::: tinternvale primary school
Last week we were invited to visit Tinternvale Primary School in East Ringwood in the eastern suburbs of Melbourne. Their Prep rooms are new, purpose-built rooms …
Hayley's room
Meg's room
Katherine's room
three modules wrapped around the office and storeroom areas.
There is a huge deck at the front, which each class room has direct access to …
and the same applies with the fenced off outside play area behind which enables the children to enjoy indoor/outdoor play. It hadn’t been set up for play the day we arrived as the weather during the morning was inclement, but the staff were determined the children would still get out there during the day!
The rooms have concertina doors to shut them off if they wish, but as the children are so quiet and engaged in their play, so far they haven’t had the need to do that.
The children are free to roam between all three rooms if they wish as each room complements the other two – similar work stations with different twists to the learning.
They all had library corners with rainbow mosquito nets giving the children some privacy and peace …
they had sensory areas …
concentrating on all of the five senses…
including an ‘emotions’ area
There was a variety of science tables …
exploring life cycles …
in particular butterflies and moths.
Maths tables …
combined sensory activities such as sand …
and water crystals - how clever!
They all had computer stations …
as well as ‘invention areas’ …
and dramatic play spaces such as the hair dressing salon …
school room, including a canteen …
and a restaurant …
complete with delicious food – YUM! …
Check out this irresistible fairy station!
They had a construction corner which combined maths with the play …
look at those old Cuisinaire rods – we knew they were too good to throw away! …
The children are looking at the human skeleton and had X-rays they could view on a light box …
and a great skelton construction set.
Here at Tinternvale Primary School …
we saw a very print rich environment …
with a variety of writing tables …
leading to the production …
of very encouraging results!
"The grass with the ferees (fairies)"
(and just look at those organised writing implements!)…
The Tinternvale Prep rooms have a warm, inviting and exciting feel to them. The staff, who are all extremely welcoming and friendly have had a huge amount of input into the planning of the centre and say that while it is still a work in progress, they are very proud of where they are at in this adventure called play based learning.
Tinternvale Primary School is situated on Tintern Avenue, Ringwood East, Victoria, Australia (Melways Reference 71 C3 ).
This information has been added to our Education Directory page.
I am always so impressed with the efforts of the early childhood teachers in Victoria that you write about. They are always at the cutting edge. Well done and thanks for setting the benchmark
By the way…In many of the posts that I see, tables often seem to cater to two children at a time. Is there a theory behind this?
::: Thanks Bianca! It appears to us, as we visit these schools implementing play based learning, that the environments they are creating is a reflection of the philosophy. Creating intimate, non threatening, irresistible environments for small groups is part of the overall idea of catering to all children’s needs. Of course more children are welcome in these areas too. It’s simply a case of ‘pull up a chair my friend’!
Oh….thank you for the post.
I used to go to Tintern when I was in highschool, back in 1994-1995.
This is a wonderful post, reminded me of my school years.
Regards,
Helen
::: Thanks Helen … And you’re welcome
State schools are GREAT schools aren’t they!! Tinternvale P.S. looks amazing.
::: State schools ARE great schools Ruth!
As a parent of a prep currently at Tinternvale, I am so pleased with this method of teaching. She is so excited to go to school each day, and it is a pleasure to watch her learn and want to learn.
I wish this method was available 4 years ago when my other two children were in prep, as it is wonderful and I cannot praise enough.
Our prep teachers are a wonderful asset to Tinternvale Primary.
::: Lauren thank you so much for your comment. Something we hear over and over again from parents who’s children attend play based schools is exactly what you said … “She is so excited to go to school each day” !!
I just love this post…the dedication and commitment from the prep teachers at Tinternvale is obvious. What a lucky school community
::: Lucky, lucky teachers Bianca … Lucky, lucky children!
