EDUCATION has always been valued by Jewish families. While our older daughter was attending the JCC preschool, we moved to Barrington fully expecting to send our children to the public schools.

However, out of curiosity, we went to visit the Alperin Schechter Day School, which was opening a pre-kindergarten program that our older daughter could attend in the fall. We were immediately impressed and excited about the possibility of having our children attend a school which would nurture both their intellectual and spiritual growth.

We enrolled our daughter, and we were thrilled from the beginning with the warm environment and dedicated teachers, as well as her response to her new school. It was clear to us that the school was committed to providing an excellent general as well as Jewish education within a close-knit community.

Some of our earliest experiences at the school, during which older students interacted joyously with our daughter and respectfully with us, cemented our feeling that we had made the right choice.

Seven years later, our two daughters, now in the sixth- and third-grades, continue to thrive at the Jewish Community Day School of Rhode Island.

One benefit of day school education is the dual curriculum that combines general academic and Judaic studies. We have appreciated the high level of instruction in traditional academic areas, such as language arts and mathematics, as well as the breadth and depth of Judaic studies. In pre-kindergarten, our daughters began learning Hebrew and developing an understanding and appreciation of Jewish holidays and customs.

Not only were they being challenged to learn a second language, but they were learning the language that connects them to their heritage. In the elementary grades, they have developed critical thinking skills through studying and discussing sacred Jewish texts. These analytical skills will benefit them throughout their formal education and beyond. Our daughters have also developed strong synagogue skills and have had many opportunities to participate in and conduct religious services. These experiences, as well as opportunities to have leadership roles in school-wide events, have helped them become confident in their abilities and secure in their Jewish identities.

In addition to all that our daughters have experienced, having them attend JCDS has greatly enriched our own lives as well. Watching them grow as Jews in mind and spirit has inspired us to further explore and expand our own Jewish experience and, thus, to grow along with them. From engaging in Shabbat discussions, to learning how to read Torah, to building a sukkah for the first time, to becoming more involved in the Jewish community, our daughters’ experiences have kindled a fire in us as their parents to learn more about and participate in the richness of our heritage and culture.

We see how happy our daughters are at JCDS, and we realize the positive effect that their Jewish education has had on all of us. Our children have been given a gift – an excellent well-rounded education and a strong foundation of Jewish knowledge, tradition, and values that they will draw upon throughout their lives. For this, we, as their parents, are truly grateful.