In response to a growing demand in the Bay Area, three Jewish preschools are opening in the fall.

The Southern Marin Jewish Community Preschool will be located on the campus of Congregation Kol Shofar, 215 Blackstone Drive, Tiburon. A collaborative effort between the congregation and the Osher Marin Jewish Community Center, it will offer sessions for 2-year-olds on Tuesday and Thursday mornings, and for 3-year-olds on Monday, Wednesday and Friday mornings. Before- and after-school care will also be available.

The school will be directed by Hadassah Goldstein, a longtime teacher with the MJCC preschool. The school can take up to 24 children (12 per class).

For South Bay residents, Gan Ami will open at Congregation Beth Am, 26790 Arastradero Road, Los Altos Hills. It, too, is a collaborative effort, with the Albert L. Schultz Jewish Community Center helping to mentor the process.

The school will open with two “Mommy and Me” classes —Tuesdays are geared for children 13- to 20 months old, Thursdays are for children who will be 2 before Dec. 1. Sessions will meet from 10 to 11:30 a.m.

Sherrie Rose Maleson, a teacher at the Palo Alto JCC preschool who has run the Shabbaton child care program at Beth Am, will serve as director of the new preschool. The hope is to expand the program each year to accommodate children as they age.

“There’s a growing need in the community as a whole, and a large population of young children here at Congregation Beth Am,” she said.

An influx of new families at Congregation Netivot Shalom in Berkeley was the impetus for a new program for 2-year-olds there. The morning program (extended care is available) will have a focus on Hebrew language. Monday-Wednesday-Friday slots are already full; there are a few openings on Tuesdays and Thursdays. For information, call (510) 549-9447.

For additional information or enrollment on the Kol Shofar preschool, call Deborah Burg-Schnirman at the Marin JCC: (415) 444-8046.

For inquiries regarding Gan Ami, contact Maleson at (650) 493-4665, ext. 256.