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Transition:
The importance of transition in children’s lives:
At Rillington, adults understand that from the minute a child enters the school gates, life becomes a series of transitions that they then have to navigate without their familiar adult. Staff understand the impact that this can have on a child’s mental health and wellbeing and provide strategies and resources to support both parents and children in making transitions’ less stressful.
At Rillington Primary School where possible, the children are greeted by the same person every day. This encourages the start of positive attachments and helps the child to feel more secure when entering the classroom. Staff reassure children and let them know what will happen each day through the use of a visual timetable. From this, children feel secure in knowing what is happening now and what is going to happen next including where there are changes to routines. Classroom environments are consistent through their use of displays and routines, this provides familiarity to children and ensures that transitions between year groups or teaching activities with other staff are less stressful.
Transition throughout school...
Towards the end of the summer term, children visit their new teacher and class. They spend time becoming familiar with their new teacher, they fill in an ‘All about me’ sheet so teachers can begin to understand what the children like/dislike or struggle with within the classroom. Class teachers meet in the summer term to discuss children coming into their class. The class teacher fills out a child passport to discuss key points at the meeting.
Into Nursery and Reception...
Towards the end of the summer term, children joining our EYFS visit their new teacher and classroom over several weeks. They spend time becoming familiar with their new teacher, adults who know the child well are encourage to complete an ‘All about me’ sheet and booklet so that staff can begin to understand what the children like/dislike or struggle with within the classroom. Our EYFS staff also visit settings that our children might already attend to speak to each child's key worker and gain useful knowledge to support with transition.
All about me starter booklet...
For those children transitioning into school either in Nursery or Reception stay and play sessions take place every week. Parents and carers can bring their child to our Early years setting and spend time with staff. This allows both parents and children time to build relationships with other families from the community, members of staff and be familiar with the rules and routines of school life.
In May each year our EYFS team hold an open evening inviting new parents and carers into school to view the EYFS environment, meet members of the school team and enabling any questions to be asked before transition days. The EYFS team also explain to parents and carers how to support with their children being school ready - fasten shoes, do up coat, dress and undress themselves, wash and dry hands after going to the toilet and before eating, use cutlery, use the toilet by themselves, talk about how they are feeling, play with others and share toys, say goodbye to my family when I spend time with others.
Year 6 to Year 7 transition....
For those children transitioning to secondary school they have sessions to support their transition, this includes visits from key members of staff from their chosen school, experience days and the use of the resource Smart moves, which is based on the resilience framework. We also work closely with our local secondary schools to offer additional support, visits and meetings to our most vulnerable children.
We are also part of a Sidewalk project, which offers our most vulnerable children 1 to 1 mentoring sessions while transitioning to secondary school and for the first year of their time there, to reduce stress and anxiety.
In order to support Year 6 transition, each child is asked to complete and consider the information in their transition booklet, this is explored in class on a daily basis during the final summer term.
In September we also hold transition club once a week for our Year 7 children to return to Rillington and have support from their previous class teacher with any worries they might have, homework etc... This runs for 6 weeks and is incredibly important to us as school to continue to support our children and their families.
