Kishroniyah 2024: Part One!

August 02, 2024

A group of teens and an adult stand together outside, holding paddles in front of stacked red canoes on a trailer. Theyre smiling and dressed in casual, sporty clothes, with trees and a cloudy sky in the background.

Kishroniyah is one of our centerpiece programs for our Tzad Bet (B-Side) chanichim/ot (campers)!

It’s important to us that the camp experience grows and changes with our chanichim (campers) as they grow up at camp. We also strive to give kids opportunities for high-level, specialized experiences at camp, in which they can dig deeply into areas in which they have interest. Kishroniyah comes from the Hebrew word kisharon, which means “skill” or “talent”. For a week during our second session, we invite specialists in a wide variety of fields to join us at camp to run intensive multi-day programs for our older Tzad Bet (B-side) campers. These programs are high-level offerings that give our chanichim a chance to engage in an intensive way with the program that best fits their personal interests and skills. Machon and Nivonim have 12 hours of Kishroniyah from Sunday-to-Wednesday, and Magshimim and Bogrim have 8 hours of Kishroniyah from Wednesday-to-Friday.

A Cappella: Working with premiere song-leader Ami Margolis, participants in this group form an a cappella group! They learn arrangements for multiple songs, which they perform in front of Tzad Bet at the end of their program, in addition to working with Ami to create a professional recording of each piece they’ve learned & performed! Click here to watch a performance by the Machon/Nivonim participants, and check back here soon to see the performances of the Magshimim/Bogrim participants.

A group of ten smiling teenagers stands behind an adult seated at a keyboard in front of a colorful mural that says BOGFIM 2000. Papers and a microphone are on the table in front. Nine teenagers stand in a semi-circle around a microphone in a wooden room decorated with small American flags. Most hold papers and smile at the camera, dressed in casual summer clothes.

Basketball: Four coaches from the Basketball Stars of New York lead our participants in an intensive basketball training program. They teach and hone the kids’ skills, and the program culminates in an intense, competitive tournament!

A group of teens and adults poses together in a gymnasium with basketballs, smiling at the camera. Some stand while two sit in front; a basketball hoop and American flag are visible in the background.

A group of kids and two adults stand in a circle holding basketballs on an indoor court at Camp Ramah in New England, listening and preparing for a basketball activity.

Filmmaking: Writer/director Arnon Shorr guides partipants in creating, entirely from scratch, a complete short-film! The participants come up with the idea, write the script, create a shot list, film all the footage, and help to assemble the complete edit. Click here to watch the incredible short horror film created by the Machon/Nivonim participants, and check back here soon to see the documentary short created by the Magshimim/Bogrim participants.

Five people are outside near a cabin by a lake; one man is being interviewed by four young people, one holding a camera, another holding a microphone, and two taking notes. Sunlight shines through the trees. Four youths sit on benches and a chair in a basement, while a person in a red shirt operates a camera with bright lighting equipment pointed at them. The area has exposed pipes and storage boxes.

Glass-Fusing: Incredible artist Abby Maier works with participants to create gorgeous works of art in glass. This year, each camper in her program created a gorgeous mezuzah made of glass.

A group of eleven smiling people stands together in a craft room, some hugging. Art supplies are on the table in front, and one person holds up a painted project. USA flags and colorful decorations hang on the back wall. Colorful glass mezuzah cases with various geometric and Judaic designs are laid out on a cutting mat, surrounded by tools and materials for glasswork.

Jewelry: Sandra Ostroff has been with Kishroniyah ever since the beginning of this program! The focus of this program is on beading, featuring a variety of different (and complicated!) stitches. The chanichim (campers) make gorgeous bracelets, rings, and other jewelry in a variety of different beautiful color combinations.

Four smiling girls sit at a table making crafts with beads and string on trays. Other groups work at tables in the background inside a bright, rustic room with large windows. A person holding a colorful bead bracelet they are making, with beads and supplies on a yellow mat. A name card labeled Anna is on the table beside their hands.

Make Your Own Play/Musical: Landon Braverman guides participants in creating and performing a complete short musical, with multiple songs and scenes, completely from scratch! We’ll be posting the recording of their amazing performances here soon.

Mosaic: Talented artist Cecilia Kramer has worked with our participants to create another breathtaking beautiful piece of installation artwork, that will soon be displayed in a public space at camp. This year’s mosaic focuses on the words of Shir Ramah, and depicts butterflies (a butterfly is mentioned in the first line of Shir Ramah) flying among flowers.