Autumn 2007

Early childhood education & care

It's just a step to the right!

Mandy Christoe, Dom Poppa and Lorraine Spies discuss transition from kindergarten to primary school as experienced by a family and a kindergarten teacher.

Transition should be a natural progression from a balanced kindergarten program that acknowledges and values the strength of the individual into the more formal school environment with its added dimensions.

St Mel’s School and Kindergarten are co-located on the one campus in South Shepparton, Victoria. The kindergarten had been on site from 1969, however, in 2002, with the innovative foresight of the kindergarten director, Mandy Christoe, and the school principal, Tom Sexton, a new kindergarten was developed in three disused classrooms. This enabled the whole physical surroundings to open up with the sharing of administration, grounds, classrooms, library, hall and car parks. St Mel’s Parish Education Board inclusively comprises members from the kindergarten, school and parish community.

A family’s experience: Dom and Katrina Poppa

This is the story of our experiences at kindergarten and the effects it has had on our boys, Andrew and Matthew.

It has been our privilege to have both our boys attend St Mel’s Kindergarten. For the last four years, we have been involved either in Fun Group or in the four-year-old kinder group. The experiences our sons have had during this time have helped shape them into inquisitive young beings who have a strong desire to explore the world about them and who are excited to learn what is needed to become active in a society that has many demands and challenges.

Each time we brought our children into the kindergarten grounds we experienced the laughter and play that was happening among the many children going about their daily activities. We were greeted by other children, parents and the kindergarten staff. We felt welcomed, with a real sense that we belonged to this place. With these small gestures of welcoming and belonging, the boys’ transition from our family home to the surrounds of the big bright world was beginning.

Both Andrew and Matthew have different personalities and temperaments and as parents, we wanted them to feel uninhibited and to be able to explore different things. As the boys participated in the variety of experiences, their recounts were varied. Andrew was often talkative about the people he played with and the activities he did, however, Matthew was more reserved and spoke little of his experiences.

As parents we were confident of the experiences or ‘progress’ that our boys were making as they were happy and looked forward to spending time at the kindergarten. Both boys brought home paintings, drawings and many other gorgeous artefacts. Andrew, who is the socialite of the two, spoke openly about what he had done and Matthew smiled but said little.

It was obvious to us through our observation and interaction with others that the staff took a keen interest in all the children. There were a great variety of activities organised, some of which our boys had suggested—the footy days were a huge success! Each day the children were encouraged to make choices about what they were going to do: would it be a painting or planting in the garden? Would they eat their snack inside or outside? They were making choices that were important and relevant to them.

Throughout this time, we felt we belonged and were always made welcome. Our boys had been immersed in kinder life. They had made new friends, they chose activities to do, they even went on an excursion to Melbourne and had their first trip on a bus. Our boys continued to grow and become independent individuals. They were making choices. They experienced many great activities and mostly they felt they belonged. Andrew happily went off to school, knowing there was nothing that he could not achieve—he was a goer! And Matthew, who starts school this year, happily talks about his experiences, telling us with whom he will play. Mostly, he boasts proudly that he’ll be starting school soon. On New Year’s Eve, he happily asked, ‘How many more sleeps until school starts?’

A kindergarten teacher’s perspective: Mandy Christoe

One of the best things about our co-location is that the children are familiar with their surroundings, enabling both informal and formal times for discovery. The transition from kindergarten to school is therefore less disruptive. These everyday experiences include managing their own bags, food and belongings. They have familiar pick up and drop off places, along with other school children. Our kindergarten children see themselves as a part of a larger group not just as ‘stand alones’ in isolation. They recognise a broader range of children with a variety of skills and abilities. They share the play equipment and grounds with school children simultaneously or independently—they get to be with big kids. The familiar sound of the schoolyard includes the children’s chatter, the school bell and the introduction of teachers who may be on duty. Because the independence is fostered within that environment, they develop confidence in their ability and are responsible for their own behaviour. Children are supported as they master a variety of skills. They are prepared to take risks and play with the ‘bigger kids’ as they are not daunted by the differences. For example, the experience for boys going to the toilet and using facilities correctly is not an issue. Similarly, the experiences of the school hall, library, canteen or sitting in the designated eating area are non issues.

Traditionally, kindergartens use a developmental approach to their curriculum, which is a work–play curriculum, where children have the opportunity to choose physical play, tactile experiences, imaginative play or creative experiences. They can choose any of these activities at their leisure, either indoors or outside. The curriculum is not whole class prescriptive, where those who do not know the children set standards and outcomes. Rather, the curriculum with its developmental outcomes, is based on the individual needs of the children as perceived by the teacher.

The collegiality between all teaching staff allows for a more effective and comprehensive transition. Teachers are able to discuss individual students requiring follow up and extension of specific learning needs. What may take six months for a prep teacher to discover, the kindergarten teacher can summarise based on prior learning. An added advantage is having school children coming into visit the kinder whether it be to drop off the mail, deliver a message, read a story or view and enjoy art works and garden initiatives.

The advantages of having a school and kindergarten on the same campus are numerous. The potential for further collaboration in the future is exciting.

As a parent, I see a confident child who is ready for the many experiences school has to offer, without the fears of entering an unknown environment unsupported. I feel encouraged by the staff in both the school and kindergarten.

As the kindergarten teacher, I am happy that parents and children leave their valuable kindergarten year confident in the knowledge that all is being done to support children in the next stage of their formal education.

Transition at St Mel’s is a step across, not up.

Lorraine Spies is an education officer for Sandhurst Catholic Education Office in Victoria.

Dom Poppa is deputy principal at St Mel’s Primary School, South Shepparton, Victoria.

Mandy Christoe is the director of St Mel’s Kindergarten.

The author owns the copyright in this article. For information related to the reuse of this work in any form please contact the publisher denise.quinn@curriculum.edu.au