SHVEL: THE THRESHOLD is a Jewish literature and creative writing course for ages 12–15. Students read nine novels about Jewish teenagers across a century and three continents, discuss what they're reading in a small cohort of teens from across the English-speaking Jewish world, collaborate on fun writing exercises, build impressive portfolios of creative writing, and publish original work on our podcast and in our literary magazine. Teens may use SHVEL as a meaningful, substantive extracurricular activity or as part of a homeschool language arts curriculum.

Young teens are af der shvel—on the threshold, between childhood and all that comes next. For many Jewish teens who don't attend day school or sleepaway camp, these years can be a time of immense identity formation (b'nei mitzvah!) followed by a time of genuine loss, as long-time childhood rituals come to a close: weekend Hebrew school ends, PJ Our Way books no longer arrive in the mailbox each month, and various children's programs no longer appeal. Other Jewish teens who, for a variety of reasons, did not go through a b'nei mitzvah ceremony may want to connect to Jewish community in meaningful ways but not know how to begin.

Our Shvel Program is designed to build connection to Jewish literature and community at exactly this time of life. The texts for this course all focus on stories of Jewish teens and are sequenced to grow student reading capacity steadily over the year. Read together, the texts also provide a survey of one hundred years of Jewish American history, from the early 1900s through the 21st century, and introduce readers to several dominant themes in modern Jewish lit. SHVEL offers students from diverse Jewish backgrounds a literature-based pathway to connection with Jewish community, history, and cultural heritage—and, through publishing original work, a clear way to participate, too.

Course dates: Semester 1: September 16, 2026 - January 27, 2027. Semester 2: February 1 - May 30, 2027. Holidays/breaks: September 20-21 (Yom Kippur), December 20-Jan 1 (Winter Break), April 1- 9 (Spring Break/Pesach).

Tuition: $288/full course, $170/Each Semester, $45/monthly. Students may join at the beginning of any calendar month if space is available.

Class size: 20 students max. Sign up early to avoid disappointment.

Admissions Guidelines: This course is open to students 12-15 who understand themselves to be Jewish. Students can use the course as either a rigorous extracurricular activity or as a homeschool literature and writing course.

Instructors: Darren and Suzanne Alexander. Read about our qualifications and experience here.

Course Requirements: SHVEL students will need to log-on to our course forum on Sundays, Mondays and Wednesdays (time of day is up to you). All course participation is text-based (no Zoom calls). Total weekly time commitment: ~5 hours/week. All students will need access to a computer, and copies of the books listed below, to participate in this course.

September: Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret by Judy Blume (1970)

October: All-of-a-Kind Family by Sydney Taylor (1951)

November: Letters from Rifka by Karen Hesse (1992)

December: The Endless Steppe by Esther Hautzig (1968)

January: Just a Hat by S. Khubiar (2023)

February: When the Grey Beetles Took Over Baghdad by Mona Yahia (2000)

March: Alan and Naomi by Myron Levoy (1977)

April: The Romance Reader by Pearl Abraham (1995)

May: The Chosen by Chaim Potok (1967)

Course details: This course is designed to serve two potential purposes: as a substantive, meaningful extracurricular activity, or as part of a homeschool language arts curriculum.

Our primary goals in creating and delivering SHVEL:

1) Grow student capacity to read and enjoy diverse, syntactically complex, non-contemporary literature; 2) create a meaningful community for geographically-distant Jewish teens, including many who lack in-person communal experiences; 3) build student knowledge of American Jewish history and culture, 1900-present, and introduce students to key themes in modern Jewish literature, including: tradition and modernity, memory, antisemitism and pogroms, immigration and Jewish American experiences, Mizrahi history and contemporary Islamism, and Judaism in secular societies; 4) introduce students to a variety of genres and writing styles and create repeated experiences of writing as a joyful, generative experience; 5) create a supportive creative community in each cohort.

Admission Guidelines: This course is open to students age 12-15 who understand themselves to be Jewish. Our students come from every corner of Jewish life: Reform, Conservative, Orthodox, secular, patrilineal, and beyond.

Reading level/academic readiness: if your student can read popular junior high titles like the Percy Jackson books, The Giver by Lois Lowry, or Wonder by R. J. Palacio, they can succeed in this course.

More info: Our courses are intellectually rigorous and avoid busy-work, making our courses excellent choices for smart kids who chafe at worksheets that feel pointless. Our curriculum encourages students to delight in the texts and try out a wide variety of writing styles, idioms, voices, perspectives and formats; our discussion questions and writing prompts are not, for the most part, focused on 'self reflection' or 'write about yourself'.

We have worked with many young writers who bloom once they are in a writing community focused on creating, not self-reflecting; writing with purpose (other people will read and engage with their work!); and creative autonomy (important for all young writers - please, give your student creative space while working on this course: do not critique, edit, or compare your student's written work to that of other students).

Code of Conduct: Derech Eretz

Derech eretz means "the way of the land"—the basic decency and respect we owe to one another. In our online community, these values guide everything we do. We go over these expectations at the beginning of each course; we ask that parents also review this code of conduct with each student.

1) Be respectful. Be curious. Be kind.

2) Assume good faith. Disagree thoughtfully.

3) Show up. Read. Participate.

4) Co-create community: cheer on your classmates, share your thoughts, ask questions!

5) Our students come from every corner of Jewish life: Reform, Conservative, Orthodox, secular, patrilineal, and beyond. We honor the many ways of being Jewish. In our community, we never question the Jewishness of another student.

Scholarships: No student is turned away due to lack of funds. We are proud to offer the Almagor Scholarship to students who need financial assistance to access our courses. Please email us at yidlitclub@gmail.com and we will send you the scholarship application.

The Almagor Scholarship is offered in memory of Horace Myers "Mike" Alexander, z"l, and Rina Rachel Alexander nee Almagor, z"l, with immense love and gratitude.