Teachers
What we need more than anything else is not textbooks, but text people. It is the personality of the teacher which is the text that the pupils read: the text that they will never forget.
— Abraham Joshua Heschel

Our teachers are dedicated, curious, life-long learners. Their aim is to nurture our students’ positive dispositions for thinking, working, and inter-personal development by helping them develop a solid understanding of the world around them using a multi-sensory approach. They are role models for the diversity of Jewish expression and living that we honour at the school.

Children learn best when their teachers are also active learners. Therefore, teachers and administrators at The Toronto Heschel School attend an annual summer workshop and ongoing professional development provided by the Lola Stein Institute for Leadership in Education, the publishing and teacher training arm of our school.

The school’s Teaching Excellence Fund enables teachers to attend workshops, courses and seminars to learn the best practices in their profession. Each homeroom teacher in the elementary school works jointly in General and Judaic studies. In addition to their professional qualifications, all teachers have skills and talents in either drama, music, dance or visual arts. Teachers in the Junior High have skills in particular subjects and also work in an interdisciplinary manner.

Early Years

Anat Yannai

Grade 2 Homeroom and Judaics

Ayelet Erez

SK Homeroom

Elinor Barak

SK Homeroom, Hebrew Lead Teacher

Galit Babitsky

Grade 2 Homeroom

Hannah Orriell

Preschool

Hayley Pollak

SK Homeroom

Kati Kovari

SK Homeroom

Kelli Freedman

Grade 1 Homeroom

Maya Lazovski

SK Homeroom

Pazit Geva

JK Hebrew Lead Teacher

Rena Cohen

JK Homeroom

Sari Herson

Grade 2 Homeroom

Suely Mester

Preschool

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Tammy Rumanek

Permanent Supply, Early Years

Elementary

Aiden Orzech

Grade 4 Homeroom

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Leah Fuentes

Grade 5 Homeroom

Malka Regan

Director of Social-Emotional Learning and Grade 4 Homeroom

Morah Yonina

Grade 3 Homeroom

Nechama Drookman

Grades 4, 5, and 6 Judaics

Orly Borovitch

Grades 3 and 7 Hebrew, Grade 4 Judaic Arts

Orly Salamon

Grades 4, 5 and 6 Judaics

Rachely Tal

Grade 3 Judaics

Sefi Chassid

Grades 4, 5, and 6 Judaics

Shimon Newman

Grade 5 Homeroom

Junior High

Andi Spring

Grade 6 Homeroom

Ayala Lev Ari

Judaics

Chen Tannenbaum

Grades 7 and 8 Judaics, Grade 6 Michna

Dana Cohen-Ezer

Civilization and Language Arts, Grade 8

Daphne Helfand

Math, Science, and Dance, Grades 7 and 8

Lesley Cohen

Grade 7 Homeroom

Liraz Miller

Grades 7 Judaics

Margot Bychutsky

Grade 6 Homeroom, Student Support

Yarden Bourlas

Grade 8 Homeroom

Art, Music, Language, Phys Ed

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Ayelet Gonen Vinkler

Dance, Grade 6

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David Rouimy

Physical Education, Grades 3-8

Dayna White

French

Eldan Cohen

Music, Early Years

Fernanda Danek

Physical Education, JK-Grade 2

Jenny Braverman

Permanent Supply Teacher, Kids’ Club, and Gym Uniforms

Josh Winestock

Music, Junior High

Lisa Sheps

Visual Art, Grades 1-7

Samara Kupferman

Permanent Supply

Sarah Lodge

Visual Art, Grades 1-7