Tips For Children Starting School!

I can't believe its been almost 2 years since James started at Primary school! In September he will be heading in to Year 2 and has settled in to school so well he is happy, settled and doing really well which I am of course incredibly proud of.

(Here is James on his very first say of Primary School!)

I wanted to put together a post about a few of the things we did with James before he started school in the hope they would help him settle better and whilst im no expert I wanted to share those with you.


Talk to them about school - As soon as we started applying for schools for James we started talking to him about going to school which meant it became familiar. We kept it lighthearted and kept the conversation open for him to ask questions etc if he felt he needed to. Talking about it made it seem less daunting and more a part of every day conversation for James.

Let them help purchase school uniform - More than likely going to school will be the first time your child will have to wear a full uniform which can be a confusing for a child who is used to wearing and selecting their own clothes. I took James along with me to pick up his uniform letting him try it on both in the shop and at home. He felt grown up helping pick his own school clothes and he was so excited to wear them for his first day at school.

Have them present during the home visit - Our primary school have a home visit for pupils who are joining reception class where a teachers / teaching assistant come to your home to meet you and the child and find out a little more info etc about them. I felt it was really important for James to be here for this so that he could meet his possible teacher but also so they could get a look at him at home rather than just hearing information from me. It enabled them to see how he interacted in an environment he was comfortable in too.

Go along to settling in/ stay and play sessions - Lots of primary schools will offer settling in sessions or stay at play sessions for all children starting school. These will be on certain dates and it will give your child a chance to have a look around the school and what will be their new classrooms. It will also give them a chance to meet teachers and other children who will be joining them in September so that when they start some faces will be familiar making it less daunting.

Get Everything prepared - The day/ evening before school begins talk to them about what is going to happen the follow morning. Let your child help set out school uniform etc and make packed lunch the evening before if needed. This way the morning can be relaxed and not frantic and stressful for your child. I found James wanted extra cuddles and had lots of questions the morning before so it helped that I had everything prepared before hand so that I could take my time with him and answer them all.

Practice the school run - Before James started school we did the school run several times it gave us a chance to see how long it would take but also a chance for James to see the school again. We did it several times when other children were in school too so he could see them happily playing outside which made him excited to go. I found practicing walking the school run got him familiar with our morning routine and the surroundings which made it less daunting on the morning of school.

So thats a few of my top tips that I found helped us! Do you have any to share for all those mums and dads with children about to start school? I would love it if you could share them in the comments below.

Good luck to all those parents and children who are going to be starting their exciting journey in school this September!

xXx

Starting Year 1!

Last week James went back to school after the 6 week summer holidays but this time he was heading into Year 1, no longer part of reception, in fact it was 1 year today that he started school for the very first time.

As we headed through the school gates we saw all of the new children who would be starting reception and they all looked so small! I can't believe that was my James just last year, I still remember the nerves and emotions running wild but this year was slightly different.

Knowing just how much James loves being in school made heading back for the start of Year 1 much easier. I didn't have that emotional feeling I had before because I knew he was going to be so happy to be back with his friends. Of course I still had some nerves for him, it is a new teacher, new classroom and lots more work but I hope that he will take that all in his stride just as he did with reception year.

Here he is in Reception (left) and Year 1 (right) one year apart exactly -


























James finished reception last year on such a high with an excellent report and excelling at lots of the criteria and subjects. He left with a flare for reading that certainly didn't leave during the summer holidays and a passion for learning.

My hopes for James this year are that he continues to enjoy school and makes lots of new friends. I hope that he continues his flare for reading and his passion for learning new things and always trying his hardest. When I asked him what he wanted to be when he grows up he said he wants to be a policeman on a motorbike, it will be interesting to see how that changes through the years!

Did your little ones start school this week or head off in to a different school year?

xXx

Moving into Year 1!

It only seems like yesterday that I headed through the school gates with James for his first day at school with the nerves whirling in my stomach and the grin on James face so wide he couldn't contain his excitement!

(James on his first day at school in Reception class) 

However yesterday James moved into Year 1! Due to James' school rolling out a new plan where existing pupils move into their new year groups 1 month early James moved from his reception class into his new year 1 class on Wednesday.

I was a little undecided how I felt about it at first but seeing the excitement on James face sold it for me, he couldn't wait to explore his new class room and meet his new teacher. I am hoping that this early move will mean he will have chance to get used to the change and avoid any unnecessary worry over the summer holidays about the change. Of course Tuesday was a bit of an emotional day saying goodbye to his reception class teacher who has taught him so much and both myself and James had formed a bond with over the past year. James took in leaving gifts and had a photo with his teacher which he now has on his wall and we both said goodbye.

(James with his teacher on his last day in Reception!)

I still can't believe its been a year since he started school but he has learnt so much in that time, not just on the education side but he has grown so much as a person! James is so much more confident now and has a much better understanding of rules and boundaries that school has really helped him with. James started school last September not being able to read and after almost a year at school sat down with me yesterday and read The Gruffalo to be unaided! I really cannot thank the teachers enough for all the time and effort they have put in to giving James the best start to school.

So as we wave goodbye to the past year and James reception class we are saying hello to a new class, a new teacher and a new school year ahead of us. James is excited to learn and loves being in school which can only be a good thing and we can only hope the next year will be as successful as the last!

xXx