THE first day of school can be tricky for little people, with many feeling a combination of nerves, excitement and downright terror about how the new experience will pan out.
There are lots of ways you can help your child prepare for starting school that will combat nerves and anxiety… for all of you. With some time and plenty of preparation and practice, you can help keep the nerves at bay and focus on all the exciting things that are coming.
1 Talk about it
Spend time talking with your child about the first day and explore how they might be feeling. If you sense your child is worried, unpack this a little and encourage them to share. You might also bring up the topic of school whenever something reminds you of it. For example, when you’re reading books together at bedtime you can tell your child that school will help them learn to read.
2 Normalise the nerves
It’s important to emphasise how normal it is to feel nervous about the first day of school, and that every other kid is feeling the same way. The last thing you want is for your kid to feel ashamed about how they’re feeling. You could also share your own experiences of starting school, which will help your child grasp that even mum or dad felt worried on their first day.
3 Practice, practice, practice
Spend as much time as you can practicing for the big day. Try on the uniform and practise putting on and taking off shoes and socks. Give your child a packed lunch to practice with at home, so they can get used to any tricky lunch box fasteners and drink bottle lids. Dealing with a big bulky school bag can also be hard at first, so be sure to let your child practice wearing it and practising with zippers.
4 Read together
Books are great for exploring topics and normalising new experiences. Find a great book about starting school and read it regularly with your child, pointing out interesting pictures and discussing what you see. For example, if the child in the book is playing at lunchtime, ask your child what they’d like to do during playtime at school.
To be continued next week in The Adviser’s Back to School feature…
