Phone: 972-2-626-6800 FAX: 972-2-628-5764 ADDRESS: Muristan Road P.O. Box 14076 Jerusalem 91140 via Israel
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The Al-Mahaba Kindergarten, or “Kindergarten of Love,” located today on the Lutheran World Federation campus on the Mount of Olives, is a ministry of the ELCJHL with nearly 30 years of service to children in Jerusalem. Crowded neighborhoods, busy streets, and lack of open space make East Jerusalem a stifling and sometimes hazardous environment for young children. The Al-Mahaba Kindergarten, with its bright and well-equipped classroom, open space for outdoor play, and quiet location on the crest of the Mount of Olives is a ministry designed to serve the children of East Jerusalem families.
The kindergarten seeks to help children develop holistically, attending to their physical, emotional and spiritual needs. Three- and four-year-old children come to the kindergarten five days a week, from 7:30 a.m. to 1 p.m., and participate in a variety of activities. Games, art projects, music and other age-appropriate activities are part of the daily schedule; field trips to local parks and zoos provide special opportunities for the children to learn and travel. Two kindergarten educators lead the children on nature walks on the LWF campus as well as teach them about proper nutrition by encouraging healthy snacks and habits.
The Al-Mahaba Kindergarten serves
Muslim and Christian families, both local and international, who work for and with Palestinians. Children
from different backgrounds have an important opportunity to play together and become acquainted from an early
age. Parents participate in their children's education, volunteering in the classroom and holding regular meetings with the kindergarten educators.
After a graduation ceremony marking the completion of their time at the Al-Mahaba Kindergarten, children enroll in private and public kindergarten programs throughout East Jerusalem for an additional year before entering Grade 1.
In 1978, the Finnish Evangelical
Lutheran Mission opened two kindergarten facilities just outside the Old City of Jerusalem, one to serve
Israeli children and one to serve Palestinians. After a brief stay in the East Jerusalem neighborhood of
Wadi Al Joz, the kindergarten serving Palestinians relocated to the LWF Mount of Olives campus in 1980.
The kindergarten changed its name to Al-Mahaba in 1997, when the ELCJHL became the sole administrator of the preschool program. In the past few years the facility has undergone both interior and exterior improvements. Thanks to a donation from FELM and other friends of the ELCJHL, the children now have a grass-covered, child-friendly playground with colorful landscaping that encourages the children’s interest in plants and flowers. There is also an enclosed, protected area for play in inclement weather.
Margaret Younan Qirri, director
Al-Mahaba Kindergarten
c/o Lutheran Church of the Redeemer
PO Box 14076
Jerusalem 91140
via Israel
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