Preschool Directors Share Ideas

On January 16th over 160 teachers and educators from over 20 Chabad schools around the New York area – some as far as New Haven and Philadelphia – joined together to learn and network at a joint Inservice Day, organized by Devora Krasnianski of the Chabad Early Childhood Education (CECE) Network, a project of The Shluchim Office. Mrs. Shternie Raskin and Mrs. Chanie Rogatsky of Kiddie Korner, the Chabad preschool in Brooklyn Heights, hosted the event.

The CECE’s joint Inservice Days bring high quality workshops and facilitators to the many small and large Chabad preschools in the area. At these events, the teachers have the opportunity to network with and learn from teachers in other programs.

There are so many wonderful things happening in the different schools and forums such as these provide the framework and opportunity for educators to share and gain inspiration from each other’s experiences and work.

At the recent event, participants explored the ever-important topic of Helping Children Think and Learn and the teacher’s role in helping children become lifelong learners.

Paula Mack of Children Connect (a school-home resource center) presented important ideas, words and perspectives that encourage and foster thinking and create a positive atmosphere where children can grow and learn.

In a separate session, in facilitated small group settings, the teachers met with others who teach the same age children and shared ideas, tapping into the intentionality and planning processes of other schools to build their own quality programs. New ideas were explored such as classroom centers, outdoor play in the cold weather, classroom helpers and clean-up time. Afterwards, many teachers expressed their gratitude for being able to hear ideas from so many schools in this type of setting.

The Inservice also featured a Educators also also enjoyed the Preschool Expo, where teachers shared a variety of creative books, original crafts and artistic projects that their children had produced. Other teachers displayed albums and portfolios of their children engaged in numerous activities. Esti Leiblich, from furnitureforpreschool.com, displayed various hands-on materials children would enjoy in the classroom and Mushkie Teleshevsky brought in beautiful preschool murals she had painted and explained different ways to artistically demonstrate projects.

In the final session, Debbie Gettes of the Jewish Learning venture in Philadelphia shared some important pointers to consider when children engage in challenging behaviors and different approaches in dealing with these behaviors.

Throughout the day, teachers from various schools had opportunities to network and share ideas, challenges and solutions. These relationships will hopefully continue throughout the year, so that all schools in the region can learn and gain from each other’s experiences.

The CECE (Chabad Early Childhood Education) Network was established five years ago by The Shluchim Office to serve as a central support and resource network for those who run or direct a Chabad preschool. Its goal is to help directors make their local Chabad preschool the preeminent choice within their community. Dr. & Mrs. Joseph Walder of Skokie, IL are the dedicated visionaries who support this critical institution.

The CECE Network provides a framework for deeper thinking about how an excellent preschool can create long-lasting connections with Judaism. Among its many services, the CECE Network provides an online forum, annual and regional conferences, a peer review system, online workshops, conference calls, seminars, articles, and guided online discussion groups.

For more info, visit shluchim.org/CECE