Moving Traditions Rosh Hodesh Program

The Moving Traditions Rosh Hodesh program is an experiential education program currently touching the lives of 3,500 girls across North America. The program uses Jewish teachings and practices - in a five-year cycle of curricular materials - to give girls a place to feel safe, articulate their deepest concerns, consider the impact of gender on their daily lives, have fun, and be 'real' with their peers.

Through discussion, arts & crafts, creative ritual, games, and drama, the girls and their leaders draw on Jewish values to explore the issues the girls care about most from a female perspective; issues such as such as body image, friendship, relationships, family, competition, and stress.

Rosh Hodesh was launched in 2002 as a response to a challenge that still faces girls two decades later: Girls' self-concept plummets as they enter adolescence and it becomes increasingly challenging for them to "find themselves" in their communities.

Rosh Hodesh was developed by educators, rabbis, social workers, and psychologists to address the real needs of teen girls within a rich Jewish context. It was the first program to draw on Jewish teachings and traditions to keep girls healthy and whole, instilling in them the ability to counter narrow views of gender in popular culture.

Moving Traditions emboldens youth by fostering self-discovery, challenging sexism, and inspiring a commitment to Jewish life and learning.

Moving Traditions believes it is critically important for the Jewish community at this time of cultural upheaval and polarization to help teens navigate the world so they will thrive as healthy, ethical, and Jewishly connected people. Moving Traditions connects the issues pre-teens and teens care about most-such as body image, social and academic pressure, friendship, romance, and sexuality-to enduring Jewish values, fosters positive peer-to-peer relationships through our trained educators and mentors, and inspires participants to develop an ongoing connection to Jewish community.

The overall purpose of the program is to create a safe space for our community's young women, teens, and girls to have healthy conversations about sensitive topics and to provide them a space to broaden their horizons and their identity as young women.