32 iParent Magazine August 2015 www.iparentmagazine.com
The First Timers Guide to Kindergarten
As a parent to a first time kindergartener, I’m feeling a bit worried. I’ve been home with my son since he was born and it’s hard to imagine sending him off to school already! Since it is my very first time sending a child to school, but my business partner and dear friend’s 3rd time, I feel at ease knowing I’ve got someone with some experience by my side! I came up with five things that I’ve been doing to help prepare our family for the transition and she’s given me some helpful tips to help all of us rookie parents out!
1. I’m working on getting us into a routine that will allow us to get to school on time! I’m concerned that our usual laid back approach to starting the day will be a hindrance once we are racing the school bell. My son loves to laze in his pajamas as long as possible in the morning and isn’t big on rushing. I’m slowly but surely working on getting him dressed, fed, and teeth brushed earlier and earlier to start establishing a rhythm that will, in theory, get us out the door on time.
The expert weighs in: Your kids are always up early and raring to go, right? You will likely find this is not the case when they go to school. Even if they are up at their usual time, getting them excited about getting ready in a timely manner is a challenge. My solution is to plan to be early, keeping everything 15-20 minutes ahead of schedule. That way if an unexpected challenge arises along the way you should still be able to make it before the bell rings.
2. I’ve purchased his lunch bag and containers ahead of time so we can practice using them. I will admit I’ve not been great about raising the most independent child. One of my big areas of concern for me is around lunch time; I want to make sure he’s able to eat without needing assistance opening each and every part of his lunch. I figure we’ll practice as much as we can by using the bag and containers now so that he’ll be a pro at opening them by the time school starts
The expert weighs in: One of the biggest challenges may be how the lunch room is monitored. In most cases the lunch room supervisor may not ensure that you child has eaten any or all of their meal. Lots of kids use lunch time for socializing and this can be frustrating as a parent when almost an entire lunch comes home. My solution is to try to send as many things as I can that are non-perishable so food is not wasted. I also have him eat any lunch leftovers for his after school snack.
3 I’m working on his independent dressing and toileting skills. My son has had little interest in dressing himself, putting on his own shoes or going to the bathroom on his own. One way that I’m encouraging independence is to “disappear” when he may need my help– I leave the room to busy myself with something else and see if he’ll do it on his own before I come rescue him. Turns out this is the best way to foster confidence in him, he’s shocked me with the things he’s capable of when I’m not there to do it for him!
The expert weighs in: Due to class sizes, your child’s teachers can't cater to them the way that you can at home. You’ll definitely want to prepare them at home by working on simple skills such as getting their own shoes and coat on. Often little kids are paired up with an older student or there is a teacher’s assistant that can help with these things, but fostering as much independence as possible is helpful to all involved.
4. We’re playing games that encourage letter and number recognition. As a stay at home parent I’ve always worried that he’ll be behind his peers who have been in a daycare or preschool environment for years. To ensure he’s on par with his classmates I’ve been playing games with his magnet letters to help him along. Our favorite is when I send him to find a small toy (like a car, or stuffed dog) and then give him the scrambled letters for that word and we work on spelling it together.