RSA Grade 1 compared to Aus Year1

[MandyW]

Hey all

My son is due to start Grade 1 here next year. But we are hoping to get to Canberra in Feb to start him in Year 1 there.

He'll be the perfect age for Year 1, but I was curious as to whether or not he'll be on track work wise. Do they start reading in Aus in Year 1 or in Kindergarten? If we are delayed by a few weeks, we don't really want to start him in school here as there seems to be no real point, but should we then send him for some sort of reading lessons?

I know most people say not to panic as the schools and teachers there are really good at getting your kids up to speed, but, hey... i wouldn't be a mom if i didn't panic.

[Toitjie]

As far as I know the Ozzie kids start reading in Kindy, from 5 years old I have heard. Our kids are a little behind but from what I have read from friends and forumites with the same age kids, they catch up pretty quickly.

A friend of mine landed in Perth 5 years ago when her very Afrikaans kids were 3 and 5 and she said within 3 months they spoke English fluently..without the assistance of an interpreter or anything at the kindergarten

[Toitjie]

Mandy - do you perhaps know how ACT calculates which age group goes into which year? My kids differ 18 months but one has her birthday in April and the other in October, so here in SA they are one year apart, Gr 2 and Gr 3. But I wonder if they would be seperated with another year due to the little one having a birthday so late in the year

ok sorry...after I asked the question I went to Google...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Education_in_Australia

It seems ACT is the same, so they will stay one year apart

Edited September 26, 2013 by Toitjie

[MandyW]

Hey Toitjie. Thanks for your reply.

ACT age cut off is 30 April. So if they turned 7 after 30 April, they will go to Year/Grade 1 that year. But if they turn 7 before pril, they will go to Year/Grade 2.

Thank goodness both my kids are towards the end of the year, so they still go into the right grade over there. Otherwise they'd actually be skipping a year.

Your child who's birthday is in April would probably fit in either age wise as he/she is on the boarder, so you could decide which grade is more apporpriate.

[Toitjie]

Thanx Mandy......on the Wikipedia link it says

• Grade/Year 1: 6- to 7-year-olds
• Grade/Year 2: 7- to 8-year-olds
• Grade/Year 3: 8- to 9-year-olds
• Grade/Year 4: 9- to 10-year-olds

Kayla is now in Grade 3 and will be 10 years old 2 April next year so it slots in with year 4, and Aiden is now Grade 2 and will be 8 next week, so 9 next year which slots in with year 3.

Or am I calculating it incorrectly? I would prefer to keep them exactly as they are now, one year apart...

[MandyW]

That sounds right.

I actually emailed one of the schools in ACT - think it was Amaroo school, where the lady was really helpfull and got back to me straight away. She confirmed my kids for me - Daughter 5 in Nov next year will go to Pre-school and Son 8 in Oct next year will be in Year 1.

So maybe try doing that?

[Gizmo]

Not sure about Canberra, but in WA, they start learning to read in kindy - age 4. In preprimary, age 5 they are reading simple books. Year 1 its chapter books. Our Daughter is now 7 in year two and she has read all of the Roald Dahl books and is now currently reading Enid Blytons Malory Towers books.

I would try to get into reading in SA to make the transition less. I have heard really good things about "Reading Eggs".

Re school ages, yes, year one is 6-7 year olds, BUT, it depends when their birthday is. All the states are different in this regard which makes it a bit of a pain. In WA, the year you are in depends if you are born before or after 30th June.

I think that Canberra the date is April? If you google 'school age Canberra' you should find some ACT links to the education department there.

[Mikej]

I have heard really good things about "Reading Eggs".

Reading eggs is really good I felt it helped our kids a lot. It is a fun way to learn to read. The kids do age appropriate reading activities and earn golden eggs for correct answers. Once they have earned enough eggs they can play a game so there is great incentive to get it right and it worked for our kids.

My youngest is in year 1 and the reading ability varies a lot from kids who need to sound out basic words slowly to one or two kids who can read almost anything fluently. Most children fall between the two extremes. Basic principles were covered in kindi and reading in earnest started in pre-primary.

[Toitjie]

I have to echo what Gizmo said about Reading Eggs...absolutely faboulus site!

[Sibella]

Not to worry if he's not up to speed, my middle daughter struggles with reading and she attends a special 'reading recovery' class every day at school to help with her reading. She is in a Christian private school but I know the public schools also offers assistance to children who need extra help.

[Toitjie]

oooh...I loved this quote when I googled "School age Canberra"

Canberra’s school system is recognised as the best in Australia. We have the highest retention rate of students completing secondary schooling and highest percentage of students gaining tertiary entrance in the country

[Toitjie]

Oh my goodness...I just saw on the Amaroo Primary website the list of needed stationary for year 3 and 4....for year 3 the last item is Primary French workbook 1 and for year 4 (where my oldest will be) its already Primary French workbook 2...

these kids will have to cope with communicating in English only, and now French too. I guess its good but still....

[Bams]

Toitjie that sounds hectic...

My daughter is attending a Tina Cowley reading school and they also offer maths classes. She has been going since Jan till date and her teacher at school her in SA (semi-private school) commented on her last report how great her reading has improved. Her birthday is only in December so she is the youngest in the class and therefore needs that extra bit.

In October she will be changing over from the reading to maths, as this seems to be needing some attention. (Wish I had money to do both, but we have to safe for that visa...)

Luckily the kids adjust and learn quickly and from what I have heard and read the Oz teachers are more than willing to help a child, it is not just a job...

[Toitjie]

I got the timetable and if I work strictly according to that, my kids will be separated a further year. Kayla is supposed to go to Grade 4 but according to the table she should be in year 5 next year. I think if I can, I will ask that she rather be in year 4

2014 & 2013 Enrolment birthdates.pdf

[HansaPlease]

My son is in kinder, turns 5 soon and starts school next year. We asked his school what he should be able to do in terms of reading and writing when he starts and should we be practising anything with him.

Their answer was that the most ideal scenario for them is a child that turns up happy, knowing he is loved and is comfortable with himself, and that's all. Leave all the academic stuff to them. Kids catch up quickly.

That was their message anyway. I like it.

[McCabes]

Hansa that is a great answer! I guess the rest sorts itself out when they're happy and healthy - kids are naturally curious

Mandy if you are worried there are lots of things you can try. Reading eggs has a great reputation. There's also Starfall.com which has great games that build reading skills as well

I taught my son to read in Grade R as his teacher had no interest and didn't care that he already knew all the letterland stuff they were teaching in that year... anyway.

So, if it helps, we did this:

Letterland alphabet - I just stuck the letterland characters on his cupboard doors. We'd revise a few times a week, once he had it down I started asking what does "dog" start with? end with? what's in the middle?

Sight words - googled lists for kindergarten first. I did flash cards first as my son responded so well to those - we played snap with them and had races to see how fast he could go through the set. Later i'd handwrite words he was interested in (like pirate themed words) and put them up on the wall in his room.

Free online early readers - http://marriottmd.com/sam/ I loved these, they really start off slowly and build on what they know so they are "reading" before they realise it. They also get to colour the books in

We also read every day as part of our bedtime routine - if he's not too tired I get him to read a page here and there and I do the rest.

Once we got about halfway through those, he had started Grade 1 and started the schools reading program. He then skipped all the "shared" reading books and went straight to the independant readers It's still "behind" what the schools overseas expect from kids, but I'm glad he has a good foundation.

Also, I highly recommend doing lots of playdough and crafts - get crepe paper and cut it into little pieces for him to roll up and glue to a picture to "colour" it in. That and wheelbarrow walking, ballskills - all are great preparation for learning to write, they need their hand muscles to be quite strong and to be able to use them well for writing to come easily.

Sorry I've probably said too much... it's a matter close to my heart.

PS I've also heard really great things about the BOB books - you can get them through edukits.co.za

Edited September 27, 2013 by McCabes

[MandyW]

Wow, thanks everyone! ou guys are great!

So I guess i won't stress about it and trust in their school teachers. But i will start with a bit more home prep and try see if we can get him a bit further. Thanks for all the tips and sites!

My sons writing skills are coming on well, so i think he'll cope with that. French! - may be a challenge but we'll definitely leave that to the teachers :-)

@Toitjie - I'm sure they'll be happy to keep your daughter in year 3, especially since she is so close to the cut off date. And she won't have any issues with being so much older than the other kids. I would do that rather than letting her skip a whole year.

[AndreaL]

My son turned 8 in February and is in year 3 Queensland, so I'm thinking that if your son is 7 before the end of April next year he should be in year 2?

Toitjie, don't worry too much about LOTE ( Language Other Than English) it is usually fairly basic and perhaps one lesson a week.

Reading Eggs is great and the schools here in QLD used it in year 1 etc when the kids had computer lab.

Hansaplease is correct, schools here realise that a happy adjusted child who is inspired with a love of learning will do fine.

I have to point out that each child's ability is quite varied in the early years with regard to reading. At my sons school the children are tested and giving a reading level of between 1 and 28 and that ranges from basic reading of " The car is red", The car is blue" etc right up to chapter books where children have to make inferences about the characters and the moral of the story ( this is all quite normal within one class of scholars) . Education is aimed with the individual in mind rather than "all children of this age must be able to do xyz"

Kids have an innate ability to learn.......my tip to parents new to the country is to take note of what your child is capable of at the start of the year and again at the end of the year, especially in the early years, the amount they can absorb is amazing.

[MandyW]

@AndreaL - my son is turning 6 now and only 7 in Oct 2014. So definitely Year 1 next year. I was really glad his birthday isn't before April. Thanks though :-)

[Sibella]

Toitjie hopefully you'll be able to send your daughter to Year 4. My middle daughter's birthday is also in April so when we arrived from the UK she was actually supposed to go into Prep but I sent her back to kinder (pre-school) and she started prep when she was five (turning six in April). I decided to keep her back after discussions with a few head teachers. Here in Victoria, even though the cut off date is April, the youngest kids in the class normally have November or latest December birthdays. My eldest has an October birthday and she is one of the youngest in her class.

If they are born in the next year parents mostly keep them back. I'm very glad I did as she is now in Grade 1 and still struggling a bit and getting a lot of help at school. Also when they are in high school being the youngest is difficult in terms of maturity and getting their license etc.

But like I said the schools in Vic are very flexible regarding age, not sure if ACT are like that as well.

[AndreaL]

@AndreaL - my son is turning 6 now and only 7 in Oct 2014. So definitely Year 1 next year. I was really glad his birthday isn't before April. Thanks though :-)

Ah, thanks for clearing that up, I got confused when you said "Son 8 in Oct next year will be in Year 1"

My kids birthdays are both at the start of the year, so they both were just turning 6 when they started year 1, here in Qld, our cut off is June 30.

[elleneo]

Cutoff in VIC is 30 April, Children have to start formal schooling ( called prep in VIC, called Kinder in NSW) the year they turn 6, you can put them in earlier if they turn 5 before the cutoff date.My little girl turned 5 end of Feb and started Prep that year, so for her first month of schooling she was 4. It all depends on your childs emotional and academic readiness, if they can read great, but no point putting them in if they emotionally not mature enough to handle the school environment..

She is one of the youngest in her class but we havnt had any issues so far and she is now in year 1 in Sydney, where the cutoff is later I think June.

All the best with your new schooling adventure!

[miraclebabycaw]

@Mandy. You might find your child gets put into reception especially if he cannot fully read and write. Having done reception in South Africa does not guarantee he will go into Year 1 as reception in South Africa (or grade 0) is no way like Reception or Grade 0 here in Oz. I also thought my son would go to year 1 this year (turns 7 beginning December) as that is where he should be, but because he could not read or write fully he was put back in reception. Same went for friends of ours whose daughter turned 6 at the beginning of the year. I thought it might have been because we chose private, but all the government schools we queried said the exact same thing. My daughter on the other hand left at the end of year 6 last year and went into year 8 here because she was age appropriate for year 8, had good grades and was mature. They sat with her, chatted to her and said she would be better off in year 8. Has taken her a while to catch up especially in maths (she finally did well this 3rd term) BUT she achieved in the top 8% for ICAS exams for English for SA and NT so has settled exceptionally well.

[AndreaL]

My daughter had just turned 7 the day school started when we came to Perth in January 2006, she had never been to school, only a sort of play school in Namibia and could not read or write. The school put her into year 1 ( the age appropriate year). This was a Catholic school............within a couple of weeks she was reading and writing (very badly) by year 2 she was on par or slightly above and by year 3 she was spelling and reading at a 13 year old level.

We moved to Albany in May of 2007 when she was in year 2 and they (state school) thought she should be in year 3, I was a little worried by this, so they put her in a year 2/3 composite class and told me that if she coped well she would have the year 3 work and if she struggled, year 2.............she did just fine, so skipped most of year 2.

I do think that both my kids have strong language skills and that has probably helped them, Adam is now year 3 and also did the ICAS, spelling, reading and math and got HD, D and HD, which means he is in the upper levels of his peers.

I have no idea why, but think kids are capable of a lot more than we think, and the schools are pretty good at seeing that your child is where they should be. The schools are good in that they cater for every child.

[MandyW]

Thanks everyone. We have been working hard on getting my son up to speed with his letters, etc in the hope that it'll help with his reading. But have decided to stop stressing about it and leave it up to the schools once we get there.

Thanks for the info though. It seems like they look at each individual child and see what would be best for them.