{"id":1128,"date":"2021-12-12T01:23:00","date_gmt":"2021-12-11T15:23:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.greatbeginnings.com.au\/?p=1128"},"modified":"2024-10-30T22:20:42","modified_gmt":"2024-10-30T12:20:42","slug":"is-your-child-ready-for-school","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.greatbeginnings.com.au\/news-advice\/is-your-child-ready-for-school","title":{"rendered":"Is your child ready for school?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><em>Deciding whether to send your child to school early or late can be difficult. Here are six signs of school readiness to look out for&#8230;<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>My eldest daughter started school when she was five and a half. She\u2019s an August baby, so she was the perfect age to start kindergarten in January. We didn\u2019t even have to think about it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>When my twins were in preschool, we had a big decision to make. They were born in March, so they would only have turned five six weeks into the school year. They were still babies on so many levels &#8211; especially socially and emotionally. They still had separation anxiety sometimes and one of them was deathly afraid of storms. They needed to be cuddled and reassured on a daily basis. Our decision was easy because we knew they simply weren\u2019t ready for school.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>We \u201cheld them back\u201d (a term I don\u2019t love because it has a negative connotation) and we couldn\u2019t be happier with our decision. We\u2019ve watched their confidence and independence grow over the course of their second year of preschool and our little babies are big girls now. We can\u2019t thank their early educators enough for helping them develop all the skills they need for school. They\u2019re truly ready and excited to start next year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>School readiness is about so much more than being eager to learn to read, write and count. Many children are academically ready, but they don\u2019t have the social skills, maturity or focus that are necessary to thrive at big school.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Not sure whether your child is ready for the big leagues? Here are six signs of school readiness to look out for according to the Australian Department of Education, Skills and Employment\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">1.Emotional maturity<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Parents often rely on their gut instinct when it comes to deciding whether their child is mature enough to start school and that certainly is a valid consideration. Every child is different and no one knows your child better than you do. But there are also several questions that are worth considering when sizing up your little one\u2019s emotional maturity level, including:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Can your child understand others\u2019 emotions and manage their own? (Emotional regulation is a skill that is learnt progressively throughout childhood, but they should have some basic skills)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Can your child follow directions from teachers?<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Can your child focus their attention on tasks?<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Can your child understand and follow rules?<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Can your child work independently without direct adult supervision?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">2. Social skills<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Having adequate social skills is a key component of school readiness that is often overlooked. Here are a few questions to consider:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Does my child demonstrate basic manners, such as saying \u201cplease\u201d and \u201cthank you\u201d?<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Is my child able to share, take turns and cooperate?<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Is my child able to get along with other children?<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Can my child play independently as well as with other children?<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Can my child assert themselves?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">3. Language and communication skills<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Baby talk is oh-so-adorable, but it might be a sign that a child isn\u2019t quite ready to start school. Ask yourself the following questions:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Can my child speak clearly?<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Can they communicate their needs?<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Can they listen to adults and other children?<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Can they understand stories?<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Can they identify basic sounds and some letters?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/global.g8education.edu.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/body-image.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-904\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">4. Cognitive skills<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Your child doesn\u2019t need to be proficient at long division by the time they start school, but they should have some basic skills under their belt. Some questions include:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Does my child have basic number sense (including recognising and naming numbers, knowing that numbers come in a set order and recognising that higher numbers represent bigger quantities)?<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Does my child have basic thinking skills (including explanation and problem-solving)?<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Can my child wait and take turns?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">5. Physical skills<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Now that you\u2019ve determined whether your child is emotionally and cognitively ready, evaluate their physical readiness with these questions:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Does my child have the necessary fine motor skills for school, including gripping a pencil and turning pages in a book?<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Does my child have the physical coordination to run, jump, climb and play ball sports?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">6. Independence<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Your child needs to be able to complete basic self-care tasks on their own before they go to school. Ask yourself:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Can my child go to the toilet on their own?<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Can they get dressed on their own?<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Can they open their lunchbox and containers on their own?<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Can they take care of their own belongings?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Preparing your child for school<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Research shows that children who start school when they\u2019re developmentally ready do better in school and later in life. If you\u2019re unsure whether your child is ready for school, reach out to your early childhood teachers and educators. They\u2019ll be able to help you assess your child\u2019s school readiness.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"\/childcare-and-early-education\/our-learning-programs\">Our Preschool Program<\/a> helps children develop all the school-readiness skills mentioned above and so much more. Our educators are specially trained to help children become active and engaged learners and develop a love of learning that lasts a lifetime.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Find out more about our Preschool Program here and don\u2019t hesitate to contact us on <a href=\"tel:1800411604\">1800 411 604<\/a> if you have any questions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>Sabrina is a writer, author and mother to three girls, an eight-year-old and five-year-old twins. She shares how she decided when to send her girls to school.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Deciding whether to send your child to school early or late can be difficult. Here are six signs of school readiness to look out for.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":1127,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"single-post","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1128","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-learning"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.0 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Is your child ready for school?<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Deciding whether to send your child to school early or late can be difficult. 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