Camp Kinderland
Summer Camp with a Conscience Since 1923

More than a summer camp

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Shule

The Kinderland Kindershule offers a secular Jewish education, based on a rich heritage of history, culture and literature, rather than on religion. Our goal is to help children embrace their secular cultural identity, and to see how that connects them to others. The Shule curriculum examines various aspects of Jewish culture and heritage; these offer a philosophical base that leads us to seek and promote social justice in the world.

For children whose heritage is not exclusively Jewish, the Kinderland Shule is uniquely appropriate. Our philosophy is one of inclusion that draws parallels between the struggles of all peoples; to be complete, a Secular Jewish education must of necessity include other histories and cultures. Students learn to link their different backgrounds and forge their own identities, both as individuals and as part of a larger community.

Your children will study Jewish history, literature and identity. They will learn about who they are and how they got there, and draw connections across generations of ancestors. They’ll learn about Jewish roles in historical social movements, and how people have dealt with racism, anti-Semitism, and bigotry. And they’ll have an opportunity to absorb Jewish culture: stories, poetry, music, dance and the Yiddish language.

Very young children come on a special schedule to learn about the holidays through stories and crafts, songs, dances, and games. They add an especially joyful note to our celebrations of Chanukah, Purim and Passover!

A Shule education is a unique gift to give your children: the understanding that they are part of something greater than themselves – a community that they can both help define and help preserve.

Curriculum

Our Curriculum focuses on history and literature, with an emphasis on those events, traditions and ideas that nourished a sense of social responsibility and gave rise to social action.

It includes references to relevant parallel traditions, and seeks to apply the lessons of our past to contemporary events. Each week, music and dance, Yiddish and current events discussions enliven and enhance the academic curriculum. Holiday celebrations and special outings will include families and friends.

Holiday Class	For children too young to read or participate in an academic curriculum, the Holiday Class will meet several times before Holiday celebrations (Chanukah, Purim, Passover) for stories, music, dance and crafts projects.
Youngest Classes	Bible stories relevant to our focus on history and social justice. Myths of other cultures. Games, artwork and story-telling will enrich the content. Stories from the Shtetl: how people lived, worked, celebrated and struggled. Stories, poems and plays by Sholem Aleichem and I.L. Peretz make vivid the values and culture of the Eastern European shtetl. Children will act, write, draw and re-create a shtetl.
Middle Years	From Shtetl to Sweatshop—Immigration, tenement life, sweatshop conditions, building labor unions, then and now. Stories and poetry, speakers and films will illumine the history as well as the present. From Medieval to Modern. The Golden Age in Spain: Jews, Muslims and Christians coexist in peace. The Inquisition and the Marranos; the Holocaust and resistance.
Final Years	Identity. Who am I, and why? Who defines us? Readings from literature and philosophy, current and historical. Anti-Semitism, racism, religion, secularism, Zionism, internationalism. Social responsibility: from the prophets to the picket lines. Pertinent Bible stories, the abolitionists, the Civil Rights and anti-war movements, issues for today’s activists. Graduation. Students select a subject for in-depth study and personal reflection, which culminates in a project to be presented at their graduation. They will help shape the graduation ceremony. We will publish a journal comprised of their work.

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Camp Rentals

Located in Tolland, MA, Camp Kinderland offers over 300 acres of natural beauty combined with structures and murals dedicated to the memories of progressive struggles and movements past and present. A unique setting for weddings, reunions, conferences, and more!

Our dining room and playhouse offer space for gatherings of up to 300 people. Our facilities include a private lake with swimming and canoeing areas; several sports fields, basketball and volleyball courts, hiking opportunities, indoor recreation hall, projection and sound equipment, and a whole lot more.

Accommodations range from tent camping to shared bunks to semi-private rooms. All buildings have electricity and indoor bathrooms and showers.

Catering: You can provide your own caterers or we can suggest some local options.

A liaison will be on call to help you and your guests find what you need to make your stay as comfortable as possible.

Linens can be provided for an extra fee.

Laundry can be arranged for some events, depending on size of group and length of stay. Local laundromats are also available.

Rates: please call 718-643-0771

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UnCor

Camp Kinderland’s social justice efforts continue during the school year with the help of the United Council of Resistance (UnCOR). UnCOR activists, who are primarily youth from Camp Kinderland, have organized around the various problems with public education, women’s rights, the Patriot Act, voting rights in Washington, D.C., the Jena Six and the current wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. We recently organized a trip for Kinderland kids to see My Name is Rachel Corrie, a play highlighting Ms. Corrie’s involvement in the struggle for justice for Palestinians. UnCOR strives to keep young people from the Camp Kinderland community engaged in the fight for social justice.

UnCOR is made up primarily of high school students from New York City who are concerned with injustice in the world today. If you would like to lend your support to UnCOR you can email us at UnCOR1@gmail.com.

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