Is Your Child Ready for School? Fine and Gross Motor Skills

Have you been wondering if your child is ready for school? Getting ready for school is such an exciting time, for both children and their parents! There’s nothing quite like the excitement (and nervous anticipation) of purchasing school supplies, heading to orientations, and watching your child prepare to navigate the world of higher education. 
 
One of the biggest questions parents often ask when it comes to their pre-school-aged children, is ‘How do we know that they are ready for big school?’  

It’s easy to become overwhelmed when considering the skills your child may need to have mastered by the time that they start school. The most common skills that parents assume their child needs include reading, writing, counting, or spelling. However, while there is absolutely a place for these skills, there are many other, arguably more important areas of development that should also be investigated while establishing school readiness.  

Fine and Gross Motor Skills 

Reading and writing may be important, but to do these well, your child needs to have the physical capabilities to get through a school day comfortably and happily. 

Heading to big school is exhausting and can often be a much longer day than many children are used to. You’ll often hear stories of Prep/Kindergarten children coming home from school in those early days and falling asleep on the couch – and this is why! Some physical aspects to look out for: 

• Is your child able to sit on the floor with their legs crossed and concentrate for short bursts at a time? 
• Can they sit straight in a chair without too much fidgeting?  
• Do they enjoy fine motor activities, and can they persist in activities that use their hands and their wrists frequently – such as colouring, cutting, gluing, or building?  

While it’s very common for young children to be tired at the end of a school day, this is a skill that develops over time. If you’ve noticed that your child is still requiring a day sleep, or tires quickly after exercise or activities, it may be something to consider when it comes to school readiness. 

Wondering what you could do to help? Here are some suggestions:

• Opportunities to draw and paint
• Using playdough or clay to manipulate and make things with
• Using scissors to cut items out and around
• Using tweezers to pick up items
• Threading beads
• Using a hammer and nail
• Running, jumping, and exploring movements outside
• Yoga or fun HIIT style workouts with the kids
• Singing and dancing

If you do have concerns, chat with your doctor and seek advice from an Occupational Therapist.

What's Next?

As you can see, there really is so much more to school readiness then whether your child can pick up a pencil and write a story, or read a written story independently.

The most important thing is to look at your child as an individual, as opposed to comparing to others – and if you need a little extra support or guidance, look to a qualified speech pathologist to help you on your way.

If you would love to assist your child in getting ready for school, then my Kick Start Kindy program would be perfect. Otherwise, download the free School Readiness checklist to see if your little one is ready for big school!