Girls' boarding school in Israel?! Please help!!!!!

chanchy123

Mon, Jul 27 2009, 6:02 am

ABC wrote:

can girls at the ma ulpana pursue things like playing musical instruments, doing art classes, sports etc?

and is the education at the ulpana good enough for girls to be able to choose from any career they want, whether doctor, astronaut, teacher or a combination of all 3, also known as a SAHM ?

All ulpanot are requried to give art and sports classes. Some ulpanot will also allow girls to incorprate a bagrut in music (but many times this is studied privately but the test taken through the school).
Mainstream ulpanot give about the best education that is possible to get in Israel and graduates can become anything from a SAHM to a physicst, politician, lawyer, dr, teacher, and any other profession you can imagine.
My particular school offers bagrut "majors" in film, theater, art, biology, physics, computers, chemistry, literature, agriculture, EY studies, and I think history, my sister also took graphic design.
The larger the school obviously, the more options there are for every individual student.

Pizza

Mon, Jul 27 2009, 7:29 am

I honestly dont think that spending high school away from ones family is such a great choice

can you make a deal with her, like that if she finishes hs in the us, she can go to israel every summer (I.e. on a volunteer program, where she'll learn hebrew, and meet real israelis), and maybe make aliya after graduation?

I would be very hesitant about having a teen grow up without me... even in the holy land...

(sorry to be the party pooper here...)

amother

Copper

Thu, Mar 18 2010, 10:22 pm

I always think it's interesting to come back to one's old posts and say, "here's what happened" Smile

So dd did come home for 9th grade in the US (local BY school), b/c there really was not a good option for school for her. However, I did find this program called Elite Academy:
http://www.elite-academy.org/

It's funded by the Jewish Agency and takes a group of English-speaking kids for 10th-12th grades and gives them intensive ulpan and lots of support for being away from family/friends. And (fainting) it's free. DD has been waiting since she got back from Israel for the interviews Smile

. They're next month. B''eh, she'll be accepted for next year......

I hope this info helps the next mama with this issue!

------------------
update to the update: dd did go on the Elite program and came home midway through the year. The other girls (at least that year) were NOT frum and she did not enjoy the program.

Last edited by amother on Tue, Dec 20 2016, 3:51 pm; edited 1 time in total

ally

Fri, Mar 19 2010, 3:09 am

I went to the Ulpana in Kfar Pines for the first semester of Year Ten. I'm Australian, so I was actually finishing Year Nine then (I missed half a semester of school plus summer holidays).
It was great.
I had, I guess a passable speaking hebrew coming in, going out I was almost fluent (and then took hebrew as a subject for matriculation and did really well).
I guess I should also say I always did pretty well in school academically.
At the school, I found it very easygoing. Noone really put pressure on me with regards to classes, or expected me to pass tests or anything;)
I did well in maths because that was easy for me (and its not so dependant on hebrew) and somehow some subject called torah shebal peh which I think I just happened to have some background to what they were doing.
Lashon (which is dikduk, I had not a clue what was going on;)
It was a phenomenal experience, I had a sister living here that I could go visit for Shabbos, but the girls invited me to their homes all the time. And they would explain things to me in English if I needed it (They liked practicing their english anyhow).
I dont know the exact tuition, but my parents were in shock how low it was (compared to our private school fees;)
At the time I was there, there was an Australian-South African program, where they lived in the dorm but had separate classes in english. However, they also did touring, with a brother program in Kfar HaRoeh. And I'm sure it was much more expensive.
If your daughter can afford to miss a semester of school (you said she's a quirky genius?), then I would recommend doing what I did. Although I see it would be a bit harder because she would be missing FIRST semester in her school.

If you have any more specific questions, you can pm me...

Oh, and if I've just totally outed myself to anyone, can you tell me;)

Seraph

Fri, Mar 19 2010, 3:26 am

4Sisters wrote:

I always think it's interesting to come back to one's old posts and say, "here's what happened" Smile

So dd did come home for 9th grade in the US (local BY school), b/c there really was not a good option for school for her. However, I did find this wonderful program called Elite Academy:
http://www.elite-academy.org/

It's funded by the Jewish Agency and takes a group of English-speaking kids for 10th-12th grades and gives them intensive ulpan and lots of support for being away from family/friends. And (fainting) it's free. DD has been waiting since she got back from Israel for the interviews Smile

. They're next month. B''eh, she'll be accepted for next year......

I hope this info helps the next mama with this issue!

I'm really not sure such a program is a good idea for a frum girl, let alone a bais yakov girl. I think naaleh (elite academy's program) is associated with young judea, a conservative youth movement!

Seraph

Fri, Mar 19 2010, 7:31 am

4Sisters wrote:

According to the info onilne, it's a national religious school with a strong LK program, not a MO place, but, if dd is invited to the interview in NY, I will check that out. Thank you for the input!

National religious has ranges, and often is the equivalent of MO in america with a strong zionist leaning.

Fri, Mar 19 2010, 7:34 am

Seraph wrote:

I think naaleh (elite academy's program) is associated with young judea, a conservative youth movement!

Sorry to nitpick, but Na'ale is an Israeli government program. Just FYI for everyone: Young Judea is sponsored by Hadassah, which is not affiliated with any particular Jewish denomination. USY (United Synagogue Youth) is the Conservtive youth organization. Both have Israel programs, but neither Young Judea nor USY has a program like this - I saw an ad last week, and have been interested in learning more about it!

freidasima

Fri, Mar 19 2010, 7:40 am

Ummm, have you checked out the two girls schools? Neither is really great academically, The Kiriyat Motzkin ulpana has had its ups and downs, I don't know where it is now, but the population there is not the greatest or at least wasn't in the past. These are NOT "elite" Israeli DL girls in most cases.

Beis Rivka - chabad. Not a great secular education and only if you are on the Chabad derekh. If so, it's ok. Some problematic kids, some not. But to have an american at either of those schools? Unless there is a really large American girls' contingent in Motzkin I wouldn't chance it. About Beis Rivka, maybe they have foreign kids so that would be ok, but again, only if you are Chabad. Very very Chabad.