Intensive 1 – Imagine the Possibilities: Engaging Our Families
Jonathan Shmidt Chapman, The K’ilu Company
“As If You Were There”: Bringing Jewish Stories to Life through Immersive Theater and Imaginative Play.
How can you bring Jewish tradition to life for learners ages 0 to 7 using theater, hands-on play, and imagination? This hands-on intensive masterclass and workshop will offer a range of techniques in the foundations of immersive theater, sensory storytelling, puppetry, and imaginative play, while also unpacking how they can be utilized across the curriculum in the ECC classroom, the religious school classroom, and family engagement programs.
This intensive is ideal for educators who work with children and families ages 0-7.
Speaker
-
Jonathan Shmidt ChapmanIntensive LeaderJonathan Shmidt Chapman is an award-winning artist, writer, and Jewish educator. As the founder of The K’ilu Company, Jonathan reimagines Jewish youth and family engagement through theater and play. He leads programming and professional development in synagogues, day schools, and early childhood centers nationwide. His projects have reached thousands of families and classrooms. His new book Let There Be Play: Bringing the Bible to Life with Young Children was recently published by Behrman House. He is a curricular partner and consultant for ElevatEd, Jewish Grandparents Network, and Jewish United Fund Chicago. Jonathan is a recipient of The Covenant Foundation’s 2022 Pomegranate Prize for emerging Jewish educators and was named the Foundation’s inaugural Jewish Family Education Fellow in 2023. He is also a recipient of The Jewish Education Project’s Young Pioneers Award and the Children’s Theatre Foundation of America’s Medallion Award. Previously, Jonathan served as executive director of Theater for Young Audiences USA and as producer of family programming at Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts. His theatrical works for children and families have been presented at Lincoln Center, The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, and Seattle Children’s Theatre, and have been featured by NBC Nightly News with Lester Holt, The New York Times, and American Theatre magazine. He lives in the Chicago area with his husband, Rabbi David Chapman, and their two children.
