Rockland Jewish Academy Early Childhood Curriculum
"Intentional Teaching"
(Learning Through Play)

Rockland Jewish Academy's PreK program is based on an “Intentional Teaching” approach, focused on learning through play. We also focus on giving children the skills necessary for blossoming into maturity: pre-math skills, reading readiness, art, drama and music. We encourage children to play, explore and grow, and to joyfully connect to Judaism. Every day, children are provided with new opportunities to learn not only academic skills, but self reliance, as well as social and emotional skills.

Blocks & Accessories Center

  • Develops large and small muscle control
  • Promotes spirit of inquiry and organization
  • Aids in understanding, geometric, measurement and number concepts
  • Encourages problem solving and memory skills
  • Develops social interaction, self-control and patience
  • Provides simple mapping/geography understandings
  • Introduction to our globe and gaining multi-cultural knowledge

Fine Motor/Art Center

  • Expression of creative ideas and emotions symbolically
  • Building eye/hand coordination with fine muscle control
  • Aiding in judgment and organization of colors, shapes and designs
  • Reinforcing gross motor development while introducing fine motor skills

Housekeeping/Dress-Up Center

  • Originate, plan, manage or follow through a dramatic experience
  • Express strong feelings
  • Increase understanding of what happens in a grown-up world
  • Role play member of the family, community, school, etc.
  • Work through frightening, unhappy or embarrassing experiences
  • Re-live happy experiences
  • Develop empathy (see things from someone else’s viewpoint)

Fine Motor/Manipulation Center

Puzzles, clay, small construction materials such as Legos provide opportunities for children to enhance the following skills:
  • Spatial relationships and visual perception
  • Fine motor development, balance and manual skills
  • Sharing and taking turns
  • Verbal expression
  • Pre-math skills
  • Problem solving and perseverance
  • Safety awareness
  • Ability to attend to task
  • Introduce and develop pincer grip
  • Encourage top-down strokes and counter-clockwise strokes (writing readiness)

Library/Book Corner

  • Develop independent “reading” skills
  • Appreciation of stories, poems and illustrations
  • Understand the need for quiet concentration in following “storylines” or sequences

Listening Center

  • Develop auditory comprehension skills
  • Ability to attend to task presented through the auditory modality
  • Auditory memory and sequencing skills
  • Following instructions presented through the auditory modality
  • Listening to familiar voices to minimize separation issues
  • Introduce “reading” as an independent activity








Sand & Water Play Areas
  • Discovery of the “what and how” of science
  • Observation and organization
  • Imaginative and creative expression
  • Oral expression
  • Problem solving
  • Socialization

Outdoor Play/All-Purpose Room

  • Mastery of body balance and strength
  • Coordination of gross motor muscles
  • Self-confidence, independence and competence
  • Safety rules
  • Informal, unstructured, creative original games
  • Concepts of space and motion
  • Acceptable outlet for energy and feelings    








Our Ark (Aron HaKodesh)
  • Torah as part of our lives
  • introduce mitzvoth (Mitzvah Train and our globe)
  • Jewish values
  • Jewish customs
  • Expressing one’s self through prayer (thanking God, praising God and asking God)