How We Teach
Preschool & Early Years

We are thrilled to share that The Toronto Heschel School’s Early Years program has been licensed under Ontario’s Child Care and Early Years Act since 2022! The licence covers Shorashim (our Preschool room), as well as our Junior and Senior Kindergarten classes.

The Toronto Heschel Early Years Program is dedicated to supporting children’s learning, development, health, and well-being through caring and responsive Early Childhood Educators, who focus on active learning, exploration, play and inquiry. Our programs promote positive self-esteem, curiosity, creativity, problem solving skills and Jewish identity by providing materials and experiences that allow children to engage their natural curiosity and enthusiasm.

We can’t wait to welcome you into our Early Years program, where we inspire curiosity and a joy of learning in each child. Rabbi A.J. Heschel famously wrote, “Wonder rather than doubt is the root of all knowledge.” We look forward to you joining us on this journey of wonder!


Preschool Facts

  • Most children are between 30 and 44 months by the start of the school year; limited space is available for children 18-30 months
  • Half-Day (8:30 am to 12:30 pm) or Full-Day (8:30 am to 3:45 pm)
  • Kosher lunch and snacks included
  • After-hours care and bussing available
  • Rolling registration is available through the school year
Student helping to light the Shabbat candles

2024-2025 Tuition Fees

One of our objectives in acquiring a child care licence was to access available funding. We have opted into the funding under the Canada-Wide Early Learning and Child Care Agreement. This funding is rebating Preschool, JK and SK tuition fees by 52.75% for 2024, with further reductions planned thereafter.

Note that tuition fees for JK and SK are also eligible for donation tax receipts, while Preschool tuition fees are eligible for Child Care receipts. You can learn more about tuition, scholarships and receipts here.


Our Director

Andrea Zecharia

We are thrilled that Andrea Zecharia joined our team in 2022 as our new Director of Early Years. Andrea is leading the way as we build and grow Shorashim to serve the needs of current and new families.

With over 25 years of early childhood teaching and leadership experience, including 18 years as a Nursery Teacher and 5 years as the Preschool Director at Temple Sinai Community Preschool, Andrea is well-versed in current educational theories, early childhood curricula, and the Ontario Ministry of Education’s Child Care and Early Years Act.  She is a Registered Early Childhood Educator (RECE) and holds a Master of Arts in Early Childhood Studies from Ryerson University.


The preschool program has surpassed all of our expectations. It is warm, loving, exciting and like family to us – more than we could have hoped for. We are so thrilled we decided to make the move for this special inaugural year.

Dalia S. and Mitch K.

Personal Tours

We would love to give you the chance to meet Andrea and our dedicated preschool teachers and to welcome you to Heschel to see our classroom in action. Register for your private preschool tour here! Or, if you wish to see the whole school, including the preschool, please click here to select a time that is most convenient for you.


Ready to apply?

Our application can be accessed here.

If you have questions about enrollment, please contact Bailey Daniels, Director of Admissions, at admissions@torontoheschel.org.

If you have questions about our Early Years Program, contact Andrea Zecharia, Director of Early Years, at azecharia@torontoheschel.org.