One, two, three, four, five… I’m grown up and I’ll survive!

Your Child’s Journey to School Blog 5:

Five going fifteen? Some parents often find that their little one grows up so very quickly when they hit five, especially as they start school and are exposed to outside influences and older pupils. And whilst they may want to be treated as ‘big boys and girls,’ we sometimes find it hard to let go, or we think they are actually more grown up than they really are.

That’s where Nottinghamshire County Council, Nottinghamshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust and Nottinghamshire Children and Families Partnership’s “Guide to preparing your child for nursery and school” can help. This is the fifth and final blog about the Guide, which provides some sensible, down to earth advice to help us better understand our five year old’s needs and behaviours.

The Guide says that “by five years old, your child will be:

• Able to dress and undress, feed themselves, blow their nose, wipe their bottom and wash their hands, and go to the toilet on their own; • Saying words clearly but making occasional small errors, e.g. ‘r’ and ‘th’ being used incorrectly; • Joining in 30 minutes of physical play / exercise per day; • Confident in being with others and in trying new things, taking turns, listening and playing; • Able to understand and re-tell a story with a beginning, middle and end; • Able to understand rules but sometimes finds it difficult to accept them; • Beginning to understand the needs of others and can wait to have their needs met; • Able to use a pencil confidently; • Able to change their behaviour to different situations;

“Five year top tips…

• Go to the optician every year and dentist every 6 months; • Encourage your child to drink a litre of water a day; • Have a regular bedtime routine with 10 hours of sleep; • Go to the doctors if you think your child has hearing problems; • Follow the eat well guidelines: https://www.nhs.uk/LiveWell/GoodFood/Pages/the-eatwell-guide.aspx • Complete and return the school entrant health questionnaire when your child is in Year One. Your child will be weighed and measured in school at this time as well.”

Questions? “You can always attend the health drop in sessions to discuss any concerns with a member of the Healthy Family Teams. Contact your Children’s Centre or child’s setting for more information.”