The Saul and Carole Zabar Nursery School at the Marlene Meyerson JCC Manhattan

The property

The Saul and Carole Zabar Nursery School is a progressive, Reggio Emilia-inspired nursery school that embraces families from all backgrounds. Jewish values and tradition are interwoven into everything we do.

Reggio Emilia
Inspired by the Reggio Emilia philosophy, children’s voices, passions, artistic visions, and questions are driving forces in our curriculum. We believe that children are competent thinkers, problem solvers, and builders of their own knowledge. Teachers and children together identify paths of inquiry and engage in extended collaborative work that fosters individual growth. Teachers facilitate this process by working collaboratively as researchers, observing, guiding, and following the interests of the children.

In the Reggio Emilia philosophy, the environment and materials are powerful tools for learning. Children use their physical world in a myriad of inventive ways, finding pathways for self-expression and transforming the everyday into the extraordinary. We support each child’s learning, their connections with one another, and their points of view by making their work visible through many forms of documentation, ensuring that they reach developmental milestones and master the academic skills necessary for continuing their educational journey.

Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, and Antiracism
Our nursery school is committed to diversity, equity, and inclusion. We celebrate differences in individual and cultural identity as well as differences in the many ways of learning. We are a school that engages children and families in the work of social justice. We include our youngest students in reflective conversations, and we partner with them as they think through actionable ways to make change and to challenge injustices.

We believe it is our ethical responsibility to support children in building increasingly complex understandings of race and identity, in growing comfortable talking about diversity, and in forming their own sense of commitment to the work of shaping a more just society. This begins in the earliest years, as children take part in their first learning community. Young children are eager observers of structures of fairness and power; we believe that educating for democracy necessitates that we embrace these themes and nurture children’s capacity to identify and resist injustice and oppression.

Jewish Values
The nursery school embraces and welcomes families from all backgrounds as we cultivate a connection to Jewish values and tradition. We offer children many experiences that foster empathy with others, and encourage students to make a positive imprint on their world. Mitzvah projects offer experiences that allow our children to be actively involved in tikkun olam, the Jewish concept of repairing the world. Shabbat and holiday celebrations are occasions to share Jewish stories and rituals, and to pass on a love of Jewish traditions to children. Our families gather around important moments on the Jewish and national calendar to assert our feelings of connection, remember our history, and celebrate the beauty of our traditions.

Click here to learn more about the admissions process at the JCC, we would love to hear from you.

Shari Pick Taishoff, Director
The Saul and Carole Zabar Nursery School
334 Amsterdam Ave (at 76th Street)
New York, NY 10023

Website | Email | Instagram | 646-505-4400

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