Moving up from nursery to big school is a huge milestone for a little person and one that can feel quite daunting for the family as a whole. It’s perfectly normal for there to be a mixture of emotions from anxiety to excitement and it’s important for parents to try and find some ways to make the transition from nursery a little easier to cope with. Here’s some advice from a nursery in Twickenham.

Talk To Others

First of all, don’t be afraid to seek out support from friends, family and even the staff at your child’s nursery or future school. Perhaps some of the other children at your child’s nursery are moving to the same school, giving you another parent to talk to about any of your concerns. It also helps to get a different perspective on these sorts of things, particularly if it’s from a trained professional, like a teacher. They will be able to put your mind at ease.

Prepare Them For The Change

You’ll also need to talk to your child and help them understand more about the upcoming changes. Talk to them about what they might be able to expect from big school, what will be different and what will be similar to nursery. Ask them if there’s anything they’re worried about and try to put their mind at rest as best you can. If they’re worried about losing touch with their friends from nursery, assure them that you will be able to continue arranging playdates as long as they want you to.

Visit The School

Take your child to visit their school, even just on the outside, a few times before their first day to help them become more familiar with the environment. Having attended nursery, they will probably feel reasonably comfortable with things like following rules and interacting with their peers, a school can feel much bigger and busier in comparison, which can seem scary to a little person. There might be one or two settling in sessions during the summer before the academic term starts, so have a look into this and enrol your child if you think it’s necessary.

Trial Run

Practise your morning routine as well, so that it doesn’t come as too much of a shock on the first day. This involves getting up early enough to eat breakfast and get dressed before a certain time. Maybe you could make it into a fun game so that it doesn’t seem like a chore to your child. Your child should also practise things like feeding themselves, going to the toilet alone, zipping up their coat or tying their shoes etc.

The best thing you can do to help your child with the transition from nursery is maintain a positive attitude about the transition and don’t let them know if you have any worries of your own. Carry out some fun, home learning activities together so that they can start to feel excited to learn.