Is your child starting school very soon? If the answer is yes then this is just the article for you. It will provide you with all the necessary information you need regarding having a child who will be starting school.
While it can be an incredibly daunting time, you must encourage your child and speak highly of school. This puts them in a good place mentally, meaning they don’t have a negative view of school before they start.
Check out the article below to ensure you haven’t missed anything vital before your little one starts.
Communicate With Your Children
Communication has and will always be key, this goes for anybody and everybody. If your child is coming to you with questions about school then it is essential you answer them as truthfully as you can. They can be just about as anxious as you are, even more so maybe. If they haven’t been to an early childcare setting then they may struggle with social development and interacting with their peers. Before they start, speak to them about how to do this and perhaps arrange some playdates with other similar aged children.
After your child starts school, don’t stop communicating. The questions just change from ‘are you looking forward to school’? to ‘did you have a good day at school?’ Children will always be eager to tell you about their day, especially younger ones.
Don’t Leave Uniform Until The Last Minute
One of the worst things you can do is leave the uniform shop till the very last minute. This is because everything that you need will likely be sold out in the shops. If you need to book a shoe appointment then ensure there is plenty of time to find a suitable pair that will stand the test of time. If you are lucky enough to be able to get your uniform from supermarkets rather than branded stores then get in early. You will often find that over the summer period, supermarkets have sales on school uniforms. This is a great time to pick it up at a low cost, you could always get a size bigger so it isn’t too small by the time they start.
Start Learning Early
You can always start your child on their learning journey from a very young age. Engaging with your child from the moment they are born starts their brain and curiosity. As they get older, you can go through the alphabet and learn nursery rhymes. This will be the start of their schooling journey, that will take them in many different directions.
If you don’t know what to do then you could also send them to early childcare. This could be a childminder or even a nursery setting. They will learn by copying, doing, and exploring in a safe environment. Make sure you do your research here as you don’t want to send them somewhere that won’t take care of them.
Teach Them To Dress Themselves
Something that every child needs to know is how to dress themselves before starting school. If they can’t fully get dressed and struggle with items like shoelaces or waistbands then that is to be expected. However, children will be expected to be able to do the basics such as put on their tops and trousers themselves. There will of course be days when your child needs to change for PE and the teachers won’t necessarily have time to dress your child. Imagine having to dress 30 children, that is a lot of time taken up.
Make life as easy for your child as possible, this could be through the use of velcro school shoes or even pull on waist bands. These are readily available in most shops and supermarkets.
Decide What They Are Eating
There are always arguments over what your child wants to do for lunch. Some places have free school meals which means children will always receive a free meal up until a certain age. Check if anything like this exists in your country with a quick internet search. If not, then speak to your child about what they would prefer. However, if you are on a tight budget then you will also need to work out which is the best option for you and your family.
If they are having school dinners then they won’t need to do anything, except choose the meals each week. You can sit down with them and do this together. If you both decide on packed lunch then ask if they can provide you with ideas on what you could put in the lunchbox.
Buy The Essentials
Once you know where your child will be going you can research what they might need. This could include a sac d’école that they can use everyday for their school books. You could also get them a matching lunch bag if they are having packed lunch. It is always best to buy things when you see them, as the next time around they may not be readily available.
It can be incredibly frustrating knowing what you need, so it is always worth checking the new starter information that the school gives you. This will tell you also the best places to buy items that are needed, it might be that there is only one or two shops to buy from.
Apply For Grants
Finally, if you are in a position where you can’t afford things like uniforms or school trips then there may be grants out there that you can use for this. It is always worth checking as you don’t want to be struggling for no reason. You can either do some private research using online search engines or you could speak directly with your child’s school. They will happily inform you of any extra bits of money you can apply for that could improve your financial situation.
We do hope you found this article helpful and it gave you some ideas on how to prepare both yourself and your child for them starting school. This is such a big milestone and should be celebrated as such.