Supporting your child’s transition through school with confidence and ease

Making the step up to Junior School or Middle School, or the leap from Middle School to Senior School, can sometimes seem a little daunting.

Remembering that this is a natural part of being at school — and an experience already navigated safely and successfully by thousands of other students — can help to settle any nerves young people may have about what comes next.

Haileybury Rendall School’s teachers are experienced in helping students find their way through the different stages of school, and they have some useful tips on how students and their families can make these transitions seamless and stress-free.

Joining the Junior School

One of the biggest changes for children moving from the Early Learning Centre (ELC) to Junior School is adapting to the more structured setting in the classroom. New routines, new expectations and an increased academic focus can also take a few weeks for children to adjust to.

Lisa Doyle, Head of Junior School, suggests three steps to help your child during this transition:

• Foster independence and encourage your child to unpack and pack their own school bag and practice getting dressed for school.
  
• Adopt a ‘kiss and go’ approach and drop off children confidently and quickly. This will help ease the transition to Junior School.
• Be calm and positive during drop-off times — children sense if their parents are anxious. Dropping off your child quickly and positively can help ensure a smoother start to the day.

“While parents can expect some tears and tiredness during the first few days and weeks of Junior School, trusting the process and that everything will resolve itself is important,” says Lisa.

Moving to Middle School

Dennis Nowak, Deputy Principal – Teaching & Learning, says making the move to Middle School is exciting, and often the biggest challenge that students face is getting used to a new and less familiar space.

“The Middle School is bigger, the classrooms look a bit different and things generally can feel a bit different,” says Dennis.

“Another challenge is for students to get used to moving between classes. In Junior School, students generally stay in ‘their’ classroom and learn with their homegroup teacher. From Year 7, they move across different parts of the school and learn in specialty classrooms, like the computer or science labs. This means they need to be organised and to understand their timetable and know where different rooms are.”

Students are also taught by different teachers who are specialists in their area and who have different personalities. Again, this is something students will adjust to once they build their confidence and familiarity.

Parents can support their child by:

• Acknowledging this is an exciting time at school when students have more freedom and responsibility.
  
• At the same time, letting children know that having some anxiety about the changes is normal.
  
• Check in with them to see if they know who their primary supports at school are — for example, their classroom teacher, tutor group teacher, year level coordinator and Head of School.

Stepping up to Senior School

The feelings experienced during the move from Junior School to Middle School can be similar to those felt during the transition to Senior School. Learning to juggle the increased independence and self-reliance can initially be a struggle for some students, says Dennis.

“Some young people also begin to experience some anxiety around what the future might hold after school — for some it can be a little scary to think about a future that doesn’t involve high school,” he says.

Dennis shares some tips to help students manage anxiety around this new responsibility and independence:

• Choosing subjects that students enjoy is key when making subject selections. Dennis advises booking an appointment with the School’s Careers Counsellor early in Year 9 to start the process of thinking about subject choices for VCE.
  
• Encourage children to actively seek support from their teacher if they are struggling — teachers relish opportunities to help students outside the classroom.
  
• Remind your child they do not need to suffer in silence, and asking for help when needed is important.

As well as extra academic support, Haileybury Rendall School also has a network of staff who are focused on student wellbeing and they are also available to offer help whenever needed.

Whatever stage of school your child is moving towards, the experts recommend keeping an open mind, staying confident and positive and giving things time to settle. The experts and teachers at Haileybury Rendall School are also just a phone call or email away and are ready to provide as much or as little support as students and families need.