Gan Hayeled (Preschool)

Welcome to Gan HaYeled Preschool

We miss you! On March 12, the Gan shifted into a "diaspora school". As always - even in these times - our school strives to be a central space of connection, meaning, and relevancy in our families' daily lives.

We are offering a novel framework for how our school community stays connected in our new reality. The framework revolves around three core elements which school offers children but are inherently hard to sustain in an environment defined by social distancing. These three elements are ROUTINE, CONTENT, and CONNECTION.

Please reach out directly to Noah Hichenberg, School Director, with any questions, feedback, or ideas. Noah.Hichenberg@AdasIsrael.org.

Each weekday we have two fixed times at which the whole Gan community can Zoom in together. (Need help with Zoom, or never used it before? You can find how-to videos from Megan Soe on our content for parents page!) 

9:30am: Join for a morning storytime and other fun activities with a classroom teacher. Click here to join.

Week of March 23 
Monday: Lisa + Janet (reading The Runaway Bunny by Margaret Wise Brown)
Tuesday: Carolyn Rogers (going on a Teddy Bear Scavenger Hunt!)
Wednesday: Librarian Robin (reading Passover stories) 
Thursday: Tanice Smith (reading The Grouchy Ladybug by Eric Carle)
Friday: Menuhah Peters (planting seeds; bring a container, dirt, and seeds!)

12:00pm on Fridays: Shabbat Sing! Click here to join. 

4:00pm: Join for an afternoon "grab bag" of enrichment activities. Click here to join. To watch previous sessions, visit our YouTube channel! 

Weekly 
Mondays: Library with Robin
Tuesdays: Movement with Val
Wednesdays: Art with Darci
Thursdays: Songs with Sally 
Friday: Shabbat story

Weekly Shabbat: Fridays at 5pm and Saturdays at 11:30, Family Shabbat Service.

View full schedule and live feed at facebook.com/adasisraeldc

Please help our host by adding a name card for your child. We suggest taking a piece of paper, folding it in half twice so it can stand up, and writing your child’s name on front. For older students, have them do the writing!

We are generating and collecting Gan staff doing read alouds and other activities. Access our Gan-generated content anytime you like: access children's content here and parent content here. Our content is constantly updated, and now includes videos for Passover/Pesach!

We are collecting links for online activities and resources. This collection is open-sourced, allowing all of our Gan community - including teachers and parents - to contribute new ideas and links. If you have any resources or suggestions to share, please email Jocelyn Dorfman. Access the children's collection here. Access the parents' collection here. 

Stephanie Slater, Director of Early Childhood Development and Family Support, is offering multiple “office hour” slots on weekdays. These slots are for families to lean on and benefit from Stephanie’s professional insight into child development, child behavior, routine, and more; sign up here. Stephanie is also offering a small group parent-support session. This is an opportunity to be together and discuss the current challenges we are facing; sign up here. You can also email Stephanie directly at Stephanie.Slater@AdasIsrael.org. Access Stephanie's content here.

Darci Lewis, Associate Director and Curriculum Specialist, is creating at-home activity lists. We encourage you to use her tips to think outside of the box and engage your child with funky materials. You can email Darci directly at Darci.Lewis@AdasIsrael.org. Access Darci's content here.

Noah Hichenberg, School Director, is writing tips on how to use our knowledge-base as educators to your advantage at home: how to embed age-appropriate learning into your child’s day, supporting your child’s creativity and critical thinking, and more. See below for Noah's weekly Thursday open-parents forum. You can email Noah directly at Noah.Hichenberg@AdasIsrael.org. Access Noah's content here.

Families are receiving calls from your child's classroom teacher as well as from school administration. We hope your teacher’s voice brings a smile to your child’s face! Your teachers can help answer any questions about what your child was working on before school closed, tips for keeping them engaged at home, and suggestions for daily schedules. As administrators, please let us know how you are doing and what, if anything, we can do to support you remotely. 

Classroom teachers are hosting a daily Zoom session for their class community.  This is a daily chance for your child to see their classmates, hear directly from their teacher, and engage virtually in a class activity.  We are working hard to make these sessions interactive and tactile, so that we do not only rely on the "screen" as the attraction for your child. Recent class sessions have included scavenger hunts, nature walks, dress-up parties, theme days, baking, and ongoing art projects.

Teachers are facilitating one-on-one peer playdates for all students over Zoom. We know children benefit from a range of "social settings", even virtually. Our teachers will be reaching out to parents beginning the week of March 30 to schedule playdates. We are hoping that playdates will last 20 minutes, likely more for older students and potentially fewer for younger students. We are committed to making sure all Gan students have a peer playdate each week.

Open parents forum with Noah, Thursdays at 2:00pm: Check in with any questions, feedback, or comments. Access here.

If you have any questions about how to use Zoom or access your classroom Zoom link please email Megan Soe at Megan.Soe@AdasIsrael.org. Daily classroom-specific Zoom times are as follows:
 

See below for our pre-diaspora content: