Another milestone in your little one’s life is their first day of high school. Starting year 7 can seem quite scary for parents and kids alike, get on the front foot with our tips to help you be as prepared as possible for their big day.

4-6 weeks out

Make sure they have a space at home for homework and impromptu working at home days that ideally has a little bit of wall space to pop things on. We love a little corkboard display that they can get stuck into decorating and organising.

Do the stationery, uniform and school shoes shop. If you’re unsure whether their feet have grown – pop instore at The Trybe to chat with our helpful team and get their feet measured. Check your school’s unform policy to make sure their formal shoes and PE shoes follow the regulations, as they might have changed since primary school.

Nail the routine earlier, school holidays add a whole disjointedness to your routines, so something as simple as making sure you’re up early and at the same time for the weeks running up to the new school year could make a huge difference to getting into a strong pattern.

1-2 Weeks

Have a practice go at doing the school run, whether that’s driving or getting the train, getting used to how long it might take in the mornings will help put their mind at ease of when they need to set off, especially if they have a whole new school in a newer unfamiliar area.

Sign up to clubs – if the information is given to you early, you should be able to sign up your little one to some extra-curriculars that interest them – whether that’s after school sport, or drama.

It sounds obvious, ask your little one if there’s anything worrying them, it might be easy to get carried away with planning that your little one might be swept up in it all and feeling anxious. Sometimes they might seem like they’re okay, but there might be something you’ve not considered.

Plan those lunches out – get prepped early and in advance with our school lunch box tips so you’re not running around the kitchen in the morning.

Chat with them about expectations at high school – chances are they were maybe doing a little homework at primary school – but this will increase when they head to high school – reminding them about deadlines and the importance of completing homework tasks is important to building out routine.

Starting high school can be scary all round, but with extra encouragement, they will be raring to go and kicking goals before you know it. Best of luck!