Thursday 2nd FEB

9AM

10AM

Friday 3rd feb

Staggered starts (9-10am)

Developmental play lego,
puzzles, colouring in, books,
blocks etc)
Toilet break

Play a getting to know each

other activity
Read Starting School book
discuss (see attached
teaching points)
Students complete activity
to correlate with the
storybook

RECESS
11:30AM

12:30PM

Introduce social story

PowerPoint
Take students on a school
tour
Toilet break

Students create 1st day of

school crowns see
attached

2PM

Sing songs and read a book

before home time
Pack up and walk to
grandstand

Toilet break
Birthday wall students
can complete months of
the year/birthday
activities

RECESS

LUNCH

Developmental play lego,

puzzles, colouring in,
books, blocks etc)
Introduce 5Ls
complete cut and paste
activity

Read Starting School

book again
Students complete
healthy lunchbox activity
to correlate with the
storybook
Students to begin art
work

LUNCH

Finish art work

Cosmic kids yoga
Pack up and walk to
grandstand

Week 2
Resources

Teaching

Points
BEFORE READING
Cover Illustration I wonder why there isnt a picture of a school? Could it
be that all schools look different? Have you seen any schools other than
ours? How do they look different?
When we turn the page to the picture of the children, there is almost no
writing. We dont know their names yet, apart from that of Polly. They all
look a bit different, just like schools are different. Is there one who looks a
bit like you? Draw a picture of you. Notice hair colour and height and
colour/style of clothes, boy or girl.
The class could measure who is the tallest and shortest, how many have
blonde brown red or dark hair, curly or straight, long and short and could
help to draw classroom graph (frequency distribution) of height and hair
colour.

ACTIVITIES
Getting Ready
What do you do at home when you are getting ready for school? Who helps
you?
How do you get to school- do you walk or catch a train or bus or drive with
someone from your family? Draw a picture of you on your way to school.
Look at the things we need for school at the bottom of the pages. The class
can write the words down. Can you think of any other things you need for
school? Write those words down too.
Why is Tim worried about his lunchbox?
What is the thing you like best about your school bag? Did you think about
starting school, like Joe? What did you think?

ACTIVITIES
The First Day
When you get to school and mum or dad are getting ready to leave, there
are many ways you can feel. How do Tim and Polly feel? Here are some
words which might help: frightened, nervous, shy, upset, sad, or worried.
Why do you think Pollys Dad says he will stay a little while?
What about Sunita and Hannah? Here are some words which might help:
excited, nervous, shy, happy, pleased. Joe is different. He finds something
interesting and forgets it is his first day. Has that ever happened to you
when you go somewhere new? What words describe how Joe is feeling?
Happy, busy, interested. Sometimes we know how people feel from the
words they say and sometimes from the picture of their face. The class
draws five faces showing the emotion each character is feeling, putting a
name under each face, and drawing from a class list of emoticons.

Making Friends
How many boys and girls are in your class? Some of them you get to know
quickly; some take a little while.
School lets children make new friends. Some children ask if they can play,
like Sunita. What could Sunita do if Hannah and Joe say no? What would you
do? Some children, like Tim, start playing by themselves. What could happen
once Tim starts to make something interesting with the Lego? Do you like to
draw like Polly? Do you think lots of children will want to be friends with
Polly?
What other games and activities can you play in school with friends? There
are some hints in the drawings at the bottom of the page.
Students are to each choose an activity and at the end of a session tell the
class how many friends played the same game with them.

Around the School

The school seems very big when you are new. We dont want to get lost and
we need to know where to find the toilets and where our playground is. Are
there other things we need to know? The teacher can explain to the children
the rules for lining up, listening to the teacher, and holding hands in pairs as
the class sets off on an experiential learning exercise just like the children in
the book. Afterwards, draw a map of the school showing the trip and place
it in the classroom.

Snack Time
Look at the pictures at the bottom of the page. We write the list of words
on the board. What other things do we eat at school? What is your snack
today? Can you open it easily or do you need help like Polly and Joe?
What are the rules about rubbish?

ACTIVITIES
In the Playround
The playground often seems intimidating to the smallest players as older
bigger children run and play noisily and compete for equipment, desirable
places and seats. It is also a place where children can test themselves in a
physical way, like Sunita, Hannah and Polly. Polly finally finds an activity
where she can lead. Joe can share his interest in nature with quiet Tim. This
section offers reassurance and demonstrates some options for exploring
friendship in the playground. After a session in the playground children could
be asked to talk about what they liked best and what they would like to do
there next time.

In the Classroom
Do you remember what Joe and Tim were doing in the playground? The
message is that you can have fun but there are some other important things
to look out for. The book shows some rules but there might be others. What
rules do you think we need in our classroom? The class can agree or vote on
the most important 4 or 5 rules and everyone can help to make the signs
and put them around the classroom just like in the book. Students can be
guided to justify each rule and feel ownership of the class rules through
pride in their contributions.

Learning at School
Why do Joe and Sunita and Hannah have their hands up? Why doesnt Tim put
his hand up? What do the pictures of the children tell us that the words do
not? What do you think we can learn at school?
Should the boy stop playing with Pollys hair? Why?
What equipment or tools do we need at school to help us learn? Look at the
drawings at the bottom of the page for ideas.

New Experiences
The story acknowledges that some things at school will still be difficult. Poor
Tim gets ignored and probably misses out on lunch. Some children like Hannah
have after school activities before they can go home. Many children have
never used large public toilet arrangements before, and are intimidated.
Accidents happen. There are new things to remember and different systems
for remembering them some children, like Sunita, care and others, like Joe,
dont.

ACTIVITIES
Doing Work
Individual differences in work capacities are identified and accepted. The
pictures tell us something the words do not. Everyone looks as if they are
having fun doing their own thing. Is work fun? They are drawing and
painting, measuring and doing sums and learning to write. They seem busy
and happy.
What kind of work do you like doing best? Examples of everyones favourite
kind of work could be put up around the classroom. Look at the illustrations
below the text and notice how different they all are.

Packing Up
What are they all doing? Do you think they will get ready in time? How does
Polly help?
Look at their drawings on the back wall. Can you tell what they are?

Home Time
All the children are talking to their mums and dads about their day. What will
you tell your mum and dad about your day?
Ask students to talk about what they like best about school. The class could
put together a mural or a wall hanging with contributions from each student.

Alphabet Artwork

MATERIALS

Paper
Alphabet Template PDF (attached)
Oil pastels/crayons
Paint brush
Watercolor paint

directions
1. Students trace the letters and grid lines with oil
pastels/crayons.
2. The boxes are painted with watercolor paint.