The Chai Center Preschool & Camp - Dix Hills, NY

09/06/2026

08/20/2026

For Dino Week, we created “dinosaur eggs” using baking soda with a tiny baby dinosaur hidden inside. Using droppers, they added water to the eggs and watched as they fizzed and dissolved, revealing the baby dinosaur hidden inside! Our Triceratops friend "Spot" paid us a visit. We got to sit on his back, feed him leaves, and gently pet his nose. The Big Red Fire Truck stopped by for a splashing good time as fire chief Rick turned on the fire hose and made it rain all over the parking lot. The children then created an edible art firetruck using graham crackers, pretzels and some red icing. We got to pick some veggies from our garden with Morah Paulyne and we were even able to try them. Coach Louise dropped by to offer up some pretty serious obstacle courses and relay races. Everyone did great and went home with gold, silver and bronze medals and goody bags. Our annual challah baking contest winner was Morah Bina who created a Dinosaur. The kids enjoyed a visit from face painter extraordinaire Joanie Baloney. Following our costume parade, the kiddos decorated a cool animal mask to take home. We are ending the summer with a fun carnival, chock full of games, prizes and special treats.

08/03/2026

During Color Splash Week we had delicious water ices outdoors, did some messy art, and worked on some crazy tie dying in the art shower. The children loved our amazing bubble party with The Long Island Bubble Truck! Mounds and mounds of foamy, sudsy bubbles to dance and jump around in. In art we made sand art designs and special sun visors. The kids danced and sang along at our Hakuna Matata Puppet show featuring special guests like Mickey and Minnie, Simba and friends, some farm animals, and a twinkly starfish. After, we used materials to make our own paper bag puppet. As always, our busy week finished with our soccer clinic, Shabbat Sing-A-Long and of course our fresh baked challah to take home for Shabbat.

07/20/2026

During our Backyard Bonanza week we had a pretend camp out with delicious S'mores and stories, and did some messy mud painting on our outdoor canvases. Indoors we squished "clean mud" (toilet paper, brown paint, water and shaving cream) around our fingers and made muddy masterpieces in the art shower and we created beautiful mosaic animal shapes using clay and beans. Animal Yoga day was a big success as the children sat with their favorite stuffed animals and practiced breathing, stretching/posing, then relaxing. This week, while the older children went on a nature walk looking all around for hidden treasures, our younger groups spotted some of the more familiar things we see around us indoors. They used their magnifying glasses and binoculars to get a closer look at nature and check off everything on their lists. The kids had a blast dancing with our friends from Tippi Toes Dance Company and practicing control over the ball during our Soccer Shots clinic.

07/13/2026

The campers had an amazing first week! It was great seeing everyone so happy to be together, welcome all the old and new faces and even watch some new friendships begin to blossom. The children enjoyed all our outdoor activities in our splash park area with water tables, water shooters, sprinklers, and our water slide. Indoors, we made friendship bracelets, a friendship collage, painted with hearts and painted our own beautiful art shower creations. Somehow the groups managed to even find time to visit our game room with our awesome inflatable bounce house. The kiddos enjoyed a super fun glow dance party with cool giveaways. Then we ended the week with a soccer clinic with Soccer Shots and our shabbat singalong and our homemade challah.

06/18/2026

As the weather gets warmer outside and we prepare for the end of the year, this week’s topic was all about summertime fun. The children worked on sun and sandcastle tracing sheets, an ice cream math game, and sand sensory bins. They used sandpaper and seashells to make their own sandcastles. During circle time, we discussed different activities we do during the summer. We have enjoyed the beautiful weather playing outside on our playground and in the sandbox and we even did our Friday Shabbat sing-along outside. We also continued practicing our letters and sight words in different ways. We traced them in our salt trays, on dry erase boards, and on the chalkboard. We started talking about Father’s Day and worked on special gifts. The kiddos played a game of "Build Your Own Dad" using Mr. Potato Head pieces. We have been practicing with our PRE-K/UPK kids getting ready for the big graduation next week!

06/04/2026

We are learning about oceans and ponds and the wonders of life below the sea. In our centers we have ocean-themed letter and shape tracing, letter matching and rhyming clam activities. We discussed what we see in a pond, including frogs. We then learned about the life cycle of a frog and made a booklet putting the steps in the correct order. Later, they were put to the test with a hands-on sequencing activity where they had to cut out the stages and glue them in the correct order. For provocations we enjoyed playing with assorted sensory bins filled with sand, water, fish, blue rice and glass stones. The children also explored some shells with a magnifying glass and used our toy fishing kit. For art activities, the children created their own jellyfish and painted rocks for our garden. We read some wonderful books this week, including “I’m the Biggest Thing in the Ocean,” “Over in the Ocean In a Coral Reef,” and “My Little Book of Ocean Life,” taking us on a journey further into ocean facts about our favorite sea creatures. For our Scholastic activity, we learned the vocabulary word aquatic and compared different animals such as dolphins, seals, and whales that live in watery habitats. As a follow-up activity, students sorted animals to decide: “Is it aquatic?” It was a fun and engaging way to build science vocabulary and critical thinking skills.

05/20/2026

Our classroom was buzzing with excitement as we continued our spring exploration and dove into the amazing world of butterflies and insects. The children loved learning all about butterflies, their life cycle, what they need to grow, and the beautiful symmetry on their wings. Our spring centers have been full of hands-on fun with bug letter activities, bug tracing, caterpillar number games, butterfly facts, life cycle matching games, and butterfly sorting by color and size. We talked about insect wings, patterns, and how bees help flowers grow. After reading The Very Hungry Caterpillar, the children retold the story by completing a cutting and gluing sequencing activity. They sorted bee shapes into the correct beehives and talked about where bees live and what their job is. In the art shower, the children drew beautiful butterflies, buzzing bees, and spotted ladybugs using bright spring colors and creative designs. We have been carefully observing our caterpillars and butterflies like real scientists! The caterpillars started off tiny and then formed a chrysalis and finally this week, have emerged as butterflies! We released our butterflies and ladybugs into the garden today and wished them all good luck. We helped Morah Paulyne plant a herb garden, flowers and vegetables. The children had so much fun getting their hands dirty and using the different tools to dig and rake the soil.

05/06/2026

Our spring exploration is in full bloom as we dive into the wonderful world of planting and flowers. The children have been busy learning how plants grow, discovering different parts of a flower, and exploring a variety of beautiful blooms. After reading “Plant the Tiny Seed,” we spoke about a plant's life cycle and discussed the different things a plant may need to survive. Each child filled up a small cup with soil, added grass seed and watered their seeds. We then placed them in the window so they will get lots of sunshine. We discussed each stage together and how plants change and grow over time. In our spring centers, we sorted flowers by color and size, practiced letter tracing and writing, did flower planting in our sensory bins and matched letters with our flower-themed activities. The children cut and glued the correct parts onto their flower worksheets, building both knowledge and fine motor skills. Our class had a very exciting addition - baby caterpillars -- larvae. We spent time observing our caterpillars, creating journals, drawing and writing our observations. In the art shower, we painted using artificial flowers, creating beautiful prints and patterns. The children explored texture, shape, and color while stamping and brushing with the flowers, resulting in unique and creative artwork. In recognition of the joyous holiday Lag B'Omer, we enjoyed field day, incorporating "camping" themed games, a picnic lunch and sports in our award-winning playground.

05/04/2026

EARLY BIRD ENDS TOMORROW NIGHT

Call 631 351 TORAH for more info.