School readiness: supporting children starting school

Social skills

The cornerstones of social skills are speaking and listening. Practising these skills helps children to follow instructions from teachers and mix with their friends effectively.

A good way to help our children develop these skills is to practice them in a low-pressure setting. Try playing games, for example:

• ‘Simon Says’ hones our children’s listening skills, and teaches them to pay attention to the speaker. This is invaluable in a classroom setting.
• The traffic light game helps children exercise a similar set of skills.
• Memory games are great for helping children develop recall skills and communication.

Simply reading stories and singing songs will also help them to develop a love of language that will hopefully last a lifetime.

Here are some more suggestions for promoting emotional wellbeing:

• Sometimes children are upset but struggle to open up. In these situations, it might help to use puppets to “act out” the situation. Dealing with these feelings in a more abstract way can sometimes prove helpful.
• Books can do the same thing. There are dozens of children’s books dealing with the topic of starting school for this exact reason.
• If your child is a little nervous, it can help to show them pictures of you, your siblings and other family members when you went to school – particularly if these show happy or joyful moments. Even family members who’re only slightly older, such as cousins or older siblings, can be invaluable here in demonstrating that school’s nothing to worry about. They survived, after all!
• It can help to practice your school day routine in the weeks beforehand. Wake up at the right time, have breakfast, prepare a packed lunch, try on uniforms and practise the school run. This can also be quite good fun, if a little emotional for parents who see their “babies” growing up!

Regardless of how much work you do, each child is different and yours may take a little longer to settle in.

This is completely normal, but it can be upsetting if, for example, your child becomes distressed when you try to leave them in the early days.

Remember the point we make at the top of the article and consider if you were them in this new and confusing situation… wouldn’t you worry about being left alone?

Therefore, try and reassure them by telling them exactly who will be collecting them, and at what time.

Curiosity about the world and a desire to learn

If you do all the above then you will set your child up with all the tools they need to thrive in school, but this last point from PACEY’s guidance highlights the way we should think about helping our children.

Try and ensure these activities are fun and not a “test”. We don’t want children to associate school with stress and the need to achieve at this age.

Instead show them that learning can be fun and that there’s no penalty for attempting things we first struggle with.

By doing so we set them up with the curiosity and desire to learn that’s essential for success and happiness at school, and beyond.

Above all, remember that the school and teachers who will be looking after your children are experienced in dealing with new starters every year. They can guide and support both you and your children and will be excited about welcoming you to the school community in September!