Starting School Tips

Our schools will be home to happy memories and valuable learning experiences.

Tips for Starting School

• Talk about the school: Starting school can be exciting, but also frightening for children. Talk to your child in advance, sharing information about what to expect and talking about your own memories.
• Visit the school together: Visit our school and at the very least attend transition days. This can be helpful in making your child familiar with their surroundings, as well as the location of classrooms, changing rooms and toilets.

• Their first day: With such a large international community, all of our students know how it feels to be a new student in a new school. As such, your child can expect a warm welcome into the school with another student ready to show them the ropes.

• Practise new routines: Whether it's helping pack a cool box, opening it by themselves, or going to the washroom independently, your child will have to manage more on their own and doing it first at home will help develop confidence faster.
• Meeting teachers and classmates: All new students and their parents are invited into the school before their start date to meet and spend time with their new teacher and classmates. This means that on their first proper day the school will already be familiar to your child. If possible, meet the teacher together. Make friends, and don't feel shy about approaching other parents who may be feeling exactly the way you are. 
• Joining in with classmates: Find out the names of other children who will also be starting at Compass and invite them to play with your child beforehand if possible. This will make things more familiar and reduce worries and anxiety for parents and their children.
• Go shopping together: Go on a special and exciting trip together to buy the uniform and essential items for starting school, such as a lunch box, new shoes and stationery. Make it into an adventure rather than a chore.

• Community activities: We run a number of community activities and events across our four campuses for all parents to get involved with the school and our community. We welcome you to join in.

If you can do most of the above then you will have been instrumental in giving your child the very best start possible to their new school life.