I've learned not to buy a specific large lunch box, but lots of littler containers and an insulated bag. It's too hot for too long here not to. We only have canteen (The Desert Diner lol) 2 days a week, and the options are not great.
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I've learned not to buy a specific large lunch box, but lots of littler containers and an insulated bag. It's too hot for too long here not to. We only have canteen (The Desert Diner lol) 2 days a week, and the options are not great.
We use the smash nude food large containers, I usually buy two when on sae as they don't last the year, I use cheap drink bottles
I do what Kim does, as we live in a very hot climate too. Small containers in an insulated bag with ice blocks inside it.
The brand we have are sistema you can fit two sandwiches and lots of snacks in them and they are bpa free. Dd's class are so rough with them even the Tupperware ones have broken. The boys throw their bags around and wrestle like sumo's and as they eat on concrete the boxes are scuffed and pushed around. None of the other ones we tried lasted a term.
Ok... Post Christmas we are looking out for sistema, nude food or smash, or a combination of all of the above :lol:
I do love the small container idea, its what's we've been doing for kinder but as I said above she needs more independence.
My sister has just bought all new Tupperware for her DD and DS. Her DD is in prep as well, DS in last year of kinder. Anyway, she's bought these new large insulated lunch box things, plus the large sandwich keeper plus things (that are worth I think $60 or something) and new water bottles. Much like you guys, I don't want to be sending that sort of brand new expensive Tupperware to school.
I can't get my DH to remember all the bits, can't really expect the kids. Though I trust the kids with proper containers. DH just gets chinese takeaway ones lol.
On the excursion we went on with kinder on Thurs, one of DD's little friends lost her water bottle. One minute it was there, the next gone. I'd be devastated if that need to a new Tupperware bottle.
So, things are getting real here.
We've got our prep countdown calendar on the fridge and are marking off each day.
We've bought the last few bits and pieces for DD's school uniform - socks, skivvies for under dress/polo when it is cold, mini shorts for under her dress, two types of pants that she can try and see which one she prefers, for when it gets colder.
Washed it all today to take advantage of the Melbourne heat so now it's all dry and ready to be somehow sorted into her very full drawers!
We also picked out a lunchbox on New Year's Day - she chose a Smash one. And a set of Sistema containers that I know she can open.
Oh and shoes - we got shoes. Went for an upper middle range :lol: not the super expensive Clarks but a step or two down and on sale so that works well for me :)
It's all happening!
How is everyone else's little ones going in the lead up to the big event?
My DD starts Prep in QLD :)
I have got to get her Uniforms when the shop opens up again In a couple of weeks.
Got her socks and new little sports shorts in her school colors and lots of hair accessories too.
Waiting on lunch boxes - not sure what to do. Have got a bag left over from last year, just need to find some lunch containers that will fit them - or start out with a whole new system.
DD1 is all excited, we've got all the uniform stuff just need to go looking for shoes.
Her book list is like 5 items (benefit of a small school with plenty of funding)
Still need to get a lunch box & she hasn't decided if she wants a new bag... I think she will as we get closer!
We've got the count down on the fridge too, she's so excited.
She starts on the 29th, does everyone else start then too?
Unifroms will be gotten monday and new back pack. Got a tupper wear lunchbox from dj's auntie N & her Dh. And shoes will be cheapies from kmart as dj crawls so they last forever and if they get lost its not a huge blow.
We start on the 29th Zavara, because its a small school, they don't do a staged approach with the kinders like the other schools in the area.
We have all the uniform except white sport socks, I keep forgetting I need white ones too!! And shoes, will probably get those Tuesday. Then its stationery and lunch box shopping to go. Sort of makes it all more real.
We start 29th too and then Wednesdays off for 4 weeks and 2 weeks of 9:30-3.
Off to get uniform and shoes next week and book list stuff is all covered in fees.
He is super excited and so is DD who will be in grade 1 and looking out for him!
We start on the 31st. All the other kids start on 30th and the preps the next day. We do have a teacher meeting on the 30th though. We already know the teacher well so we are happy about that.
Uniform is all sorted courtesy of dd1 hand-me-downs and even the shoes fit! Fortunately we invested in good ones with that purpose in mind and they have lasted well. I just had to get socks and undies for her. Lunch boxes haven't been purchased yet - the kids will come with me to choose one day when I can be bothered.
We don't get a book list. We just pay a levy at the start of the year that covers all excursions and classroom stationery items.
DS starts on the 28th the same as the rest of the school. He just goes straight into full days.
He picked the most awful bag lol, but I guess if he's happy to carry it, who am i to judge? No lunchbox yet. I had to chuck last year's out as we had a mould issue. Well he had a mould issue and I wasn't cleaning it out.
The benefit of a 47% Koori population is the we don't have to have particular hats or coloured socks or shoes. They just have to have them. I bought DS black socks. And thankfully since both the girls have just shot up a couple of sizes, DS can get away with last year's sneakers for a while yet.
We also usually have intensive swimming for a fortnight within the first month, so I'll have to make sure we have enough non saggy togs that fit.
Thankfully my GF is a hairdresser, do I don't have to stress about getting them to the hairdressers for a cut.
Will get DS uniform when the uniform shop opens on the 24th. DD1 will need new shirts too I think.
We do that with stationery and books too, the fee thing. It's great but I love buying stationery so I was looking forward to an excuse to buy some!! :)
DD starts on the 30th, 9am-1pm. 31st is 9am-1pm. Then she does four weeks with no Wednesday but normal hours and then from March she's full time.
DS1 starts the 30th 9-1 same the 31st then mon 3rd start full days with Wednesdays off for feb then full time start of march.
We have bought bag from school. Have a few tops and shorts, need 2 more tops but they had ran out so should have just before school starts.
We need to go drink bottle and lunch box shopping, I have bought a set of containers at Coles with spider man on them for him.
Not sure which sort of lunch bag to get the tall one with Velcro at top or the one with a zip around edge.
It is very exciting in this house.
Jaz starts on 3 Feb. First week is 9am-1pm mon/tues/thurs/fri. Then the next week they go 9am-3.30pm but don't go on Wednesday until week started 10 march. Meant I have had to juggle work days and temporarily change nursery days for Keira, but work has been great. We have all summer uniform and will worry about winter uniform closer to time. About to go make a count down calendar now!
We have to supply our own stationery labelled for our childs use, school fees include all excersions, book fees, church levy etc, no stationery.
We start full time, full days, full weeks. I didn't realise so many schools didn't. :O
I couldn't help myself and brought a few things today, still no socks though!! :doh: Can't wait until we do the full shop and our labels come! How sad am I? haha
I was thinking of getting one of those cool bags with the velcro on top as the ones with the zip seemed a bit big for his bag, but then I worry it won't stop any condensation and leaks getting into the main bag. Eeeep!
And Velcro doesn't last so well, especially getting kicked around in a school bag.
BlackCat, was a bit disappointed to realise I wouldn't get to label & cover things this year for DS lol.
We start the 28th (I think). I would have expected more info from the school but so far it's been just the one text message to say who his teacher is. Is that normal at this stage?
We ordered uniforms last year and at the time they said they would let us know when they came in, & that they were expected towards the end of Jan. I bought a few pairs of shorts for DS from Target because the school ones didn't come in a small enough size & they allow kids to wear other shorts provided they are grey. I got him some plain black sneakers from Target. I can't recall if they have a sock policy so I'm just going to use the ones he has until they say something.
I'm reusing DS's kindy lunchbox because when I gave it a good scrub, it came up really well & I haven't found one I like enough to replace it with. We did replace drink bottles though because all the one we have are just gross. I can't wait to throw them all in the bin. I think I need a few more before we can toss the old ones though lol.
When we put in DS's enrolment form, it had a place to put their friend's names in. I put down 3 names for DS and so far, one is no longer going to that school, & the other is in a different class. The third I changed my mind about so I'm sure DS will be in the same class as him :/ I hope he will have some friends in his class as I think that will help him. Their is about 15+ kids from his kindy going to that school.
DD's school is tiny, I've had very little info outside of some emails & the news letter.
I ordered uniforms & picked them up before school finished last year.
To be 100% honest I have no idea what fees cover but at $60 for the year I'm not fussed if it's not a great deal, I paid over $300 a term for kinder so I'm pretty pleased with school :p
Still have to figure out shoes for her too, she scuffs her toes & heels so I'm thinking maybe just some basic Grosby Mary Jane style shoes from Big W for now while her feet are still growing quickly & she's ruining shoes...
Runners I'm not sure, I doubt with such a small school that they would have too much issue on color but will have to check I think.
Rowellen, we got stacks of info towards the end of last year - a big info booklet from the parent info night, plus a big letter with handouts from when we enrolled, plus more info when we started transition. Since then, not much. An email from DD's teacher, we then had a brief meeting with her, and she said to email her if we had any questions, but we've not heard anything else. Bit strange. But I guess standard?
ZF - our fees are a lot higher - we are paying $300 for the year. Still a lot less than kinder for us too!! We got a whole breakdown of what we are paying for, which was great. A spreadsheet, very clear.
We got the official uniform bits last year too - three dresses, two skorts, two polos, one zip up jumper, one windbreaker jacket type thing and an art smock. Oh and hat and school bag. I was a bit annoyed - this year they changed the polo, so instead of a plain red one with logo, which means you could buy a Target polo and iron on a logo which you bought from the school for $3, you now have to buy a fancy black and red polo from the school. Oh well. At least the polos the DSes can wear. The dresses I will be trying to sell somewhere when DD grows out of them.
We're paying more again, but its still cheaper than daycare lol.
The uniform made me a little cranky as almost everything has the school logo on it, is it really necessary to have an emblem on hat, t-shirt and shorts, all being worn at once. Likewise OP you used to be able to buy the emblem and sew it on, not anymore! But I guess that's the price you pay when you go private. So annoying though, it never used to be like that. That said, I only bought one full set of uniform new, the rest is from the school pool and less than half price for things that are virtually new. I only bought a summer uniform though, still need to get winter but I'll sort that half way through term. Tuesday for shoes and socks! (mustn't forget the socks - again!!)
Rowellen I must say I am much more excited about stationery shopping than DS is lol!! I also can't wait to label it all, Im sure the novelty will wear off soon enough lol
We had information overload, a folder over an inch thick of information to read through was given to us at orientation. Since then, nothing. I wasn't expecting anything though as the book of information pretty much covered EVERYTHING you could ever wonder about lol
Kim - thanks for that, Ill keep it in mind when having a look for sure! Spot the first time kindy mum hehehe.
Any suggestions on leak proof drink bottles, and how big do you get them? I'm going to get him to test the lunch boxes etc at the store to make sure he can open and close them on his own.
Wow Rowellan, no 'what to expect at/bring to big school' type info?
We got a little pack too, plus had a meeting with prospective teachers (before we knew who he got).
We got a folder but i dont know bus times (djs getting the bus to/from school from the 2nd day)
Uniforms all tops are school logo'd but bottoms are black shorts/pants and black shoes... And black socks, lol the whole uniform is black, which is good as it means no soaking for me, lol.
I had a quick look at bags but i think i'll need to take dj's lunch box in for a size up. As his drink bottle is a 1lt one (he can drink 2lt+ a day) and also needs to fit a diary hat and what ever else, spare black shirts and shorts i think... I also need to get some chewy tube and a bag of nappies for him to keep at school. Ohh and organise two tubes for the old pram until we get a push chair for him.
As for school fee's the special school is $90 a term. I have to call them and get the fine detales of bus times, who to call if he's sick and also who i give his medications to as well.
I have to get some smocks sewn and to organise school bags. DD2 needs a proper one and I need to see if they will repair or replace DD1's. I like the shape and size of the logo'd school bag, but the strap is tearing off.
We bought DSs school shoes yesterday - must have plain white sneakers and black school shoes. Went and got him properly fitted as he was a hip Dysplasia baby and had feet issues when he was younger so I am a bit of a decent shoe nazi as a result. However we got the ascent school shoes from the Athletes foot and some air flex sneakers from betts that are awesome.
Now to get DS to learn to tie laces!!
What's easier - the single or double loop??
Rowellen, we were given an info pack in orientation and it covers pretty much everything.
Blackcat, I agree with the zip. The Velcro lunch box closures wear out and tend to open in the bag, especially when shoved in upside down. I wouldn't get a big drink bottle, they are very heavy and kids drink from the water fountains mainly anyway. I found a good systema twist top one that worked well last year and it was a nice size.
I'm glad I am not the only one who is a tad disappointed not to have anything to label! We just pay $100 towards communal stationary and art supplies for prep.
I bought some skorts for dd last week and this morning we have tried them on. She was so excited and tried on pretty much every type of hair band and clip I bought as well.
We have no prep specific info at all. Just the school policy info which is a slim folder. But they do send out newsletters, and if know the starting time is 8:45am, so I guess we will just turn up and it will work out. I still have to go and get shirts and sports uniform. Oh and shoes! But I think dd is right bang smack in the middle of a growth spurt, so I am happy to wait until last min. She is getting so big!
**Just changed the thread title to Foundation to be inline with the Australian Curriculum **
Astride they don't call it foundation in Qld. It is only known as prep here.
Only Prep in Vic as well.
It's supposed to be foundation Australia wide, we are in Vic and it's being called foundation at our school.
Didn't we discuss this a few pages back? It's not a term generally used or known as yet but seems to be something that will be or is being implemented slowly? Australia-wide?
AusVELS - Overview - Levels
Exploring the Australian Curriculum
There are three key components to the Australian Curriculum website:
:
Exploring the Australian Curriculum
There are three key components to the Australian Curriculum website:
Foundation to Year 10 – providing access to curriculum for learning areas or subjects; information about the general capabilities including continua for each capability; and information about the cross-curriculum priorities
Senior secondary – providing access to curriculum for senior secondary subject
Student diversity – providing access to information for using the Australian Curriculum to meet diverse learning needs. This includes students with disability; gifted and talented students; and Students for whom English is an additional language or dialect
Need to check if dd2 fits into the school shoes that dd1 has outgrown! Have to rearrange her room this weeks do she can reach her dresses and cardi herself as we are going away for 10 days.
Oh yes we did get some info at the parent night. I will have a look at that and see if I've missed something. I would have thought we would have got more info regarding where to go first day, how long to stay, how & when to pay the fees, that sort of thing. Maybe I'm over thinking it and it will all be totally obvious on the day. I'm still waiting on uniforms so when they come in, I will just ask them then.
I'm pleased DSs school is very informative. They have had info sessions and notices etc at all the transition days. We know exactly what time his interview is, and then what day and what time to come to school on the first day and what is expected of parents (I.e. Walk them to the class, kiss, go, cry a little if you need to on the way home!). They have been very specific which is great for me! I need to know all these things!
School shoes arrived from online shopping on Friday and I returned the ones that didn't fit this morning -free post. I'm truly not lazy! I just am not good at taking my children shopping - we never quite get it right. They shoes were the most expensive I've bought for him yet, but it was a no brainer when you think how many miles he has to cover in them.
Yes that.:
Plus from a fairness to all members, why should the thread be only called Prep, when there are many terms being used across Australia? Fairer to use one term, regardless of what it is, than use one term that is only correct for a few States.