Playful Transition

Welcoming Children to School through Playful Pedagogy

2 Day Mini Course

Facilitated by Lisa Burman

This Mini Course has been designed with educators taking a mid-year intake in SA primary schools in mind, but will be of interest to educators working with children in Reception/Foundation also.

Registrations close Monday 27 June 2022.

Many primary schools are now offering families the opportunity for their five year old to begin primary school in Term 3. This is a unique situation and requires careful consideration by leaders and educators, because it is different to beginning Reception in Term 1.

Preschool/Kindergarten is available to children in SA for the 12 months before they begin Reception/Foundation. This 12 months is determined by the date of birth, not from an enrolment date in school. This means that many children beginning primary school have benefited from only six months preschool/kindergarten experience. We believe this requires a considered and nuanced response by primary schools.

This mini course proposes that children in a mid-year intake have far more in common developmentally with their peers in preschool/kindy than other five year olds already in primary school. Just as Preschool is not merely preparation for school, this mid-year intake is not solely about 'hot-housing' preparation for Reception. The pedagogical decisions we make need to take this view into account.

This interactive mini-course will explore:

- A competent, strengths-based image of the child and what this means for our pedagogical decisions.

- The characteristics of a playful pedagogy and the kinds of playful learning contexts we can create for children to learn and grow.

- The importance of wellbeing and attachment to supporting children in making successful transitions.

- The role of executive functions and learning dispositions in learning and how these are developed through play.

- Developmentally appropriate literacy and numeracy goals for children transitioning to school and how these can be achieved through a playful pedagogical stance.

BYO:

name tag

water bottle

lunch (morning tea is provided)

Please note: registration for this mini course is for 2 sessions:

Saturday 2 July 2022 - 9:30am - 3:00pm

Saturday 27 August 2022 - 9:30am - 3:00pm **date change**

Please email Lisa if you are a full time student who wishes to participate in this mini course.

Discount is offered for teams of 5 or more from the same site. Please email Lisa with the names of those who will be registering to access your discount code.

Please note: registration is via Humanitix and payment is strictly by credit card only. Manual registration and manual invoicing is not available. You are automatically sent a tax invoice receipt when registering on Humanitix.

Part of your booking fee will be donated to support Indigenous Education Scholarships.