Portland-based musician Alicia Jo Rabins (https://aliciajo.com/) for a weekly Kabbalat Shabbat Fridays at 5:30PM ET. Click here to get the Zoom link and a weekly reminder.

The Galbut Family Miami Beach Jewish Community Center offers a wide variety of suggestions for homebound families seeking creative activities during the social-distancing period. Click here for instructions on building a baking soda volcano, making slime, organizing a Frozen scavenger hunt and much more.

This summer, Tikvah Online Academy is offering seminars for middle school and high school students. Topics include Jewish philosophy and Western civilization, Israeli history and strategy, America's founding principles, the rise of anti-Semitism and more. A flexible schedule allows you to incorporate other fun activities into your summer plan: four-session classes meet weekly, with options on weekdays and weekends, mornings and evenings. For more information, click here.

Join Hillel at FIU for Shalom Yerucham, a program to learn about Federation’s partner city, Yerucham, engage with the residents and discover their incredible community. Programs include a look at the city’s industry and innovation with medical cannabis and a virtual nighttime safari to explore the wonders of the desert. For more information and to register, click here.

Offering nearly 100 unique, high-quality experiences, the Experience Shuk is the largest centralized marketplace of cutting-edge live and on-demand Jewish virtual engagement for camps, informal educators and families. Searchable by a variety of functions including age of participants, cost, programmatic specialty and language, once you identify an experience of interest, you can easily connect to the content provider to plan meaningful programs together. The Virtual Jewish Experience Shuk is part of the Jewish Camp @ Home project, a shared initiative of Foundation for Jewish Camp and Mosaic United. Take a look around by clicking here.

Shalom Baby, offered by Temple Beth Sholom, wants to help new parents-to-be welcome their baby with confidence. The childbirth education class welcomes pregnant women (20 weeks+) and their partners for experiential training on childbirth and conversation about traditional and new Jewish rituals for welcoming your baby into world. Also included are three follow up sessions featuring tips from a pediatrician, lactation and sleep consultants and a post-partum mental health psychologist, among others. Click here for more information and to register.

As you and your kids are home, connect with other Jewish teens virtually through the Cteen Channel network of Jewish teens. Jewish teens. CTeen, the Chabad Teen Network, offers a full range of virtual programming. From learning to worshipping to engaging with each other, there is something for everyone. Click here to explore the site now.

As the pandemic stretches from weeks to months, find the best way to handle the stress of our “new normal” with Moving Traditions. The organization that emboldens teens by fostering self-discovery, challenging sexism and inspiring a commitment to Jewish life and learning is now offering activities to try with the teens in your life to help them find comfort during this stressful time. Click here to get started.

Share fun Jewish cultural and learning experiences with your children by introducing them to Bagels.tv, a kid-friendly YouTube alternative. Produced in Jerusalem, Bagels.tv includes hours of videos with Jewish music performances, visits to fascinating sites in Israel, Torah study and much more. To visit Bagels.tv, click here.

P.J. Library, the popular provider of free books of Jewish content for young children, has created High Holidays at Home, a charming, kid-oriented website that introduces and explains traditions, concepts and practices of the High Holy Day season. The intent of this “Family Guide” is to enable parents to share Jewish experiences with their youngsters. To explore this intergenerational collection of videos, songs, stories, recipes and lessons, click here.