Is your child starting school in September?

If your child is starting school (this might be Reception, Year 1 or 2) next month, we imagine you will be feeling as if you are on a rollercoaster.  You and your child will already have been into your chosen Nursery or School for taster mornings or afternoons.  You may even have had a virtual welcome session.  You will have a good idea about the structure and routine of school life but still those questions keep on coming….

“How on earth is my child already at this stage?   Where has the time gone? They were a baby a moment ago.  Will they like their nursery school? Will the staff like my child? Will they make friends?  Will they cope without me?”…………..

The questions are endless and go around and around – the few above only scratch the surface!  What we would say, as teachers, to any prospective parent, is that you are not the only person to be having these thoughts. They are totally understandable and natural.  Other mothers and fathers may look and seem as if they have got it all taped, but rest assured, a child going to nursery for the first time, is a big step for anyone going through the process!  Also, rest assured that the nursey in question will have seen “the September intake” many, many times and will be on high alert to ensure that your child settles down as easily and happily as possible.  A nursery does not function well unless children are happy, and so it is in everyone’s interest that each child, is allowed to settle and find their own rhythm, at their own pace.

What about you though as parents?  You’ve got this far - you will have had so many highs (as well as some lows) along the parenthood path.  What about giving yourself time and space for the next chapter?  This is where we would love you to pause and assess – maybe even reassess.  Really give yourself time to check in and ask yourself 

What is going well for me/us?

Is there anything I/we would like to change or tweak?

What could I/we do differently?

There is no “one fits all” parent manual – each child is unique and should be celebrated as the “one of a kind” they are.  But as parents we can always look to question as well as try to find answers.  In no other area of life do we simply continue along a path without stopping to check we know what direction we are heading in.

This is where The Parent Collaborative comes in.

We are not saying – come and see us, because we are the experts and have all the answers.  We are not saying – come and see us because you are doing it all wrong.  What we want to say to parents is – come and see us, because together we can search for what could, potentially, work better.  Come and see us, because you may well meet like-minded parents who can also introduce you to new concepts and ideas.  Come and see us and let’s together have a “check over”, rather than a “make-over”.

Bella and I have always been so grateful that we had done our Montessori training before becoming parents.  We never had all the answers – we still most certainly do not.  What our training gave us, however, was a clear understanding of child development and a range of strategies and possible “ways through” with regards to issues.  

This is what we want our Parent Collaborative parent sessions to be about.  Knowledge about the different stages of a child’s development and some tools in your parent tool kit, that you can unpack when required.