IN THIS week's edition of TTUTA on Tuesday we continue to look at the theme 'Transitions.' In our last two articles we first addressed the question of transitions and why it is important to attend to it, while our second article focused on preparing our prospective preschoolers for their transition from home to their preschool settings. Given that this group of children will not be the only ones making transitions, we move now to address the next level, our preschoolers who will be making the adjustment to primary school come September.
While transitions generally are not easy, for preschoolers entering primary school come the new academic year 2022-2023, this change may be a bit challenging. Only recently they have grown accustomed to schooling in a face-to-face setting, which for them only occurred in the third term of the last academic year. Now they are being asked to get ready to occupy a new space with all its attendant changes.
Just as we should attend to the transitional arrangements for moving from home to preschool, we need to also pay some focused attention on preparing our preschoolers to make the adjustments to successfully navigate 'big school.'
What can they expect?
The process of transition from preschool to primary school marks the beginning of a new stage in your child's life. Parents, you need to be sensitive to the fact that life as a primary school student will be radically different from the one to which they have grown accustomed at preschool. This change will be characterised by a new learning environment, transitions in daily routines, social life and emotional development. Your child will be expected to:
* Work independently
* Form new friendships
* Adapt to the expectations of different teachers and routines of primary school
Additionally, you and your child should expect to encounter:
* A significant change in the structure of the school day, inclusive of a recess period that will be characterised by unsupervised play time and new social dynamics.
* A bigger school bag with more content including textbooks and stationery items for completing homework.
* A more expansive curriculum with more subject areas. Much more reading and writing will be expected of them.
* Exposure to formal testing for the first time along with the potential stress and anxiety that comes with that, and will need to be carefully and sensitively managed.
How do you prepare?
Begin by recognising that this is a journey that both you and your child are about to embark upon together. You are the first layer in your child's support network, and he/she must be able to rely on you to feel that sense of safety, security and emotional well-being that is necessary for a successful transition that will be the first chapter in an educational career that can potentially span the next two decades. It is also important for you to note that successful transition in the initial months can set the positive momentum for negotiating daily challenges of being in a new school setting.
You can take t
