TRANSITION TO PRIMARY SCHOOL - INFORMATION FOR PARENTS
School readiness is not about reading, writing and maths or even about pencil control or being able to count to 100. Being school ready is more about being independent, able to separate from parents, showing good listening skills and attention, having enough language to express themselves and an ability to interact with other children and adults.
Helping your child to prepare for school
It is important to get your child into a good routine and be organised. You will have to be at school for a certain time each morning. Your child needs to have eaten breakfast, put on their uniform, cleaned their teeth and brushed their hair...
One of our main focuses at nursery is promoting independence for all the children. Your child will really benefit from being independent when starting school. Teaching staff will be there for support, but your children will feel a sense of pride and achievement from being able to achieve things themselves. In reception the children will have access to their own outdoor play area which they will be able to use throughout their day, so it would be helpful for the children to be able to put on their own coats and zip it up during the colder months. More examples of independence that we will be encouraging and supporting at nursery include dressing and undressing, washing their own hands and putting on their shoes.
Developing social skills is important when getting your children ready for school. At nursery we encourage and support development of these skills by providing opportunities and varied activities throughout the day.
We start teaching and supporting your child's school-ready skills from when they start in the Pre-School room. We develop their communication, language, independence, play and learning through a variety of fun activities. Children learn so much through both structured and unstructured play and we aim to provide an environment to enable this.
For mathematics we look at shapes in the nursery and in the environment, creating and constructing shapes inside and outside. We look at problem solving using flour, magic potions and playdough. We practice counting and number recognition using children’s interests, for example dinosaurs, and use treasure hunts for positional language. We have signed up to the Maths Champion Programme with the NDNA (National Day Nursery Association) which boosts mathematical development in the nursery. The programme contains a range of evidence based training, reflective tools and resources and support which develops staff confidence across the whole nursery. Research has shown that children who benefit from attending a Maths Champion nursery make up to three months additional progress in their maths and language development.
We have already started to put an emphasis on phonics, the children becoming aware of the letter sounds. We begin to blend, and segment letter sounds for reading and spelling. We take a multi-sensory approach so the children can write letters in various media, for example: mud, flour and paint or even the air! We work on strengthening the muscles children use for writing by having playdough discos where we practice rolling, prodding, poking, squishing and squeezing the dough along to music all at the same time, popping bubble wrap and crumpling paper. The preschool children take part in daily small group phonics sessions, following the Letters and Sounds: Phase One Teaching Programme from the Department of Education.
The nursery has a library whereby children may select books to take home to share with parents and carers. The nursery also has a reading scheme in the preschool room where children will read a book with staff at the nursery and also share and continue the reading at home.
Areas of the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) are covered through planned activities as well as interest-based activities and experiences that occur when learning opportunities arise through play and exploration. When your children start school in Reception, they will still be learning through the EYFS and will then begin learning the national curriculum when they reach Key Stage1, in Year One. Teachers will not be expecting your children to be able to read and write when they start in Reception. At nursery we look at stories, talk about what is happening and asking the children to predict what might happen next. This supports developing their sequencing skills and encourages language development through discussion and role play. The children also begin a reading scheme. We read books together at nursery about starting school. Reading stories to the children both at home and at nursery is a great way to support their development. Reading supports children’s development within all areas of the EYFS. For example, Communication and Language, Physical Development, Literacy and Personal, Social and Emotional Development, Mathematics, Understanding the World and Expressive Arts and Design. Reading does not always mean just sitting down and reading printed texts. Reading can be the signs, marks, symbols, numerals, or letters that we see around our environments on the journey’s we make throughout our days. At nursery we provide many opportunities for the children to make marks using different tools and with a variety of materials to support development within the Literacy areas.
Children will take home maths and literacy activities that they have created at nursery however, a lot of our activities are taught through play, based on experiences and exploration. The children explore different ideas, concepts and learn through experimenting, communication and questioning. We evidence learning through our weekly observations which are emailed to parents weekly for them to add comments and keep up with development.
Help your child through play
1. Building a tower from blocks: this deals with issues of frustration and taking turns.
2. Action songs and rhymes: knowing the right moves and joining in helps build confidence and co-operation.
3. Playing board games and doing jigsaw puzzles: helps with turn taking, number recognition, spatial awareness, cooperation and understanding rules.
4. Painting and drawing: ‘quiet’ activities involve sitting down and concentrating for short periods of time.
5. Inviting other children to play: this can help overcome shyness and leaving them to play together prepares them to cope with separation anxiety.
6. Role play: helps develop language, can deal with worries, supports routines and understanding.
7. Packing away toys; encourages listening to instructions, co-operation and taking responsibility.
Play is especially important for children’s development in their early years. Children will begin developing crucial skills that will support them when they go to school. Play is an essential part of a Child’s learning journey and development of the EYFS. It is through play and exploration that helps build the foundations that children require for the transition to a more formal way of learning when they go to school.
Final Preparations
During the summer, and as September approaches, staff will start their final preparations for sending our children off to school. This is an exciting and adventurous time of year and there will be lots of things happening throughout the nursery to support our children and their families during this transition to School.
Our aim is to send the children off to school happy, confident and excited about their new adventure. Some children may be a worried about the change, so we work to support all the children by encouraging them to share their feelings and ideas. It is important for staff and parents to talk positively about the fun things they will be doing at school and to share stories and photos of when they were at school.
At the nursery, we will offer times throughout the day for children to sit and listen to stories and provide activities based around school. We use stories about starting school to support the children’s understanding of what to expect at school. Role play is a fantastic way of encouraging children to think about school. We will be setting up the home corner area to help support this, for example, taking registers, playing as a teacher.
When you find out which school your child will be attending, we would ask you please inform us. We have children who go to a range of schools in their local area. You will be able to inform us by communicating through Tapestry or during verbal handovers at the end of each day. This gives you the opportunity to discover other children that are going to the same school. Maybe you could arrange play dates and start to get to know other parents. We will contact the schools and invite them to visit the nursery; and should it not be possible, we will arrange a telephone discussion with the teachers about each child and what wonderful personalities they all have.
Your child’s Key Person will complete a ‘transfer record’. This is very similar to the regular summative sheets that are in your child’s learning journal pm Tapestry and is specifically about your child’s development. These records are completed together at your last parent meeting, including an additional box for you to add any further comments.
Top tips to support your child with their transition to school
Plan time together to talk about their concerns
Visit the school and walk past the school to encourage conversations about school
Have age-appropriate expectations - your child is only 4 years old when they start school
Prepare your child by talking positively about your school experiences or experiences of their siblings, cousins, friends
Choose shoes with Velcro and lunch boxes that they can open independently
Schools often give children whole fruit for snacks. Let your child practice peeling satsumas and bananas and biting into whole apples or carrots
Provide a quiet space for your child to rest after school as they will be tired
Always take time to explain what changes are happening to your child
Make sure your child’s name is on all their belongings
For further information:
BBC Bitesize - My First Day at School Game
Place2Be - Mental Health Support for children starting school
Oxford Owl - Lots of information and activities on starting school and getting ready to read