Countdown is on

St Patrick's Primary Guildford Principal Steven Jones
Principal Steven Jones with some of last year's kindergartners.

As the summer holidays start to come to a close, students across Australia are getting ready to begin a new school year - some for the very first time.

It may feel like the 2023 school year has only just wrapped up, but Steven Jones, Principal of St Patrick's Primary School in Guildford, is already looking forward to welcoming students back to the classroom on February 1.

And with just about two weeks to go before the first day back, Jones said the time is now to get ready for the 2024 school year.

"Students should start getting all the things that they require for the 2024 school year, whether it be their stationary, making sure that their uniforms fit, because those things, if they're all organised that takes the stress of students," he told Parra News.

Jones said it's also important for parents to encourage a routine in the lead up to the first day back especially for first-time kindergartners.

"I think the other thing is also to not have too many late nights and sleep-ins, I think that's an important thing to still keep, particularly when it comes to mid-January you're starting to get back into a sleeping routine," he said.

Have a routine with their children, how they're going to be dropped off, what to do when they get there, how they're going to say goodbye, they're not going to be upset about their child going to school."

Along with being organised and getting into a routine, Jones said it's important for students to "Have a routine with their keep their mind active by doing activities like reading.

"One of the things that we've really encouraged is to continue reading, we actually have a holiday reading challenge for students," he added.

"Sometimes if they're not doing their reading it takes them a couple of weeks to get back into things."

Tips for starting school for the first time

first time Whether it's feeling proud or a little scared, dropping your child off at school for the first time is guaranteed to bring on a mixed-bag of emotions for every parent. To help make the transition as smooth as possible, Jones has shared some important tips:

Get children into a routine. Whether it's waking up early or driving to the school to show them where they're going to be dropped off, Jones believes a routine is key to helping kinder- gartners get used to 'big kid school'
Stay in the loop with any communications from the school and keep kids up-to-date.
Make sure uniforms fit and have children break in their shoes well before the first day.
Encourage children to be independent by doing activities like packing their backpack by themselves or opening the containers in their lunch box. Jones said teachers will be on-hand to help out the new students, but the more they can do themselves, the better.
Be positive about school and tell children they'll have a good experience there.
If possible, organise a play date beforehand with other kids starting kindergarten.
And most importantly, be prepared for both you and your child to feel a range of different feelings on the day.