STEM’s in place for K-12 at HAFTR

The Hebrew Academy of the Five Towns and Rockaway has adopted a technology initiative in its Early Childhood Center that will partner with the school’s K-12 STEM and Innovation initiative.

HAFTR’s goal is to teach basic technological skills to students at their earliest educational stages, when they easily adapt to educational related apps that help with reading, writing and arithmetic. The students will also be introduced to foundational methods of critical thinking to help prepare them for kindergarten, where they will start learning computer programming.

HAFTR’s Early Childhood Center recently had a wonderful lesson with Morah Elaine. Their little techies were surprised to see their new iPad minis.

They read The Monster at the End of this Book, starring lovable, furry old Grover, and then had to find the app on the iPads, and read the digital version of the same book.

Morah Elaine Gross said, “These students are beginning to understand that technology is being utilized as a tool and not a toy. We can teach them the proper way to physically handle technology while creating a feeling of excitement to learn in new and innovative ways.”

HAFTR partnered with CIJE and Jewish Education Project to create this curriculum.