‘At Home in School’ is a one year transition programme specifically developed from the Lifestart Growing Child programme to address the key characteristics of school readiness: child health, speech and language skills, literacy and numeracy, and self-regulation.
Aims of At Home in School
The primary aim of the programme is to enhance life chances by increasing the child’s potential to succeed within formal education through:
- Promoting the home learning environment,
- Involving parents in early formal education,
- Supporting a smooth transition from home or nursery into formal education
- Enhancing partnership working between parents, schools and children
Delivery Mechanism
At Home in School programme is delivered through 12 monthly home visits from a trained Lifestart Family Visitor – six visits are delivered prior to school entry and six post entry.
In preparation for this important transition, the Family Visitor presents the programme information to the parent(s), discusses the child’s progress, and demonstrates learning activities.
All participating families receive age appropriate learning resources which parents can use in the home with their child, including practical activity packs and a variety of library books.
The programme raises awareness and shares learning about topics such as:
- Establishing routine and preparing for school routine
- Positive discipline
- Pre-writing skills, reading and understanding numbers
- Art, colour, basic shapes
- Language development and directional words
- Settling in at school
- Independence
- Imaginative play
- Practical partnership
- Self-esteem and confidence
- Communication with the teacher
- The school canteen
Interactive parent/child workshops which provide experiential learning in art, story, music and messy play can also be delivered in partnership with the specific schools.
Outcomes
At the end of this programme:
- Children will be more prepared socially, intellectually and emotionally for the experience of school
- Parents will be better able to support their children’s learning and formal education
- Parents will have improved awareness of the importance of their continuing role in their child’s education into the future
Evaluation
The ‘At Home in School’ programme has been independently evaluated Lifestart AHIS Review 2012
For further information on the At Home In School programme please contact headoffice@lifestartfoundation.org