The Gan Ilan Philosophy
Learning Through Play
Many parents believe that, because children are in school, they should be doing school things. When asked what they did in school today, our children will answer, “I played!” In order to begin to read and perform other academic tasks, children must first gather meaning from the world and develop an awareness of concepts. In a developmentally appropriate program, where play is the vehicle for learning, an environment is carefully set up that is rich in opportunities for all sorts of sensory and sensory-motor experiences. If allowed to explore and make discoveries, to practice old skills and build upon new ones, to create and express, the pre-schooler will bring to the Kindergarten year a love of learning and a disposition toward school that will make doing “school things” (i.e. reading and writing and math) intrinsically rewarding.
The Teacher’s Role
It is the teacher’s responsibility to provide rich materials for use in play, allow choices to be made, and to gently nudge children toward the edge of their potential. Using divergent questioning and role playing, teachers can encourage children to respond with their ideas, preferences, opinions, and interests. Acknowledging the intelligence of each child, the teachers can plan together with small groups of children and collaborate with other teachers, parents, and members of the community. A long-term project, an in-depth study of a topic of interest to the children, can cover any subject from spiders, worms, and roly-polys to cars, the local grocery store, or dinosaurs.
A Jewish Curriculum
How does a Jewish curriculum fit in with the project approach of our preschool? Because the Jewish holidays are based on the ebb and flow of the natural world, Judaism forms the basis for our explorations and is a springboard for ideas. The Jewish calendar can be seen as a parade of holidays, one after the other. Our approach will reflect the natural flow and rhythm of days and weeks that our tradition is based on. We might look out the window and observe the changes that take place in the Fall. While learning the blessings for apples and honey, we would compare the kinds of apples, the colors, the sizes, the names; we could take a trip to pick apples from the trees, and write a book about that, complete with children’s illustrations and quotes. Each week we will bake our own challah and delight in the warm smell of baking bread. We will learn the blessing over the grape juice and then perhaps study fruits that grow on vines. We root our days, our weeks with the blessings and songs of our faith, and from there grow our own ideas and expressions of who we are.
Home, School and Community
Gan Ilan offers an integrated family experience that connects the child, the family, the school and the Isaiah community. We believe that our children are a part of a web of interconnected relationships, and we encourage open dialogue among families, teachers, the Isaiah staff and community members. As teachers, we will observe, reflect and document your children’s growth and encourage the family and community to be a part of their early school years.