Flying to Foundation - Parents as Partners

Our new students, who will be in Foundation in 2023, have attended their first session of the ‘Flying to Foundation’ transition program. At this stage, we have about 98 new Foundation students, who will be starting their school life at Greenvale next year. Amongst the families who already have older children at Greenvale, we welcome many families who are new to our community.

All children were given a special ‘Flying to Foundation’ T-shirt that they wear to each transition session to give them a sense of belonging. Students will attend six sessions of 75 minutes duration, with the last session being a ’Meet Your Teacher’ session. This will give all new Foundation students an opportunity to get to know their teacher and the children who they will be with next year. It also allows staff to get to know the new students so that when they begin school, their needs can be catered for.

Starting school is a major life transition for children and their families. It is a period of change that can be both challenging and exciting, in which children and families adjust to new roles, identities and expectations, new interactions and new relationships. Transition to school is not a point-in-time event, but rather an experience that starts well before, and extends far beyond, the first day of school.

Many children will start school after having attended kindergarten; while others will have attended child care; while others may not have attended any formal prior-to-school service. However, all will have developed a range of skills and abilities that form the basis of positive school experiences.

Alongside the children attending ‘Flying to Foundation', ‘Parents as Partners’ information sessions are organised for the parents each week. This program has the mantra of ‘Enrolling Your Family and not just your Child’. The parents of our new students attended the first parent session in the staff room led by Briohny Romano explaining many of the administration details about our school eg. parent contributions, TheirCare, first aid, and school uniform. The second session of 'Parents As Partners' will be on Numeracy and how to support your child and will be led by Elicia Briggs, our Numeracy Leading Teacher.

Thanks to Madeleine Jordan, who is leading the organisation of this year’s ‘Flying to Foundation’ program with the support of the current Foundation team and our School Enrolment Officer, Sandra Blanck.

Positive Parenting

Ref ‘Parenting Ideas’

Comparing your child with others is a stress-inducing and, ultimately, useless activity. Bench marking children’s progress with that of other children is not a wise parenting strategy. Inevitably, it will lead to parent frustration, as there will always be a child who performs better than your own on any scale you use.

Kids develop at their own rates. Each child has his or her own developmental clock, which is nearly impossible to alter. There are late bloomers, early developers, bright sparks and steady-as-you-go kids everywhere. It’s the first group that can cause the most concern for parents who habitually compare children to siblings, their friends’ kids and even themselves when they were in school. The trick is to focus on your child’s improvement and effort and use your child’s results as the benchmark for his or her progress and development. “Your spelling is better today than it was a month ago” is a better measure of progress than “Your spelling is the best in the class!”

Kids have different talents, interests and strengths So your eight-year-old can’t hit a tennis ball like Novak Djokavic, even though your neighbour’s child can. Perhaps your neighbour’s teenager is a piano virtuoso, while your fourteen-year old’s idea of musical talent is listening to Spotify while doing homework. Comparisons are stressful, as they can bear no relationship to children’s interests and talents. It’s better to help your child or young person identify his or her own talents and interests. And also recognise that strengths and interests may be completely different than those of his or her peers and siblings.

Avoid linking your parenting self-esteem to your child’s performance Take pride on your children’s performance at school, in sport or their leisure activities. Seeing your child doing well is one of the unsung pleasures of parenting. You should also celebrate their achievements and milestones such as taking their first steps, getting their first goal in a game or getting great marks at school. However, parents should be mindful that excessive parental pressure for kids to do well, is an acknowledged source of anxiety for many children and young people.

Come and Join in.......................

That festive time of year is approaching quickly! Our Xmas Concert is scheduled for Thursday, 8 December starting at 4.00pm and finishing at 6.30pm. It is so exciting to be able to invite our school community back to this end of year celebration! Due to COVID, the last Xmas Concert we had was in 2019!!

Bring your picnic blankets or chairs. Sausages and drinks will be on sale. The concert will be located in the courtyard with picnic blanket space only at the front and chairs further back. Every class will be performing in front of the audience during that time. A photo pit will be located in front of the performers for parents to take photos of their children performing. It will be sitting only in the Photo Pit – no standing! Look forward to seeing you there!

REMINDERS

Foundation Enrolments For 2023

Do you have a child who will be a Foundation student in 2023? Have you enrolled him/ her yet? If not, please do so immediately by phoning the school office or dropping in to complete the enrolment form.

Enrolments For 2023 – Are You Moving??

If you are leaving our school and will not require a place at Greenvale Primary School in 2023 can you please let the office know immediately? We will be organising class structures for 2023 shortly, so it is essential that we are informed of any students who are leaving.

Food for Thought:

Angelika Ireland

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