Staring preschool not only marks the beginning of a new phase in your child’s development, but also is a major milestone that parents may be approaching with conflicting emotions as your baby is venturing out into the world without you. These emotions are common. You need to emotionally prepare yourself as well as your child for preschool.
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A few ideas to smoothly make the transition:
1. Schedule a tour of the school which includes visiting your child's classroom and meeting the preschool teacher a few days ahead of time.
2. Spend time reading books about preschool which you can get from the public library in your area. You can also share stories with your child.
3. Explore the idea of preschool by utilizing pretend play. Take turns in playing the role of parent, child, and teacher, and enact common daily routines, such as saying good-bye to mommy and/or daddy, taking off your coat, singing songs, reading stories, taking naps, etc.- all these will reassure that preschool is a good place to be at. No form of fear will further exist in your kid.
4. Work with your toddler for him to master the self-help skills like using the toilet, washing her hands, putting shoes and socks on, etc.
5. It is as important for parents to make necessary changes in their routines to create a calm, peaceful environment at home while your child experiences her first few weeks of preschool. All of this will make the transition much smoother.
Your child may also have some questions or concerns about starting preschool, either before or after he/she starts preschool so pay complete attention to what your child says, listen to his worries, notice nonverbal messages.
In the run-up to the weeks before preschool starts, buy a backpack together with your child, get in touch with the preschool’s healthcare professional if your child takes medication, find a way how your child will get to school and how she will come home, etc. Do not forget to label all items with your child’s name and teacher’s name in permanent ink.
