3 Tips for Supporting Your Child With Starting A New School

As the summer holidays are approaching, for many children, it’s a time of transition from familiarity to the new and unknown as they change schools.

Whether your child is going from pre-school to primary school, or primary to secondary, here are our three top tips for supporting them on the next stage of their academic journey and setting them up for success.

Talk About Their New School

Children, especially young children, can sometimes find it more difficult to express their emotions adequately with words, which can lead to poor behaviour in times of stress. If your child is behaving badly over the summer holidays, it may be that they are nervous about starting their new school.

Initiating age-appropriate communication and encouraging your child to talk about how they feel may help to relieve some of their stress and feelings of fear. 

If your child is still struggling to communicate, using flashcards of emotions may help them to express their feelings. You can find these from online retailers like Amazon, and this can help them to explain how they feel without worrying about finding all the right words.

You could also make regular drives past their new school, or walk around the exterior (if accessible). This will help your child become used to the school as an environment, and feel less intimidated by it. This may be particularly useful for children with additional learning needs, or who are particularly sensitive to change.

Make Their Bedroom A Safe Space

A child’s bedroom can be a safe haven for them during times where they feel disrupted or upset. You can help them feel regulated during their transition period by making their bedroom a calm and sensory place to retreat to if they’re feeling overwhelmed.

You can do this by investing in a soft rug, colourful LED lighting, a projector light of the night sky, or a new mattress to name just a few sensory adjustments.

Sleep is going to be important for your child to function well in their new school, so it’s the perfect time to upgrade to a new mattress. If you’re unsure where to start, experts at Archers Sleep Centre are gifted at helping you find the perfect single mattress for your child’s needs.

Keep In Touch With Friends

Friendships are very important for a child’s development, so helping your child to maintain and develop friendships between schools can help to regulate their apprehension about moving schools. 

Whether they’re moving schools alongside friends, or starting somewhere afresh, it’s a good idea to organise some social time during the holidays for kids to blow off some steam and reconnect before starting school again.

If your child is old enough to use social media under guidance, teaching them how to use social media safely is one way for them to keep in touch with friends. 

If you think your child might be spending too much time in front of a screen, apps like Google Family Link can help you manage screen time, block inappropriate content, and protect your child’s privacy.

Do you have any tips for helping your child adjust to their new school? Share your thoughts in the comments section below!

*Collaborative post.