Starting school is a big transition for your child. There are a few things you can do to help with this transition period.
You may hear your Health Visitor talk about 'school readiness'. The information below will outline what this means.
Tips for before your child starts school
Here are some handy tips that can help your child learn valuable skills before school starts and they will help them when they start school.
- Does your child know what their coat looks like? Can they put it on and do their zip/buttons on it?
- Let them practise peeling a banana or a satsuma. This will give them great skills for break times
- Can they put on items of clothing by themselves? Make a racing game of it. Can they identify their clothes and put them on first?
- Model putting on and taking off pumps, shoes and socks
- Can your child remove a turning lid?
- Encourage them to use a knife and a fork at meal times
- Talk to them about dinners and packed lunches. What do they want to do? Let them practise carrying their lunch box or a tray if you have one
- Can your child follow simple instructions?
- Show them how to sit with their legs crossed. Get them to practise this with you
- Start reading with your child if you haven't done so already. Encourage them to turn the pages from right to left. Let them tell you a story from the pictures
- They will develop listening skills from you reading to them
- Get some crayons/ colours for them and sheets of paper. Let them colour you some pictures
- Is your child toilet trained? Can they turn a tap on to wash their hands?
- Can your child communicate their needs, such as needing the toilet?
Tips for when your child has started school
- A school day can feel like a really long time for a 4/5 year old. To try and help with this, it's really important they get a good night's sleep
- Always provide your child with breakfast in the morning. This will help them to concentrate throughout the school day
- Start to talk about things like assembly, break time, dinner hall, lining up and PE
- If you have any concerns with your child's development, talk to the teacher about it and let them know of any worries nursery may have had
If you require any support with school readiness please call your Health Visiting team and they can support with this.
Useful links
Toilet training
Speech and Language
Dental Health
School Readiness
Tiny Happy People
Derby Family Hubs
If your child is not attending nursery you can find more information on the Childcare and early years education - Derby City Council webpage. Please contact us to arrange a health review to assess development.
If you have any concerns about your child and would like to speak to a Health Visitor please contact us on Chat Health by text message on 07507327754.
