The Manhattan Workers Circle School
Manhattan Workers Circle School (MWCS) is a secular, progressive Jewish Sunday school and community that invites families to build a contemporary Jewish identity rooted in an exploration of cultural heritage and a search for justice.
Based on the Lower East Side, our unique program attracts families from across the greater NYC area.
Led by dynamic educators who are also acclaimed artists, musicians, Yiddishists and activists, our learning program digs deep into cultural roots, values children as change makers and cultural creators, and centers voices often marginalized in Jewish life. We are a welcoming community of multifaith, multiracial families with diverse gender identities, family structures, and Jewish journeys.
Our shule — Yiddish for school — meets Sundays 10:30 AM to 1:00 PM at the Manny Cantor Center, 197 East Broadway. The program includes age-divided classes for children ages 2-13, Yiddish language, Jewish cultural traditions from around the globe, B’nei Mitsve preparation, parent programs, family field trips, holiday celebrations, and teen community service and activism opportunities.
For the 2023-24 school year, we are excited to return in person for a fun, safe program that combines classroom time with outdoor learning in our culturally rich Lower East Side neighborhood.
To learn more and schedule a visit,
please contact School Director, Sabina Brukner at sbrukner@circle.org
MEET THE MANHATTAN SHULE COMMUNITY
The shule experience begins with early childhood play-based learning and culminates in a b’nei mitsve year.
A typical Sunday morning includes a community meeting for students, parents, and teachers, and followed by Jewish culture, social justice and Yiddish classes.
Between 10:30AM and 1:00 PM, students rotate through two or three class sessions together with their age group:
CIRCLE PLAYTIME (ages 2-4) includes imaginative play inspired by Jewish traditions, Yiddish songs, dancing, and games.
CORE CLASSES interweave topics in Jewish history and culture with social justice themes. Learning is project-based and includes song, instrumental music, cooking, dance, and visual arts.
Early grades (K, 1) explore Jewish holidays, traditions and ethics through stories, song and crafts.
Middle grades (2, 3, 4) interpret Bible stories from a secular perspective, learn about Jewish cultures around the world, and explore shtetl life and immigration.
Upper grade (5, 6) become activists and organizers and connect historic struggles to current movements.
YIDDISH LANGUAGE classes introduce students to the alef-beys (letters used in both Yiddish and Hebrew) and to Yiddish words and phrases through games, crafts, song, and the digital program Yiddish Pop.
B’NEI MITSVE classes prepare students to conduct an oral family history and create a core project in a topic of their choice, and celebrate together in a meaningful group ceremony.
Parents, kids, teens, extended, and chosen families are all invited to join together for friendship, holiday celebrations, learning, service and activism through our shule and Workers Circle community!
Sunday morning meetings bring together parents, kids, and teachers for music, social justice, and community connection.
Monthly parent programs draw from the interests and talents within our community and feature discussion groups, film screenings, and speakers on themes in Jewish culture and social justice.
Holiday celebrations draw on traditions old and new and bring our community together for food, fun, and learning.
Families gather for activism and service, marching with allies in social justice struggles and participating in service projects.
Together with our children, we are committed to understanding the roots of injustice and finding ways to act for a better world, in Yiddish, “un besere velt.”
Social justice learning and activism are integrated into class time and community gatherings, during and beyond the shule day.
We have gathered to support the Fight for $15, participated in Black Lives Matter actions in New York City and Washington D.C., and marched with allies from the Coalition of Immokalee Workers.
Check out this video from a Mother’s Day action with Fast Food Forward.
Our shule fosters knowledge and appreciation for Yiddish through language classes, song, cooking, and theater. Families gain a strong connection to the international community of musicians, artists, scholars, parents, bubes and zeydes who are passionate about Yiddish language and culture.
Our program also offers parents opportunities to learn Yiddish alongside their children! We offer special Sunday sessions for parents while kids are in classes. Parents also deepen their Yiddish knowledge through Workers Circle’s online or in-person Yiddish classes.
Check out some quotes from parents about why they want their kids to learn Yiddish:
“Yiddish is the language of the Socialists, Bundists and others who faced and fought the evils of the past. As we face the resurfacing of many of those same evils, I want my children to connect today’s movements with those of earlier generations. Yiddish language and culture, with its history of resistance and survival, can be an important part of that connection.” — JOSH, Brooklyn parent
“Yiddish language embodies 1000 years of culture and history for millions of people. It is what will connect my son and future generations to the world and culture of his ancestors. Not teaching him Yiddish and its significance would be depriving him of a part of his soul.” — EVAN, Queens parent
“When we get to engage with other families and my daughter sees all of the people and generations connected through this language and culture - especially at our Shule which is very diverse - she and I are able to be all of ourselves at once.” — JUDITH, Upper West Side parent
MWCS is part of the Workers Circle family of shule (Yiddish for schools), which since 1900 have offered families a secular Jewish identity rooted in cultural heritage and commitment to social justice. Founded in 1990 at Workers Circle’s midtown Manhattan headquarters, our Sunday school now rents community and classroom space at the historic Manny Cantor Center on the Lower East Side.
As a parent-led cooperative, MWCS is guided by a volunteer parent board, and parents are involved in shaping all aspects of our community’s growth. Parents also share in tasks related to shule operations, i.e. through bringing snack, organizing parent programs, and helping run holiday events.
Our professional staff bring an array of talents, passions and experiences. They function as inspirations, models, and mentors for our students over the course of their years at shule.
A PROGRESSIVE, SECULAR
JEWISH EDUCATION
Matt, Upper East Side parent
I love the way our shule connects our history and traditions as Jews with the challenges facing us today, teaching social justice as an inherent part of a secular Jewish education. That vision creates an inclusive community with a sense of meaning that’s been especially valuable to me in these times, with a multifaith and interracial family. My nine year old son, in his fifth year with the shule, loves learning Yiddish and has really connected with the social justice projects initiated by the older kids.