Is your child ready to start school?
Children will start Reception at all different stages depending on their age in the year group, their background and experiences. They will make huge progress on their journey throughout the year, so try not to worry or compare with others as to where your child is now.
What to expect…
The first few weeks will be an emotional time for you and your child, so be prepared.
· Children will be extremely tired – new routines, new faces, new experiences all contribute to tiredness.
· They may not realise that school is here for good!
· You will hear very little about their day from your child. If you want to find out more, ask specific questions such as ‘Who did you sit by at lunch today?’
· Remember that the teachers will be less visible than at Nursery. You will not get a full round up of the day. It’s a tough one but you will soon get used to it.
Top tips
· Take a healthy snack on pick up – lunch time is early in Reception, normally between 11:30am and 12pm.
· Label everything – items of clothing will go missing and they have more chance of being found if they are labelled.
· Set up a class ‘WhatsApp’ group – they can be a little busy in the first few weeks but they provide handy reminders.
How can I support my child with their learning?
‘Fabulous Phonics’
What is Phonics? You will hear this word a lot in September as your child is introduced to phonemes (letter sounds) and later graphemes (the way these sounds are written – the letter names.) Phonics forms the basis of how your child will learn to read. Gradually they will learn to blend phonemes to read words for example m-a-t (mat).
You can read more about phonics here.
‘Marvellous maths’
· Practise counting out objects, such as toys, peas on a plate or objects collected or seen on a walk. Encourage your child to point to each object as they say the number name.
· Number songs and rhymes are great for counting. Try ‘Five Little Ducks…’ or ‘1,2,3,4,5, Once I Caught a Fish Alive.’
· Finding patterns, sorting or matching games
· Number spotting – front doors on a walk, on the bus, at the shops.
Fine motor skills
The ability to make movements using the small muscles in our hands and wrists are essential to do key tasks in school and everyday life like holding a pencil, using scissors to cut and manipulating buttons and zips.
There are lots of simple activities to develop fine motor skills and have some fun too!
· Use bubble wrap. How many bubbles can you pop?
· Can you thread pipe cleaners through a colander?
· Use finger paints to make a fingerprint picture.
· Lego blocks – can you push the bricks together and then pull them apart?
If you’d like any more information or support on ‘Starting School,’ please do get in touch.
But most of all try to enjoy the journey with your child, it will go far too fast!