Since it was founded in 1993, M.T. M. (Matam) has developed into a cluster of nursery and kindergarten classes with a total of 200 children, from ages 1 ½ through 6, including 100 children on the autism spectrum which are integrated into the normative classes.
Matam provides each child with a tailor-made combination of interventions, including para-professional treatments, animal therapy, psychological support, and DIR or ABA methods. (These are two internationally recognized methods of helping young children on the spectrum develop verbal, social and cognitive skills.) Matam is one of the few programs in the world where DIR and ABA live in harmony under one institutional roof as we adjust each child’s program according to his/her needs and their parents preferences.
Shai is a social activist involved in the improvement of quality of life for children and adults on the autistic spectrum. Among his accomplishments:
Promotion of therapeutic health services for children on the spectrum and payments for external students. Shai is one of the founders of a group of parents in Jerusalem, that is active in developing services for children on the autistic spectrum- from pre-school age through high school. Among the programs that he initiated and established: The Integrative Center for Pre-school Children, the integrative school- “Yad Ha’Moreh”, the “Ha’magshimim” program at the zionist youth farm, and the “Kishurim” (Skills) project at the Botanical
Gardens of the Hebrew University.
Shai is a graduate of the Schwartz program for management of non-profits.
A senior educator, Michal is the founder of “Beit Hayeladim” and one of the pioneers of integrative education in Jerusalem. She is highly
experienced in leading programs which integrate children with special needs into regular educational settings, by creating an atmosphere of acceptance and inclusion.
Michal is a graduate of David Yellin College in the program for preschool education. She is active in various professional forums of the Ministry of Education, such as “Principals of Special Education Institutions”. She is known as a professional supervisor and as an activist in
the advancement of integrative educational policy.
I began working at Matam in 2011 as a social worker, concentrating in parent counseling and
then also as a child therapist. Since 2020 I have been the coordinator of emotional therapy at the
Matam cluster of nurseries and manage and train the social workers and verbal expression and
creativity therapists.
I have a bachelors degree in social work from the Hebrew University, a
masters degree in bibliotherapy from Haifa University, and certification as a psychotherapist
from the Jerusalem Psychoanalysis Institute. In addition to my work at Matam I have a private
clinic providing therapy for adolescents and adults.
