Starting school is such an exciting time for a child and their family, and a significant milestone in a young child’s life! However, it is also completely normal for both you and your child to experience a range of emotions including worry and anxiety in the lead up to the beginning of school. Starting school is a big adjustment, as your child becomes familiar with a new learning environment, a new routine, starts developing new friendships and gets to know their new teacher. This means a big part of the transition to school starts with focussing on preparing both your child and yourself for these changes.
Preparation is Key
Preparing a child well for the beginning of school will help your child to become comfortable with new routines, develop a sense of belonging in their school environment, developing new friendships, and help the overall transition a smoother process.
Before Term 1 – What Can Be Done
Positive Conversation
- Start talking positively and often with your child about starting and attending school. Speak with your child about the changes to their daily routine, how they will get to school, what time they will be getting up, and what they will wear
- If your child attends a preschool or day care, speak to them about how things will different in the coming year, and emphasise that finishing/graduating from preschool is an exciting and positive milestone for them
- Create excitement about starting school, including talking about the fun things they will learn, and get to experience at school. You can also encourage your child’s enthusiasm for learning by incorporating learning concepts into your day-to-day activities with your child. For example incorporating counting, vocabulary and colour recognition into meal time, grocery shopping, park activities.
Developing a New Routine Early
- Establish a new school morning and night time routine before the first day of school, can be hugely beneficial in assisting a child to prepared and help with a smoother transition. This should include waking up, having breakfast, brushing teeth, getting dressed and packing your bag at the same time every morning. For night time, this should include, having dinner, bathtime, laying out your uniform and reading to your child before bed at the same time every night.
- Whether your child will be getting to school via walking, the car, the bus or train, it is important to practice the route they will be taking to school with them, prior to the first day.
- Have your child be involved in collecting the items they will need for school including, getting their school uniform, school bag, lunch boxes, drink bottle and any stationary they may need. This can be used as an opportunity to show your child how to pack their bag, and help them to become familiar with the items they will need at school. It can also be used as an opportunity to continue creating excitement about starting school.
- Support your child in developing independence and self-help skills they may need at school including practice opening and closing their lunch boxes, using their drink bottles, peeling and unwrapping their food, and learning how to put on their uniforms.
Managing Emotions and Expectations
- While the beginning of school is an exciting and happy time in a child’s life, it will also initially be tiring and possibly overwhelming. Take the time to talk to your child about the range of emotions they may experience. This can include, feeling happy, nervous, excited, tired, or worried. Explain that all these emotions are normal and are a part of the experience of starting something new.
- Read books together about starting school. Some good ones include: Old Friends New Friends, Ms Bindergarten gets Ready for Kindergarten, Starting School, First Day, Wombat Goes to School, The Kissing Hand, The Invisible String
- Write a social story with your child about starting school. Social stories are narratives that are used to explain situations to children in simple ways they can easily understand, and provide young children with personalised guides about what to expect from new routines and social situations. Here is a great link on a guide to writing social stories with your child: https://readingeggs.com.au/articles/social-stories-for-kids/
School Environment
- While most schools provide a Kindergarten Orientation Program prior to the commencement of Term 1, it can also be beneficial to help your child become familiar with the school environment prior to the first day. This can include visiting the school with your child before they start to familiarise them with the classrooms, playground equipment, drop off/pick up areas, bubbles, and toilets.
- If your child is particularly anxious about starting school, organising a time for your child to meet their teacher one-on-one, prior to their first day can be very beneficial. This can include the child spending a short time in the classroom with their new teacher, reading a story together, and seeing where their desk may be.
Taking Care of yourself
The transition to school can be a time of mixed emotions for not only your child but also yourself! While there is so much excitement and sense of achievement that comes with seeing your child move into the next phase of their life, it is also normal to experience feelings of nervousness and worry.
- Take time for yourself during this time, and engage in self-care to help cope with the emotions you are experiencing
- Once school has started it can also be beneficial to get to know other parents and participate in school events and social gatherings to help become part of the school community. Having relationships with other parents going through similar transitions, can often make us feel less alone and provide a source of support
- It is also important to remember that while you may feel some anxiety about your child starting school, trying your best not to express these worries to your child is important, otherwise they may begin to feel anxious and apprehensive about this new experience.
