Ages: 3 through 6
Maimonides preschool and kindergarten school
teachers play a vital role in the development
of our children. What children learn and experience
during these early classroom years shape their
views of themselves and the world, and often
how those children transition from one grade
level to the next. Nursery and Kindergarten school teachers introduce children
to reading, writing numbers, language, science,
and social studies. They use games, books,
music, artwork, and other tools to teach basic
language and social skills. The children acquire their first notions of
Judaism in a very natural way, mainly trough
stories, songs, handicraft and games about
Shabbat and the holidays.
Preschool
children learn mainly through play. Recognizing
the importance of play, our teachers build
their program around it. They capitalize
on children's play to further English and
Hebrew language development (storytelling
and acting games), improve social skills
and introduce scientific and mathematical
concepts (balancing and counting blocks
when building a bridge or mixing colors
when painting). Thus, a less structured
approach is used to teach preschool children,
including small group lessons, one-on-one
instruction, and learning through creative
activities. Although interactive Play activities
and hands-on teaching are the primary tools
for communicating, academics begins to take
priority as well. Letter recognition, phonics,
numbers, and awareness of nature and science
are taught by our dedicated kindergarten
teachers as well.
Kindergarten is divided
into two age groups, under the supervision
of a teacher and a teacher assistant. The
program of the kindergarten follows the
one of public kindergarten in addition to
the Jewish program which has proven very
successful. During these two years, children
acquire basic notions in reading, writing
and mathematics, necessary for a good start
in the first grade. The children learn about
mitzvot and are encouraged to perform them
in their everyday life with their parents
and friends. The study of modern Hebrew
is approached through songs and short stories.
Study of the weekly Torah portion completes
the program. On Friday morning, a small
Kiddush is organized by the children and
is regarded as a highlight of the week.
Each morning is divided into two periods.
During the first period, children of the
same class work collectively on a project
determined by the teachers. After a short
recess, the second period is dedicated to
individual work; during this period each
child can choose the project according to
his/her own interest.
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