Community Building

In the world of early childhood education, this year felt very much like a new chapter for our schools. It has been a time for rebuilding, for establishing new norms and for coming together after two long COVID years kept us apart. This year, in-person meetings and conferences provided us with ways to make meaningful connections once again with other Jewish educators, to learn from one another, to ask questions and to seek answers together.

As we near the end of the school year, we wanted to highlight some of the “best of” professional development workshops and trainings. As a community of lifelong learners, one of our goals as an organization has always been to share our collective knowledge with one another, and to provide a system of support for Jewish early childhood educators to continue honing their craft.

Without further ado, here are a few highlights from this year:

• ECE-RJ Meet Up: Using Materials to Grow New Ideas with Children and Adults: Another Look with Matt Karlsen and Susan Harris MacKay
• Nan Sumner’s in-person workshop, “Loose Parts for Newbies” Nan Sumner, Director, Barnert Temple Preschool, Franklin Lakes, NJ
• Dr. Betsy Stone’s talk: Dealing with the Trauma Caused by COVID: https://www.betsystonephd.com/
• Meri Cherry’s mobile workshop talking about process art: https://mericherryshop.com/products/mobile-art-teacher-workshop
• Susan Remick Topek visited Jewish preschools on Long Island sharing her workshop, “Intentional Jewish Experiences – Something New & Something Old”
• Tom Copeland – “The Business of Family Child Care Video Series” https://www.tomcopelandblog.com/blog/the-business-of-family-child-care-video-series
• “Newish to Jewish” series offered by The Paradigm Project – recordings can be found HERE
• Missy Brown - Incorporating Mindfulness in Your Classrooms and Your Lives: https://youtu.be/R7T1LqAIkcM
• Nancy Parkes: Social, Emotional & Spiritual Learning: https://www.nancyparkesconsulting.com/

We are looking forward to the joint ECE-RJ/ARJE Conference in Memphis, Tennessee, which is scheduled for January 22-24, 2024. Conferences are one of the most meaningful ways in which to not only learn together as a community of Jewish educators, but also provide a landscape for us to connect with one another. We hope you will save the date for what we know will be an amazing experience for all who are lucky enough to attend.

Jen Schiffer

Director, The Community Synagogue L’Dor V’Dor Early Childhood Center