Bar/Bat Mitzvah Program

Dear Parents,

If your child is entering the fourth or fifth grade, it may be time to start thinking about how and when you want to celebrate his/her Bar/Bat Mitzvah.

You begin by picking the date and planning the event. For a boy, you determine the date by looking up your child’s Hebrew birth date. Once you have determined which parsha is most closely linked to that date, you can schedule the celebration with your shul and the school. For a girl, scheduling the simcha can be more flexible, as the timing of the Bat Mitzvah need not be linked precisely to the celebrant’s Hebrew birthday.

JKHA tries to help avoid conflicts by noting the time and place of each student’s simcha on a master calendar. This policy was established to ensure that only one Bar or Bat Mitzvah per grade is scheduled for the same day and time frame.

How long in advance do you have to start thinking about when and how you would like to celebrate your child’s simcha? Families begin thinking about it anywhere from six months to four years before the planned event. It is important to note that certain times of the year (i.e. from right after Lag B’Omer through the end of June, and again in September before the Yomim Noraim) are particularly busy; extra lead time is necessary to schedule celebrations around those dates.

The master Bar/Bat Mitzvah calendar is posted on our website—www.jkha.org—for parents seeking an overview of dates currently available.

Please go to www.jkha.org and click on the Bar/Bat Mitzvah link on the left hand side. You will find instructions on how to schedule and hopefully lock in your preferred date. If you have any questions, please contact Sheree Bohbot, ext. 1283 or email sbohbot@jkha.org

You can always count on us to help when scheduling and planning your simcha. A careful reading of the section entitled “Bar/Bat Mitzvah Policy” in the Student Handbook will also give you an opportunity to get acquainted with JKHA Bar/Bat Mitzvah school policy.

Wishing you a Mazal Tov on this wonderful and exciting time in your family’s life.


Barbara Deutsch, Principal, JKHA MS