Pre-Primary
Pre-Primary is the first year of official, full-time schooling. Your child will spend more ‘awake’ time at school during the week than at home and, therefore, it is important for school to feel like a second home to them. Quintilian is a place where our children feel confident to be curious, to explore, take risks and express their feelings safely.
Social and emotional well-being continue to be of great importance, as contented, happy children learn best. As they move through to pre-primary the learning is planned around both the Australian and the Western Australian Curriculums. The concepts for this age group are broad, allowing our educators to develop inquiries into HASS, Science and STEM concepts that reflect the children’s interests: by following their lines of thinking and questioning, curiosity grows, and a thirst for knowledge and a love of learning develop.
Literacy skills and understandings are extended through Jolly Phonics: a program where sounds, blends and segmenting words are explicitly taught through actions, songs, and games. Opportunities to experiment with and practice writing are provided through a range of mediums in relevant, engaging and purposeful ways.
Mathematical learning follows the language and concepts of the PR1ME Mathematics Program which is used throughout the school. Topics are taught, in a mix of whole class, small group, and independent activities. We utilise a range of games and concrete and real-life experiences.
Nature Study is another important aspect of our pre-primary program: it is important for children to spend time in nature to form sustainable ideas and actions. It also allows them time to slow down, relax and just ‘be’. Our pre-primaries engage in regular visits to local bushlands and wetlands and begin to develop a real sense of the landscape and its seasonal changes. They learn about the flora and fauna, record any changes they notice between visits and develop a greater appreciation of nature around us. Studying the local environment in this way provides a natural opportunity to embed local indigenous perspectives into our learning too.
