Parent Handbook

Our Preschool Program includes a rich variety of experiences developed around our students’ growing interests.

Inspired by the Reggio Emilia approach to learning, our program provides students with countless opportunities
each day to discover their interests through first hand experiences.

Both the classroom schedule and classroom environment have been deliberated to include a wide variety of
open-ended activities and materials so that children can make discoveries independently and at their own pace.
Throughout the school day, students will be able to manipulate materials, to use their senses, to investigate, to
explore their surroundings, to search for answers and to satisfy their natural curiosity. By offering choices and
allowing the child to take initiative, our students will ultimately become increasingly confident and self-sufficient.

Our Judaic curriculum is similarly, holistically woven into our curriculum and is meant to emphasize the
importance of family, community and lastly, to nurture our students’ sense of culture.

The directive staff has assembled a dedicated group of professional educators, committed to each child under their guidance. Every year we welcome back most of our beloved Morahs and we introduce a few new educators to our school community. All of our educators are highly qualified and experienced teachers who are either certified Early Childhood Educators by the state of New York or who have extensive experience working with children in the Early Childhood Stage of Development.

Our role as adults is to observe our students, listen to their questions and their stories, find what interests them and then provide them with opportunities to explore these interests further. Each of our teachers brings an exceptional set of skills and strengths to our Alef Bet teaching staff. While each teaching team is uniquely varied, our educators share a genuine passion for children and demonstrate a deep respect for each child’s individuality. We feel truly proud and humbled to work with such a talented and devoted group of people, and we ask G-d’s Blessings for the sacred work that we share, among the highest callings a human being can aspire to.

Throughout the school year, our teachers will participate in a series of educational workshops and undergo weekly consultations with our directive staff. During staff meetings, our teaching teams will: discuss student progress; develop monthly curricula and share and exchange ideas. Such opportunities will help our teachers to address the ever-changing needs of our students and comply with the current research that dictates our teaching practices.

Alef Bet Preschool is committed to fostering secure and consistent parent – teacher partnerships. We believe
that children thrive when there is a mutual trust and respect between a child’s home and school
environment.

Our Preschool Program therefore presents various occasions for parents to work closely, share
ideas, make observations and exchange information with their child’s team of teachers. Here’s how we plan
to keep you in the know this year:

Home Visits – Before school begins you will be contacted by your child’s head teacher to arrange a visit at
your home. This is a great time for your child to “put a face to a name” and get comfortable with their
Morahs. The process is a time to share your impressions of your child with us and address any remaining
concerns before the start of the school year.

Orientation Night – Before school begins, we invite you to see your child’s classroom and meet with the
staff and other Alef Bet parents.

Curriculum Night – After school begins, we invite parents to come in and hear from their child’s Morahs
about the plans for the year. You will get a detailed review of what your child will be learning this year and
enjoy a day in the life of your preschooler.

Parent Teacher Conferences – Conferences to discuss your child’s progress in detail are held twice a year,
in November and March. During the conference you will have the opportunity to receive an in-depth view of
your child’s progress and see some of their work.

Newsletters – updates will be sent home at the end of each month. The content of your child’s newsletter
will disclose what your child has been doing in class throughout the month and pictures of their activities.

WhatsApp Group – Your classroom teacher will post DAILY updates & pictures to your classroom WhatsApp
group so you can see what your explorer is doing at school. This is a good way to contact Morahs directly, but
please do not contact Morahs during school hours. You may always contact the directive staff.

Weekly Chabad Email – Each Friday you will receive an email with some important scheduling information
about the coming week at school.

Instagram and Facebook – Find daily updates and pictures of your child by ‘friending’
@AlefBetPreschool_ues on Instagram (and Facebook)!

Please call the school directly if there is an emergency: 212.831.2770. You can also email preschool@chabadic.com or alefbet@chabadic.com to communicate with your directive staff.

Our school is a place where parents, and the entire family, can play an integral role in their loved one’s
education. We encourage parents to volunteer their time whenever possible. We offer opportunities for
parental involvement during holiday celebrations, social activities and during daily educational experiences.
If you have a particular field of expertise or interest, please offer to come in to share it with your child’s class!

Alef Bet has a very active Parent Association (PA) which works to expand the focus and capacity of our
Preschool, provides a forum to welcome new families and is a large contributor to many of our school wide
activities. If you are interested in being a part of your child’s class Association, please let the Morahs or
directive staff know.

School Hours	Early drop off:	Arrival/drop off	Dismissal	Strollers	Snow Days
9:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m.	8:00/8:30 a.m by previous arrangement only.	8:55 a.m. – 9:15 a.m. Please do not drop off your child in the vestibule before his or her class begins.	2:45 p.m. – 3:00 p.m.	Strollers must be folded and parked in the stroller area in the school vestibule. If your stroller does not fold you will not be able to leave it in school.	We will notify parents before 7:00 a.m. Please note that we do not always follow the Department of Education decisions in this matter.

What you need to know about arrival…
– We urge caregivers to be prompt for arrival to avoid being disruptive to the class
and teachers.

– Unless prior arrangements have been made with the directors, we ask that you not
send your child after 10:30 a.m.

– Your child should not feel hurried while you are here.

What you need to know about dismissal…

Dismissal: Please wait patiently outside of the school for pick-up. Alef Bet staff will bring your child
to you.

Late Pick-up: We understand that emergencies do happen and we will do our best to accommodate
you when exceptions are necessary. We remind you however that the teaching staff needs to be
elsewhere at the close of each school day and that we are not able to properly accommodate children
after their scheduled pick up time.
Change in pick up arrangements can also be upsetting to children and can ruin a perfectly fine day! Please be sure to be prompt.
Repeated lateness will result in a late fee.

Escorts & Play dates: If you are sending your child home with another parent for a play date or with someone who is not listed on your escort list, you must provide a written note to the teacher or call the main office.

Dismissal Policy: Under no circumstance, will a child be released to a person who is not authorized by a parent to pick up that child. If you plan on having your child picked up by someone not listed on your Authorized Pick Up Form, you must contact the office to notify the director or one of your child’s teachers.

Please do not send your child to school if they are ill. Any fever over 100 degrees Fahrenheit is considered ill and your child should not return to school until they have been fever free, without any medication, for 24 hours. Please keep your child home if they have diarrhea, vomiting, a new cough, unexplained rash, or discharge from their eyes (pinkeye/conjunctivitis).

At Alef Bet, we do routine lice checks throughout the year. In the event that your child has nits/lice we will
contact you to take your child to have their hair deloused by a professional lice specialist. The child would
only then be readmitted to school with a lice-free certification.

If you see lice or nits in your child’s hair, please contact the school right away.

At Alef Bet, we teach our children to be responsible for their actions. Discipline is constructive, fair, and individualized for each child. Through modeling and prompting the children will learn school appropriate behavior. Children can be redirected or taken out of an activity if the child is becoming disruptive or harmful to other children. There will never be physical punishment in response to unwanted behaviors.

We have a zero tolerance policy for children biting another child. If a child is biting another child, the child
may be sent home. In recurring situations (more than once in a short period of time) we will suggest
necessary measures to the child’s parents to ensure the safety of the children in the class.

Mid-morning and mid-afternoon snacks include fresh fruits and ‘dry snacks’ such as: rice cakes and dry
cereal. Well-balanced hot lunches are served daily. If your child has any special dietary needs, please consult
with the directive staff. They will be happy to accommodate your child’s meal time needs. We ask that
absolutely no food be sent to school with your child. We have some children with severe allergies.

Children who stay after lunch will enjoy a rest period. During rest time, we ask all of the children to lie down and relax their minds and bodies. Children will be able to rest with a comfort item and any nap time items sent with them to school. We will turn down the lights and play calming music to help the children recharge during this time of the day.

We do not initiate toilet training, but we will support your efforts as much as possible. State regulations do not allow us to keep potties in school; we use stepping stools as needed. Do not send your child without a diaper on until they’ve been ‘dry’ for several days and we are certain they will go comfortably in school.

Prior to your child’s birthday, you will receive an email from the school office with information. Generally, the
class bakes for the birthday child and we have a party in school. We have created an Amazon wish list (you
will receive a link with your email), so that you can buy the class a gift in honor of your child’s birthday.

We ask that parties not be held on Saturdays or Jewish holidays outside of school and that all food and
snacks served at the party be Kosher. If your child is invited to the party of a classmate, check that the food
being served accommodates your child’s dietary needs. If you would like to give out invitations in school,
every child in the class must be invited.

School clothes should be comfortable, washable and appropriate for preschool activities. Please keep in mind
the following, while selecting your child’s preschool clothing:

o Sitting on the rug, art activities etc.
o Clothes should allow for self-dressing in the bathroom.
o Outdoor play can stretch the limits of even the toughest fabrics, so please choose sturdy clothing.
o Outdoor clothing should be warm enough for playtime.
o Children should wear/bring boots in snowy weather.

Please send the following items in to school with your child on their first day. Please label all items with your child’s first and last name. 

Diapers & Wipes

Children not yet toilet trained should have a:
– supply of diapers
– wipes sufficient for several days in school.

Nap Time Necessities

Children staying after 12:30 p.m should have a:

• flat sheet
• small blanket or other ‘lovey’

Clothing

Please send your child with the following items in a labeled Ziploc bag on their first day of school:

• extra pair of pants
• extra t-shirt
• extra sweatshirt/sweater/long sleeve shirt
• 2 extra pairs of underpants
• 2 extra pairs of socks
  Please label ALL items.

Toys from home

Full day children can keep one comfort toy in school for rest time in the afternoons.
We strongly discourage children from bringing toys from home.