Making the move from primary to secondary school can be a daunting process for both students and their parents.
So much so that many schools, including St Norbert College, have devised their own transition programs to help ease the anxiety and nervousness that often comes with starting high school at age 11 or 12.
Head of year seven Elisa White said many students find it difficult going from staying in a single classroom with the same teacher all day to independently travelling to multiple classrooms across the campus with lots of different teachers.
“Many students may feel anxious about finding their classroom, bringing the right equipment from their locker or the new expectations of each teacher,” she said.
“This program is aimed for students to learn how to work at a high school level.”
In homeroom, students are paired up with a year eleven mentor.
These mentors work together with the year seven students to help them work out their locker and organise their
diary and materials for each class.
They also complete activities together to ensure students feel more comfortable and grow to be a part of the community.
This year there are students coming from 35 different primary schools.
New year seven student Ariana Mecham said she is thrilled to be a new high-schooler as she felt welcomed and liked the approachableness of the teachers as well as the art subjects like drama and dance.
Ms White’s piece of advice is to put yourself out there to make new friends.
