Glenvale

State School

Prep Handbook

Welcome to Glenvale State School

“Every One, Every Day, Achieving Together”

By enrolling your child in Glenvale we enter into an important partner-

ship to achieve the best educational outcomes for your child. This

foundation year of schooling is very important. It is now that your

child’s view and wonder of learning becomes firmly established. We,

at Glenvale, provide dynamic education programs which develop stu-

dent’s literacy and numeracy skills aligning to the National Curriculum.

Our learning environments are designed to nurture play, creativity and

the ever-evolving role of technology. Our early years precinct, at the

western end of the school, provides purpose built playgrounds and fa-

cilities for our youngest Glenvale students. Our prep faculty ensures

that first year of schooling at Glenvale is full of fun and enriching expe-

riences shared with new friends and their families.

It is a pleasure to welcome you to the Glenvale State School Family.

David Saxton

Principal

Before Prep Begins

Before the first day of school there are lots of things to do in preparation:

Practice eating lunch out of a lunchbox. Monitor and teach them

how to open and close lids, poppers/straws, containers, drink bottles,

wrappers etc

Ensure independent toileting routines

Practice recognising and writing their own name with correct pencil

grip and ensuring that the only capital is at the start

Read to your child daily- talk about characters, the problem and res-

olution

Engage in real life literacy – recognising letters around the environ-

ment

Engage in real life numeracy – recognising numbers on clocks, meas-

uring when cooking, exploring money etc

Talk about school with positivity

Put the school phone number in yours and any important family

members phonebook – 46 592111 , Absentee hotline: 46592160

Download the Skoolbag App and set notifications for the appropri-

ate news levels

Making the First Day a Success

There are some simple steps you can take to make your child’s first day at school more enjoyable and relaxed.

On the day

Leave plenty of time to get ready

Make a nutritious breakfast– this is essential everyday for sustained energy and concentration

Talk through how they can ask a teacher for help at any time throughout the day

Take a photo—it is a day you are sure to want to look back on

Assist your child to put their bag and water bottle in the appropriate places. Talk about what zip their hat and lunch is in. Not doing this together will mean your child may become upset when they cannot locate one of their belongings

Greet the teacher together and engage your child in a quite morning activity like a puzzle or drawing.

When the 8.50 bell rings all children will be asked to join the carpet, give one last kiss and a hug and assure them you will be back to pick them up at the end of their day

If you child is upset please leave promptly, your hesitation may send the message to your child that if they continue to cry, you may stay. You are welcome to phone the school later in the day and check they have settled.

Uniform

We have numerous summer and winter items for purchase through our uniform shop (opening times include Monday 8.30 am and Tuesday 2.30pm)

Please ensure to label every item of uniform which will come to school. Iron on name labels are recommended but for more costly items like the crushable hat and spray jacket consider having them embroidered with gold cotton e.g. J. Brown or just a last name if the item will be passed down to a younger sibling

Black leather shoes or joggers are welcome to be worn. Consider what day your child has sport to ensure that they will be wearing joggers and appropriate uniform choices for rolling, running etc.

When purchasing shoes opt for Velcro until your child is able to tie laces independently. Velcro is not available after size 6 so start practicing sooner rather than later.

All preps are required to wear the yellow embroidered ribbon around their hat so staff and senior students can support them throughout the school. Use gold thread to secure it in several different locations around the perimeter of the hat

An accident pack is needed to be kept in your child’s school bag. This pack should contain, a pair of underpants, socks and shorts all stored in a plastic bag.

Parent Involvement

A positive relationship between parents, teachers and child will

play a vital role in ensuring a successful start to schooling. Every

morning our prep classrooms have an ‘open door’ policy, where

parents and family members are welcome in the classroom to en-

gage in a quiet activity and settle into the day. Parent participation

sends strong positive messages to your child that you support

them and value their engagement in the learning environment. Be-

fore the commencement of the learning day is a prime opportunity

to communicate or make an enquiry with your child’s teacher. If

you are looking for a more comprehensive check in about their

progress please make an appointment. We have different levels of

parent involvement throughout the year. Rotations helpers are

needed for an hour weekly to ensure our small group literacy les-

sons can be rich and interactive. One-off occasions and jobs will

arise throughout the year if you are not able to commit to weekly

volunteering.

Curriculum Information

At the start of each term you will receive a curriculum newsletter de-

tailing what we are learning, how it will be assessed and what you can

do to at home to support your child. Throughout the school year stu-

dents will engage across a number Australian Curriculum subjects and

extra curricular learning areas.

English Health

Math Humanities (history and geography)

Science Technology

Music Sport

Lunch Box Nutrition

Healthy lunch box contents will help your child sustain energy and con-centration throughout the school day

We encourage families to minimize rubbish generated from lunch box food. Please send food items in containers where the lid and base are named. Ensure your child can open and close these independently

We have a fruit snack at 10am each morning so please ensure to pack a manageable piece of fruit. Avoid tight skinned mandarins

Some squeeze sachets of yoghurt are difficult to break the seal of– undo-ing it at home and breaking that initial seal should make it much more manageable for your child at school. Consider putting a small cut in the packaging of other items such as muesli bars if your child has difficulty opening them.

Looking for some lunch box contents inspiration? Check out these web-sites for endless ideas which keep well in a lunch box and kids will love!