DS starting Reception in September

[PrettyCandles]

What do I need to prepare for him?

The school list only uniform. What else ought I to have ready?

Also, I'm not the world's greatest fan of synthetics, is there anywhere I can get grey school trousers that aren't made of 100% polyester?

Thanks for the M and S tip will try their

mumbee, on PE day they all come out of class with their shirts on backwards!
i would say 2-3 jumpers, 5 polo shirts and 2-3 trousers/skirts, but I usually do at least one coloured wash during the week if they don?t last.
I put names in socks at first but soo gave up. They don?t take their socks off, even for PE.

have to say that I've never bothered to name socks - is it really the end of the world if they get lost? However I diid but some distinctive ones - black with a coloured trim around the top - most children seem to wear plain grey.

Label the shoes and show ds/d where their name is on them.

A child came for a playdate and had the sam shoes as ds1, so I checked the names in them - ds1 had his own shoes, the visitor had one of his own amd one a whole size smaller which was unnamed.

the teacher kindly checked every child with the same shoes the next day at school and found the missing one

easy2name.com have iron-on labels where the actual letters become embossed onto the fabric - and you can get white ones for grey socks, sweatshirts etc. we have white ones on pale blue shirts and they look good. they also do nice different coloured sticky labels for trainers, lunchboxes/bottles etc

Clary did not happen often in Dd class usual problem was buttons done up incorrectly

May be we were luckly

(btw, just noticed a 10% discount from mumsnet on easy2name. I am not, ahem, on commission tho )

Hmm, already got my name tags. But anyway, surname only probably not a great idea for us - it's rather common! Plus, I've put his teacher's name on too so if it's lost somewhere in school they know which class he is in.

Like the tip of M&S for pull up trousers - just ordered Next ones but they have a zip or clip I think - can always send them back as they are not coming for 1-2 wks so will check M&S asap.

Hadn't thought of naming shoes either - good tip!

Soupy - I thought that about knife and fork etc - I think some things that perhaps they aren't too hot at at home they will do once at school and they are all doing it. I know ds1 kicks up a fuss about all sorts of things at home that he'll do at nursery or for his swimming teacher!

DS1 didn't use a knife and for regularly befor reception until we read a check list in his "About Me" book that said "I can eat with a knife and fork - yes/no" B*gger I thought and got him practising. DS2, OTOH, has used a knife and for from around 3 because of...tadaaa! Peer Pressure from DS1

Gilrs can have the girlier polo shirts but it doesnt matter my girls have a mixture.

If you want girlier polo shirts, Sainsbury's has white ones with a picot edge on the collar (didn't see the sleeve), as well as the usual plain ones.

Good point about inside-out after gym. I generally turn everything rightside out myself, but in recent weeks have noticed ds quietly gettting on with trying to turn things out himself.

the one thing that me dd needed pointing out was how to cope with playtimes. Despite being a very soci8able child used to having lots of freinds on tap she hasn't quite worked out that sometimes she needed to ask someone to play with her or to ask if she could join in a game rather than to watch and wait!
One more thing which would be useful is a water bottle to have in the classroom. Lots of school encourage water to be drunk throughout the day. I buy the cheapest sports bottle from ASda and ditch it when it gets too yukky.
sainsburys and Tesco shirts wash miles better than Asda

so have just bought uniform for DS at M&S ..thanks for the reminder because I would have totally forgotten

I even got him plimsolls I remember plimsolls they were only £2 at M&S

Were they Twig - I ordered Next ones for £3.50. There's something else going back then! Off to M&S on Sat morning now!

Did you get trewsers? ARe they pull on ones - i.e. no tricky buttons or zips?

No school uniforms for us, either , tho I sometimes think it would make life easier. Ordered sew in name tapes for both when DD1 started Kindergarten - she is about to go into Year 2 equivalent and the packets are still sealed ...

Our DS starts in September too and I;ve taken a trip to Mothercare who are offering 3 for the price of two at the minute for school uniforms -jumpers, trousers, PE shirts & shorts, etc etc. He's really looking forward to it, and has been practising putting his uniform on and off and changing into his PE kit -I think he would live in huis uniform all over the school holidays if it was down to him he's that excited !!!!!!

Lucky you steppy1 - ds1 has a complete fit if I try to get him to put any of it on! Dh will have to be here the first morning as I've got to get 3 of them out the door for 8.30 - one to school, one to nursery and one staying with me! HELP!

i think more than two pairs of trousers are neccessary if you have a ds like mine who always manages to dribble on them when he goes to the loo which means we only ever get one day out of a pair of trousers cos they stink of wee!!!!

gobbledigook, do you not just take the youngest to school i his pjs and sort him out when you get home?? i do/

got trousers (£7) charcoal grey nice (did cheaper black ones)
and shorts (£5) same as above

yes they're pull-up and elasticated

and polo shirts and PE shorts and socks

oh and a red power ranger suit

we went a little OTT

alexsmum - hmm, yes could do that! I know my Mum used to!

Twiglett - might have to go to M&S for trousers then. Hadn't really considered the zip and button on the Next ones. I need light grey though - not charcoal.

May i pass on a tip?
Buy 3-5 pairs of identical sox (e.g., Woolies sell a mixed pack of 10 prs, gray & navy, 5 prs in each colour). Makes finding matching pairs of sox a lot easier in the mornings...

I managed to get by on just 2 pairs of trousers each term in reception (when the knees finally went, made them into shorts for summer). Also, until summer, when DS didn't wear his jumper, managed on just 2 polo shirts, they rarely got dirty, just watch if the collar gets grimey. And usually just 2 jumpers: just sponge-washed them or the trousers occasionally.

I sewed names on scarves & gloves & hats, but not sox. There's a limit... DS1 came home wearing the wrong sox one time, and the wrong coat once, too. The other mothers realised, not me.

OK, so I got the pull up trousers from M&S and the £2 plimsolls (love that word!) but ds1 finally agreed to try his whole uniform last night (would post a pic but don't know how) and how the hell do they manage their shirt???? Even I was struggling with the buttons they were so tight!! How do they manage to get them on and off at PE time?

This is a proper shirt btw, not a polo shirt.

?

teach him to only undo enough buttons to pull shirt off over head (alternatively sew the buttons up that donot need to be undone or for the day of PE where a polo shirt if poss