Rosh Hashanah has always been a time to pause. We reflect on the year behind us and look ahead with hope, thinking about the future we are creating for the next generation. For Jewish families, those questions feel especially close to home this year.
Of course, we want our children to do well at school. But we are perhaps more aware than ever of a bigger question, too. With rising antisemitism, war in Israel and rapid change, how do we raise young people who know who they are, who are resilient and proud of their Jewish identity?
For us, it starts with seeing each child as an individual. Success looks different for every pupil, so we meet them where they are and help them reach their own potential. That might happen in a maths lesson, on a sports field, on a stage, in a robotics lab or simply in a conversation that gives a child confidence.
And while marks matter, they are only part of it. Children also need strong values, curiosity and the confidence to face whatever life brings. They need to learn from disappointment and know they have something valuable to contribute.
Jewish life is woven into the rhythm of every Herzlia school day in the traditions we celebrate, the values we live by, our connection with Israel and the sense of belonging that comes from being part of our community.
Perhaps that is why Jewish day schools matter so deeply. Children are not only learning about their heritage; they are living it. They grow up knowing they are part of something bigger than themselves, while being encouraged to engage confidently with the wider world.
As Herzlia’s Head of JLL, Rabbi Sam Thurgood, reflects: “The sound of the shofar holds within it both hope and difficulty. Our Sages tell us that the long, clear tekiah recalls the joyous announcements made by the king’s servants as he arrives. The broken sounds in the middle, teruah and shevarim, recall the crying, wailing and sobbing that accompany our most challenging moments. Shofar, Rosh Hashanah and Jewish education all contain within them the hope of a bright new future, followed by the challenges and pain that are an inseparable part of the journey and the final tekiah that keeps together the hope, the pain and the future. At Herzlia, this is the work we take on: not shielding our pupils from the broken sounds, but standing beside them as they learn to hear all three calls of the shofar, and carry that whole call into who they become.”
As we welcome 5787, we are grateful for the privilege of educating the next generation. Our role is to help every pupil discover their gifts, develop the confidence to use them well and understand the responsibility that comes with them.
If we can do that, then we are building the kind of Jewish future we hope to see: one of knowledge, kindness, belonging and quiet confidence.
