Humula Public School

Key features

Transition program to improve student literacy and numeracy skills in preparation for enrolment in Kindergarten.

School context

Humula Public School is a small, rural P6 school located in the Riverina region. It currently has an enrolment of 14 students and has experienced rising enrolments over the last 2 years.

Program Background

In 2008, the school initiated a transition to school program with a strategic focus on increasing the literacy and numeracy skills of students prior to their entry into Kindergarten. This was due to the gap in literacy and numeracy skills which many students appeared to have when they enrolled in Kindergarten. The transition program catered for 6 students through a part-time enrolment structure and was designed to provide familiarity with school personnel, expectations and routines.

Program Overview

The transition program catered for pre-school children as a preparatory course for school entry. It ran on a fortnightly basis, over two terms, to alternate with the mobile preschool. The transition program allowed children to experience a structured educational environment which incorporated the public school’s amenities, staff, and interaction with K-6 students. This continuum gave students’ familiarity with staff and routines that facilitated a smooth and stress free introduction to school for the child. The curriculum implemented in the transition program placed a heavy emphasis on early literacy and numeracy skills which were reinforced through music and play activities. PSP funds were used to employ the transition teacher who implemented the program.

Parents received information about the program in the school and community newsletter. Student progress was discussed with the parents. Over the semester, the students compiled a book of work samples that they took home to share with their parents.

All of the critical aspects of literacy, assessed in the Best Start initiative, were incorporated into the program. Stories were read daily to engage children in a variety of texts, develop early sight word building, experience customary grammar conventions, understand the attributes of books (author, illustrator etc) and the value of reading for pleasure. It encouraged children to make inferences about the story, draw conclusions, explore alternative options and understand story sequencing. Handwriting was one literacy component that was practised daily and primarily took the form of name tracing and letter formation instruction. These were done using a variety of medium including pencil, paint, whiteboards etc.

Numeracy activities included counting, whole number concepts, as well as ordering and sorting. These were practised via music and games, in addition to formal instruction using calendars, playing cards and environmental stimuli. Students were also exposed to geometric shape detection, attribute sorting, pattern recognition, money identification and matching, and various other spatial mathematical concepts.

In addition to these literacy and numeracy pursuits, fine and gross motor skills were practised on a daily basis. These included fine tuning pencil grip, beading, lacing, using scissors, manipulating play dough, and paper folding. Gross motor development included activities such as climbing, hopping, jumping, marching, running, skipping (with and without a rope), cycling motions, and balancing. Hand-eye co-ordination was also developed through play and sporting activities.

Social skill development was also seen as an important aspect of formative schooling and was developed through both structured and informal play-based activities. Children attending the transition program and Humula Public School had both recess and lunch with the wider school population. This allowed them to create and develop relationships with older students to assist them when enrolling in the K-6 school.

They participated in the daily morning assembly with the K-6 school to assist in establishing a routine in the hope that it will continue throughout their scholastic career at Humula Public School. Other skills that were fostered in this preparatory year included developing the ability to sit for periods of time, to expand on their listening skills, and to practise classroom conventions like putting one’s hand up to speak.

The program content was based around the alphabet, developing activities around a letter each day. For example, if the letter ‘b’ was the focus, activities may have included using building blocks, singing Baa Baa Black Sheep, blowing bubbles, making butterfly prints, beading a bracelet, using bubble wrap to make prints, experiencing beetroot, planting beans etc. Special occasion classes took the place of the alphabet from time to time – e.g. Mother’s day, Easter, Christmas etc.

Program Results

The children who have participated in the 2008 transition program held by the Humula Public School have demonstrated outstanding progress regarding early literacy, numeracy and socialisation skills.

Academic assessment of existing knowledge revealed that, upon entering the program, only one student could identify and write his/her own name. In contrast, at the conclusion, all participants could identify and write their own first name. Letter recognition assessment revealed that, on average, children could correctly identify 12 per cent of given letters previous to the program in comparison to 44 per cent at the completion. Although numeration assessment showed that all children could count to 10 verbally in ascending order, only 46 per cent of written numerals could be correctly identified at the commencement of the program in comparison to 90 per cent at the completion.

Reproducing written numerals one through five was relatively non-existent at the commencement of the program with only one child being able to correctly write the numerals 1 and 3. This gave 2 correct responses from a possible 25 resulting in an 8 per cent success rate on average. At the conclusion of term four, participants reproduced 20 from the 25 numerals requested giving an average 80 per cent accomplishment. Their verbal counting had also risen from an upper limit of 10 in ascending order, to 30 in both ascending and descending order for all children.

Over the 16 sessions attended during terms three and four, children were exposed to a variety of meaningful print and taught the value of reading for pleasure. At the commencement of the program, children had received minimal storybook based exposure. By the conclusion of term four half of the children were content to read familiar books during free play time. Every participant could identify features of a book including author and illustrator, and half were beginning to locate familiar words in repeated text. Seventy five per cent of children were confident enough to attempt writing words and drawing pictures to illustrate their thought patterns, whereas at the commencement of the program holding a pencil was an unfamiliar skill for many children.

Numeracy activities involved counting, grouping, adding, comparing, and more/less than concepts in addition to developing one-to-one correspondence skills. Currency was also explored through play shopping using coins to match and place a value on. Card games were a focus area where matching, counting and comparing were also required. Music was a cross-curricular area for numeracy, involving many counting and pattern recognition songs.

In addition to early literacy and numeracy exposure, children developed fine and gross motor skills through a variety of activities including art and craft, lacing, weaving, sport, balancing, hopping, jumping and skipping activities. An aspect of the transition program (which is often overlooked but vitally important) is the development of social skills. In rural communities, the availability of opportunities for social interaction can be minimal. To expect young children to go from minimal interaction to a confined classroom scenario can be difficult and stressful for both student and teacher. The transition program has allowed children to develop these skills, friendships, routine management, and rapport with staff members which will assist in facilitating their progression to a school setting.