In the starting class at the Tijl Uilenspiegelschool in Bos en Lommer, a group of children get lessons about the rules in the classroom. Together they go through the rules: “You sit in your chair,” says Quiana. The girl neatly raises her finger. “We try to take them into account in ‘normal’ primary school life. Although it is difficult to indicate a reason for the growth of these classes, one thing is very clear: all these children are born in coronation time.” That often means More isolation, “says Zonova director Dave Ensberg.
“We are early, and therefore you can prevent problems or disorders at a later age,” he says. Parents are involved in all starting classes to explain to them how their child’s development is going. “It is very important that parents also have the space to help their children in this.”
Rather than no starting class
It mainly concerned children in Noord, New West and Southeast when the starting classes started a few years ago. “Socio-economic status sometimes has an effect, especially if it goes together with a lack of safety and structure in a family,” says the Zonova director.
But now it is widely spread over the city. Meijer: “It’s all about all kinds of children and is for everyone.” Whether the wish is not to need a starting class in a few years? “No, I don’t think so,” they say orthopedagogues at home. “It is nice to normalize that different guidance is needed for every child.”