Enrolments

 

 

Cohort Entry

Cohort Entry is when new entrants start school in groups through the year rather than on their fifth birthday.
At Vogeltown School, new entrants are able to start school in cohorts but only after they have turned five. There are two entry points per term, one on the first day of term and one at a mid-point during a term.
Cohort entry is about helping children settle better in school.  There is evidence that starting school alongside other children helps them build relationships and supports a smoother entry to school life. Cohort entry also works in conjunction with our Structured Literacy programme, so that we can start children in groups according to when they started school.

The Cohort Entry Dates for 2024 are:

Term 1:    30 January and 12 March
Term 2:   29 April and 04 June
Term 3:   22 July and 26 August
Term 4:   14 October and 18 November

A Guide to School Enrolment

When you are intending to enrol your child at Vogeltown School, simply email or call the school office to let us know. We will give you an enrolment pack with the forms that we need to be filled out and returned to us. The earlier we have enrolment details, the better we can serve your children through quality education. Our principal, Jeremy Ogle, holds a ‘Starting School the VS Way’ meeting every term, to meet with parents and help them learn about Vogeltown School. Please contact the school office to find out the dates for these meetings. We also have Four Year Old Fridays every term. These are a great way to meet the teacher
and familiarise your child with our school. Four Year Old Fridays are held from 9:00am to 11:00am in Rooms 6 and 7 at the junior school with Mrs Treadway and Mrs Newland. A parent or caregiver must stay with your child for the duration of the visit (this is a legal requirement). Please contact the school office to find out the upcoming dates for Four Year Old Fridays.

Enrolment Check-list
Have you …

• Supplied evidence of your address?
• Completed and returned the enrolment form?
• Supplied emergency contact details?
• Completed the permission slip for school trips?
• Completed the dental and health forms?
• Shown your child’s birth certificate to the school?
• Shown your child's birth certificate and immunisation record to the school?
• Sorted/paid for stationery?

School visits – What to Expect

School visits start approximately one month before your child turns five, and can number between one to three visits depending on the child. Lee Newland, our Deputy Principal and New Entrant Teacher, will meet with you to set up school visits and discuss aspects of the transition with you.

Your child will join the normal classroom programme to introduce them to the class routines and expectations. Your child can arrive before the morning bell at 8.55 am and stay until 11:30am. They can bring along their morning tea and have a play with the other children outside before going home.

Parents / caregivers are expected to stay with their child for the duration of the visit (this is a legal requirement).

Day One at School

Your child will need the following NAMED ITEMS for every day at school:

• Lunch box, including a healthy snack (fruit or vegetable)
• Drink bottle
• Sunhat (Terms 1 and 4) - any bucket hat is fine. We do have Vogeltown hats
  available for sale at the senior office, these are $17 each.
• Togs and towel (Term 1)
• Stationery
• Weather appropriate clothes and footwear (also named)
  
  

Day One Procedure

School starts at 8:55am.

NOTE: If for any unforeseen circumstances you are unable to attend this day as planned, the absence must still be notified asap to the Senior School Office.

You and your child will be welcomed and the day will be begin. Caregivers and parents are invited to stay as long as they feel they need to, though when your child first starts it is advisable not to stay for too long. This enables the child to settle with the other children.

We encourage independent behaviour, please support your child and encourage them to:

• Hang up their own bag and coat
• Put their own reading book/book bag away
• Put sunhat and bottle in the appropriate place
• Put their library book in the library box

Transition to School
All children mature at different rates. The following are guidelines only of what might be expected of a five-year-old starting school.

Academic

• Sit quietly, listen to a story and talk about the story.
• Hold a pencil/pen correctly.
• Write their name
• Write the lowercase letters of the alphabet
• Write numerals to ten
• Be able to count to ten
• Recognise and name colours and shapes
• Use appropriate language to talk about size
• Recognize letters of the alphabet
• Match some letters to the letter sound, e.g. beach b “bbb”

Some children will be achieving beyond this and some children will not yet be achieving to this level; this is a normal part of teaching outcomes.

Behaviour

It would be helpful if your child could:

• Tie their own shoelaces or have appropriate footwear without laces
• Put on/take off their shoes and socks
• Put on/undo clothing
• Organise own school bag, water bottle and lunch box
• Recall name address and phone number
• Take responsibility of belongings, without adult help