In just its second year of operation, the Chandler Jewish Preschool at the Pollack Chabad Center for Jewish Life is thriving. The beautiful and spacious facility located just off the 101 and Ray Road is home to 16 curious, wide-eyed and adorable tots from 12 months through pre-kindergarten.
The Reggio Emilia approach (named after the town in Italy in which is started) considers the environment as the third teacher, after the child and the adult leader. To that end, each classroom is outfitted with play structures and materials set to inspire and encourage exploration. Walls are decorated with photos of the children
at “work,” with their own explanatory quotes written nearby.
“You’ll hear a lot of ‘I wonder what …,’ ‘What will happen if …’ and ‘Let’s try this’ in each classroom,” Preschool Director Shternie Deitsch proudly explains. “Our teachers encourage our children to be independent, creative thinkers … those who can think outside the box. We help them develop healthy social and emotional growth. We believe those skills will help them succeed not only in school but in life.”
The Reggio vision of the child as a competent learner produces a strong child-directed curriculum model. Teachers follow the children’s interests and do not provide focused instruction in reading and writing.
“We don’t consider the young child an empty vessel that needs to be filled. We think they are already filled with the wonderful elements of childhood. We give them space to explore
learning, to learn about natural consequences and to problem solve,” says Shternie, who has been involved with preschools and Hebrew school education since 1995.
She says that when establishing the new Chandler Jewish Preschool, “It was a natural decision to implement the Reggio Emilia philosophy and become a Reggio-inspired school. My older sister had been teaching in a Reggio- inspired Jewish preschool in Mequon, WI, for seven years, and as she shared her amazing
experiences with me, it quickly became apparent that that is the direction we would take. It is so closely aligned with the way Judaism views early childhood development and education that it was a natural choice.” The children also have the experience of going into the full kitchen at the Chabad Center to help with cooking for special events. They bake their weekly challahs and assist with events such as their Thanksgiving “feast.” The pre-K kids learned to carefully peel potatoes for their Hanukkah latkes and then explored what happens to potato peels when mixed with a variety of elements.
The school has room for expansion. “Though we love the small teacher-student ratio (there are currently six teachers for the 16 children), we still have room for more children. We are open to the entire community and believe that anyone would feel comfortable in our setting.”
Shternie is grateful for their beautiful facility and hopes to find support to build a natural playscape in the outdoor area. “Why would we want to put up plastic and metal when we could use natural elements to allow for play and exploration?” she asks with a grin.
Thinking About Your Childs Education?
Shternie Deitsch, director of the Chandler Jewish Preschool, is married to Rabbi Mendy Deitsch, who runs the Pollack Center for Jewish Life. Together they are blessed with nine children, ranging in ages from 21 months to 17 years.
Shternie calls her life as a mom “a privilege, hectic and dare I say fun! The Lubavitcher Rebbe maintains that as parents we must think about our children’s education for at least one hour each day. To that end we try to match each of our children with the environment that best suits them. It’s quite humorous, but we have our family currently enrolled in seven different schools!”
Their oldest daughter attends a Chabad high school in Toronto, their 15-year- old son is in a Chabad high school in Chicago and their 13-year-old daughter is enrolled in a global online Chabad school. The two youngest attend the preschool at the Chabad center.
And here’s what happens each day with the other four:
Traveling the busy freeways from Chandler to Phoenix (fortunately there are HOV lanes!) “our fourth- and sixth-graders get dropped off at the Phoenix Hebrew Academy at 8 am, our third-grader starts at Torah Day School at 8:15 am and our kindergartner starts at 8:30 am at Aleph Bet Preschool and Kindergarten at Chabad of Phoenix.”
The routine goes something like this: “We leave at 7:28 most mornings and take three other children with us, dropping one off at a fourth school, Shearim Torah High School for Girls. … We usually return by 9:15. Typically my husband does the morning drive, loving that time to talk to the kids.
“The afternoons have me leaving at 2:30 (with my two preschoolers while my eighth-grader has her math lesson) in order to get to the kindergarten dismissal at 3, with the other pickups staggered at 3:30, 3:40 and 3:50! Typically we get home at 4:30.” The Deitsches take it all in stride. As Shternie says, “It really isn’t a big deal. Honestly it’s our routine … and as long as I’m organized, it all works out!”
Chabad of the East Valley: 480-855-4333 | 875 N McClintock Dr., Chandler | chabadcenter.com
