Kindergarten can be a scary place for a four-and-a-half-year old. New faces, a new desk and teacher that are away from the comforts of home.
But the Chinook’s Edge School Division is trying to make the transition a little smoother with a special book created by staff called Ready, Set, Go!
The book tells a day-in-the-life of one student in kindergarten class, meeting his teacher for the first time, learning a new song and finding out about the weather.
It shows the class making crafts, playing at recess and having a snack.
The book was written by Sandy Bexon, communications officer at Chinook’s Edge, with drawings by artist Jan Haugen, who does transportation administrative support with the division, and designed and laid out by Mandy Wasdal, who is the assistant to the superintendent. They have been working on the project for the past year.
“Our intention and our goal was to help young kids be excited about starting school and to be excited about all the adventures waiting for them and I think the illustrations really depict that,” Bexon said.
She spent time in a kindergarten class to get a feel for what a typical day is like, took pictures and wrote the tale. She shared the information with Haugen who drew the colourful pictures and Wasdal put it all together.
A book will be put into every one of the 800 Chinook’s Edge kindergarten students’ welcome packages.
Others will be placed at the schools, daycares and preschools, medical clinics and public offices in the Chinook’s Edge School Division so that younger children will have a chance to see all the things waiting for them at school.
Bexon said in the past as a kindergarten promotion they have sent out postcards to every household throughout the division, welcoming new students.
This year the book initiative has cost half the money of the postcard campaign and adds a personal touch to a special transition in a child’s life.
The division has printed 5,000 at a cost of $3,600, with Bexon, Haugen and Wasdal volunteering their time to work on the book. The book is a project of the Communications Working Group, which is a committee of principals from across the division who provide input into communication strategies.
“When they read this book, kids will know how welcome they are at our schools and how exciting it is to get ready to come to kindergarten,” said Heather Henderson-Hill, deputy superintendent and Communications Working Group liaison.
“To me the book says, ‘We care about you and we want you to be part of Chinook’s Edge’. That’s exactly how we want all our students to feel every day.”
sobrien@www.reddeeradvocate.com