Our preschool camps encompass the high standards of our school year Early Childhood Development Program.

We believe camp should be the place for making new friends and having fun-filled days. Our goal is to provide a summer of developmentally appropriate, interactive, outdoor activities that are sure to create special memories for even our youngest campers.

Staff
Year-round Early Childhood Director Shari Fauer with Assistant Director Kris Brooks, serving as overall Program Director, supervises our preschool camps. Experienced early childhood professionals from our school-year program and carefully selected college students staff our camp groups. These skilled, trained counselors care about children and offer guidance, support, encouragement, enthusiasm and love.

Groups
Children are placed according to chronological age so that we can offer a developmentally appropriate and safe program. All programs (except off site field trips for Gesher campers) are held at the JCC. Each group has their own individual, air-conditioned, brightly lit and developmentally equipped room to utilize as their special indoor home base.

Following our licensing policies, our four unique preschool camps are:

K’Ton Ton (meaning little ones) for toddlers 18 months to those turning 3 years old after 12/1/08

Chaverim (meaning friends) for campers who will be 3 years old by 12/1/08

Yeladim (meaning children) for campers who will be 4 years old by 12/1/08

Gesher (meaning bridge) for campers who will be 5 years old by 12/1/08 or entering kindergarten in the Fall. As our Camp Gesher kids leave us to begin their formal school years as kindergarteners, we look to prepare them to graduate on to the next level and to make the transition an easy one. Both camps, ECDP and Camp Rishon are located in the same building, so our classroom counselors and sports counselors are shared with Camp Gesher. Campers in Camp Gesher bridge from our program to Camp Nitzanim through their daily Chugim (choices) by participating in Camp Nitzanim activities like Sports, Nature, Drama, and Israeli culture. After lunch, Camp Gesher participants play at the school-aged playground. Later in the day, campers at Camp Gesher come together with Nitzanim for snack and Closing Ceremonies.

Activities
Throughout the summer there are guest entertainers scheduled to perform, cookouts or ice cream socials and other special themed activities are planned. Camp groups regularly have a friendship circle and each age level joins to celebrate Shabbat on Fridays. All children attending the Early Childhood summer camps have an opportunity to participate in daily activities geared to the week's theme.