Ten useful things to know before my child starts Reception

Have a child starting school in September? Here’s all you need to know from a Head teacher. Miss Martin, Head of Stafford Prep. School explains what can give your child the best start in their first year at school.

1. What should I be prepared for when they start school?

You and your child are both likely to get emotional, and that’s okay! It’s a big step for everyone involved. You’re trusting the school with your most special gift, and here at Stafford Prep. We take that responsibility very seriously. Even the most confident children can take time to settle in – remember it is a big change and a whole new adventure. We want the very best for them as much as you do. 

2. How can I help my child adjust to starting school?

Make drop-off as stress-free as possible. Although it can be tempting to drag out the long goodbyes, comments about how much you’ll miss them can often be very upsetting for little ones, instead be bright and positive. Although it’s hard, they’ll settle much quicker when you’ve left and often the most upset children can be seen playing quite happily with their friends less than 10 minutes after you’ve left.  Sometimes a child can get into a routine of being upset at drop off – we recommend getting someone else to do the drop off occasionally. 

3. MELTDOWNS!

It is not uncommon for young children to have tears and tantrums during the first few weeks of school. It is extremely tiring for 4 and 5 year olds to behave well for a whole day! We advise that you do not plan too much in the evening and give them time to chill! 

Healthy after school snacks can be a life saver, as being well behaved for hours among a whole new group of people is tiring. They can help prevent drive-home meltdowns and them falling asleep!

4. What  does my child need? 

A warm waterproof coat (even if it doesn’t look like it will rain), a good backpack or book bag, and a water bottle. Most of all, make sure everything has their name on it. When you have a lot of children who all have an aged 3-4 jumper things can get very confusing. With less than 10 in our Reception class we still have plenty of accidental blazer-swopping!  It really helps if your child knows where to look for their name too, this saves us lots of time hunting for name labels! Over the summer you may want to ask your child to pack and hold their bag on day trips to develop a sense of responsibility for their things. 

Try not to encourage your child to bring in their most treasured possessions like a teddy. It might give them comfort when they are upset but can cause more upset if someone else plays with it or they lose it. 

5. How can I support my child’s learning? 

Read with your child every day and fill in the reading journal to let their teacher know. We’re lucky that all of our Reception pupils have one-to-one reading time with their class teacher every day, but with larger classes it can be difficult to fit this in once a week. Reading with your child every day at home can make a huge difference.  We all like our child to be the best but do not get too worried if other children are on a higher reading level. All children develop and progress at different rates. 

6. Let us know if there is a problem.

One of the most important things is keeping in touch with us. Let your school know if you have concerns or if there is a problem. We love hearing from parents, as it gives us feedback about the things we don’t see at school.

Mornings are a busy time as the children arrive for class. Teachers do not always have time for an in-depth discussion at the start of the day. It is much better and easier to send an email or ask the office to make an appointment for a proper conversation. We are keen to listen but it is much easier when we have the time. 

7. Does your child have any medical needs?

Please give the school as much detail as possible about any health conditions your child has. We want to keep them safe and well so knowing how they are feeling is important. It  is important to inform the school if these change at any time. Share any GP action plans, for example, asthma making sure all inhalers are labelled carefully. 

Please keep them at home if they are unwell and let the office know. 

8. Socialisation

This has been difficult during the Covid pandemic over the past two years and yet is an important part of life. Try and encourage your child to share toys and communicate with other children in different environments. At the Prep. School we run free ‘Little Explorers’ sessions to help with these vital skills. We also have stay and play opportunities for current and prospective families. These are also an opportunity to meet the teacher. Find out if your chosen school has an induction programme or familiarisation days? 

9. Listen

Ask your child about their day and let them talk without bombarding them with questions.  We know that it is heartbreaking if your child tells you that they have been on their own or they have no friends, or someone was mean to them but  be careful not to take your child too literally and keep an open mind: children are not always the best witnesses and the day’s drama often blows over. 

10. What can I work on during the few months before my child joins Reception? 

There are some basic skills which will help any child when they start school:

The first is being able to dress themselves. Most schools run exciting PE and games programmes and it is important that they can all get dressed in ten minutes so their PE lesson is not cut short. Also practise fastening and unfastening any buttons, zips, velcro, etc. This will save a lot of frustration when they are in school.  At the Prep. School we have small classes making this a lot easier but for many classes it is quite a challenge to get a class of 30 ready.  

The second is for them to be familiar with cutlery. The children will have their lunches together and so being able to carry food with their fork and cut with a knife makes a huge difference to make sure they eat a full meal. 

From toilet training to hand washing. Make sure your child knows how to wipe properly, flush the toilet and wash their hands.

Finally, it’s useful if children can recognise their name when they start Reception Class as they will need to find their peg and recognise their belongings. You can support your child with this by pointing out their name, writing it together or building it with magnetic letters or something similar. They don’t have to know how to write it perfectly, but even getting used to holding a pencil properly can really help.