The Washington DCJCC Preschool is proud to announce our commitment to a Reggio Emilia-inspired program for our preschoolers. This “project approach” comes from childrens' interest and teachers' planning. Children can communicate in a “hundred different languages” with the written and spoken word, drawings, paintings, sculptures in clay and other materials, block construction, light, dance, music, movement and more. We are committed to values based on an image of children as curious, competent and capable of co-constructing knowledge. In our Preschool, four-year old children are creating landmarks of Washington DC after their personal tour of the White House, two-year olds are performing on the stage that they built after a visit to Theater J, and three-year olds are sculpting clay with our studio art specialist. Our caring teachers collaborate to help the children express themselves. Through observation, our teachers design in-depth investigations that emerge from the children's ideas and interests. Documentation shows the process of the children's work and highlights the discoveries that have grown from their explorations. This includes samples of the children's work, photographs, drawings and transcripts of their conversations.
Our environment itself provides the message that our program values the quality and instructive power of space. Our rooms are warm and welcoming and provide carefully designed spaces that encourage active exploration and creativity as well as areas that encourage reflection and concentration. We encourage them to use all of the available materials in their discovery process. In addition to these, our facility includes child-size bathrooms, a spacious gym, a movement area with soft play equipment, a dance studio and a swimming pool.
We invite you to visit our classrooms to see the children at play and to view the documentation of their processes and products. The children love seeing their progress, and you will, too!
Our program provides a day full of learning, enrichment and fun for children ages 2–5, from 7:30 am–6:00 pm year round.
Preschool tours are available Monday–Friday before 12:30 pm by appointment. Please contact Sarah Rabin Spira, the acting director, at (202) 777-3270 or sarahr@washingtondcjcc.org for a tour.
If you would like to have your child join our preschool family, please register for the waitlist online or download a waitlist application (wait-list Application-PDF) to mail, fax or drop off.
A quick primer on our waitlist:
Our timeline for decisions for the 2008-2009 school year is as follows:
If you did not make the first round for September 2008 admission, please do not worry! If you are currently on the waitlist, we will send you an email letting you know. We will keep you on the waitlist until you tell us to take you off. We will continue to accept students on a rolling basis as spaces are available. We will then contact you when--and only when--a space becomes available for your child.
If you wish to decline a spot we've offered, or if you would like us to take your child off our waitlist, please let us know as soon as possible.
Priority on the waitlist is determined by a number of factors, including, but not limited to, sign-up date, whether an older sibling has been a student, the age of the child and the spaces available. We do not assign “numbers” to the kids, so I cannot answer that your child is “number __x__ of __y__ kids.” But we do our best to be fair to all of our applicants and give you as much information as possible about your status.
If your child is turning two after September 2 but before the end of November, we are able to offer you a spot for them to start after their 2nd birthday, but you will need to pay tuition for those months to hold the space. If you would like to defer, we can put you back on the list for consideration as spaces become available.
Signed contracts are binding for the duration of the school year, and we do not refund deposits.
Starting before September 2008 is a possibility, but it’s not likely, as it depends on current students leaving. Also, a child turning two years old in the spring or summer would be at least eight months younger than the youngest child in this year’s two-year old class. We prefer to keep the age ranges in a class much smaller as we feel it’s best for the children.
If you have other questions, please contact Sarah Rabin Spira, Acting Director, Early Childhood, Youth & Family Programs at sarahr@washingtondcjcc.org or (202) 777-3270.
Wednesday, September 10: Back 2 School Night for Preschool Families
Sunday, September 14: Build-a-Book Event (in conjunction with the Preschool's Book Fair)
Tuesday, September 16: A is for Abraham Children's Book Event, part of The Hyman S. & Freda Bernstein Jewish Literary Festival
September 11–19: Scholastic Book Fair
Monday, September 22: Preschool Family Night
Sunday, October 12: Sukkah decorating event (special event with GLOE, details to be announced)
Sunday, October 16: Children's Literature Event (details TBA)
Monday, November 24: Preschool Thanksgiving Lunch
The Washington DCJCC would like to recognize and thank the following businesses for their generous support of the 3rd Annual Parents' Night Out Preschool Fundraiser
We also want like to thank the following businesses and individuals for their generous donations to the raffle:
Get Nurtured Classes for toddlersCamps and classes for older children
ContactSarah Rabin Spira, Acting Director, Early Childhood, Youth & Family Programs(202) 777-3270, sarahr@washingtondcjcc.orgEddie Chavez, Registrar(202) 777-3256, registrar@washingtondcjcc.org