Transition to St. Mark’s

In order to ensure that children in the Early Years get off to the best start possible we offer an extended transition programme.  Our transition programme consists of:

Summer Term (before child starts school)

• Welcome letter and school information sent to parents.
• Welcome meeting and tour in school for parents and children.
• Transition morning for children and families to familiarise themselves with the classroom and the school and meet new friends in preparation for September. This is also an opportunity to speak to your child’s class teacher about any concerns or questions you may have. It will help familiarise your child with St. Mark’s and it will also help you as parents to know our expectations. Parents also attend a phonics workshop, and hear the importance of building children’s spoken language skills. We love reading at St. Mark’s and our phonics lessons help give children the key skills needed to become confident and fluent readers.
• The ‘Ready Steady Reception’ team from Birmingham meets parents. This team supports parents with skills that are needed to be ready for school, with practical opportunities and ideas to give the children the best start to school life.
• The Reception class teacher will visit every child’s Early Years setting in July and discussions will be had with the staff in the setting about your child. There are a set of questions that we complete before children begin school and that is to help make the transition process as smooth as possible. This is particularly important for children who may need a little extra support.
• The Reception class teacher may also arrange a home visit for some individual children. If your child is chosen for a home visit, the rationale for this will be explained to you. The purpose of home visits is to further support the transition process to St. Mark’s.
• In September, we invite parents and carers into school for a number of parent workshops and meetings. The aim of these workshops is to give parents knowledge of what children are learning about to help provide further support at home.
• A transition timetable is given for all children in the first week. Reception children gradually increase their time in school, allowing them to familiarise themselves with the other children in the classroom and also with the school and staff.

What is discussed at the transition meeting?

We will explore attendance, behaviour, health and safeguarding, milestone development and external agency support. This allows us to plan additional transitions to and plan for meetings with external agencies in the Summer term to further support transition if needed. This will also allow further supportive action to be taken such as additional home and school visits, multi-agency support meetings and Early Help support.

Transition from Reception to Year 1

In Reception, we assess children regularly on key skills and knowledge to ensure that children are well prepared for Year 1. Interventions and additional support is put in place swiftly to close gaps for any children who have been identified as requiring further support.

In the Summer term, children prepare to transition to the Year 1 curriculum by having more structured activities. The children will spend a day in their new classroom getting to know their new teachers and they will familiarise themselves in their new learning environment (this usually takes place in July). Your child’s class teacher will then meet your child’s new class teacher to share assessment information and information about your child that will aid transition.