How Early Years practitioners can support children’s transition to ‘big school’
The transition a child makes from their nursery, preschool or childminder to ‘big school’ marks a huge change for children and their families. As such, the process of transition needs to be carefully managed across the whole year, rather than just in the summer term.
As practitioners, it’s good to practise building prior relationships with the feeder schools that your cohort will attend. This can be done by arranging a visit to reception classrooms, getting to know the names of teachers and finding out their approach to teaching key areas - such as phonics and numeracy. Taking photos of the school settings and creating a picture book is a great way to help children become familiar with new people and an unknown environment.
Establishing these links with schools will enable you to better support children and families as they discuss the next steps in their education journey. You will be able to reassure families by answering their questions about their future school and offering important insights into the way each class works. This can be extremely comforting to parents and carers who are anxious about their child leaving a setting that they are currently familiar with.
Settings are in the unique position of managing multiple transitions over many years and are experts in making the process as seamless as possible. The knowledge and skillset you can provide to families during this transition phase are just as valuable as the care and nurture you show children throughout the years spent in your setting.
Opening up your setting and welcoming teachers from feeder schools can further enable the transition to run smoothly. Inviting reception teachers in to read stories, attend ‘stay and play’ sessions and join in with events such as picnics and Forest School, helps to build key relationships and gives children much-needed familiarity. Knowing what their teacher looks like on their first day is a simple measure that will provide children with much comfort.
Likewise, teachers can also begin to get to know the children with help from Early Years practitioners. Information (with permission from families) can be exchanged, such as particular interests, characteristics of effective learning, learning and development progress, specific needs and current friendships. This information can be used by the teacher to prepare for every child that joins their class, helping them approach the transition with the ‘unique child’ in mind.
Practitioners can help support the transition process by being excited and enthusiastic when talking about the move to a new school. We need to be mindful, however, that for some practitioners, the thought of a cohort leaving after many years can be sad and overwhelming. Early Years is a time for strong attachments and relationships, and this includes practitioners too! Leaders and managers need to allow empathy for their practitioners whilst ensuring an upbeat attitude around children.
There are many ways the environment within a setting can support transitions, including resources that relate to starting school. There are many fantastic books which can help prepare children for the move. Some of these include:
- Starting School – Janet and Allan Ahlberg
- The Colour Monster Goes to School – Anna Llenas
- Mouse’s Big Day – Lydia Monks
- When a Dragon Goes to School – Rosalind Beardshaw, Caryl Hart
- Meesha Makes Friends – Tom Percival
- Hello, Friend – Rebecca Cobb
- Little Owl’s First Day – Debi Gliori, Alison Brown
- Hugless Douglas Goes to Little School – David Melling
Setting up a classroom role-play area is also a great way to explore life at school. This could involve a chest of school uniforms, photo books from schools, lanyards, writing materials, books, puppets, mock registers and school bags. This space can be used to help children relive experiences from their ‘settling in’ days or simply work through their emotions around transitions in a play-based way. Role-play can also be a good way to introduce school-based languages, such as register, assembly, hall, uniform and playground.
Children can be further supported by practising crucial independent skills that will be part of everyday life at school. These include putting on their own coat, finding their peg, changing their shoes and managing toileting and handwashing by themselves. Practising these activities frequently will help children develop necessary life skills and increase confidence in their abilities.
Supporting children’s listening and attention skills is also of great value when it comes to their transition into school. This will encourage them to resolve conflicts independently, express their feelings and interests, and, most importantly, to speak to an adult if they are worried or upset. It’s a good idea to share these areas of focus with children’s families so they can practise these skills at home too. Remember that some children have six weeks - sometimes longer - away from a setting over the summer, so we want them to remember and practise these skills!
Finally, it’s important to remember that families need kind and reassuring words, just as much as their children. Sit down with them and discuss the upcoming routine of the school day and encourage positive talk about the transition at home. Children need us, as adults, to support them in starting school and reassure them that the transition is a positive step and not something to be worried about.