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The Charlotte Jewish News - May 2013 - Page 9 Schools Jewish Preschool on Sardis Will Always Be a Part of Our Lives By Elise Kosofsky I remember when we were preparing to bring our first ehild home. There were so many things that we were eertain we needed; a beautiful erib, a leather highehair with built-in vaeuum, the bouney seat that vibrated, oseillated, and eould even ehange a diaper. Wow, weren’t we surprised after a year had eome and gone that the only thing our preeious baby wanted was to play in the dog’s water bowl and smash the buttons on our most preeious pieee of teeh- nology. Well, like many experi- enees with ehildren, sometimes what you think is important, or what you think you need, you don’t realize until mueh further into the parenting journey. Eight years ago my husband and I began the seareh for the “perfeet” presehool for our daugh ter Abby. We knew we wanted her to attend a Jewish presehool, but we wanted to make sure that we found the best sehool possible. We had a ton of ideas about what we felt a presehool should have to provide our uber intelligent two- year old. We examined elass- rooms, asked about eurrieulum, met teaehers, and spoke with par ents attending the sehools. In the end, what we found was that the only thing that really mat tered to us was that when we walked in the door - we felt like we were home. Home - that is what JPS has been for our family. There was the time the direetor, without judging me, gave me books to read and parenting philosophies to follow so that I eould get my daughter to leave the playground without kieking and sereaming. There was the time the teaehers, with sueh kindness, explained to me that learning how to read was n’t nearly as important as learning how to share and be kind to a friend. Even today, Ms. Beverly, who has taught all three of my daughters in the 4s, ealled just to let me know that my youngest daughter Molly was having a great day and really eonneeting with her friends. Of eourse we all have different needs at different times. Though our family’s needs have ehanged over the past seven years, JPS has been a eonstant. When I ehose to go baek to work, JPS was there for us with enriehment programs and extended day programming. The Kosofsky family. When my youngest daughter started pre-eare and extended day, I felt good about my deeision to return to work. I knew she wasn’t at a dayeare, but was at JPS - still reeeiving the same high quality edueation and eare we had eome to expeet. The enriehment pro grams have offered my ehildren the opportunity to explore and de velop interests in different sports, eooking, and edueation. Beeause the size of a presehool does matter, we were looking for a sehool where the teaehers and staff eould really eonneet with my ehildren. Due to its size, JPS has the opportunity to be flexible and aeeommodating to all of its stu dents and families. When a fam ily’s needs ehange or a ehild has a hurdle to overeome, the whole sehool is there to provide support. I remember when one of my daughters was having trouble with potty training. I eame to piek her up from JPS expeeting to see her in the extra pair of pants I sent in ease she had an aeeident. Instead, I walked into the elassroom and found her in the bathroom with Ms. Kate. Ms. Kate was sitting with my daughter in the bathroom reading a book. My daughter was at ease and able to aehieve some thing that was ehallenging be eause she felt safe and eomfortable. And to think that Ms. Kate wasn’t even her teaeher that year. As our youngest ehild is about to graduate this year, and our fam ily prepares to move on from JPS, we realize that JPS will forever be a part of our lives. JPS has ereated a love of learning and eonfidenee in my kids. You see most presehools ean prepare kids for kindergarten, and yes, all my kids were roek stars in kindergarten. But what JPS offers is so mueh more. It is a nurturing home for your ehildren while they are away from you. Our family, like so many other JPS families, feels that being at JPS has been a gift that will last a lifetime. ^ jps IHI TTwJtvIfhi TTwJtvIfh PrtKhMl on Josh Rubin’s Plumbing, LLC LICENSED - BONDED - INSURED COMMERCIAL & RESIDENTIAL Layouts for slabs - Rough-in and Finish Water Heater Repairs and Replacement Kitchen/Bath Remodeling Toilets, Tubs, Faucets, Sink, and Disposal Repairs/Replacement 10 YEARS EXPERIENCE - NC State Lie. #29197 SC State Lie. #M 110508 704-517-4918 Breaking the matzah and hiding the Afikomen. Pesach at the Charlotte Jewish Day School As always, Judaism comes alive at CJDS each holiday. In fact, our alumni always comment on their warm, joyous memories they have of the Jewish celebrations. Each year we try top anything we have done in the past. So, for this year, we decided to have a Montessori Style Model Seder. Fifteen tables represented the fifteen steps of the Seder. Each step had a different twist to the experience. Each stu dent was given a hagaddah (Pesach Passport) that they would com plete as they advanced through each step. Some of the pictures above will give you an idea of the fun the children had while learning and experiencing our traditions. 704.892.9020 Lake Norman MANN TRAVELS Travel easy. Travel well. Travel often. Call Mann Travels to make your next vacation dream a reality! www.MannTravels.com
The Charlotte Jewish News (Charlotte, N.C.)
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May 1, 2013, edition 1
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