KadimaCoaching

09/01/2026

🌍 Where in the World is Kadima?

Today, we were at Ma’ayanot High School in Teaneck, NJ, where we led a faculty workshop on civil discourse and productive dialogue—featuring the Socratic Seminar and other protocols. 🗣️

We practiced a Socratic Seminar with the question: Should teachers allow students to use AI for homework and classwork?—a fascinating topic on its own! The discussion sparked diverse views on how education is changing and how tools like Socratic Seminars reveal what students truly know and how learning impacts them. 📚

We also dove deep with the history department to embed these skills into their curriculum.

Huge thanks to The Covenant Foundation for supporting the creation of Kadima’s resources on Dialogue Across Difference! ⭐

08/27/2026

🌍 Where in the World is Kadima? Seattle!

What an incredible day with the faculty of The Jewish Day School of Metropolitan Seattle! 📚

Kadima’s Tavi Koslowe and Penny (Penina) Joel launched professional development focused on helping students engage more deeply—with texts and with one another.

The entire PreK–8 faculty rolled up their sleeves to explore the skills, practices, and beliefs needed to create meaningful learning and thoughtful engagement across the school. When a whole faculty learns together, the possibilities are powerful! 💬

Thank you to Meghan Kimpton and Erin Dickerson Glover for inviting Kadima to lead this important work—and to the Samis Foundation for the countless ways it supports Jewish education in Seattle.

We’re excited to see where this journey leads! 🌱

08/26/2026

🌍 Where in the World is Kadima? Jerusalem! 🇮🇱

Some of the best ideas begin over lunch—and a good schmooze! 💬

Smadar Goldstein had the pleasure of meeting Rachel Fink, Director of Education at UnitED, at Gan Sippor in Jerusalem. Together, they strategized, exchanged ideas, and explored exciting new possibilities for strengthening Jewish education around the globe. 💡

We’re grateful for partners who share our commitment to supporting educators, strengthening schools, and helping Jewish learning flourish worldwide. 📚✨

08/25/2026

🌍 Where in the World is Kadima? Jerusalem! 🇮🇱

Jen Braun met with our Director of Global Partnerships Smadar Goldstein to discuss how Kadima can best support South African educators. 🇿🇦

Together, they explored the challenges educators face and the professional development, tools, and guidance they need to make Jewish learning truly come alive for their students. ✨📚

We’re excited to keep learning from educators around the world and developing meaningful support tailored to the needs of their schools and communities.

08/24/2026

What does it take to teach Israel well in this moment?

Tikvah from KadimaCoaching shares why the ZEI Fellowship matters: today's educators are being asked to teach some of the hardest, most vital topics in the Jewish world and they deserve real support to do it.

Built together with KadimaCoaching and Unpacked for Educators because investing in Jewish educators is investing in our future.

Learn more at zei.nbn.org.il

08/24/2026

Check out how Seattle Jewish Community School (SJCS)created this rich and meaningful multi-grade project that had students from kindergarten—yes, KINDERGARTEN!—through fifth grade learning about the history of Seattle’s Jewish community and discovering how they could make a difference. 💙

Students found meaningful ways to give back—from fundraising and stocking food pantries to organizing Hillel Shabbat dinners for college students. We also loved hearing them explain the important role the Samis Foundation plays in supporting local Jewish day schools.

At a time when fostering a strong Jewish identity and a deep sense of belonging is more important than ever, this project helped students see themselves as valued and empowered members of the Jewish community.

It proves that children are never too young to develop a sense of belonging in their community—and a love of giving back to it. ✨

Watch the video here, and email [email protected] to learn more about bringing community-based learning to your school.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aH4Xl5jz70g

08/21/2026

🌎 Where in the World is Kadima? Boca Raton, Florida! 🌴

We just wrapped up a fantastic two-day launch of year-long professional development with Katz Hillel Day School—and what a way to start the year! 🚀📚

Day 1 focused on building the foundation for powerful learning: Relationships, Responses, and Routines. Teachers explored how trust and safety help students take risks and grow; how small shifts in our language communicate that we truly see, know, and value each learner; and how explicitly taught routines create classrooms where students feel secure, included, and ready to learn. 💜

One idea we especially love sharing: Start with the feeling and plan backwards from there. What do we want students to feel in our classrooms—and how do our words, routines, and relationships help create that experience?

On Day 2, teachers got to choose their own PD adventure! 🧭 They selected the areas they most wanted to explore and took a deeper dive into learning that was meaningful to them.

Teachers also experienced a station-rotation model of PD, moving through different learning experiences and seeing firsthand how choice, movement, and varied modalities can make learning more engaging. They then met in small cohorts and even had opportunities for 1:1 coaching with the Kadima team. 🙌

Choice. Differentiation. Collaboration. Coaching. We love when professional learning models the same student-centered practices we want to see in classrooms!

And this is just the launch. We’re thrilled to be partnering with Katz Hillel throughout the year as their educators continue learning, experimenting, reflecting, and growing together.

📍 Where in the world will Kadima go next? 🌎

08/18/2026

We love this source from today's Timeless Topics from Sefaria. What would it look like to frame Talmud, halacha [Jewish law], or other Judaic Studies classes around big ideas like these, that help students use Torah and Jewish wisdom to appreciate the world around them and those they come in contact with on a daily basis?

הוּא הָיָה אוֹמֵר: כַּמָּה יְגִיעוֹת יָגַע אָדָם הָרִאשׁוֹן עַד שֶׁמָּצָא פַּת לֶאֱכוֹל: חָרַשׁ, וְזָרַע, וְקָצַר, וְעִמֵּר, וְדָשׁ, וְזָרָה, וּבָרַר, וְטָחַן, וְהִרְקִיד, וְלָשׁ, וְאָפָה, וְאַחַר כָּךְ אָכַל. וַאֲנִי מַשְׁכִּים וּמוֹצֵא כׇּל אֵלּוּ מְתוּקָּנִין לְפָנַי. וְכַמָּה יְגִיעוֹת יָגַע אָדָם הָרִאשׁוֹן עַד שֶׁמָּצָא בֶּגֶד לִלְבּוֹשׁ: גָּזַז, וְלִבֵּן, וְנִפֵּץ, וְטָוָה, וְאָרַג, וְאַחַר כָּךְ מָצָא בֶּגֶד לִלְבּוֹשׁ, וַאֲנִי מַשְׁכִּים וּמוֹצֵא כׇּל אֵלֶּה מְתוּקָּנִים לְפָנַי. כׇּל אוּמּוֹת שׁוֹקְדוֹת וּבָאוֹת לְפֶתַח בֵּיתִי, וַאֲנִי מַשְׁכִּים וּמוֹצֵא כׇּל אֵלּוּ לְפָנַי.

Explaining his custom, he would say: How much effort did Adam the first man exert before he found bread to eat: He plowed, sowed, reaped, sheaved, threshed, winnowed in the wind, separated the grain from the chaff, ground the grain into flour, sifted, kneaded, and baked and only thereafter he ate. And I, on the other hand, wake up and find all of these prepared for me. Human society employs a division of labor, and each individual benefits from the service of the entire world. Similarly, how much effort did Adam the first man exert before he found a garment to wear? He sheared, laundered, combed, spun and wove, and only thereafter he found a garment to wear. And I, on the other hand, wake up and find all of these prepared for me. Members of all nations, merchants and craftsmen, diligently come to the entrance of my home, and I wake up and find all of these before me.

Tractate Berakhot [Blessings], 58a:4

Jewish texts about Gratitude from Torah, Talmud and other sources in Sefaria's library. Gratitude is the theme of the first prayer uttered upon waking up in the morning, [Modeh Ani](https://www.sefaria.org/Siddur_Edot_HaMizrach%2C_Preparatory_Prayers%2C_Modeh_Ani.4?lang=bi&with=all&...

08/17/2026

🌎 Where in the World Is Kadima? 📍Columbus, Ohio!

Kadima’s incredible coach Craig Lubner was at Columbus Jewish Day School, launching a year of professional development with a workshop on differentiation—helping teachers design learning that recognizes and responds to the uniqueness of every student. 🍎✨

As the Talmud teaches in Sanhedrin:

“[God] stamps every person with the die of Adam, and not one of them is the same as another.”

If no two students are alike, what is a lesson designed for the “average student” actually designed for?

We are deeply grateful to the DEEP Consortium for the generous grant making this important work possible. 🙏

How are you making sure that every learner in your classroom is truly seen this year? 👀💜