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Settling into kindergarten

Written by ECMS Communications | May 10, 2023 6:14:00 AM

Beginning kindergarten is an important milestone in the lives of both you and your child. There are a range of things you can do to help your child transition into kindergarten: 

  • Reading to your child every day. 
  • Gradually giving them more time by themselves, to encourage independence. 
  • Packing a change of clothes for your child, or leaving a spare set at their kindergarten. 
  • Labelling all their belongings. 
  • Encouraging your child to start dressing themselves, so they can be more independent when needing to take off a jumper or a jacket. 
  • Practice a goodbye ritual, which becomes gradually shorter so your child becomes less dependent. 
  • Keeping the staff at your kindergarten informed of any changes in your child’s life that may affect their experience. 
  • Create opportunities for your child to interact with other children of a similar age through play dates and playgroups. 
  • Talk about feelings with your child. 
  • Talk about ways to express different emotions (e.g. you are laughing because you are happy; you are crying because you are sad). 

Remember that some children, just like parents, will take time to settle into a new environment. These tasks will assist your child not only at the commencement of kinder, but throughout their program and will help prepare them for their transition into school.