The K-Transition is a huge milestone for our little people. It marks the beginning of so much for them. It’s the beginning of their full-time school life, their academic career, a whole new sense of independence, and so much more. Children spend the majority of their waking hours in the school environment learning, exploring, socializing, growing, developing, and becoming meaningful members to society.
For some kids, Kindergarten will be the first time they are…
Out of the house for full days on a regular basis
Away from their parents &/or caregivers for full days
Not napping during the day anymore!
Learning & playing in a larger group of kids
Roaming the playground without an adult directly by their side all the time
This is a HUGE deal!
If you aren’t submerged in the world of education you might not know this but…. with the shift to full day kindergarten the expectations of our K-children have skyrocketed.
A few weeks ago I managed to find a whole hour to myself to go get my haircut. As I was sitting in the chair a friend of mine (who is a Speech & Language Pathologist and works in the school board) walked in and sat beside me. We got talking and despite us both being completely emotional that our daughters are transitioning into Kindergarten in September- we were discussing how it’s so tough for so many children to get through Kindergarten with such ease these days because of the expectations placed on them.
For example, they are expected to...
Be perfect little angels who can self regulate on their own throughout the day (all day, everyday)
Problem solve independently through conflict while playing with other kids (all day, everyday)
Organize, plan, and communicate their thoughts through play without conflict (all day, everyday)
And the list goes on….
Newsflash!!!! our little people haven’t necessarily fully developed the hardware to do all of this! The frontal lobe of their brain, which is responsible for a lot of this is still under big time development.
Knowing that this transition is a huge change for our kiddies and knowing that the expectations placed on them in the FDK curriculum are very high- how the hell can we prepare our children to be as successful as possible with this transition?!?!
Personally, I started my transition prep 4 months ago! I knew in my mind that I had to make this transition feel as normal as possible for my child so she can show up that first day, week, month feeling confident and comfortable. If you are reading this and you only have 3 months or so to go- don’t sweat it! You still have a good amount of time to prepare. Here’s a sample plan that I put together with a client of mine to get her child ready for the transition to kindergarten.
Keep in mind- these strategies were curated specifically for my client. Your child might be at a different phase in their development and that’s completely cool! The key to being successful with any of my strategies is repetition. This is how children learn!
Kindergarten Transition Plan
Regardless of what school your child will be attending for Kindergarten, a little bit of prep will go a looong way!! I promise you that one! If you are feeling overwhelmed and don't know where to start preparing your child then we NEED to chat. Book in a FREE 30-minute call so I can give you a starting point and some strategies to work with.
You've got this!
Cori
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