Initiative smooths school transition in Wimmera Southern Mallee

The Wimmera Southern Mallee’s award-winning early years project BY FIVE, supported by the Victorian Government, is helping children and their families in the region connect to the right services before starting school.

Minister for Regional Development Jaclyn Symes yesterday visited the Kalkee Road Children’s and Community Centre, which has been participating in the initiative launched through the Victorian Government’s Wimmera Southern Mallee Regional Partnership.

The program works with children and their families moving to school from early years and preschool education, making sure they have a smooth transition into primary education, no matter where they live.

To ensure all families in the region have the best possible learning experience and can be connected to all the services and resources they need, the program has five project clusters in Horsham, Donald, Dimboola, Hindmarsh and Yarriambiack.

In Horsham, a transition group with representatives from local schools and early childhood education has examined how children and their parents view the school transition experience and how it could be even smoother.

Thanks to the group, local children moving from kindergarten to primary school are now provided with transition statements to support the change, which builds better connections between kinder teachers and local schools in the area.

Parents are also invited to attend forums and provide feedback online on what families need to know about the transition.

The BY FIVE project is one of the first Wimmera Southern Mallee Regional Partnership-driven projects and has been made possible by the Victorian Department of Education and Training and the Victorian Department of Health and Human Services, with support from the Murdoch Children’s Research Institute.

Earlier this year, BY FIVE won the Continuity of Early Learning award at the Victorian Government Early Years Award for its collaborative approach to early years innovation.

Victorian Minister for Regional Development Jaclyn Symes said the years from kindergarten to the start of primary school are “some of the most essential in a child’s education” and that the BY FIVE program is “making sure kids across Wimmera Southern Mallee have the best start to school, no matter where they live.”