“Before a child talks they sing. Before they write, they draw, AS Soon as they stand, they dance. Art is fundamental to human expression.”
We are Ederled and Monica, two driven women who decided to actualize a dream together. As friends,
colleagues, and members of this wonderful neighborhood we saw that Greenpoint needed a special place
for children to learn and grow so we decided to open our own child care center. Now our dream is a
reality!
We both have extensive experience working with children: Ederled as a teacher, Monica as a mom, and
both of us as child care providers. Upon request we can provide references from the families we have
worked with throughout our career. Please just ask!
As educators and care-providers we are fully committed to and
continually engaged in furthering our child care expertise; we frequently attend trainings, workshops,
and classes in order to provide the best childcare experience for our/your kids!.
At CARRUSEL we believe that teaching is the greatest honor and responsibility because it impacts lives forever. Inspired by the Montessori philosophy, our program teaches self-awareness, conscious discipline, practical and social skills, and establishes a sense of structure.
The mission at CARRUSEL is to encourage each child’s independence and drive. We do this by allowing each child to practice their full range of motor skills, helping them gain confidence in their ability to try new things, building their self-esteem.
Our educators are: CPR and First Aid certified - NYS background check completed - OCFS-approved (Health and safety course).
Educator
My name is Ede Lachman, I was born and raised in Florencia, Colombia, a small city which is part of Caqueta, a region of the Amazonia. My mother is a well know artist (painter, sculptor, designer, and more!) in my city; you can see her art on instagram: ederledarte and yes, we have same name (Ederled), but everybody calls me Ede! Throughout childhood I was lucky enough to learn various artistic techniques and skills from her and then later I had the opportunity to teach children art in her gallery. This was a special experience for me, which drove my love of teaching and led me to follow it as a career. Teaching to me is one of the most important ways we can make the world a better place. Inspiring children to appreciate art, culture, language, and music from a young age can help them grow into intelligent, confident, and generous adults that can change the world. After high-school I went on to pursue a bachelor’s degree in English from La Universidad de La Amazonia. My coursework and internships were focused on early childhood education. Afterward I worked as a private academy English teacher. As a language teacher it is critical to have strong skills in a foreign language and your native one so I eventually decided to come to the United States as a part of a cultural-language exchange to immerse myself in American English and had the opportunity to work with kids as an au pair for over two years. Of course—life can surprise you—and I went from teaching English in Colombia to Spanish in America. Fortunately this has been a wonderful surprise! As a Greenpoint resident, both working and living in the neighborhood these last few years I came to recognize the need for a special place where little ones can learn and play together in a culturally and linguistically enriching environment. I still do not believe there is any place in the neighborhood available that provides quality education and recreation for the young children and parents of this community. Until now!
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Educator
Hi, My name is Monica. I am from Ecuador. Over the last 10 years I have been working with infants and children as young as 3 months up to 6 years old . As a caregiver and a mom, I intimately understand the importance of love, safety, and social-emotional development that is central to a child’s life. Since I moved to New York I had the opportunity to work with kids which is what I love to do because for me it's a joy to experience their enthusiasm for learning and playing. I studied psychology and pedagogy for two years in my native country. And I also love continuing learning about topics related to the education and development of early childhood. As a single mom raising a wonderful 4 years old boy I can understand the needs of parents and now it is a pleasure to help Greenpoint families.
Before setting off on her own venture, Monica was our nanny for my two boys for three years
since my oldest was two months old. She is someone I trust my most precious gifts (my boys)
with implicitly. She was the reason I could go to work and not worry about my kids and focus
on my job, because I knew they were in good hands. Monica is the type of person who always
does the right thing, even when nobody is watching. She helped raise our boys to be curious,
respectful and joyful. Monica has a very relatable way about her. She is always able to see
things from a child’s perspective and I have learned so much about how to talk to even my own
children from watching how she interacts with them. She is kind, compassionate, fair and firm.
She always has a fun, imaginative activity planned and even on rainy days can find a way to
make a boring day special. I can’t speak highly enough about Monica and the way she cares for
children. She is exceptional.
- Harley Bindner
Ede inició su trabajo en ANS como profesora de Inglés para
niños. Desde su primera semana de prueba nos dimos cuenta que no la podíamos dejar ir, su
paciencia, amabilidad, alegría, responsabilidad y compromiso con su trabajo la destacaron
siempre como una de mis más queridas maestras. De lunes a sábados ella estaba encargada de los
grupos infantiles y también llevó a cabo 2 cursos vacacionales donde fue ella quien creó,
planeó y desarrolló cada actividad.
La teacher Ede tiene una chispa con los niños que no se puede esconder. Ella realmente ama lo
que hace y lo afirmamos porque fuimos testigos durante dos años de su proceso y evolución como
formadora, una profesora que se esmera por hacer las cosas bien y ponerle el corazón a cada
clase. No tenemos duda que donde quiera que enseñe hará la diferencia y dejará una huella
imborrable en la vida de cada estudiante. Cada vez que viene a visitarnos le recordamos que en
la ANS las puertas están siempre abiertas para ella.
-Diego Beltrán. Director ANS
Florencia.
Ede worked with our family for a year and a half. I wish it was longer, but her au pair visa
status limited that at the time. She came to us when our youngest son was only 6 months old,
and our twin boys were 5 years old. She took on a handful with our three boys, but right from
the beginning she approached her work with an enthusiastic and can do attitude. Ede was eager
to learn from the beginning, she was quick in adapting to new tasks, and she welcomed
constructive criticism as only one who always strives for self improvement could. She carried
this hard working attitude, respect and love for her job from day one through her final day
working with us.
It was clear from our first encounter that Ede loves children dearly. She got right down
to my children’s level and showed her interest in everything they did, so it was no surprise
when my boys all took to her warm smile swiftly. Ede is energetic, loves to play with children
of all ages, and she always hopes to teach them something new. She loves languages, has
perfected her English daily, and strives to teach even the youngest child her native Spanish.
Our baby boy is now 4 and he still remembers his Spanish lessons from Ede fondly. Whether it
was reading, doing endless puzzles, building, art work, playing make-believe, or chasing my
boys and sharing their passion for sports, Ede did it all tirelessly and with love. She also
skillfully monitored multiple children over play dates and large family events. My boys were
always smiling and laughing with Ede, and they adore her to this day. They cherish her every
Skype, and her most recent visit to us brought tears to their eyes and filled them with the
excitement of an older sister returning home.
Ede always asked for more ways to help, more time to spend with our children, and she
even asked to help with household chores and organizing. Ede is truly someone who gives 110%
to her job and any endeavor she takes on. As parents our children’s safety was of our highest
concern, of course, and we were always confident Ede was watching and caring for their well
being as well as we ourselves would. As such, she also knew how to be stern and command their
respect and cooperation. Something that proves as important as affection in any care giver.
Needless to say at this point, but Ede’s affection for my children was abounding, and their
relationship continues to be one of family because of her genuine warmth.
-Yvette Sharret
Our program is licensed by the New York State Office of Children and Family Services.
Our focus is developing each child’s emotional intelligence through arts, music, play,
reading, painting, dancing, crafts and an abundance of love and fun activities.
*Keep in mind we are closed if public school are closed due to inclement weather.
HYGIENE/COVID-19: We are taking extra steps to ensure the health and safety of our children and
educators. See below.
WE TAKE SAFETY SERIOUSLY.
Please see our COVID-19 Health and Safety Plan for CARRUSEL.
