Dear Family,

We are excited to announce our upcoming School Holiday Program: School Readiness Group. Guided by the principles of Occupational Therapy and the Alert Program, our small-group, play-based sessions are designed to help your child develop the essential skills, motor coordination, and confidence they need for a seamless and happy transition to the classroom.

Why is school readiness and participation important?

Starting school is one of the biggest milestones in a child’s life. School readiness goes beyond one’s academic and learning ability. Readiness is about a child’s ability to smoothly transition into a new environment, engage with peers, and actively participate in the everyday “jobs” of being a student.

When children are equipped with the right foundational skills, they don’t just survive the school day—they thrive.

Occupational Therapy involves looking at school through the lens of participation. A child who can participate fully is a child who can learn, make friends, and build self-esteem.

Why is it so critical?

• Builds Social and Emotional Resilience:
  School requires children to share, take turns, regulate big emotions, and navigate the playground. Readying these skills helps children form meaningful friendships and handle the inevitable bumps in the road with confidence.
• Executive & Cognitive Development:
  Following multi-step instructions, sitting and joining the group during circle time, and packing a school bag require focus, memory, and self-control. Developing these cognitive skills early prevents classroom burnout and frustration.
• Mastery of Everyday Physical Tasks:
  From holding a pencil and cutting with scissors to managing zippers on a coat, climbing on the playground, or sitting upright at a table, fine and gross motor skills are essential for independence. When these tasks become second nature, children can focus their energy on learning.
• Reduces Anxiety and School Avoidance:
  When a child feels capable of meeting the daily demands of school, their anxiety drops. Early success builds a positive association with learning that can last a lifetime.

Children don’t develop these skills overnight, and every child learns at their own pace. Our program is uniquely designed by paediatric occupational therapists who understand the science behind childhood development.

Key Learning Areas & Outcomes:

• Emotional Regulation:
  Using the principles of the Alert Program, children learn to recognise body signals and connect them to “engine speeds.” We introduce sensory tools that help them feel calm, focused, and ready to learn.
• Fine Motor & Hand Readiness:
  We focus on building hand and finger strength to support pencil grasp and writing endurance, alongside two-handed coordination tasks like cutting and managing lunchboxes.
• Social Skills & Classroom Readiness:
  Group play elements teach children vital cooperation habits such as sharing, turn-taking, managing transition routines, and building classroom “sitting stamina.”
• Why a Group Setting?
  Peer environments are ideal for school readiness. They allow children to learn social strategies from their peers in real-time, building the confidence and independence required for school.