What should children be able to do before starting school?

[Namesnamesnames13]

I’d love to know what peoples kids were able to do before going to school. 3 year old is potty trained, can wipe, blow nose, ask for help, follow instructions etc but outside of that, what should kids know first year a school. Writing name, etc, reading basic words and numbers? I was no wizz at school, but wish I had been a bit more ahead with stuff.

Has anyone had a home tutor for kids before school to get the basics? Or is this too much? i know I could do it (I can hear people typing that response!) but we aren’t all great teachers! 🤦‍♀️

Put coat on, do up zip, manage own shoes, follow 1 and 2 step instructions. Definitely no tutor! That's absolute overkill. Read together each day and enjoy it 🙂

Honestly the most useful stuff is the basics.

can put coat on by themselves.
can go to loo and wipe tyrmselves
can get changed into PE kit - takes most reception kids a term to learn how to do that

recognising name is great, but the social and self care stuff is honestly more useful.

can use knife and fork as well!

Startingreception.co.uk has all the things. Mostly independence and confidence. Definitely not more than recognizing their name on academics.

Something lots of children find hard is carrying their dinner tray to the table without spilling it. Thats something worth practising. Recognising name and knowing where to find it on their uniform etc is really helpful too.

Recognising their name when written or printed is handy for knowing which is their peg/tray.
They don't need to know anything else of reading/writing because that's what school is for 🤷
(I mean if they've picked some skills up before starting then that's ok but they definitely don't need to know in advance)

This, plus go to the toilet independently. Don't worry too much about writing but encourage them to do lots of drawing in crayon, fekt pen, chalk, biro or whatever. If you want to help them write their name use the correct letter formation as used by the school as bad habits are difficult to put right. You don't need a tutor.

Teach them to put their own coat even if they need help fastening it. If they change for PE at that school help them to start dressing and undressing themselves - as a teacher I taught them this as an important part of the PE lesson but it helps if they aren't all sitting there waving a sock in the air hoping it will miraculously slip on to their foot.

And... toilet, toilet, toilet.

Turn taking.
listening to simple instructions and following them.
saying ‘please’ and ‘thank you’ (for verbal children)
have some understanding of empathy and kindness
be able to stand up for themselves
be practices in retelling a simple sequence of events
know and enjoy books with an adult or older sibling

when she started Reception, my daughter could dress and undress herself, including tying her shoelaces, and could use the toilet independently and wipe herself. She could use cutlery properly and had basic good table manners. I assumed thst most children could read and write when they started school so taught my daughter to read during the summer before she started Reception. She was desperate to learn at thst age and knew her 2, 5, and 10x tables, and could write her name and a few words. I was a volunteer reader in my daughter’s class and the level of reading skills amd knowledge was really varied - from one boy who was reading Harry Potter books in the first term to a girl who didn’t even know the names of colours, let alone any letters. I think the thing that really shocked me was the number of children who didn’t know their phone number or address - there were a couple of times when I took my daughter and her friends out and their parents didn’t turn up on time to collect them, and the children had no idea of how to contact their parents.

Mine could do her 8 and 9 times tables before starting Reception. She'd actually finished the Harry Potter books at nursery, so over the summer we moved her on to the complete works of Shakespeare. She could tie her own shoelaces by the age of 2 🤣. AHH this place!

Seriously OP much of what most people were saying, toilet, dressing, taking turns, plenty of developing fine motor control, manners. I wouldn't worry about the tutor.

Toilet is number 1. Putting coat and shoes on. Getting changed for PE is less important now as since Covid kids mostly go into school in PE kit on PE days, check what your school does. Knowing how to use scissors. A lot of foundation learning is done by cutting things out and sticking!

Use a knife and fork
pit own shoes and coat on
recognise their name when writtten
go to the toilet on their own
ask for help as in I need a drink etc
some numbers and awareness of letters helps but this is taught at school
be able to sit and listen
understand concept of sharing and taking turns social skills like that
they teach them pretty much everything else

I don't know my own phone number never mind anyone else's.

One thing that’s really important for learning to write is having strong gross motor skills. Often kids have practiced pencil grip or colouring etc but don’t have the gross motor skills to support the fine motor skills.

Other than that, toilet, getting dressed, listening and following 2-3 step instructions, retelling a short sequence, being able to patiently wait your turn.

I would leave the numbers and letters for now. Your DC could end up seriously bored during the first year of School otherwise.

Concentrate on getting changed so that they can get ready for PE. Get them to use cutlery as they’ll probably be having free school meals. Practice sharing by playing games. We found a few Orchard Games in local charity shops and read to them often.

I’s also practice some fine motor skills and mark making. So things like two different sizes of pasta shapes into two different coloured bowls or using outdoor chalks to draw pictures.

If they are particularly interested in numbers then take them for a walk and point out numbers on doors, bins and cat number plates or collect leaves this autumn to make pictures with and count the leaves as part of the activity.

This year will pass so quickly and they’re on education for so long. I really would concentrate on having fun and building resilience.

If you really do want to do some activities around numbers or letters then there should be some age appropriate ones on Pinterest

Physical things are more important, wipe number 2s completely unaided, put shoes on themselves without being told the right feet, dress themselves including tights, zip coat up, put on gloves, open lunch boxes, open packets or water bottles, good fine motor skills in general, able to hold a pencil properly.

General number and letter activities are fine but not essential, it’s better to promote a wide range of reading, drawing and attention based activities rather than thinking there’s a check box of letters.

@Growlybear83I think the thing that really shocked me was the number of children who didn’t know their phone number

I don’t think many children at all would know two parent’s eleven digit phone numbers at 4 years old. I certainly don’t know anyone with a reception aged child and a landline either.

My experience was a few years ago so most people had landlines, with one shorter number, rather than mobile phones. But I dont think it’s unreasonable for a five year old to memorise one mobile phone number in case of emergencies. It also surprised me that some children didnt know their address either.

Going to the toilet independently.
Washing hands.
Getting dressed and undressed, including putting coat on and buttons/zips.
Use cutlery.
listening to instructions and turn taking.

A bit extra , but fine motor skills. Using scissors, tracing, colouring etc. and proper pen/pencil grip.

If they’re ready and willing to, number recognition alongside physical representation (the number 2 means 2 bears , rather than just an abstract concept of 2). Counting forwards and backwards. Concepts like more and less, bigger and smaller etc.

Recognise their own name either handwritten or in print. Again, if interested you can practice writing their own name or some cvc words but only if you can teach her proper pen grip and letter formation.

Read to her. A lot. Let her join in if she starts recognising words. Alphabet and letter sounds, again if there’s an interest.

Forgot to ask you OP, does she go to Pre-School? If you’re in the UK you could use your free hours. A good Pre-School will get her used to things like sitting on the mat and listening, eating with other DC and some fine motor skill activities.

A few years, or decades ago?

This isn't essential for Reception obviously, but I am part of the emergency services and do visits to Reception classes at my child's school. I always ask them how many of them know their own surname, and the first names of their parents. The amount that say 'Her name is Mummy' or don't know their surname is quite high.

However, it's an important fact for children to know- should they ever get lost and the Police contacted, if they are able to tell an officer full name of a parent, there are checks (such as driving licence checks) on the Police National Computer, or local police systems, which could help reunite your child.

https://startingreception.co.uk/#the-basic-skills-to-practice
This is shared with parents to help them navigate starting school.

When i worked in early years, a big problem was hand strength. Kids need hand strength to hold a pencil, paint brush, crayons etc.

That’s interesting. I started School a very long time ago but can clearly remember being able to recite our address and telephone number.

Flush the toilet! So many toileting problems at school are because they dont want to use an unflushed/ dirty toilet (who would?) But there isnt the staff to make sure they're always clean! Wash hands without being reminded. Share / take turns. Follow 2 step instructions (go into the kitchen and get a pen). Sit and listen to a story (and if possible talk about it). Tidy up after themselves (lids on pens, pens away in the right place etc). Follow rules!!