JEIC champions children’s spiritual development through provocative new films

We are excited to celebrate JEIC’s newly-released films illustrating how current Jewish educational practices may stunt children’s spiritual development.

The film ‘A Daughter's Story’ by Dreamworks producer Saul Blinkoff takes a hard look at how kids are turned on - or off - to enjoying Jewish learning and developing a personal relationship with God. Follow the journey of Naomi through her Jewish day school years, showing the changing relationship with Jewish learning and with God, from ages 6-16, all through the eyes of her father. Blinkoff’s wordless storytelling conveys a powerful, clear message that has stirred a wide range of emotions from viewers. Although this is a modern day fable, the messages should resonate loud and clear with all Jewish day school stakeholders.

Accompanying the feature, Shmuel Hoffman's making-of film provides a behind-the-scenes look at the production, ideas, and reactions to ‘A Daughter's Story.’ It includes interviews with Blinkoff and his team, statements from JEIC and Mayberg Foundation leadership, and reactions from Jewish community members. We recommend watching the behind the scenes film if you haven’t already. 

JEIC produced A Daughter's Story to serve as a conversation starter and to challenge our thinking about the consequences of Jewish day school norms on grading, testing, memorizing, and covering material. The Mayberg Foundation echoes JEIC’s belief that all of us together — philanthropists, parents, educators and community members — need to be involved in enlarging God’s presence in our children's lives rather than squeezing spiritual connection out of them. Let's work on this pressing issue together.

To request a complimentary copy of each movie, complete with resources for classroom and community discussions, click HERE.