Advice for starting in year 7

Dd has just finished year 7. Her advice is learn what you can get away with from each teacher, and avoid anyone older than you unless you know them and they like you!! Hope that helps

I would say get everything ready the day before. And if they are reluctant to do something you know they like eg football, speak to school and ask them to invite them

Just get the basics. Most of it will not get used

Two pencil cases...... one in school bag all the time and one at home fror homework.......

pencil cases send a plain non descript one on day one [ pound shop[ she or he will then decide what is acceptable and you can then buy another one after a couple of weeks..

Always do homework on the day it is set, dont let it mount up.....

Familiarise yourself with the school website. It will give an overview of the academic year, so you have a rough idea of what happens when. You may also find a stationary list and details of what PE kit is required for each sport. DS has to wear white socks for some sports and blue for others, and it drives me up the wall!!

Where possible label things like lunch boxes/ water bottles with the number of the form room, that way it has more of a chance of someone dropping it off there and they will get it back quicker.

Yes to a folder for each subject. Lots of worksheets in Year 7.

We use wallpaper for covering books

Went to b&q and got samples in different colours so each subject had its own colour -made it much easier to find books in the morning rush

Despite best efforts, packing bags at night has never happened

Another thing I did before my dd started, was we went for several walks / bike rides around the area in the Summer holidays beforehand - what it meant was, when she made new friends, she could walk their route as far as their house, then still know her way home from there. We found the paths and the shortcuts and looked at an A-Z to show her which roads connected up with which roads, and how she could get home several different ways. I also pointed out where various 'safe points' were along the route (friends house or a Community cafe they pass) in case she were ever feeling uncomfortable.

I also did lots of "What would you do if......" type scenarios

• so some people might say the bus didn't turn up for 1/2 hour after it was supposed to

• you lost your dinner money / bus fair

Not all scary things, but scenarios that might occur, and talk about what they would do if they did. You don't cover everything that might ever happen in their lives, but at least you've got some bases covered.

Some places such as bookshops or stationers (I´m thinking more independent ones) will cover books for you. Usually the service is only available in the first week or so of September.

It´s a good idea to cover books even if it´s not compulsory as they suffer a great deal of wear and tear over the year. For exercise books it´s useful if they´re in good condition with no pages falling out as they´ll more than likely be needed for revision for the end of year exams. the following summer. For textbooks the school can charge, or just generally get annoyed, if they are returned in an unreasonably worn state at the end of the academic year.

As the previous poster said, shops tend to run out of sticky backed plastic once term has begun so stock up now.

None of mine have ever had to cover their books - think that might be specific to a few schools.

Buy a roll of sticky back plastic for covering books. We got caught out as a book hasd to be covered overnight for the next day, and most places were sold out.

Buy loads of identical socks, and enough shirts for a week, plus deodorant of not already using. Sweaty pre-teens and polyester blazers are not a good combination.

Know which days PE kit has to go to school.
If you have to sign the planner every week, get in a routine, as they will forget or get them to practice forging your signature to avoid a detention.

Yes, folders are helpful and more needed than at primary.
Enough pens
And ongoing from primary - enough hair bobbles
Again plenty of socks
Generally enough uniform
Plenty of cash for dinners, outings, cake sales etc.

Another advice tip I've read on here is to get a pile of those zipped clear folders and give your Y7 child one for each subject in which they keep their book, textbook if applicable and any extraneous bits of paper.

We have a keysafe on the front of the house, so DD at least won't have to take a key with her.

at our parents induction evening one (experienced) parent said they stick ds copy of the timetable into the front of their homework journal, so it can't get lost.

I think the tip about the copy of the timetable up in the kitchen (or wherever) is the best one here - yes, they're meant to be all independent now but when the planner with timetable in is lost one morning it does help if Mum has another copy of it so can find out what we have that day!

I have bought ds uniform (M&S 20% off finishes today) and I am delighted that the back pockets on the school trousers have a zip.
genius.

the key thing is a great idea. Bike padlock key needs to stay not lost.

"And my other tip is to empty your bank account in the general direction of the school..."

re the lost property thing. A friend of mine drives school buses. Every single day he gathers up lots of left items. They get kept by the bus company for a month but are then disposed of. So if things do get lost then check bus company as well if your children travel by school bus.

p.s. If you read the Manchester G.S. advice to Yr. 7 students (I posted a link earlier in this thread) it makes some excellent points about "lost property" - as a teacher in a different, mixed school, I found them spot on!

As a teacher I tend to collect up at LEAST one forgotten piece of stationery at the end of every class. If any students from that class are still in the room / corridor outside I show it to them and ask who it belongs to (stationery never seems to be named, even calculators and USB sticks!) Sometimes they recognise it and take it to give to the owner but the rest of the time I put it in a cardboard box marked "lost property" at the front of the room and encourage students to check it on the way in and out of the classroom, but it´s very rare that they do. It gets full really quickly so every couple of weeks I have to go through it and chuck out anything I don´t think´s going to be claimed (e.g. odd pencils, chunks of rubber) and just leave the more valuable items that students might recognise. At the end of term I had a huge box of all sorts of goodies (highlighter pens, glue sticks, scissors, etc.)

Basically many students are pretty careless with their possessions especially when they want to rush off to break or lunchtime. If you make your child spend their pocket money on replacement stationery you will probably find that fewer items get "lost".

Any uniform that is left behind I check for a name then either try to find the student or put it in their tutor´s pigeonhole or if it´s not named give it to the secretary who keeps the uniform lost property.

Phones or really valuable things are left behind sometimes and I hate that (makes me feel responsible for them and I don´t want to be!) I find the Head or the Year Group co-ordinator as soon as I possibly can to give it in.

If buying a pencil case, get clear ones for exam time (both our DS and DD , different schools, needed clear ones).

And my other tip is to empty your bank account in the general direction of the school...

TheFirst you are so right- same here!

Get a little make up bag and put a couple of sanitary towels in and a clean pair of pants

There is enough to worry about in yr 7 without having to worry about periods

Ah yes, the protractors and glue-sticks. Where do they all go? I suspect I'm actually supplying protractors and glue-sticks for two entire classes.

scissors, gluestick, selotape. Both in pencil case and at home.

Marking place. Just ordered uniform online this morning for DD1 who starts in Sept...

Oops sorry forgot protractor and pair of compasses.