Transitioning to a new setting or school can be both exciting and daunting for our children, whatever their age. Understanding the uncertainty and anxiety – felt by children and sometimes by parents/carers – is the first step to ensuring smooth and successful transitions.
Starting school successfully
by Louise Jennings, Head of Early Years
The transition to school in the early years is an important and significant step for both child and parent/carer. It is a series of firsts – many children will put on a school uniform for the first time, carry a bookbag for the first time and encounter more new faces than ever before.
How can you help them prepare for this?
Valuing preschool experience
Children will come to school with experiences, ideas and knowledge, which they bring from home, a childminder, a preschool or a nursery. Knowing, understanding and valuing that experience is key to ensuring transition is as smooth as possible.
Setting and home visits are an invaluable way to get to know your children and understand their preschool experiences.
Establishing positive relationships and introducing routines
The weeks before the start of school, and the first few weeks in September, are critical to settling children in to their new environment.
Children need time to:
- Get to know staff – Do they get the chance to meet them before they start?
- Adjust to school routines – Could you share the times of lunch and story time for parents to try at home?
- Explore the indoor and outdoor environment – Could you offer “stay and play” sessions or tours for children and parents?
- Providing parents with information and giving them opportunities to ask questions will provide them with reassurance that their child will be safe, happy and will learn at school.
Getting it right for Year 1
by Heidi Otranen, Head of Primary School Leadership
Moving into Year 1 brings another set of challenges. Children move up to a very different learning environment, with new staff, a new routine and a new timetable as they begin to follow the national curriculum.
Even the children who achieved GLD (good level of development) at the end of Reception might struggle with so many changes all at once.
Therefore, it is important to consider these two crucial questions to support children to adapt to Key Stage 1:
- Should there still be an opportunity for continuous provision as part of the Year 1 classroom environment and provision, to help children transition to the new key stage?
- What extra support is in place for those children who left Early Years without reaching GLD, so that they can access the Year 1 curriculum in the best possible way?
Ensuring the child’s needs are central to decision making will help ensure that the move to Year 1 is not a “cliff edge” change for children.
Good endings and strong beginnings, Year 6–7 Transition
by Anne Peck, Head of Primary Curriculum, Teaching, Learning and Assessment
Most primary/junior schools and secondary schools have a wide range of systems and processes already in place to support transition from Year 6 to Year 7.
In addition to the countywide “move-up day”, these support processes include additional visits for vulnerable pupils, and special events where “single students” (often those moving from smaller primary settings) can meet new friends ahead of their first day in school.
While formal information sharing between teachers is crucial, from both academical and safeguarding perspectives, it is these softer opportunities that can really make a difference.
Leaders are likely to find it helpful to also consider which skills might need reinforcing:
- Can pupils confidently read a timetable, using the format adopted by their new school?
- Have key messages around online safety and establishing privacy settings been revisited?
- Can pupils manage the mental calculations required to ensure they can afford a breaktime pasta pot, even on a Friday?
Year 6–7 transition, however, is as much about a good end as it is a strong beginning. There are many ways to celebrate and commemorate the end of Year 6. Each school has its tradition. Embrace it, enjoy it, and then ensure students are excited about the next stage.
Preparation for post-16
by Becky Cox, School Effectiveness Adviser
Preparation for life beyond Year 11 should start in KS4, with high-quality advice and guidance available for all students, to help them choose suitable pathways for their career and life aspirations. This could be staying on into the school sixth form, moving to an FE provider, or taking up an apprenticeship.
Gatsby Benchmark 7 states that schools should provide meaningful encounters with a range of providers, and most schools fulfil this through their PHSE programme and post-16 options events. Involve parents in these too, so that they can support their children’s decisions about their next steps.
Sixth form leaders should liaise with colleagues who have a pastoral role in Year 11, to ensure they know which students might need additional support once they join the sixth form.
Students from disadvantaged backgrounds might be eligible for the school’s bursary funding, so make sure that they and their families are aware.
Students don’t only need support around pastoral issues. Remember, Year 12 students are, after all, just Year 11 students in suits! Their approach to study and time management will not have changed significantly over the summer break, and it is vital they are provided with the support and strategies they need to manage the “freedom” of study periods and a common room.
