This time next week is BB’s first day of school. With the exception of becoming a big sister starting ‘big’ school will be the biggest life-changing event in her four short years, both for her and for me (more on that in a future post).

We’ve been preparing her for the change all summer in a bid to make the transition from pre-school to actual school as smooth as possible (she’s a bit of a worrier), so I thought I’d share my tips on preparing your child for starting ‘big’ school:

1. We’ve been buying school uniform together and encouraging BB to try on each new bit when we get home and wear it around the house for a while (pictured). As you can see, she loves it. (I can’t believe how blingy school uniform has become – I’ve had a rant about it in a guest post here).

2. Visit the new school before the big day. Whether it’s the summer fair or a cake sale, ask if you can come so your pre-schooler can visualise where they’re going to be and what everything looks like. BB’s new school invited us for a teddy bear’s picnic and to story time where she had the chance to meet the rest of her class and the existing reception children.

3. Find out what kind of things are on the menu at lunchtime. BB’s new school gave us the recipe of one of their lunchtime favourites, pizza, and we made it at home so, once again, she could imagine what lunchtime’s going to be like.

4. Try and get the contact details of some of the other parents and arrange a play date before term time starts. I befriended some of the other mums at the teddy bear’s picnic and we arranged to meet up over the summer holidays. Thanks to one pro-active mum, BB’s even going to a birthday party with all the members of her new class before they even start school.

5. Watch Time for School on CBeebies. It’s a fly-on-the-wall documentary about starting school and although rather slow (Mrs Fieldhouse did this, pause, Mrs Fieldhouse did that, even longer pause) it’s a perfect example of the school day. There are episodes and clips on the CBeebies website.