What you can do to help?
- Accept that it is normal and acceptable to feel anxious as a parent or guardian but it is important not to pass these feelings onto your child.
- Help your child to talk about any worries, concerns or emotions they have about starting school and acknowledge their feelings. Encourage your child to be honest, both positive and negative.
- Talk about what they think might change in a positive and exciting way. Chat about what will be different from their primary or Preparatory school - bigger site, new people, changing teachers and rooms for subjects.
- Look through the school's website together and encourage your child to take part in any induction events.
- Mark the end of child's primary or Preparatory school experience. Saying a proper goodbye is important but encourage your child to embrace their new school, make new friends and keep in touch with old ones.
- Help your child to think about how to meet new people and start conversations. Remind them that everyone is in the same situation.
- Get organised over the summer holidays, buy uniform, get a haircut, choose new stationery, work out a first day plan.
- Help your child build good routines: get them to pack their bag the night before, remind them to check equipment and homework. Support them in becoming more independent.
- Create a space for them to work quietly at home.
- Get to know your child’s tutor and Head of Year. Contact them if you need to. Get to know how best to communicate with the school.
- Keep encouraging a growth mindset, make sure they understand they wont be good at everything, YET, things take time and practice and they shouldn’t give up.
- Encourage them to get involved, try as much as possible, this is the time in their senior schooling when they can enjoy the full range of opportunities.
- Give it time, settling may take longer than expected and is not always a linear process.