‘School readiness’ in children includes many different skills and behaviours, such as:

SOCIAL SKILLS

Being able to get along with other children, demonstrate basic manners and being able to play independently as well as with other children.

EMOTIONAL MATURITY

Being able to manage their emotions, follow directions and instructions from teachers, cope with changes to routine and understand and follow rules.

LANGUAGE SKILLS

Being able to talk and listen to adults and other children, speak clearly, communicate needs, understand stories and begin to identify some letters and sounds.

COGNITIVE SKILLS

Basic number sense, basic problem-solving skills, ability to focus on tasks, being able to wait and take turns.

PHYSICAL SKILLS

Fine motor skills (such as being able to grip a pencil and turn pages in a book) and physical coordination (being able to run, jump, climb and play ball).

INDEPENDENCE

Independently use the toilet, dress themselves (including putting on and removing jumpers), unwrap packaged foods and open a lunchbox and manage their personal belongings (school bag).

Remember, every child develops at their own pace and has their own strengths, interests, temperament and approach to learning. Not all children will develop these skills at the same time.

WHAT CAN YOU DO TO PREPARE YOUR CHILD?

•Encourage your child to draw using different materials, such as pencils, textas and crayons.

•Help your child to practise recognising and writing their first name, using a capital letter at the start and lowercase letters for the rest.

•Allow your child to dress and undress themselves, including shoes and jumpers.

•Read to your child as often as you can. Ask questions about the story and encourage them to point out things in the illustrations.

•Help your child develop an awareness of numbers by pointing out numbers around the home and counting everyday objects as you are using them, for example ‘How many chairs are at our table?’

speech sessions