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Children in Jewish Households by Age

In 2023, there are nearly 400,000 children in Jewish households in the eight-county area. About 30% of these children are under the age of five, and about 70% are school age.

Upbringing of Children in Jewish Households

Of these nearly 400,000 children, about three in four are being raised Jewish only. The next largest proportion of children in Jewish households is those who are being raised by families who have not yet decided on the children’s religious upbringing (14%). Only 4% of children in Jewish households are being raised exclusively with a religion other than Judaism. In the remainder of this report, “Jewish children” includes those who are being raised Jewish only  and those who are being raised Jewish and something else.

Children in Jewish Households by Intermarriage

About two out of every three children in Jewish households are being raised in in-married households. Another 21% are being raised in intermarried households and 13% are raised in unmarried households.

Upbringing of Children in Jewish Households by Intermarriage

Jewish upbringing among children varies distinctively between intermarried and non-intermarried households. Children in non-intermarried households are almost universally being raised as Jewish only, while only a fifth of children in intermarried households are being raised Jewish only or Jewish and something else. 

Many intermarried households (20%) have not yet decided how to raise their children religiously, while 16% have decided to raise their children only in a religion other than Judaism. The share of children whose parents have not decided how to raise them religiously is highest among the youngest children. Twenty-seven percent of children under three in intermarried households have parents who are undecided about how to raise them religiously. Among children ages 12–17, 7% have parents undecided about how to raise them religiously.  

Over forty percent (44%) of adults in intermarried households report that they are raising their children as “none of the above,” indicating that they are raising them with no religion at all. This is a higher share of religious “nones” among children in intermarried households than in past decades. Even so, the majority of intermarried households who are raising their children as “nones” still celebrate Hanukkah (66%) and attend a Passover seder (62%).²

Upbringing and Household Denomination of Children in Jewish Households

Household Denomination of Jewish Children

Among Jewish children, most (64%) are being raised in Orthodox households, with the other 36% equally distributed across Conservative, Reform, and non-denominational/other denomination households.

Participation in Jewish Education (Households) 

(Among Jewish households with children ages 5–17 being raised Jewish)

Among Jewish households with school-age Jewish children, a little more than half have children attending Jewish day school. Another 15% include children attending some other form of formal Jewish education, including Jewish Sunday school or supplemental school. 

Participation in both day school and other forms of Jewish education is higher among Jewish households with younger children: in households with children ages 5–12, 57% have a child in day school, compared to 35% of Jewish households with children over 12.

Participation in Jewish Education by Denomination (Households)

Participation in day school and other formal education programs varies significantly by denomination. Nearly all Orthodox households with school-age children send their children to day school. About one in four conservative households with school-age children sends their children to day school followed by about 10% of Reform and non-denominational/other denomination households. 

Attendance at other formal Jewish education programs is most common among Conservative and Reform households, with 38% of households sending their children to such programs in both cases. About half of Reform households do not send their children to any formal Jewish education programs and about three in four non-denominational/other denomination households also do not have their children participate in formal Jewish education programs.

Number of Children Receiving Jewish Education

In the eight-county area, we estimate that about 128,000 children, or 63% of school age children who are being raised Jewish, attend day school and another 20,000 attend some other form of Jewish education. The number of children in day school found by this study closely aligns with data from the New York State Department of Education, which maintains data on enrollment in private schools, including Jewish day schools and yeshivot.³

Number of Children Receiving Jewish Education by Denomination

In 2023, about 118,000 Orthodox children, or about 95% of Orthodox children ages 5–17, attend Jewish day school in the eight-county area. Orthodox children account for about 92% of all Jewish children attending day school in the eight-county area. About 22% of Conservative children ages 5–17 attend day school, followed by less than 10% of Reform and non-denominational/other denomination Jewish children ages 5–17.

About one in three Conservative children attend some other type of formal Jewish education as do nearly 30% of Reform Jewish children ages 5-17. Nearly half of Conservative Jewish children ages 5–17 do not attend any type of formal Jewish education, as is the case of 62% of Reform children and more than three-fourths of non-denominational or other denomination Jewish children ages 5–17.

Cost as Barrier to Day School (Households)

(Among Jewish households with children ages 5–17 being raised Jewish who do not attend Jewish day school)

Among households with Jewish children ages 5–17 who do not attend Jewish day school, 32% cite cost as a reason with 14% citing cost as the primary reason their children do not attend day school.

Satisfaction With Quality of Child's School (Households)

(Among Jewish households with children ages 5–17)

Among Jewish households with school age children in 2023, the vast majority are satisfied with their children’s schooling. About 94% of day school households report being satisfied with their children’s school, and 69% are very satisfied with their children’s school. A similar share (92%) of non-day school households also report being satisfied with their children’s school and 65% of non-day school households report being very satisfied with the quality of their child’s school. 

In 2021, when school went online or hybrid due to the pandemic, day school households reported higher levels of satisfaction with their schools than non–day school households. This satisfaction gap has closed now that schools are back in person.⁴

Children Attending Jewish Preschool (Households)

(Among households with children ages 3–5)

Number of Children in Jewish Households Attending Jewish Preschool 

Among households with children ages 3–5, a little more than half send their children to Jewish preschool (54%). In 2023, we estimate that about 25,000 children, or about 41% of children ages 3–5 in Jewish households, attend Jewish preschool.

Children Attending Jewish Preschool by Denomination (Households)

The vast majority of Orthodox households with children ages 3–5 (93%) send their children to Jewish preschool. About half of Conservative households with children ages 3–5 send their children to Jewish preschool, followed by about one in three Reform households. Fewer than 20% of non-denominational or other denomination households with children ages 3–5 send their children to Jewish preschool.

Children Attending Jewish Day Care (Households)  

(Among households with children ages 0–2)

Number of Children in Jewish Households Attending Jewish Day Care

Among households with children ages 0–2, about one in three sends their children to Jewish daycare (28%). In 2023, we estimate that about 21,000 children, or about 28% of children in Jewish households ages 0–2, attend Jewish daycare.  

Denomination of Children Attending Jewish Day Care by Denomination (Households) 

A little more than half of Orthodox households with children ages 0–2 send their children to Jewish day care followed by about 27% of Conservative households and 22% of Reform households. About 15% of non-denominational or other denomination households with young children send their children to Jewish day care.

Children’s Informal Jewish Experiences

Summer Day Camp or Overnight Camp with Jewish Content (Households)

(Among Jewish households with children ages 3–17)

Jewish Youth Group or Travel Program (Households)

(Among Jewish households with children ages 12–17)

Among Jewish households with children ages 3–17, nearly half have a child who has attended a summer day camp or overnight camp with Jewish content. Among Jewish households with children ages 12–17, one in three has a child who participated in an organized Jewish youth or teen group.

Jewish Naming Ceremonies or Ritual Circumcisions (Households)

About 64% of Jewish households with children have held  a ritual circumcision (bris) or a naming ceremony for at least one child. Among the in-married, this rate rises to 88%. Only 27% of intermarried households with children have had a naming ceremony.

Jewish Naming Ceremony or Ritual Circumcision by Denomination (Households)

The practice of having a ritual circumcision (bris) or a naming ceremony varies significantly by household denomination. Nearly all Orthodox households with children held a naming ceremony or ritual circumcision. Almost 90% of Conservative households with children held such ceremonies and a comparable proportion of Reform households did so as well. Only one in three non-denominational or other denomination households held naming ceremonies or ritual circumcisions for their children.

Bar or Bat Mitzvah Ceremonies (Households)

(Among households with children ages 12–17)

Nearly three in four Jewish households with children have had or are planning to have a bar or bat mitzvah for their children. Nearly all in-married households report holding or planning to hold a bar or bat mitzvah ceremony for their children.    

Bar or Bat Mitzvah Ceremony by Denomination (Households)

Having a bar or bat mitzvah ceremony is a nearly universal practice among Orthodox, Conservative, and Reform households. The practice is much less common among non-denominational or other denomination households, with about 40% of households with children having or planning to have bar/bat mitzvahs for their children.