Starting School

Welcome to our Starting School and School Readiness

In Aotearoa, children are able to start school at the age of 5 and we recommend this here at Te Kamo School. Of course, there may be exceptions where a child would be best to stay longer with their pre-school education provider, but our preference is that they start school when they turn 5 years old.

First up… Are you in Zone?

We have a map and other information showing and describing our school’s zone on our website. We recommend you check this out before contacting us, as we have to decline out of zone requests. Occasionally we have some years where we have a limited number of places available for out of zone enrolments. These are decided by ballot, and we have no say over who gets these spaces. However, we do not ballot every year, as different years bring different numbers of in zone enrolments and crowded classrooms do not benefit anyone. We want education at Te Kamo Primary School to be a quality experience.

When can you put your child’s name on the Register to attend school?

From the age of 3, we welcome you to register your child. If there are younger siblings, we can take their names for future enrolment, when it is their time to start school. We will make contact with you as whānau and keep you updated with next steps the closer your child gets to starting school. If we know they are coming to our school, we can build our relationship with them from 4.6 years old at their pre-school education provider. This allows us to plan a smooth transition for everyone.

When does my child start school?

Our school works on a cohort entry system. This means that our new students start school together in groups on specific dates throughout the year instead of on their fifth birthday. Our entry dates are in Week 1 and Week 6 of every term. This gives our teachers time to prepare for new groups of students who are arriving at the same time and provides a more structured transition programme into school to give them the best possible start.

What would this transition look like?

At Te Kamo School, we would love to visit your child in their place of pre-school education. We will make email contact with family/whānau beforehand and meet with any external agencies if they are supporting your child. We will connect with the teachers and carers at the pre-school education provider to ensure we know as much about your child as we can before they come to school. We will ask to meet with you, or make a phone call to seek further knowledge from you as whānau to get your perspective as you are your child’s first teacher.

Are you wondering how you can help your child prepare for starting school?

The following list supports your child to start school with a readiness plan:

Have your child at school before the 8:55am bell when they start their day of learning.
Have your child carry their own bag and do their morning jobs that the teacher sets.
Support your child to use manners - that is greeting the teacher, saying “yes,” “please” and “thank you.”
It is preferred that your child can manage themselves independently when using the toilet, and especially with washing their hands.
Explain they will have a short break at around 10:00am to eat a piece of fruit or vegetables only, and to have a drink of water.
Explain that there are two breaks for playing with their friends, and then they will eat their food for morning tea and lunch afterwards.
Encourage your child to speak to an adult if they are feeling unwell or unsafe.
Encourage your child to say “No” to another child who is hurting them with either their words or their body.
Explain to your child they will need to share things and take turns.
It would be great if they could write their name, and recognise it.
Read to them at home and have them sit and listen as they would in a classroom.
It would be great if they could recognise some letters of the alphabet, especially the ones in their name.
Please check their pencil grip. You could support this by watching ‘How to HOLD A PENCIL!! - (Easy for Kids!) - with Ally the Alligator’ on YouTube. It is only 2:55 minutes long. There are many other great ones to watch as well.
It would be great if your child could recognise colours and know their name.
It would be great if your child could count to 10 and recognise the numerals.
It would be great if your child could match a number to an amount of objects. For
example, if you say “7,” they find 7 objects around your house.
Your child would really benefit from being able to use scissors and cut out simple
shapes.
It would be great if your child can identify their own clothing, shoes, belongings, etc.
Having their name on anything that belongs to them is very helpful. Supporting your child to have a successful start to school will fill them with a growth mindset and give you security that your child is on their way to school success.