Who’s Ready for School?
I read an article today published by ‘Nursery World’, written by Louise Livingstone; Head of Training at the Maria Montessori Institute which explored the perception of ‘Readiness for School’ and what this meant to different people.
With a 4 year old due to start school this coming September, I’m on high alert here!
How do I help to prepare my little girl for this next, and hugely important, step in her life? And what does it mean to ‘be ready’?
A recent survey by YouGov tells us that teachers reported more than half of children starting reception are not ‘ready for school’ (wow). In contrast 89% of parents surveyed said they felt their child was ‘school ready’, suggesting a huge difference in opinion.
From those surveyed, here is a snippet of the skills that teachers expect of children starting school :
holding a pen
Recognising letters and numbers
Familiarity with nursery rhymes
Verbalising their own needs
Dressing, eating, using the toilet independently
Playing, taking turns, sharing
Following instructions
Being able to concentrate for short periods
Any shockers here yet? Stay with me ….
The majority of parents recognised the importance of these elements, great!
However :
Nearly 20% didn’t think their child needed to be toilet trained
Nearly 20% didn’t think their child should be able to eat independently
Over 25% didn’t’ think their child should be able to share or play with other children
And this one is my personal favourite ……
Nearly Half of parents surveyed didn’t think their child needed to be able to hold a pencil
Of course children are all different, they develop in different ways and at different speeds and the pandemic will undoubtably have played a part in opening up the skills gap both academically and socially.
But we can acknowledge that the skills teachers have cited here are … fairly basic? Nonetheless I took a short while to revel smugly that we had confidently achieved the skill set required for our daughter and started to mentally list all the other things she can already achieve.
But can I really take responsibility for all of these?
Certainly in our own family’s case I can honestly say that there is another party here that has played a huge part …… Nursery!
Only this morning my daughter proudly showed me a new way to put her big coat on without any help. I did not teach her this (but I am so glad she possesses the skill!). All too quickly I would hold out the coat ready for little arms instead of showing her how to do this independently.
Social Skills – how has she learned to play with others? As an only child there is little need to take turns, share and wait in line. But she does these things. In fact, if I’m honest with myself I often now feel that short sharp sting when she tells me – I don’t need you mummy, I can do it on my own. Of course this discomfort for me does transform into pride when I think about her very soon starting school and being in a position to perform these tasks independently and be … Ready to Learn!
When telling me about her day at nursery, I hear about the phonics she learned with Sophie, how she was Sam’s special helper today (a big favourite), Aimee helped her to draw a flower and Jade practised tricky zips with her and gave her a cuddle when she felt sad. These fantastic people are part of her daily life and they do great things. It’s far more than ‘providing care’.
As Early Years Photographers we at CO Kids visit many, many nurseries to photograph over 10,000 children a year and are privileged to witness some of these special relationships that children form with Nursery Practitioners. We believe that every child deserves an awesome photograph of their early years, and enjoy being around the Nursery colleagues that are working to make each day awesome!
I’m proud to say that we are taking the opportunity to recognise Nursery Practitioners that we feel really are going above and beyond each day. Exciting Times!
Look out for news about our Nursery Practitioner Awards … Recognition for Excellence!
Written by Sally York @cokidssally
