FAQs

Registration for the 2026-27 cohort begins in November 2025:

• Wednesday, November 12 – Priority Registration
  Who’s Eligible: 2025 Summer Camp, Teen program, Quest and B*Mitzvah participants & their siblings; 2025 Family Camp 4 participants due to program cancellation; 2025 Jewish Families of Color Weekend registered families.
• Wednesday, November 19 – Early Registration
  Who’s Eligible: 2025 Weekend Programs and Tawonga Family School participants; 2025 waitlisted participants and cancellations.
• Wednesday, December 3 – Open Registration
  Who’s Eligible: Everyone! Open to the public — tell your friends and family.

During the registration process you will be prompted to make a $150 non-refundable deposit. Once you submit your registration request, our registrar will send you a confirmation email within two business days letting you know your registration status.

Please contact Anna, our Assistant Director of Bay Area Programs at 415.543.2267 or at anna@tawonga.org if you need any assistance.

No! Tawonga’s B*Mitzvah program is designed to fit your child’s unique service and we realize this will look different for each and every family.

During our kitot (classes), all participants will learn the melodies of prayers using Hebrew to English transliteration and spend time understanding these prayers through creative learning processes. We will also provide the Hebrew to English transliteration and English translation of Torah and Haftorah portions. Tawonga also offers optional online Hebrew classes for an additional fee.

Students will participate in seven classes during each year of the program. These classes, held on Sundays, will be led by experienced and trained Tawonga staff, will incorporate interactive activities and will cover a thought-provoking curriculum.

In addition, students and families will join a monthly Kabbalat Shabbat dinner. Two of these will be in person with the cohort, and five of them will be via Zoom from families’ very own dinner table!

Classes will meet seven times each year. These dynamic programs, taught by premier and experienced Tawonga staff, will include engaging discussions about issues that teens find important, creative methods to understand prayers, team-building exercises, music, community guest-speakers, and more! Participants will also have two weekend retreats and family engagement opportunities either in person or virtually.

We’ll gather for two Shabbaton weekend retreats—one to kick off the year and one to close it. These retreats a chance to unplug, connect deeply with friends and counselors, and immerse in the rhythms of Shabbat surrounded by nature. Shabbatons are filled with all of the Tawonga fun: singing songs, roasting marshmallows, talent shows, sports, art, and Jewish learning. Through rituals, music, reflection, and playful activities, these weekends bring the warmth, spirit, and sense of community that make the Tawonga B*Mitzvah program so special—giving our students a true taste of camp, and experiences and memories that last long beyond the program itself.

Cost of $3,950 for the 2026-2027 Year Includes:

• Seven kitot (classes) per year
• All experiential-learning curriculum. Year 1 focuses on Jewish blessings and values. Year 2 focuses on Torah interpretation and inheriting a tradition
• Retreats (two per year)
• Education and song leading from premier staff
• Seven parent learning sessions per year
• Monthly Family Shabbats
• Mitzvah Project (Year 2)
• Prayer coaching in transliteration
• D’rash (sermon) preparation (during Year 2 only)
• Mentorship opportunities
• Simcha coaching and support from Program Manager
• Planning and preparation for the B’nai Mitzvah Service
• Optional use of our Torah, Siddurim, Kippot, and Aron Kodesh (ark for the Torah).
• Student Journal (one for each year)
• “So You’re Having a Simcha” a guide to planning your child’s Bar, Bat or B’nai mitzvah
• Mitzvah Project Planner
• More info on cost here.

Additional Expenses:

• B*Mitzvah service & song leaders ($800-$2000 depending on location and leader)
• B*Mitzvah Hebrew tutoring
• B*Mitzvah service venue

Our two kitot meet in their respective locations: either San Francisco or the East Bay.

In addition to our initial B’nai Mitzvah Kick-Off Orientation, students will participate in two retreats at YMCA Camp Jones Gulch. Students and families will also have the opportunity to gather with a local cohort of families from their kita for monthly Shabbat dinners and Kabbalat Shabbat services, and we are exploring more opportunities for in-person gatherings with families and program participants during the year.

We will welcome our next cohort of 6th graders in the Fall of 2026. This is a two-year program.