Educators Meet During Kinus

What a Kinus this year was for Preschool educators! There were so many quality workshops available, each with its own inspiration and practical ideas to begin to implement back at their schools. These workshops were coordinated and organized by Mrs. Devora Krasnianski of the CECE Chabad Early Childhood Education Network in conjunction with other organizations and Shluchos.

Marketing/ Making your school brochure – Shluchos requested assistance on how to build the best preschool brochure, and the CECE Network brought Chanie Kaminker of Hannabi Creative to present a workshop on how to enhance brochures and make them more effective. Chanie explored some important mindsets and understandings about marketing techniques and how to apply them to create effective brochures that resonate with the target audience.

Taking your Preschool to the next level – In a preschool session at the Kinus, Dr. Tamar Andrews, a noted professor and educator in several Los Angeles colleges as well as a friend of the local Chabad preschools, shared many important ideas about the importance of effective leadership. The very practical ideas and mindsets she shared are valuable to any preschool director at any stage of the growth of their preschool.

Starting your Preschool: From dream to reality and all the steps in between – In another preschool session at the Kinus, Mrs. Devorah Leah Sudak from Stamford Hill, UK shared her experience and insights as the Lubavitch Children’s Centre grew from a small toy library into a full-fledged early childhood center servicing thousands of families. Among the many important ideas, she spoke about the value of networking, noticing trends and planning for success.

The CECE also organized individual consultations with Rabbi Dovid Hordiner, MSEd, BRS, BA (visit his web page here), co-director of Gan Yeladim- Chabad of Stamford. He was available for directors who wanted to talk about specific issues – such as: education philosophy, adding new classes, extending hours, parent relationships, supervision, curriculum development, assessment, accreditation, or security.

The highlight of the weekend for many Preschool educators was the Annual CECE Day of Inspiration, Ideas and Camaraderie, which was graciously hosted by the Rubashkin family. Directors and educators from around the world joined together to learn from each other’s work while gaining chizuk and practical ideas for running their Chabad Preschool. At this event, the annual CECE Network book was distributed – this year’s book is about developing effective Yom Tov units.

At the Day of Inspiration, Mrs. Rivkah Schack of Lamplighters Yeshivah in Crown Heights shared practical ideas for Planting the Seeds of Independence and Critical Thinking in the Preschool Classroom. She explored how Montessori-based activities and mindsets can be implemented into any preschool setting. She demonstrated how certain activities foster intrinsic motivation rather than requiring praise and congratulations. Rivkah also showed some activities that help the children develop empathy and the skills for working with others, highly important social and emotional skills for life that can be developed at the preschool age.

An important aspect of any Chabad preschool is reaching the families. Pearl Stroh of the Chabad ELC of Upper West Side shared her years of experience, stories, and practical ideas on harnessing the power of a Parent Association to benefit your school. Mrs. Bree Schonbrun co-presented and shared her perspectives and experiences as the co-president of the Parent Association at Chabad ELC.

Pinterest, a social media program, can play an important role in preparing lessons for preschool classrooms. Nina Naparstek, director at Ganeinu Preschool in Ft. Lauderdale shared how she uses Pinterest to share ideas amongst her staff. That inspired the CECE staff to develop a CECE Pinterest page of classroom ideas. The page (click here to view it) already has hundreds of pins and dozens of followers.

The Chabad Early Childhood Education (CECE) Network was established six years ago by The Shluchim Office to serve as a central support and resource network for those who run or direct a Chabad preschool. Directed by Mrs. Devora Krasnianski, its goal is to help preschool directors make their local Chabad preschool the preeminent choice within their community. Dr. and 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.

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