The new school year

It’s important to create a warm welcome for children starting, and returning, to school after the holidays, as it ensures that they feel confident their arrival is a special occasion. The start of a new school year or term is the reunion of a school community and a time to celebrate togetherness. While the shape of ‘The new school year’ poem (see Activity sheet , ‘The new school year’) represents a school building, the reader soon discovers that the structure of the poem symbolises the school, not just as a building, but as a whole community.

1. Behind the school gates