ECE-RJ President's Message from Jennie Rubin

The ECE-RJ leadership has been blessed to have had truly dynamic people as part of the board. From the beginnings of the organization, it was a dedicated group of women, who came together to ensure that early childhood educators had a professional organization to represent them in the Reform movement. Four years ago the board reorganized the leadership structure, and strong voices were voted into the new roles. Dale Laing became our first Vice President of Learning.

As the Director of Early Childhood Education at Congregation Beth Or, Dale lives within a community of collaboration and vision. She brought her vision for professional learning to the table, and created the framework for our offerings. She envisioned what virtual learning could be for our members, and saw that we developed webinars, MeetUps, and hangouts to address the concerns and challenges our membership faces. She also planned our amazing Memphis Kallah. Read more...

Getting Ready for the Conference

Conference Resources

Looking for your morning cup of joe? Here are the closest Starbucks!

Did you pack your very favorite boots? Me, too! Here’s How to Protect Shoes From Snow and Salt Damage this Winter.

Need your morning workout, even on vacation? We have you covered! The Health Club at the Historic Palmer House Hotel is gorgeous! 

Meal Selection Deadline: Feb 17

The ECE-RJ Conference has gone mobile! Download the Guidebook app  to select your workshops and meals and access the most up-to-date information about our event, including schedules, presenters, and much more. The deadline to select meals is Feb. 17.

On the computer? Get our guide here: https://guidebook.com/g/2017ecerjconference

Android and iOS users:

1. Access the above link and tap the "Download" button to download the free Guidebook app
2. Open Guidebook
3. Tap "Enter passphrase" and enter 2017ecerjconference to download our guide
4. Once you download and open the ChicaGO conference guide, you will see three bars near the top left corner. When you click on those bars, a dropdown menu will appear. 
5. To select meals and workshops go to the "Meal Selection" and "Conference Schedule" sections. 
6. If you are planning on attending the Wednesday cocktail hour, Friday Shabbat Experience or Saturday Shabbat Experience please select those items for your conference schedule so we can get an idea of how many people will be participating.

Attendee Hangouts

Conference participants are invited to join us for a virtual hangout. The conference call will provide an opportunity for participants to meet each other before arriving in Chicago. We will present a brief overview of the Guidebook event app and answer questions about meal selection, workshops, transportation and other conference-related questions. To sign up for the Feb 23 (4:00 pm EST) Hang Out, please click this LINK.

Quick Conference Guide

For those who prefer the look and feel of a genuine paper schedule, we've provided a short-version of the conference schedule and workshop list at this  LINK. Feel free to print off a copy of the PDF. 

Raffle Tickets

Prize: $500 toward the Israel Trip or $500 off the cost of 2019 Conference Registration

Tickets are $20 per ticket or 3 for $50 and the winner gets $500 toward the Israel trip OR $500 towards the 2019 conference fees. Not attending the Chicago conference? No problem! You can buy your ticket online HERE. Drawing will be held on Saturday, March 4. Need not be present to win.

March Meet Up

LGBTQ 101: What it Means for Early Childhood Educators

March 21, 2017 at 4 p.m. (EST)

Host: Rabbi Sarah Meytin

Rabbi Sarah Meytin is an ordained rabbi with an MSW. She has significant program development and oversight, community engagement, and nonprofit administration experience. She has 10-plus years of education and teaching experience, including formal classroom education, workshop/ seminars, and educational program facilitation for children and adults of all ages. Sarah has been in early childhood education since 2009, has completed the "90-hour course" in Early Childhood Education, and earned a National Director’s Credential from the McCormick Center for Early Childhood Leadership. She is also an alumna of the Jewish Early Childhood Leadership Institute (JECELI), Cohort 3. Rabbi Meytin is currently the Director of Early Childhood Education at B’nai Shalom of Olney, in Olney, MD. She lives in Silver Spring, MD with her wife, Rachel, and their two children, Coby and Ruthie. 

To register for the March Meet Up, click HERE.

Celebrating Milestones

Let’s celebrate our successes together in Chicago!  If you have reached a milestone in your early childhood career, share it with us by clicking HERE.

You told us about your Winter Outdoor Experiences...

April Schafer, University ECLC, Los Angeles, CA

Winter Wonderland in Southern California: While we don’t get snow, we have seen our fair share of rain- more than our preschoolers have seen in their lifetime! Here in Los Angeles, the rain and wind caused many leaves to fall from our trees. Our children enjoyed playing in the leaves, covering themselves and throwing them up in the air! It may not seem like much, but it definitely was a wonderful sensory experience of the seasons here in Los Angeles.

Lori Kowit, The Temple -Tifereth Israel Early Learning Center, Ganon Gil, Beachwood, Ohio

The Toddler 1 Class brought the outside in! The children explored the snow with gloves on and off and then they used their pincer grasp skills as they squeezed food coloring into the snow! (Morah Wendy Binkofsky & Morah Hayley Baskind)

Jodi Gladstone, Beth El Nursery School, Berkeley, CA

Just singing in the Rain at Beth El Nursery School in Berkeley California! 

Beth Rabinowitz, Temple Sinai, Dresher, PA

The hill and double slide in the infant through 2-year-old playground has become a “risk-taking” area where the children move past their fear to feeling accomplished at mastering a new task.

These outdoor blocks are a little heavy so there is plenty of teamwork involved.  The kids find ways to connect them and make long trains, or they like to see how high they can build them without knocking them over.  Our "fake" grass allows us to go out in all types of weather.

March Shout Out...

Share with us Early Childhood Growing Experiences (Tu B’Shvat related or not!) 

Submit blurb and photos to Amy Damast amy@templesinainj.org Submissions due March 10.

Reform Pension Board Seminar

Our partner, the RPB, invites you to this year’s Retirement Planning Seminar with workshops by retirement and financial experts, personal consultations, and networking to help you gear up for a successful retirement. Questions? Contact Maria Rodriguez at mrodriguez@rpb.org or 646-884-9887. Learn more at www.rpb.org/seminar.