Anthony Perl:
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Preparing for kindergarten.
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Welcome to Dare to Be More, the podcast
from MLC School in Burwood, Sydney.
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Today, we're exploring the exciting, yet
sometimes nerve-wracking transition into
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kindergarten with Joanne Sharp, Deputy
Head of Junior School for Wellbeing.
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Discover how families and the school
work together to build familiarity
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and confidence through orientation,
play dates, and practical preparation,
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such as practicing separation,
independent skills, and daily routines.
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You'll hear helpful tips on
setting up predictable routines,
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communicating with teachers, and how
to approach the first day and beyond
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with positivity and partnership.
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I'm your co-host, Anthony Pearl.
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Let's get into today's conversation.
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Well, hello everyone and
welcome to another episode.
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I've got Joanne with me today, and
we're going to have a wonderful
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discussion, I know, because it's all
about preparedness for kindergarten.
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It's an exciting and nerve-wracking
time on many different levels.
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Joanne Sharpe: Thank you so much.
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It's a pleasure to be here.
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Anthony Perl: Well, Joanne, firstly, I
think the thing to do is to get you to
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introduce yourself to everyone, please.
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Joanne Sharpe: So my name is Joanne Sharp,
and I am the deputy in the junior school.
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My role oversees wellbeing and
the pastoral care of the girls.
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And I feel it's a real privilege to be
able to walk alongside the girls and
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the families of the girls to really
look at developing each and every
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individual in a really positive way and
supporting their wellbeing and their
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growth and development as young people.
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Anthony Perl: And you get to witness
it from the very, very early stages.
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And I guess that must be the interesting
thing too, seeing them go from these
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little young things who are walking
into a playground and that sort of
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environment for the first time, then
later going on to graduate from school.
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Joanne Sharpe: Yes.
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At MLC we have pre-kindergarten
and a kindergarten class.
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So s- students can start when they're
very young at either of those entry
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levels, and they're just adorable
young ones and it's really pleasurable
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to be spending time with them and
to watch them then grow over time.
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Anthony Perl: So talk to me firstly
about the differences that we have here,
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because we're talking about preparedness
for kindergarten, but we've probably got
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two streams of kids that come through.
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There are those in the MLC preschool
and those who are new to school.
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So let's talk about those coming
from the MLC preschool first.
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Joanne Sharpe: Yes, I've been at MLC
now, this is my sixth year, so I'm
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starting to see some of the ones who
were in that pre-kindergarten and
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kindergarten classes in the upper grades
of primary school, the junior school.
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Yes, it'll be interesting to see
maybe in another six or eight
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years, be- if I'm still here, to see
them graduate through to year 12.
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Anthony Perl: How do they prepare?
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I mean, it's nerve-wracking
for parents and kids alike.
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Is there a notable difference between
that and when they start school?
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Joanne Sharpe: I don't think there's
a terribly much of a difference in
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terms of what I think is important, the
social and emotional wellbeing supports
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for our young girls, both supports
from the school but also from their
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families, and what sorts of things
that the parents and families can do
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to assist that transition from either
home or another setting into MLC school.
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Anthony Perl: What do you recommend
as a starting point for families?
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I mean, how much in advance do they need
to start thinking about these things?
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Because again, I gather you've got
kids that may have been in some kind
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of preschool or daycare elsewhere,
right through to those who have pretty
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much been at home and may not have
socialized at all with other kids.
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Joanne Sharpe: Yes, and now we're
out of the other end of COVID, there
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were-- there's less students who
have spent a lot of time at home.
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We do have a lot of students
who come from other settings.
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So they're used to that separation
and spending time with other peers and
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other adults in their life at daycare or
even grandparents and things like that.
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They're coming to a new setting
regardless of whether they're used to
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separating or not, and that always has an
element of nervousness for any student,
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no matter how old they are really.
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But I think there's plenty of
things that parents can do and
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that we set up as a school in
terms of our orientation program.
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So we have opportunities for students
and their families to come in and visit.
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Usually that first time is on a tour day.
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Many of them come through a
tour day and look at the school.
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Then they meet us in an enrollment
interview, and we get to chat
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through the, the day and the life of
a student at MLC school and answer
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questions and those sorts of things.
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But more importantly, in the, you
know, six months or so out from the
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new year, we start to hold some times
where we invite parents and, or the
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students to come in and visit the
school and hear more about what they
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need to know at that stage leading
into starting the school the next year.
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And that's a really important time
for developing and building that
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familiarity with the school setting
and the routines and the expectations.
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And of course, meeting other
students is really important too.
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Anthony Perl: I imagine that's the
nerve-wracking part for many parents,
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seeing how their kids are going to
engage potentially with other kids.
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And in that kind of environment, what do
you see in those first orientation days?
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I mean, is it really a true
taste of what is to come?
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Joanne Sharpe: Look, it's sort of both.
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I think it's different
for different children.
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For some it's a, a taster and it,
you know, is very different starting
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and then having to come every day,
day after day, for the whole day.
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For others they really embrace the
opportunity and just settle in r- like
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they've been here for a long time.
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But, yeah, it's different for each
child, and sometimes it's unpredictable
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and sometimes it's students who
have been less outgoing during an
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orientation session come in all guns
blazing and take on the world and
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have a great time the following year.
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And other students who come to
the transition times quite easily
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and separate easily, you know, d-
find that day after day in the new
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environment a little bit more demanding.
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So it's hard to tell.
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Anthony Perl: Yeah, I imagine
there's also a difference, of course,
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whether you've got an older sibling
who might already be in the school
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or a brother in another school.
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Do you notice a difference in that as
well, both in terms of the attitude of the
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parents, but also in terms of the child?
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Joanne Sharpe: Yes, I think if
there's a, it's a like school, so for
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example if there's a brother's at a
similar school, the parents and the
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students are often used to the style
of education we have and all of the
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different opportunities we have in terms
of specialists and things like that.
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But, yeah, I think parents who have
e- had an experience in school with
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children, not, not themselves, 'cause
it's, education has changed so much, uh,
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just find it the easier to transition
younger students in, and I, I guess a bit
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more confident with what they're doing.
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Anthony Perl: Just coming back to the
difference between whether they're
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starting in a preschool environment
and graduating through then into the
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kindergarten, or whether they're coming
from the outside, do you find the approach
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of coming through the preschool makes it
a little bit easier for the kids, or is
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there not so much a noticeable difference?
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Joanne Sharpe: Oh, absolutely
there's a noticeable difference.
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Our kindergarten and pre-kindergarten,
call them studios, and so their
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classrooms are next door to each other.
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So, and they share the same
playground, the same toilets.
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So there's a lot of familiarity for those
girls who have been in pre-kindergarten
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i- in terms of the environment.
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So that, that's an easy one
for them to come back to that
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very similar environment.
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They're just going next door.
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And all of our walls are glass from
the outside, so when they're outside
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in the playground when they're in
pre-kindergarten, they can actually
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see into the kindergarten studios, and
they're mixing with the kindergarten
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girls at morning tea and lunch.
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So they're very familiar and,
you know, they participate in
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other aspects of school life
that they're also familiar with.
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So that's very easy for them.
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That's what actually struck me
when I first came here, is how
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seamless the kindergarten's first
day was because m- the majority
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do come from pre-kindergarten.
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Anthony Perl: And is that more
challenging for those kids that do
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come from the outside to mix in with
these kids who have been through that?
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Do you find that mix actually
happens relatively smoothly
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because they're so young?
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What's the difference between what
the kids go through versus what
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the parents are going through?
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Joanne Sharpe: I think it's easy
because so many students come
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with that familiarity from our
pre-kindergarten time, that they bring
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in and have a good example, someone
to follow for the new students.
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So we buddy them up, we make sure
they're well taken care of with someone
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who has been at the school and knows
where things are and how things work.
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And so it does enable the
girls who are new to follow.
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They can see where they're
supposed to go, what they're
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supposed to do because they're just
following those who are familiar.
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So it does make it a little bit
easier than if they were all
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unfamiliar with the environment.
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Anthony Perl: Because in many
respects, the nerves are probably
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much greater for the parents.
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We were discussing it before we started
recording that our kids are a little
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bit older, so it's harder for us to
remember how exactly we felt as parents.
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But what about for the kids?
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Joanne Sharpe: I think, again, that
might depend on the family and the
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children, and if they're, you know,
the first one attending the school or
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they've got older brothers and sisters.
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Yeah, I think sometimes the parents
surprise themselves on how emotional
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they get, particularly on that first day.
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But I, I think there's lots of
things that they can do preparing
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for tho- those first few days.
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I always remember a story a colleague
told me once, and his son went to the
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first day of kindergarten, and he came
home and said, "Okay, I'm done now."
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And they sort of said, "Oh
no, you've got to go back."
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He said, "No, no.
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You said I had to go for the first day."
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And I thought that story is quite
funny, but it stays with me because
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we make a big deal of that first
day without them realizing there's
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actually another 13 years to go.
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So I think talking about school, you
know, the first day is a milestone
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without a doubt, and I think
that's important and it's great.
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But I think to talk about school
beyond just one day is important.
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I think being really positive about all
the things that the school can bring,
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and particularly in a school like ours,
you know, there are so many offerings
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and so many things to enjoy, both during
the school day and out of the school
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day with our co-curricular program.
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I think practicing
separating is a big thing.
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So as I said, many families, children
do go to other settings for childcare
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and preschool, but if they haven't,
I think that's really important.
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Play dates with some of the new families
because the families will meet each
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other at orientations when they're…
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And those younger grades
is really important.
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Practicing things, independent skills,
so I have to open my own lunchbox.
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You know, make it exciting.
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Go to the shops and let them choose a
lunchbox and let them choose something
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else that they might wanna put on
their bag to identify their bag and
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that sort of thing gives a really
good ownership and excitement around
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having those items with them at school.
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You know, making sure that they can do
things like pack their bag, pack away
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toys, those sorts of things, and be
independent, I think really, really helps.
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And can start way before
they're ready to start school.
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But that do help them
when they're at school.
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And I just think that positivity
about school, about the place that,
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you know, the parents have chosen at
MLC school, you know, is, is really
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important to Give that positivity
and enthusiasm over into their girls
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Anthony Perl: Are there any key
tips for the parents to learn,
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and grandparents for that matter?
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Because grandparents are often
the ones that are doing the
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pickups and the drop-offs as well.
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So there are lessons for
both of them, aren't there?
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Joanne Sharpe: Yes.
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. I think having the attitude that we're in
it as a partnership is really important.
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You know, your child will get the
best out of their school time when
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we're really cohesive and working as
a team for their best benefit, because
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that's what we want as a school.
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We want to be working with families
and making sure that their daughters
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are growing and developing in all
the ways that they are hoping for.
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So I think things like attending
meetings, as I mentioned, part of the
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orientation process is some meetings
for parents, coming in and making
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sure that you keep appointments and
you ma- take up those more formal
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times of meeting with the teachers.
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In pre-kindergarten and kindergarten,
at the beginning of the year, we
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actually have some special time
for the parents and the student to
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meet with the actual class teacher.
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And it's a bit of a getting to know
you, and when the children are so young,
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ensuring that the, the parents feel really
comfortable, they know who they're handing
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these young precious people over to.
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But it- that starts that really
good relationship between
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family and home and school.
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So I think that's really important to
attend to all the things that you can.
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And at that first term, there
are, uh, quite a lot on offer.
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And sharing important information about
your child is really important, too.
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So as I mentioned, that one-on-one
time at the beginning of the year for
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pre-kindergarten and kindergarten.
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Anything you think is
important for us to know.
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We spend a lot of time
with them at school.
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You know, it's a six or so hour
day, and that's a lot of time.
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We get to know them pretty well.
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As many parents will know, the students
will tell us many stories about home
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as they will tell you about school.
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So we do hear a lot about each other.
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But those things are important and,
you know, reading the information
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that's out there, sometimes I
think it can feel a little bit
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of a bombardment of information.
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But trying to, particularly when you're
new, work through those is really helpful
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to keep you in touch with what's going on.
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We do try and streamline our
communication, but I could only imagine.
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It's been a long time since I've
been back with my daughter in
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kindergarten, but it's a lot to take
in, especially if you're unfamiliar
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with the school or schooling itself.
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Anthony Perl: I imagine structure
is a big differentiator between
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what a child would've been used
to and what it has to get used to.
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And indeed, the same probably applies
for the parents because they're
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getting a child ready to be in that
kind of structured environment, where
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at home you've got lots of liberties.
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So depending on where you're coming from,
for both parents and the child, that
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structure can be different and difficult
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Joanne Sharpe: I think setting up those
structures and routines early, way before
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school starts, even the entire Christmas
holidays or perhaps after Christmas
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when you've had your celebrations.
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But, you know, having a, a really clear
bedtime and wake-up time that the students
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are aware of, the children are aware of.
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Sleep is so important.
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I think the first term when you
start school is really demanding,
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and I used to think, "Oh, the tired
monsters come home every day."
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I think that sleep schedule's really
important to enable them to feel
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fresh and ready for the next day.
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I think practicing the morning routine.
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So what will the morning look like?
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You have to get up, and what's the order
of breakfast, getting dressed, cleaning
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teeth, or what time are you leaving?
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How are you getting to school?
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So that it's predictable.
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Young children love predictability, so
the more that parents can really express
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to them what that routine's going to
be and run them through how it's going
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to work for every family, which will
be different, that's really important.
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But also talking about how drop-off's
going to occur, that there'll be playtime
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and lunchtime, and this is where you'll
find your lunch, and this is what I'm
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giving you for lunch or how that's
going to work, because, you know, we
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have plenty of young ones going, "I
don't have any lunch," and, you know,
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when the teacher looks, it's all there.
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Parents are very good at catering
for their kids, but it- they
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just don't know about it.
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So just that communication about how
things will work and what's going to
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happen When my daughter was young, I
used to have a visual schedule, you know,
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like when in the morning you do this
and this and this, and in the afternoon,
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you know, you come home, you take your
uniform off, you put your lunchbox on
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the kitchen sink, and just to help her
work through what she needed to do to
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help her get ready for school, but also
then transition back into home again.
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And it takes off some of that
cognitive load off the child too.
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Like, it just, they can go to the list and
they go, "Okay, I know what I have to do.
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I don't have to think about it.
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I can just see it there."
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So that can be very helpful to do as well.
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Anthony Perl: Fantastic.
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We've covered so much territory.
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The last question that I like to ask
everyone who's coming on the show
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is around the school motto and the
name of the podcast, Dare to be More.
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I'm interested in what it means to
you, particularly in the context of
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very little children coming into the
preschool and kindergarten environment.
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What does dare to be more
mean in that context?
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Joanne Sharpe: I think for me,
dare to be more is a way of being.
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So we want the girls to have a voice.
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We want them to feel confident to
try new things, to take up all the
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opportunities that we have here, both
within the school day and outside of
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the school day, to embrace some of that
uncomfortableness, whether it's going
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on the school camp and having to sleep
the night when they're older, or trying
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something that they haven't done before.
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We have wonderful facilities.
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We have a pool that gets
used in every year group.
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So taking on the opportunities and
being able to have a go and, yeah,
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enjoy what that is, but daring to be
more than they thought they could be.
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Anthony Perl: Wonderful.
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Joanne, thank you so much for all the
information you've given over and all
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the stories you've shared with us today.
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Really appreciate it.
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Thank you for being part of
the Dare to be More podcast.
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Joanne Sharpe: Oh, it's been my pleasure.
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Thank you for having me.
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Anthony Perl: Thank you for
joining us on Dare to be More.
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If you enjoyed this episode, please
subscribe wherever you get your
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podcasts so you never miss an episode.
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Your likes and comments also
help more families discover
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these valuable conversations.
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For more information about MLC school
and their approach to girls' education,
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visit their website at mlcsyd.nsw.edu.au.
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Check out the show notes
for more information.
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The Dare to be More podcast is
produced by Podcast Done For You.
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I'm your host, Anthony Pearl,
and we invite you to join us next
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time as we continue to explore
what it means to dare to be more
