To the poster
12/17/2008 16:05
Subject: Re:New Temple Emanuel Nursery School Feedback???

I second that opinion.

To the poster

11/18/2008 12:14
Subject: Re:New Temple Emanuel Nursery School Feedback???

Gee you think? Your opinion is the smartest I've heard on this post.

My 2 questions -

1. How long will it take for others to see that all problems were and are still caused by Administration, the director and her superior Mr. J Ford.

Mr. Ford is a real PRIZE! He will smile in your face...

This stand-up citizen surely has his seat waiting for him in heaven.

2. How Naive can you be to believe that the administrative mess was Madeline's fault. I am sure that the administration did not deter you from this belief. This is very sad when you consider how much time, work and effort she put into that program. They treated her with no respect as they do most of their employees and expected loyalty from her. They never provided administrative support and they kept the assistant position turning like a revolving door. They hindered her all the way. I laugh when I see other parents post negative comments about this individual and it never ceases to amaze me how they completely rule out the rest of the administration.

SURE... she ran the whole thing by herself and caused the disorganization. It couldn't have anything to do with all of those fingers stuck where the sun doesn't shine up on the administrative floor. You make me laugh.

Thanks.

I would say that it is definitely a loving atmosphere. But I would also say that it depends on the age and personality of the kids. I see the 2s and 3s hugging their teachers a lot but the 4s and 5s are more standoffish. I think that this is probably normal and good. My 2 yo often smells a little like the teachers and says that they love each other.

Also, in terms of "rigor" I would say that also varies by age. The 2 yos have lots of free play, dress up time, train track building time, etc. The older kids have free choice time too but I think not as much.

The teachers are all very warm and loving. My child always gets hugs and affection from all the teachers in the school, and loves his primary teachers as well. The atmosphere feels like "family".

Great to know, thanks! It sounds wonderful!!
The teachers sound great, too. Are they "lovey" with the kids? The curriculum seems a little intense (in a good way)... is there still that cuddly/lots of hugs/I love my teacher atmosphere, too?
Thanks!

How old is your child? I know all the classrooms have scissors. My 4 year old seems to cut with scissors, staple, etc. all day given the amount of paper in DC's "mailbox." In other words, there is free time that they can spend doing "art" and that is what my child seems to do.

They have lots of markers, crayons, paints, colored pencils, scissors and glue/paste. The kids are free to make anything they want with these materials. They also use real modeling clay, a variety of collage materials, assorted fabrics, beads, stones and sequins. They have their own separate art studio which resembles (on a smaller scale) one you might see in a college or NYC loft....with very sophisticated projects. They were weaving on a hand made loom with all types of fabrics and textiles. I am very impressed with some of the art these 2-5 year olds are producing. The kids love it!

If there are still parents of kids at Emanuel right now reading... wondering about the Reggio curriculum. The art projects and research all sound very impressive, but I'm wondering how a kid coming from a more traditional preschool does... ie - my kid LOVES cutting and pasting. Her favorite activity is making "cut outs" of different types of paper. Would there still be opportunity for this kind of play and experimentation, when not part of the projects the kids are working on. Same with coloring with crayons? And singing and dancing?
Many thanks for taking what seems like a lame question seriously, from a parent who is considering a big change...

I am a Temple Emmanuel Parent and cannot say enough good about the program. The director is warm, involved, responsive and wonderful. The teachers are great and the children are valued and thriving (mine included). I have a background in education, and child psychology and have toured many, many area schools. Most were not good, or mediocre. I wanted a safe place and nurturing place, and of course an environment that would foster learning. I found a gem, even though I was only able to tour an empty building as the school was not yet open when I toured. I knew my child would be in good hands just by meeting with Madeline. She seemed experienced and genuinely concerned about children. She is a great director, and has built a great program from scratch. There will always be parents who are negative, and who have expectations that are unrealistic (2 year olds reading etc...), I am not sure what went on in the JCC, but I do not agree that Madeline was to blame. I would look to the higher administration of the JCC for answers. Usually when things fall apart, it is from the top, down. Anyway, I just wanted to post about my own experience. It has been wonderful!!!!

She has started a great school at Temple Emanuel. She is running a great program. The temple gives her tons of support, the school is beautiful, the teachers excellent. There is a ton of accountability. The cantor's daughter is in the school, the president of the temple, the religious school director are extremely involved.

I understand that it must be very frustrating that you had a bad experience, but you actually don't know anything about Temple Emanuel.

madeline was an atrocious director at the DCJCC last year and left the school mid-year. She supposedly was amazing when she started the school, but for the three years that I dealt with her, she was completely unresponsive to calls and totally unorganized.

If she has admnistrative support, then perhaps she will be somewhat better than she was during her last few years at the JCC. I do believe the JCC did not give her the support she needed and she flailed - really badly, new teachers were really unhappy, new parents were horrifed, whiile I found that older parents and older teachers - and I don't mean age - were stronger advocates and talked about a madeline that I had never seen or met.

it sounds like her program is basically what is at the DCJCC, even now with a much more organized, dedicated, energetic and responsive new director who is trying to clean up the mess that madeline left.

I don't know the full story of what happened with madeline and the JCC, all I know is what I saw, and she handled it unprofessionally and left the kids and the school and the whole community out in the cold. As a parent, who was stuck mid year in the school, I will find it hard to forgive you.

So, where does that leave you? If I had a better choice, I'd go somewhere else (old dogs don't learn new tricks). If I was already at the school, I'd hope her admin help keeps supporting her and that her desire to prove herself does not wane. She was supposedly a great director at some time in her career.

I just read the archives about the DCJCC and Madeline Lowitz-Gold (who is the director at Temple Emanuel). I am a current Temple Emanuel parent and I have not experienced these problems. Madeline has tons of administrative support at Temple Emanuel (all billing etc., is through the front office), and the teachers are all extremely qualified, much more so than any other school I've looked at or had kids enrolled in. I do find that it's better to seek out the teachers than to seek out Madeline- they are the ones that are with the children all day. I actually have little need for contact with her, but the contact I've had has been fine. She is always friendly and listens to our concerns, even if she doesn't always agree with me or my husband. It's going to be like that everywhere, I think. We used to be at a school where the director gave into everything the parents wanted and it was total chaos because there was no consistency.

The place is spacious, bright, clean, with caring and experienced teachers. Not sure what Madeline's interactions were like with parents at the DCJCC, but I honestly haven't seen any problems so far (two and a half months in to the school year).

It's Reggio-Emilia. Madeline has been fine this year- maybe the problems were with the DCJCC.

A bit of advice - do your research on the Director. Madeline came from the DC JCC. You'll find out a lot about how she runs a program and engages parents from a quick search. I'm a former DC JCC parent and was very displeased. Good luck.

What kind of program do they offer? Montessori or Reggio-Emilia?