BOARDING AT EIN GEDI – SERIOUS EDUCATION WITH FUN AS AN ADDED EXTRA!

A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THE PLACE

Ein Gedi boarding school is an educational boarding school located in the heart of Kibbutz Ein Gedi, surrounded by a desert landscape, vegetation and the Dead Sea.

This year, we were joined by a debutante boarding school (excellence in music and art), and together the boarding school has about 90 children.

As part of this connection process, the boarding school is undergoing growth and change processes, which are reflected in the structure and lifestyles.

The boarding school youth come from different family, educational and social backgrounds, with a different orientation in the personal development process of each boy and girl, which creates a wide variety of needs.

One of the distinguishing characteristics of the Ein Gedi boarding school is the integration of the boarding school youth and the kibbutz youth in joint and daily activities.

The children of the boarding school and the kibbutz are educated together under the same informal framework, go on the same trips, are invited to the same activities, prepare the kibbutz ceremonies on the various holidays and take an active and very involved part in the social and cultural life of the kibbutz.

The emphasis that leads the place is the development of awareness and social involvement, while developing young leadership of the youth, and as part of this, the full implementation of the boarding school and kibbutz events, creating a family atmosphere by mentoring the mature classes and the young classes, an adapted and comprehensive team structure (shared house mother, study coordinator, a small team of instructors and the like) and a limited number of campers that allows for a personal and deep connection. Another emphasis is the promotion and development of the trainees’ skills in a variety of areas of interest.

The daily routine of the youth begins at school and then in the afternoons there is a broad social activity that includes: classes, camper council, class activities, theme activities, group and personal conversations, Friday activities, Shabbat reception and more.

Outside of the routine, trips, seminars and other events are held throughout the year.

THE ROLE OF YOUNG GUIDANCE COUNSELLORS IN THE DAILY FRAMEWORK

The duties of the ssh are divided so that among the members of the commune there are 2 who are assigned as kibbutz shs, meaning they are responsible for layers of the kibbutz youth and the other members of the commune are embedded in the layers of the boarding school itself, when the common goal is to integrate the boarding school students with the children of the kibbutz on an ongoing basis.

For a large part of the year of service in Ein Gedi, the young men fulfill the role of the adult brother to the children of the boarding school and the children of the kibbutz. In addition, the commune is an integral part of the team that leads the boarding school and the youth in the kibbutz.

In his case, the commune is a mature group that must be learned from and taken from its behavior and acts as an example,
We aspire that every group and camper in the boarding school and kibbutz will learn, question and be interested during their life in the commune, and will want to accept the figures of the commune as significant figures from whom we can take tools for progress in life and as exemplary figures for leading a shared and correct life.

As part of the year of service in Ein Gedi, the students experience developing a personal project throughout the year, dealing with a topic of their free choice, with the desire to strengthen their interests, the project is organized and carried out in all its phases by the student, but accompanied by the adult team.

In addition to this, there is an emphasis on conducting an honest and enabling dialogue from the point of view of personal and group progress, setting up and managing events in the boarding school and kibbutz and guiding individual and mixed groups.

This year, Bikurim boarding school (excellence in music and art) moved to Ein Gedi and was assimilated as part of the existing boarding school. the community is a central factor in the process of combining the two boarding schools into one, with different and diverse tracks within it. Those with the appropriate abilities will be able to take part in achieving the majors and in the various projects accompanying them.