How to Prepare Your Child for Starting Reception
Starting school is a big change for many children and their families. Before having my daughter, I was a teacher predominantly in reception. The beginning of school is something I am very familiar with and a time of year I very much looked forward to.
This blog post is going to give you a checklist of what’s really important when children start school. It will also bust some of the myths around what some people feel school ‘readiness’ looks like.
Last update: 14th July 2026.
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Why trust this checklist?
This guide is based on my experience as a former Reception teacher, where I supported hundreds of children as they started school, alongside my experience as a parent. Every child develops differently, so this checklist is designed to help you build confidence rather than tick off every skill before the first day.
What Does School Ready Really Mean?
As our family prepared for my own daughter to start reception in 2021, it felt very different. Different as for once I was on the other side as a parent but also the world was a very different place. All our lives were topsy-turvy to the ‘norm’ as we were in the throws of a pandemic. I know my daughter certainly felt the impact of the lack of settling in sessions – I know I certainly did. As a neurodivergent parent – I found it very overwhelming and this was a person with years of experience of this important transition!
It’s lovely to hear that schools are back to their usual starting school arrangements while children can hopefully benefit from some of the work done by schools during the pandemic such as online videos of spaces in the school and staff. It’s certainly worth checking what resources the school has available to help children prepare before starting in the Autumn.
There’s excitement at starting school, yet there can often be anxiety and uncertainty for both caregivers and child. Often the anxiety of the family members can be greater than that experienced by the child. This is totally normal.
School Readiness: It’s About Confidence, Not Perfection
When I was teaching Reception, one of the biggest misconceptions I came across was that children needed to arrive already reading, writing or completing maths worksheets.
In reality, Reception is designed to teach those academic skills.
Current school readiness guidance continues to emphasise that children’s confidence, independence and emotional wellbeing are far more important than arriving with advanced academic knowledge. Children benefit most from being able to manage simple everyday tasks, communicate their needs and feel ready to explore, play and learn alongside others.
Every child develops at their own pace. Some will confidently recognise letters and numbers before they start school, while others are just beginning to develop those skills. That’s perfectly normal. Reception classrooms are designed to support children wherever they are on their learning journey.
Rather than worrying about whether your child can already read or write, spend time talking together, reading stories, playing games, encouraging curiosity and practising everyday independence. These experiences provide an excellent foundation for a happy and successful start to school.
Starting School Reception Checklist
Let me share with you a checklist of things that will help your child be school ready and more confident ready to start school.
- Help your child to recognise their own name – being able to recognise their name will help them identify their peg label, book bag, clothes etc. They don’t need to be able to write their own name.
- Learn the name of their teacher/s – if you can, get a photo of the teacher/s for your child (you can often find these on the school website). You feel much more confident asking for help if you know someone’s name.
- Use the toilet independently – don’t forget being able to wipe for ones and those number twos! Most schools now have urinals so if your child hasn’t used one of these before then make sure they get a little practise in before they start. It will give them so much more confidence. If you know your child will struggle with toileting and may have accidents please don’t worry; reception teachers will be very used to this. It’s great to have a discrete little pack of spares and some wipes you can pack into your child’s book bag/ school bag. Make sure you let the teacher know so that you can work together to support your child.
More Top Tips for Starting School
- Peel fruits – being able to peel fruit is useful as children get free fruit each day in reception and KS1. A top tip for kids when peeling bananas is to peel them from the bottom. You get a lot less mushed banana that way!
- Use a knife and fork – reception and key stage 1 children get free school meals. Helping your child to learn to use cutlery will mean they can eat their dinner swiftly without having to wait for an adult to support them. They’ll be out to play sooner!
- Dress and undress – independently for physical education. Although, sensibly, many schools are now getting children to come in PE kits on their chosen day/s. Do check the protocol for your child’s school. However, getting changed into costumes for school plays is often the case.
- Fasten and unfasten – coats and shoes. Consider carefully what clothes and shoes you purchase. Don’t get shoes with laces if your child isn’t ready to tie them up.
- Label EVERYTHING – we’re based in the UK and have used My Nametags in previous years. They’re brilliant, you can customise the designs. They stick on with ease and don’t drop off. Their stickers have always stayed on in the wash too so we’ve been very happy. We’ve always gone for a less popular design on the sticker so that my daughter could tell her things instantly by sight.
FREE printable Reception Checklist (new for 2026)
You can download my free printable Reception Checklist here. It covers all the items mentioned above as well as a few extras, plus there’s space to add your own school specific items.
Download: FREE printable Reception Checklist here ⬇️Downloaded 0 times
Starting School Books
As many of you already know, I’m a huge bookworm and truly believe that books have a very powerful way of helping our children to explore how they feel. They give us opportunities to talk to our children about how they are feeling, often through discussing characters in the books.
Lots of books are designed to touch on aspects of the school day, but in a really fun way. Many of these books would also be really lovely to share with children preparing to start at nursery or preschool too.
There are so many great books to help you talk to your child about feelings. Some books will look at particular emotions and situations that your child may find themselves in.
Colour Monster
One set of books that are so good for helping children to explore how they feel and what different emotions feel like and when they might happen are Anna Llenas Colour Monster books.
Tom Percival Big Bright Feelings for Little People
Tom Percival has also written a superb collection of diverse books to help children with understanding different aspects of how they feel or how other people may feel.
Worrysaurus is a favourite. Little Worrysaurus has lots of worries, but he’s got a great way to help him with his little tin of treasures. Often schools won’t let children bring things in from home (to be honest it can be a total nightmare especially when they inevitably get lost).
However, if your child would benefit from having something special with them from home one little idea is to stitch a little piece of special fabric inside one of their pockets. This way if they need a little reminder of those safe feelings of home they can reach in their pocket and feel their special fabric – a little secret from home.
Little Activities
For most children starting in reception they will gradually begin to do some short activities alongside lots of wonderful learning through play.
These activities may be as a whole class or in small groups. Activities may include things such as: singing songs together with actions and maybe numbers (5 Little Speckled Frogs for example), it may be sharing a story together, snack time together while talking about their weekend. You may already do these types of things, but if not they might be a lovely activity to do together before starting school.
School Day
School will be a busy day for your little one. So many new experiences that can excite them, exhaust them and leave them needing to process.
Something that worked well for us was having a small snack ready for when we picked Floss up from school. Might be worth a try.
As parents, we want to know how their day has been. Try and follow their lead. If they want to chat away great, if they need a little quiet time, go with it.
Sharing Books to Aid Talk
Sometimes using some of the books about school and feelings can help give children an opportunity to talk should they wish to. Actually, any book would be great for a little quality time together and to connect after your separate day.
What Next?
If you’d like to find out what your child will be learning in phonics and how to support them at home when they start school head over to the phonics section of the site here. I’d recommend the post – What is SATPIN?
Children will be coming home with books from school – often book banded books that are levelled. If you’d like to find out more about book bands head here and for tips on how to make more out of these books check out this post.
Frequently Asked Questions About Starting Reception
No. Children are not expected to be able to read before they start Reception. Most schools teach reading through a structured phonics programme, helping children learn letter sounds and build confidence step by step. A love of books, listening to stories and talking together at home are far more valuable than trying to teach reading in advance. Learn more about early phonics here.
It’s helpful if your child recognises their own name, as they’ll see it on their peg, tray and belongings. Being able to write it is a bonus, but Reception teachers expect children to arrive with a wide range of abilities. Fine motor skills develop quickly once children begin to develop their fine motor skills. Check out this post on mark making and fine motor skills.
Being school ready isn’t about knowing the alphabet, counting to 100 or completing worksheets. It’s about having the confidence and independence to join in with everyday school life. Skills like using the toilet independently, putting on a coat, asking for help and following simple instructions are often far more important than academic knowledge. Equally, children begin their school journey with a range of skills and needs. Some children will be more ready and some less so. This is ok. In April 2026 the Department for Education issued new guidance which I was thankfully to see aligned with this post that was first written several years ago by me.
Children don’t need to know everything before they start school. Instead, focus on helping them become more independent. Practising everyday tasks such as washing hands, tidying away toys, opening a lunchbox and taking turns with others will help them settle into school life much more easily. Use the free download in this post to help work on skills over the Summer. Please don’t worry if your child can’t do all of them. Pick maybe one skill to work on at a time and see how many you can check off.
Feeling nervous is completely normal – for children and parents alike. Reading books about starting school, visiting the school beforehand and talking positively about what to expect can all help build confidence. Helping children have emotional literacy to be able to describe how they feel is very helpful. Most children settle quickly once they become familiar with their new classroom and routines. If this doesn’t settle quickly do speak to the school.
Most schools encourage children to be as independent as possible with toileting before starting Reception. However, teachers understand that every child develops at their own pace and will work with families where extra support is needed. If you have concerns, it’s always worth speaking to the school before your child starts. I have never had a class where all children have been toilet trained before starting school.
The best preparation often comes through everyday routines. Encourage your child to put on their own shoes and coat, tidy away toys, carry their own bag, wash their hands properly and ask for help when they need it. These small skills build confidence and make the transition into school much smoother. Lots of children really thrive on this sense of responsibility.
Starting school is an exciting milestone. Children don’t need to arrive knowing how to read, write or count. The biggest gift you can give them is confidence, independence and reassurance that school is a safe, exciting place to learn.
About the Author
Before founding Busy Busy Learning, I worked as a primary school teacher with a particular passion for Reception and early years education. During my teaching career I helped hundreds of children make the exciting transition into school, working closely with families to build confidence, independence and a love of learning.
Now, as both a home educator and a parent, I combine professional classroom experience with real-life parenting to create practical, encouraging resources that help families enjoy learning together.
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