RECEPTION! If you've been there, bought the T-shirt. Please post your single toppest tip please!

[Sycamoretreeisvile]

DD is PFB and will be starting our local state primary in September at the grand old age of 4 and 3 weeks

Please can you be kind enough post your single top tip to help me and DD negotiate this exciting and also vaguely scary time.

Anything from uniform (mind is boggling - how many fleeces, polo shirts, skirts does she need?)to whether or not to bother with school lunches (can I be bothered to make a packed lunch everyday? )

TIA

Oh and re the baby, remember that it's not the end of the world if he/she doesn't get his breakfast till you get back from the school run - happens to us all!

Thought of another,

There is always, or so it seems, one mother who knows more/has done more/child is brighter/more talented/faster than the others.

We have one of those and I made the mistake of getting talking to her.She waxed lyrical about secondry schools, they were in nursery, and which one her child would be going to.Her child was going to the top school in the area which is the Catholic Secondry.I on the other hand would not find it so easy as the intake is very strict.She would get hers in as her husbands vicar would write her a letter making sure she got the place.I pointed out that my DD is baptised and a practising Catholic so I was fairly sure I would have a place for her.Not so apparently, it doesn't work like this.

I was a bit and she went on and on about her child who is a unnoticed genius and doesnt have the patience for the teacher as they are just bored.

I also found out I have a bit of a reputation as 'the mother who can probably get anything'.

DS1 was 4 and 2 weeks when he started and was completely fine.

Top tip: read every scrap of paper, newsletter in minute detail and immediately transfer all relevant info to a calendar.

Or your child will be the only one with uniform on on own clothes day.

Re nits: Nitty Gritty comb, all other combs are rubbish.

Sad confession - I actually like sewing in name tapes (although this year there will be three lots of uniform so I might not be so keen). Sewing them in makes me feel like a proper mummy and thus gives me enough credit (I believe) to cover at least a term of arriving late, forgetting mufti days and never remembering to do spellings.

ah, procrastinator, I feel like a proper mummy today - have turned 2 pairs of trousers into shorts while DS ate breakfast.

Brilliant thread. DD (also PFB) will be only just 4 when she starts in September. I'm a teacher (secondary) but feel like I know NOTHING about beginning primary school. Loads of great advice - am furiously taking notes!

Stormfly, sooooooooo true!! Your description could have applied to DS1 during this first term. He'd confidently sound out c....a....t.
Then I'd enthusiastically ask "So, DS1, what do you think that word is?" to which his response would be "um... tennis?"

This is making me all nostalgic, DD will be starting year 1 in September

Left shoes til end of Aug then none to be had - check
Not enough uniform -check
Much time spent with head in lost property box as hadn't ironed labels on properly and hadn't noticed they'd come off - check

Too much after school activity so much moaning on everyone's part - check

Much neurotic comparing - check

More neuroses about playground cliques - check

Dressed in uniform on Mufti day - check

Hope I'm not speaking too soon (lowers voice) but have so far managed to miss the nits

DD managed the whole thing much better that I did. If only I'd seen this thread this time last year

sycamoretree - just being really nosy as your DD's uniform is the same as mine and just wondering where you lived - we're in Twickenham

Don't expect your child to tell you what they've been doing all day as soon as you pick them up from school. Often they'll only start to tell you things at around bath/bed time. If you ask too soon you'll be told that he/she did nothing, with nobody, all day!!

Not read whole thread but my tip is Do not send her in tights and pinafore on PE day!

dusty - trousers into shorts?! I have never thought of that!

DD1 is in year 4 so I had forgotten blanked out about the name tags.
Def dont wait for shoes.
Also I suggest starting off by telling DC that school shoes are part of the uniform. Then you dont have the arguments etc about having cool, sparkly, pink etc etc. I only came to that realisation this year after 4 years of twice yearly temper tantrums from me, and shouting and tears from DD1. Try telling a Lellie Kellie fan that Clarks black shoes are lovely. It dont wash
DD2 starts this September arggggggg.

Your kid will INSIST that Jack punched him the face on purpose. He will be convinced its true. 9 times out of 10, it will have been an accident so don't fly off the handle until you've asked some questions like "what were you doing at the time, where were you, was Jack playing a game waving his arms around"

Hatty, have an incentive to get them out the door. We tell DS a story on the way (made up - he usually saves the world..) and that gets us out. At one point he also had a treat that he only got if we had no fuss getting shoes on, etc - was a piece of melon or some such okay-ish thing, but it did work. Really hard if they don't want to go though - I suppose as they're twins at least they're together so that may help?!

Getting up and out of the house in morning.

Get up in plenty of time. I leave at least an hour between getting up and leaving the house. In that time I shower, everyone has breakfast and gets dress, baby has clean nappy and a quick bf (he has the rest when we get home).
No TV till dressed and breakfasted.
All clothes ready the night before.
All other items (envelopes with money etc) ready the night before and left by the door to grab as you leave.
Lots of nagging.
Baby goes to school in PJs, but having been fed and nappy changed.

Be your child's biggest fan and advocate ! Don't ever bad mouth them to the teacher or other parents .... been there, done that and wearing the (shouldn't have done that) t-shirt

Make friends with someone who has an older child at the school and pump them for information about exactly what you will be expected to do for the Christmas play (and how the tickets are allocated), the Christmas fair, any concerts they do,comic relief day, world book day, children in need, sports day, summer fair, then you know exactly what you are dealing with and can be prepared.

Grab cheap toys/presents/packs of cards when you see them as they often get invited to a lot of parties in reception. And any unwanted gifts put in a drawer for tombola prizes.

On the making friends theme, as someone has said you are with these people for 7 years so however hard you find it make an effort, a smile goes a long way. It might take a bit of time but you will get there. Some of these people will become really good friends and invaluable over the years for the various crises that inevitably happen.

If you are prone to forgetting parents evening, bribe your children/partner and anyone else you can think of to ring you just before your appointment is due.

Any gripes with other children in the class, do not raise it with the parent, go to the class teacher. The most seemingly sane of people can turn slightly deranged when presented with some of their childrens' escapades and it is not worth the risk.

Oh yes Edam the dreaded teddy! After having an exciting holiday at Disneyland we then got the dreaded teddy a few weeks later when we had nothing of interest planned. The other entries made interesting viewing after our feeble effort!

Another tip - even if you haven't written a cheque for years, get a couple of cheque books lined up. You could easily be writing a couple a week some weeks (school meals, school trips, charity days, mufti days ...)

Also make sure you have an ebay account for all those last minute dressing up days.

Get used to having to produce costumes and ingredients with 24-48 hours notice. Either because the teacher forgot to send the note out or, more likely, your son has left the crumpled up note in the bottom of his tray

For example, I found out today that we have to do an Egyptian costume for Friday. Ho hum.

Thanks so much for the getting out of the door tips! Military precision will operate in our house (for at least the first week).

Keep a stock of items in the loft for mufti days around the time of the school summer and xmas fair. This caught me out the most in reception year as no local shops. We have at least 3 mufti days for bottles, tombolla, xmas wrap etc before each fair.

Dinners worked out better for us as most had them and DS is far less picky now re food.

Keyring on the book bag has already been mentioned, so much easier to look for the keyring rather than names in a box full.

Plenty of hats/gloves as they seem to go astry at every possibility.

If they have trays, remind them to empty them so that letters, invites etc actually come home with hopefully some advance notice.

MamaG makes a really good point re versions of events, DS came home a few times saying x had stood on his fingers - mmm maybe perhaps folding his arms when sitting on the floor would have helped

Probably been said already but

DON'T waste time and energy comparing your child to other children in their class - there is always likely to be some kids who are better than yours at some things.

DON'T get involved with parents who want to start bad-mouthing or complaining about another child/parent - if they want to do that let them, don't let them make the bullets and hand you the gun

DON'T always think that YOUR child is the one who is 100% guaranteed to tell you the whole truth, and other people's kids are the liars (or even the teacher for that matter) - a tendency to disbelieve some things and ask for the other party's side of the story is a healthy one IMHO, don't jump too rapidly to their defence, you may sometimes get egg on your face when your little angel's halo slips - I have yet to meet a child who does not have the capacity to be economical with the truth as it pertains to them!

If you expect draconian punishments/sanctions for other people's kids misdemeanors, then be prepared to accept the same draconian punishments/sanctions for your own child's failings.

DO appreciate that ALL children are different and will achieve things at different ages and stages, a child who reads first might be a child for whom maths is not so easy, or a child who is fabulous at football may really struggle with reading

Don't always be there to catch them when they fall (metaphorically speaking) kids can only grow their resilience if they are allowed to take risks and make mistakes - the best lessons we learn in life are when we have had to handle the results of our mistakes/misjudgements ourselves, and have learned not to do it again. A Confucian saying is 'I hear, and I forget, I see and I remember, I do and I understand'

I need a tip for art aprons. Finally, now that DC3 is starting school I feel I should actually send him with an art apron (unlike the other two - see, I am getting the hang of this mummy business ).

The school like you to adapt an old shirt and put some towelling on the front for them to wipe their hands on, but that together with the removing collar and putting elastic on sleeves and Velcro on the back is probably beyond my sewing capability (when I boasted in my previous post about liking sewing on name tags, that's because that is the extent of my ability as a seamstress).

Does anyone have an idea for an easier art apron I can make or where I could buy one the school will approve? I may have to end up slinking up to one of my friends and begging them to do some sewing for me but that the last resort of a beta mummy.

Ooh, single top tip? Haven't read whole thread, so apologies if I'm repeating others, but I would say be child-led as much as you can. You know your child. IGNORE well-meaning middle-aged classroom assistants who say, "The tears are only for you, Mum." IGNORE staff if they press you to dump-and-run and your gut is telling you not to. Your DD may skip in happily and not look back, which would be great. But if she doesn't - if she wobbles for a while and finds it hard to settle - go with your gut on how to handle it, and if that means being the last mum in the classroom, settling her in, so be it. This has paid dividends for my (also summer-born) DS, along with negotiating part-time attendance for the whole year.

Sneaky second tip: M&S usually do a good deal on uniforms over the summer - three-for-two and the like - and their stuff is good quality.

Wishing you all a happy start in September.

always have supplies of ovec for thread worm, nothing worse than trying to find some at 10pm at night."mummy the worms are back"

head lice, every other week, have headscarves handy.

when dd started for some strange reason all the boys in her class went crazy, first two weeks and 2 kicks to the head from 2 separate boys.
if you have a ds ensure he behaves in the first few weeks otherwise he will be labeled the naughty boy forever.
dont be ashamed to cry. most parents get some sort of feedback they find distressing.
needs glasses
needs ot
has hearing problems etc