The Centre for Early Childhood

Transition and Kindergarten form the Centre for Early Childhood. Children who enter these years will be engaged in building their independence and confidence as learners as they prepare for and work through the Early Stage 1 Syllabus provided by the Board of Studies.

The Centre for Early Childhood is housed in St Pauls, a building with architect-designed classrooms which accommodate the learning needs  of the children and has a separate playground and amenities area.
Each day the children will spend time involved in literacy and numeracy activities, learning about their world through their studies in Science and Technology, learning to respect and care for others through Human Societies and Its Environment and learning about God's love for them through daily devotions. Their achievements will be acknowledged both in the classroom and through regular Assemblies. The children also attend weekly Chapel services.

Transition

Transition is a pre-Kindergarten class for children who have turned four by 30 April. It is an excellent preparation for school, with children attending for either two days or three days per week. It is expected that children enrolled in Transition will proceed into Kindergarten at Macarthur Anglican School.

Macarthur aims to develop in each Transition child:
• A sense of structure and order in preparation for commencing Kindergarten
• The ability to communicate with others outside the family
• Self-esteem and confidence
• Competence in developmental tasks and emotional independence
• An ability to interpret, anticipate and cope with their environment
• The ability to listen and follow instructions
• An enthusiasm for and satisfaction in learning
• An awareness and consideration of the needs and feeling of others
• An ability to give, share and receive
• An early appreciation of literature, music and creative activities
• An awareness of God as Creator and of His love for everyone

Transition is a class for four year olds. The children attend either two or three days each week. They wear a Macarthur sports shirt and bottle green shorts or skirt  and a tracksuit in the cooler months. A 'No Hat, No Play' policy is in place at the School.

Kindergarten

For most students Kindergarten is a time rich with learning and adventure. Teachers and children work together to build self-confidence and enhance learning, particularly in the areas of Literacy and Numeracy.

Whether counting, sorting, matching or measuring, the children have the opportunity to enhance their mathematical understanding and to begin to develop a knowledge of basic number facts.  A phonetics based programme is used as a tool in the teaching of literacy and this encourages the children to listen carefully  to sounds in words and to take an interest in how words are spelled. Learning support in Literacy and Numeracy is available for those who need additional help in these areas.

Topics like 'Floating and Sinking' and 'On the Farm' are explored in Kindergarten and one of the highlights of each year is the opportunity to watch chickens hatch in the classrooms.  Visits to the Macarthur farm in spring  is also a great delight.

In Kindergarten the children have regular tuition from specialist teachers in Music and Indonesian.  They also visit the Library Annexe each week and enjoy sporting activities like gymnastics, swimming, games and dancing.