About Us
Restarted in 2000, the Mishkan Israel Nursery School & Daycare is a highly successful School serving children 3 months through 5 years. The School is open to all in the community. Although there is a Jewish curriculum, the student population consists of many non-Jewish children and is, in fact, extremely multi-cultural, as are the teachers.
Philosophy
With a staff that constantly strives to be sensitive to the unique physical, emotional, social and intellectual needs of each child, the curriculum is guided by the principle that children learn most effectively through play. The program is particularly designed to teach students critical basic socialization skills such as how to share, how to be friends, how to be loyal, how to be a good citizen, how to have good manners, and how to work in groups. Activities also are chosen to stimulate children’s senses and to help them develop their language as well as their gross and fine motor skills. Additionally, older children are introduced to early academic concepts such as the alphabet, reading, writing, and arithmetic. Jewish themes are interwoven into all programs — in music through weekly sessions with the Cantor and other musical activities, in the telling of bible stories, and in the celebration of Jewish holidays and Shabbat through arts and crafts projects, song, dance, and food.
Our Director
We are lucky to have an award-winning, early-childhood educator and administrator as the School Director. Rebecca Luty earned a BS in Education from SUNY Potsdam, and has attended NYU Graduate School of Education and Southern Connecticut Graduate School of Education. She taught at Elizabeth Blackwell Junior High for 4 years before turning her attention to younger children teaching 4-year-olds at Gan Hayeled Nursery School for 10 years; and writing and teaching curriculum for the Little Scientists Program. Since 2000, she has been the much-admired Director of MINS. Ms. Luty has won Teacher of the Year Award, Elizabeth Blackwell Junior High School in 1970, the Teachers Award for Little Scientist in 1997, and the Grinspoon-Steinhardt Award for Excellence in Jewish Education in 2003.
An accomplished story-teller, she has regaled children in many locations and organizations such as the Connecticut Storytelling Festival, numerous Public Libraries, the Nature Center in Ansonia, the Whitney Barn, Spring Glen School, Foote School, and Girl Scouts and Boy Scouts. She is the recipient of the Barbara Reed award for the Connecticut Storytelling Center in 2005.
Student Population
Our enrollment is non-sectarian and we are proud to have an extremely diverse population of kids: Jewish, Christian, Hindu, and Muslim children. We have families from the U.S., Canada, Africa, Mexico, Israel, Eastern Europe, Russia, Iraq, Japan, China and Korea and our social functions continue to strengthen and enrich the ties between our families of interfaith, GLBT, multiracial, single-parent and two-parent backgrounds.
Hours
We are open Monday – Friday, 7:30 a.m. – 5:30 p.m., year round.
Nursery School – 9:00 a.m. – 12:00 noon
Daycare – 7:30 a.m. – 5:30 p.m.
Additional Options
Lunch Bunch – 12:00 – 1:00 p.m.
Enrichment Classes – 1:00 – 2:00 p.m.
Scheduling Options: 2, 3, 4, or 5 days
Download 2010-11 Registration forms.
Pay School tuition online.
Register for Summer Camp online or download a Registration form.
Register for 2011-12 School Year online or download Registration Forms.
For more information, contact Director Bec Luty at bluty@cmihamden.org or (203) 288-2375.
