It is hard to believe how much our children have grown since the beginning of the year. Please know that much thought goes into preparing class groups for next year and a great deal of consideration is given to every child on where they are best placed. Some children will stay in Cooinda with some familiar friends and have the opportunity to maintain established friendships, with the potential to branch out to make new Cooinda friends. The older cohort of children will move into one of the two Prep class.

Developing friendships is an important aspect of early childhood. Children’s friendships are so much more than having someone to play with. Friendships provide a platform for children to develop and practice social interaction skills with the familiar responses of their friends.

As our children grow and learn how to manage friendships, they are developing important positive social skills from an early age which greatly assists their understanding of relationships. The children can learn to negotiate, empathise, build resilience, listen to others, help others, welcome others, stand up for themselves, stand up for others, ask questions and genuinely have an interest in people outside their immediate family. Early friendships not only support children in building self-esteem and confidence but also assist in them developing their own identity and sense of belonging.

It is so rewarding as educators to watch our children at play and observe all the beautiful friendships forming and taking place around us. Recent research suggests that friendships in the Early Childhood years not only increases a child’s sense of belonging but teaches them “Important social skills, such as being sensitive to another’s viewpoints, learning the rules of conversation and age-appropriate behaviours” (Schwartz, 2016)

We feel proud and privileged to be able to watch them grow into social and happy people. There is never a dull moment in the Cooinda classroom as each child’s individuality shines through.

We would like to thank all the amazing parents who have supported our programme with your feedback and support throughout the year.