Brighton College Dubai is delighted to announce the launch of Bright Start, a new programme specially designed to help young children transition into starting school.
Over a 10-week period, in the run-up to starting Foundation Stage, children will be invited to attend the school environment twice a week with their parents or carers. During these sessions, children will learn to familiarise themselves with the school environment, build relationships with staff, and grasp an understanding of the routines and expectations. Some sessions will also allow for children to attend without parents present for short periods of time.
The aim of Bright Start is to ensure that pupils begin the start of the academic year feeling secure, happy and confident
Simon Crane, Headmaster of Brighton College Dubai, said: “We have introduced this programme to not only support our youngest pupils to help them successfully transition into the school environment but also help parents during this big transition in their lives. A wealth of research over the years has highlighted that the Early Years are the most important years for children and Government data from the UK shows that over a quarter (28%) of children were not considered ‘school ready’ in 2018/19*.”
He added: “With many pupils arriving in Dubai with little or no English and no experience of formal schooling and nursery we can surmise that this percentage would be higher.”
“Ensuring that your child has a smooth transition into a new environment is crucial to their wellbeing”
The aim of Bright Start is to ensure that pupils begin the start of the academic year feeling secure, happy and confident. The programme also supports the early identification of pupils and their needs, ensuring the appropriate support is in place for the start of the academic year. In addition to supporting the children, Bright Start also offers additional support to parents run by the school counsellor Dr Lene Janse van Rensburg, Head of Pre-Prep, Katy Cooke, and Sadie Mercer, an expert in the field of early child development.
These sessions will cover topics such as what to expect and when to expect it, stretch and challenge, homelife support, acquiring English and settling in Dubai. In addition, there will be special workshops on Taming the Tantrum, which explores learning how to set boundaries and encourage positive behaviours and Drop and Go, which addresses anxiety at the school gates and how best to manage this.
Dr Lene Janse van Rensburg, Lead Counsellor at Brighton College Dubai said: “Ensuring that your child has a smooth transition into a new environment is crucial to their wellbeing. Transition in the earliest years will have an impact on their feelings about transition in the future. We encourage laying the foundations for how children feel and manage change so that they are confident with future transitions.”
Throughout the Bright Start programme pupils will learn to develop a love for reading, where the school will share story books and reading lists with parents, and in particular story books related to starting school. They will also learn about friendships, communication and language, how to acquire new skills and explore through play and develop independence – all the skills they require in order to begin their school journey, happy and confident.
For more articles about Brighton College click here.