Getting Ready for School

When our children are born, they need us to do everything for them. As they grow, we help them to become more and more independent. Small step after small step, they grow in independence until they are ready for school. The five skills listed below, when mastered, will allow children the opportunity and confidence to focus their attention on learning from the moment they walk into their Kindergarten classroom.

 

Dressing - Help your child practice taking off and putting on outerwear. The faster your child is at getting dressed, the more time they will have for recess and the more time they will have for learning. When purchasing new coats, snow pants, mittens, boots, and indoor shoes, make sure that your child can manage the fasteners independently.

 

Taking Care of Belongings - Teach your child to put their personal items where they belong. In most Kindergarten classrooms there will be a locker, coat hook, shelf, or cubby where their belongings will be kept. Teaching them to put their own items away, independently, will help them to keep track of their belongings and keep their items from being lost. 

 

Toileting—Sometimes, as parents, we anticipate when a child will need to use the bathroom and remind them before they notice the need to go. Sometimes we remind them to wipe or we remind them to wash. For children to be truly independent in the bathroom, we may need to take a step back and let children take more ownership of this important task. Let them notice the need, let them hurry themselves to the bathroom, let them undress themselves, let them wipe, let them dress, let them wash, let them dry.  

 

Eating—Lunch time at school can be quite short in comparison to lunch time at home. Difficult lids and fasteners, troublesome straws and juice boxes, and the opportunity to chat with friends can all make lunch time even shorter. Help your child practice opening containers independently so that they can enjoy this social time with friends AND address their hunger all in good time.  And don’t forget to encourage your child to clean up any spills and collect any garbage from their lunch to truly become independent. 

 

Waiting—Before children enter school, they may have limited experience waiting for a turn. You have likely been able to tend to their needs and wants without much delay and their patience has not needed to grow. Once a child enters the Kindergarten classroom there may be 20 other children all vying for the attention of the teacher, so waiting for a turn becomes a very important skill.  Help your child to develop this skill by playing games that require turn-taking. Take your child to the park where they can wait for a turn on the slide. Join a play group at your local family centre or library where your child can take turns and join in the fun. 

 

1. Together with your child, create a short list of things that they can do. Ex: Make bed, pick out an outfit, put on their shoes, say good bye, ask a friend to play. Draw a picture, together, of each of these independent tasks and make a book of “Big Things I Can Do.”
2. Give children choices and respect their wishes when it is possible. When children have a chance to make choices, they learn how to solve problems.  

1. Play board games to practice taking turns, being patient, and controlling impulses.
2. Set rules, routines, and chores that stay the same and that children can help with or do independently.  

1. The more we discuss feelings and label feelings and normalize feelings, the better our children will be at empathizing with others. Play Emotions Charades.
2. Engage in acts of kindness as a family.