New Kinder student Farai and his family came to Tamworth from Zimbabwe late last year, but he wasn’t fazed at all by his new surroundings when The Leader caught up with him yesterday.

Carinya was the first of dozens of schools across the region to welcome students back from the Christmas break, with the majority returning today. 

Many Kindergarten students will start their first year tomorrow and Friday, with others starting early next week.

Like all his five-year-old peers, Farai was yesterday excited by the next big step in his young life and was enjoying all the things his new classroom environment was offering.

He was enjoying the (Hungry) Caterpillar Movie, while his classmate Miley Smith was loving playing with all her new friends.

James Williams, 16, has also come a long way to start Year 11 at Carinya, arriving from Bangkok, Thailand, late last year.

It’s not his first time at the school though, having done a three-week exchange in 2011, and many of the students he met back then are still at Carinya.

Almost as excited as the Kinder students was 13-year-old Hannah Beaman, who was beginning her first day of high school.

The Quirindi resident said she was looking forward to having a little more freedom now she was a secondary student, and the novelty of changing classrooms for different subjects.

Just over 620 students started at the Calala school yesterday, from three-year-olds in the Gumnut program right up to 44 teens in Year 12.