Prayer Chapter 1 / The Order of Initiating Education

The people of the world are like dry straw, which even fire cannot take hold of, and they are like dry wood that fire cannot ignite and will never burn. Rabbi Yossi said: "Fortunate is my portion that I have merited to hear this matter!"]
And from where do we know that all these actions depend on transmission? As it is stated, "And you shall make them known to your children" (Deuteronomy 4:9), and it is written immediately after, "The day that you stood [before Hashem your God at Horeb]" (ibid. 4:10). This teaches that the day a person brings his son to study Torah, it is considered before Hashem as the very day the Jewish people stood at Mount Sinai (Horeb). This was an ancient custom practiced by the elders of Israel in Jerusalem, and it is still practiced today in certain places. Furthermore, there was another beautiful and excellent custom in Jerusalem: they would train their sons and daughters to fast on a fast day. At the age of three or four, they would fast until the peak of the day, and from the age of four to five, they would train them to complete the fast. Afterwards, the father would take hold of his child and bring him before every elder to receive a blessing—that he should merit Torah, the wedding canopy (chuppah), and good deeds. Anyone who had someone greater than himself in the city would rise from his place, stand before the greater sage, and bow before him, asking him to pray on the child's behalf. This comes to teach you how beautiful they were and how beautiful their deeds were, and that every inclination of their thoughts was solely for His exalted Name. They would also bring their young children to the synagogues in order to educate them and instill within them an eagerness to perform mitzvot.