Take Flight - Junior School

Prep Update

We are so proud of how far the Prep students have come since the beginning of the year. They have been working hard on learning to read and write, amazing us with their gowing confidence in phonics. We have been exploring many new maths concepts and even made classroom shops when learning about money! The Preps have been learning, growing and sharing together. 

The Prep students absolutely love Investigations! They have shown so much creatiity, team work and problem solving skills as they explore new areas and learn together. We can't wait to see what new experiences are ahead.

New Readers, New Learning: How to Support Your Child’s Reading Journey

Why the Recent Change in Take-Home Readers?

Starting in Term 1, 2025, all Victorian government students from Prep to Grade 2 will be learning to read through a systematic synthetic phonics approach. This means that each day, students will have at least 25 minutes of focused teaching to understand how letters and sounds work together to form words.

To support your child’s reading development at home, we’ve introduced Decodable Readers Australia (DRA) as our new take-home readers. These readers are specifically designed to align with the phonics approach and come with a different levelling system than the one we’ve used previously at Lyndhurst.

How Can I Support My Child’s Reading with Decodable Texts?

When your child encounters a word they don't know, it’s essential that they avoid guessing or relying on pictures to figure it out. Instead, encourage them to focus on the letters and sounds, and guide them through the process of blending those sounds together to read the word correctly using the following strategies:

By using these strategies, you’re helping your child develop stronger decoding skills, which are key to becoming a confident reader.

Thank you for supporting your child’s literacy journey at home!