Some characteristics teachers notice in a child as they approach readiness for the Primary environment are:

• the child’s ability to verbally articulate their needs,

• the child’s independence with self-care activities such as hand-washing, dressing, undressing, and the toilet learning process,

• the child’s ability to follow simple instructions, concentrate on a task through completion, restore work to the shelf when finished, and a child’s tendency to repeat activities again and again in concentrated cycles of activity,

• the child's ability to respect others, take turns, and cooperate.

 

You can also help your child get ready for the Primary community by focusing on improving independence, social maturity, and concentration. These activities (and many others) can help:

• Engage your child in conversations at home. Speak to them like you would an adult; no baby talk.

• Expect and encourage your child to use words, especially around their feelings and needs. Gradually transition them to using phrases and sentences.

• Support socialization. Create opportunities for them to have unstructured, child-directed playtime with other children and moving from "parallel play" into more collaboration and cooperation with others.

• Support concentration. Provide them with activities that require them to complete multiple steps. Create unstructured individual playtime where they can self-direct as well as engage uninterrupted for long stretches.

• Provide tools for independence at home (e.g. a step stool, a cup and pitcher, a small broom, low shelves for kitchen items, a clothes dresser). Give them enough time to complete these tasks independently. Do not rush them.

• Support self-awareness of body cues and independent toileting. With this one, practice makes perfect. Stay positive. A few accidents are bound to happen!

• Choose clothes and food the child can independently manage. Example: No shoes with shoelaces.