Since Owen is turning 3 on Saturday, we thought it about time that we investigate going to what us QLDer’s call Kindy, or at least a day care centre maybe a couple of days a week, just so he gets used to the whole school routine and has an opportunity to make some friends down here.
Firstly, a little education.
- Cut off date for enrollment down here is 31st July, so Owen can go to school with kids born his year (2005) if he’s ready, otherwise he won’t be too old to wait until the next year, which apparently is very much encouraged for most kids born anytime in July.
- Our QLD Kindergarten is called Pre School and their Pre School is Kindergarten. And Kindergarten can be at a day care type centre or at school.
- I am assuming Kindy is like the new QLD Prep year… I guess we will find out soon enough!
- There are some government funded Pre Schools (usually attached to schools), but to get a place in one of these means having your child’s name down from before birth. So no free Pre School for Owen…
After a long search, and a recommendation from a very lovely shop assistant who had just moved to Sydney from the Central Coast and placed her nearly three year old daughter just a month ago, we have decided to send Owen to Rouse Hill Pre School Kindergarten.
We just called in on the centre one day last week and I was really impressed. They were not at all bothered by the fact that Owen and I just dropped by unannounced and were more than happy to spend nearly 3/4 hour showing us around and telling us about the staff, curriculum and centre background.
The centre is set on 5 acres and they have two cows and some chooks which the kids take care of. The staff are all super friendly and most have been there for quite a few years, which my friend in the know, Meegs2 says all adds up to a very good indication that the centre is a well run one.
So off to Pre School Owen is going! We are going to start him around the end of July at two days per week, so I’m sure we will have lots of stories to share when that time comes round!
Isn’t it just crap! This is where national conformity would be good. Here in Vic, the cut off date is 30 april. so Mim can’t go into Prep until 2010, she is 10 days too old. And although she is so ready to start learning, they won’t take her next year unless I can get psychological testing done to prove that she is a “gifted and talented” child and would be psychologically scarred to be kept back. So she will be one of the oldest in her year level down here, and if we move back to Qld, she will be a year older than most of her classmates. And I’ve been told here that they have two levels of Kindy – 3yo kindy (non funded) and 4 yo Kindy (funded) which has the same curriculum as Qld Prep (I find this hard to believe) and Vic Prep, goodness knows what that equates to. Caitlin is ahead of her year level in most areas, and don’t get Michael started on the lack of syllabus down here!! I hate the fact that Qld has cut off date of 30 June, NSW has cut off of 31 July and Vic has 30 April – it’s just stupid!!!! (And here endeth my rant).