Kids take big leap into school life

This week, kindergarteners across the state have finally made the transition to big school, marking one of the biggest milestones for new students and their parents.

Holy Spirit Primary St Clair has 41 kindergarten kids starting for 2023. According to Principal Frances Garzaniti, the first day is just as exciting year after year.

“It’s a big day, but I think it’s really exciting,” she said.

“The kids come in and they’re wearing brand new uniforms, and they’ve got huge smiles on their faces – it’s always lovely.”

Among these new faces are a few that admittedly, aren’t entirely new.

“We’ve probably got about half of them who have siblings here already, so they’re already familiar, and they’re quite comfortable, because I see them when their parents come with their siblings, they’re quite happy to come up and have a little chat,” she said.

This is the case for Ivanka Galvas, whose son Niko is her fourth child going through Holy Spirit. But, she says it never gets any easier.

“It’s always an anxious time as a parent when your child’s starting school, because it’s that little step away from you and towards becoming a little bit more independent,” she said.

Despite this, the morning’s smooth transition made her even more excited for the year to come.

“It’s always nice to see when they go off and they come back and how much they’ve actually learned that year,” she said.

“It amazes me every time, how much they learn in that 12-month period. They just grow and develop so much.”

Natasha and Steve Economou faced a similar experience this week, with their second child Nikita heading into kindergarten at Regentville Public School as his older brother Xander is going into year two.

This made the transition both easier and more difficult, Natasha said.

“We were a bit anxious about him starting, because it’s second child syndrome – he was ready to go when his brother was ready to go, and it’s taken him a couple of years to get there,” she said.

“But, now that he’s here, it’s just happiness.

There is a bit of emptiness for us as well, though, because no one’s at home now!”

Natasha said that Nikita’s first day went unexpectedly well, though she admits that Nikita’s kindergarten teacher also being Xander’s kindergarten teacher meant he was a little more ready than most.

“He woke up as early as his brother, and he was excited, ready to go,” she said.

Being Secretary and Fundraising Coordinator for the P&C, she said the family has been heavily involved in the school for a few years, and is eager for Nikita to do so as well.

“I’m looking forward to him finding new friendships,” she said.

“I’m looking forward to him learning new things as well, and just being a part of the school, because it’s a great little school, and a great community.”