Handy Helpers

Below are some handy tools that may be helpful when supporting your child at home. If there is anything else you think you may need, please contact your classroom teacher.

The Alphabet

It is important for your child to be able to read the letters of the alphabet in both lowercase and uppercase. This includes both the letter name and sound.

Your child can use their alphabet tile cards at home to improve their letter name and sound recall and then move on to creating words to practise reading by blending sounds. We have provided these cards below in two different fonts as we learn to write in Victorian Modern Cursive but the Little Learners Love Literacy program uses Sassoon font. It is helpful for our students to recognise these two fonts and understand that letters can appear different when used in various places.

Cued Articulation

We use cued articulation to support students when teaching our sounds each week. This video is from the creator Jane Passey, showing the signs for different sounds.

Handwriting

We teach our students to write using Victorian Modern Cursive. The documents below demonstrate the correct formation of the letters so that you can support your child with practising at home. The green dot indicates where to start forming the letter, then follow the arrow to finish at the red dot.

If you would like to download this font to your computer to help your child practise their handwriting you can do so here.

Pencil Grip

Correct pencil grip is important to ensure students can write neatly and efficiently. Below is a child-friendly video explaining the tripod grip that we teach at school so that you can support your child at home. Don't forget about resting the pencil on the pillow (the soft part of the hand between the thumb and index finger).

Our national anthem

We sing both verses of the Australian national anthem at every Monday assembly. It would be very helpful for the Preps to have a little practice at home to help them learn the words. Here is the music and lyrics to our anthem:

Helpful videos

There are a lot of fantastic videos on Youtube to support learning. Below are two different alphabet songs as well as a link to the Danny Go page which has a lot of different learning videos.

Support for parents

Having a child in Prep is an important time for not only students but parents as well. Whilst your classroom teachers and our school leadership team are always happy to help answer your questions, there are also a lot of other sources available to you to support you on this journey. Below are links to the Victorian Government school parent guidance page, the Services Victoria parent support page, and the Anglicare Victoria ParentZone.