Ramah custom designs each program to meet the group’s specific needs. Whether the group consists of first-time or veteran visitors to Israel, hikers or spiritual seekers, the sophisticated, intellectually curious or those who don’t yet know what to ask, Ramah will design an Israel program of any length and at for any season that will meet the needs of the group – showing the participants an incredibly good time in the process.
Ramah’s trips are organized around a central theme. Working with the group, we determine a theme that is then reflected both in the choice of the sites and the activities included in the itinerary. Ramah’s travelers participate in hands-on learning, exploration and reflection. RII has created a number of on-site inter-active programs, using drama, role-playing, discussion and simulation to engage the participants and help them reflect on the significance of the experience.
Many kinds of families travel with their synagogue or community under Ramah’s auspices, from standard nuclear families to single parent families, multi-generational families, single-parent families, and other family configurations.
Ramah provides staff who are skilled educators with extensive knowledge of Israel. Each group includes atour educator who is a licensed tour guide and a family educator. RII’s English-speaking tour educators combine a commitment to the educational process with a broad and rich understanding ofIsrael, both ancient and contemporary. Their personal commitments to Judaism, the Jewish people and the Jewish state are evident as they actively engage the group participants in exploring the family and travel connections and commitments.
The family educator is largely responsible for conducting exciting programs both for children and for children and parents together. While most of the program activities are designed for the whole group, RII also provides parallel programs for different ages when appropriate.
Ramah’s trips are designed for children as young as six years old. RII provides a sourcebook for younger children who some reading skills and the family educators who accompany each group are trained to work with children as young as six. That said, each child is different and parents are the best judge of their child’s maturity level and readiness for such a trip. Please understand, however, that children under the age of six are the responsibility of the parent, not the staff. All children are invited to participate in the activities designed for them. If, however, a child requires special attention, the parent must be the one to provide it (which may mean missing out on an activity).
There is no doubt that a Ramah Family Experience is intensive and the time allotted is used as efficiently as possible. However, we recognize both the incredible potential and the inherent difficulties in family, and group, travel. Ramah attempts to achieve a balance between leisure and learning. RII provides opportunities for rest and relaxation as well as making sure that the group accomplishes as much as possible within the short time available inIsrael.
The Ramah focus on Jewish values, Jewish tradition, Jewish texts and the Jewish people are integral to the design of the RII programs. Shabbat, kashrut and learning are all part of the trip framework. Each group can decide to what extent formal prayer will play a part in their trip. RII also offer opportunities to meet with Israelis, Conservative immigrants toIsrael and/or key representatives of the Masorti (Conservative) community inIsrael. RII has also worked with Reform and non-affiliated synagogues.
If you are interested in receiving more details and about joining an existing family trip or creating one of your own, please contact our New York office. Ask for our booklet on Getting a Synagogue Trip Started.