Celebrating new additions to Temple Shalom Preschool

By Rabbi Ariel Boxman, Director of Lifelong Learning

As Rosh Hashanah approaches and we celebrate the Jewish New Year, we are also celebrating some new additions to our preschool! Over the summer, we not only added some new enrichment spaces and programs, but our building received a beautiful renovation! We are most excited about the following:

Kef Shalom (tumbling gym)

In order to provide indoor physical and sensory development opportunities for our students, we built a tumbling gym in the Multipurpose Room. This gym is outfitted with padded flooring, a gymnastics bar, a balance beam and tons of plush toys to climb on and play with. While this gym will be used mainly for preschool, it will also be used for Shalom Yeladim (Sunday program for young families) and Shabbat ShaPLAY (Shabbat program for young families).

Makers space (art room)

Creative expression is of fundamental importance in our preschool curriculum. In order to aid our students in developing their creative genius, we have designed an enrichment center for them to create, imagine and build with open-ended materials. Check out all the exciting supplies we have gathered for our students to utilize!

VPK program (voluntary pre-kindergarten)

For the first time in Temple Shalom Preschool history, we are offering the state-funded VPK program for 4-yearold children. Families are able to send their children to our school and submit their VPK voucher for three free hours of education. This program enables children to attend a quality preschool in order to prepare them for kindergarten. We are extremely grateful for the opportunity to participate as a VPK provider in Florida and look forward to a wonderful year ahead.

Hallway renovation

Our preschool hallways received a beautiful upgrade as we finally said goodbye to carpet and replaced our hallway floors with laminate tiles. We are loving the fresh look!

We are very pleased with our updates and renovations and are looking forward to a wonderful school year ahead. Our classrooms are full, students are happy, and the sound of learning fi lls the hallway! I wish you all a Shana Tova and a year full of happiness, peace and joy.