Starting school is a huge milestone for your child, and for you as a parent! While there's lots of advice about preparing children for their first day, supporting them throughout their first year in Reception is just as important.

Reception is a year of incredible growth. Children build the foundations for reading, writing and maths while developing confidence, resilience and a love of learning that can stay with them throughout their education. As a former Reception teacher, I've had the privilege of guiding nine Reception classes through this exciting year, and I've now experienced it from the other side as a parent too.  

In this blog, I'm sharing 10 practical tips to help your child thrive during their Reception year, along with simple play-based ideas you can use at home to support their learning and development. 

Why is the first year of school so important?

Every year at school matters, but the Reception year is particularly significant because it lays the foundations for future learning.  

Children begin developing the essential skills they'll use throughout their education, from learning to read and write to understanding early maths concepts. But Reception is about so much more than academic learning.

It's a year of enormous personal growth. Children learn how to make friends, become more independent, solve problems, manage their emotions and persevere when something feels difficult. These are all qualities that help them become confident, lifelong learners.

Teachers also spend a great deal of time nurturing what the Early Years Foundation Stage calls the Characteristics of Effective Learning — skills such as playing and exploring, active learning and thinking creatively and critically. These are just as important as learning letters and numbers.

So how can we, as parents, support them during this exciting first year of school? 

1. Help Them Settle Well 

Children learn best when they feel safe, secure and happy.  

For some children, starting school is an easy transition. Others need a little more reassurance, patience and understanding — and that's completely normal.

If you're one of the parents holding back tears at the school gate, remember that most children settle much more quickly than we imagine. Try to stay positive in front of your child and trust that this period of separation anxiety will soon pass. 

A few things that really help include: 

• Keeping bedtime and morning routines consistent.  
• Talking through what their school day might look like.
• Listening carefully to any worries they share.
• Reading books about starting school together.
• Being patient if they're unusually emotional or tired after school.
  

2. Value Play 

"Whoever wants to understand much must play much.” - Gottfried Benn

One of the biggest misconceptions about Reception is that play is "just play."

In reality, play is how young children learn best.

When children build, create, pretend and investigate, they're developing language, problem-solving skills, creativity, resilience and confidence. Play allows children to explore ideas in ways that feel meaningful and enjoyable, making them far more motivated to learn.

I always encourage parents to continue valuing play at home too. Home doesn't need to become another classroom. Instead, look for playful opportunities to reinforce what your child is learning at school. 

For example, if your child is beginning to recognise letters, try hiding waterproof alphabet letters in coloured water or sensory sand and asking them to find the matching sounds. Activities like our Mystery Water Letter Match make practising phonics feel like an exciting treasure hunt rather than homework.

Our silicone Letter and Number Sets are ideal for activities like these, giving children the opportunity to explore letters and numbers through hands-on sensory play.  

3. Learn a Little About the Curriculum 

You don't need to become an expert in the Early Years Foundation Stage, but understanding a little about what your child is learning at school makes it much easier to support them at home.

Reception covers reading, writing and maths, alongside communication, physical development, emotional wellbeing and social skills.

One of the wonderful things about the EYFS is that much of this learning happens through play.

Simple activities at home like sorting, counting, building, role play and sensory play can reinforce many of these skills without children even realising they're learning. 

4. Build Concentration Skills

It's also worth being mindful of screen time. While screens certainly have their place, research suggests that excessive screen time can make it harder for young children to sustain attention during other activities. Creating plenty of opportunities for hands-on, screen-free play can help children build the concentration skills they'll rely on throughout their time at school.

If you're looking for simple ways to encourage more screen-free play at home, our Swap Screen Time for Playtime blog shares practical ideas for creating a healthy balance and making more space for creative, hands-on play. 

5. Keep Life Simple 

Simply going to school every day is hard work for a four-year-old.

Learning new routines, making friends, listening carefully and managing emotions takes a huge amount of energy.

Especially during the first term, try not to overschedule your child's evenings and weekends. There'll be plenty of time for clubs and extra activities later on. Right now, rest, free play and family time are incredibly valuable. 

6. Talk to the Teacher

As a parent, you know your child better than anyone else.  

Don't be afraid to share information that might help your child's teacher support them, whether that's current interests, recent achievements or anything happening at home that could affect them emotionally.

Building a positive relationship with your child's teacher also helps your child feel secure. Seeing that the important adults in their life work together gives them confidence and reassurance. 

7. Read, Read, Read!

It goes without saying that learning to read will be one of the biggest focuses during your child's first year at school, and parents have a huge role to play in supporting this at home.

Building reading into your daily routine is one of the best things you can do. Whether that's before school, after school or at bedtime, finding a regular time to read together will help your child build confidence and make steady progress. 

In the early days, don't worry if your child can't yet read every word. You can still support their learning by: 

• Talking about the pictures.
• Asking them to retell the story in their own words.
• Looking for familiar letters or sounds on each page.
• Helping them blend simple words together.
• Asking questions about what might happen next.  
  

And with all the focus on learning to read, don't underestimate the importance of bedtime stories. Even confident readers benefit from listening to rich vocabulary, developing their imagination and enjoying special one-to-one time together.

Another wonderful way to build a love of books is to bring stories to life through sensory play. Creating a simple story-inspired PlayTRAY allows children to act out scenes, explore characters and engage with the story using all their senses. As children recreate the story through play, they're strengthening comprehension, developing language and building a deeper emotional connection with what they've read. 

If you're looking for inspiration, take a look at our Sensory Play Setups for World Book Day blog. Although it's packed with ideas for celebrating World Book Day, the activities can be enjoyed all year round and are a wonderful way to make reading even more engaging and memorable. 

8. Learn Letter Sounds Correctly 

If there's one phonics tip I'd share with every parent, it's to learn the letter sounds — the "pure sounds" rather than the letter names.

Using the correct pronunciation makes blending words much easier for children as they begin reading.

Once your child knows a few sounds, try to make practising playful. Children are far more likely to engage when learning feels like an activity rather than a task. Hide letters in sensory materials, build simple words together or play matching games using tactile resources.

For example, you could hide letters in coloured water, sensory sand or rice and encourage your child to find a letter, say its sound and match it to another letter or picture. Our Learning Letters Through Play: 7 Hands-On Alphabet Activities blog is packed with simple ideas to make practising the alphabet fun, including our Mystery Water Letter Match activity. 

Our silicone Alphabet Letter Set is ideal for bringing phonics into hands-on play. Children can touch, move, fill and explore the letters while building recognition of letter shapes and sounds — helping early literacy feel more like play and less like practice.

9. Focus On Fine Motor Skills

Good fine motor skills are essential for many of the everyday tasks children do at school, from fastening zips and buttons to using cutlery, scissors and pencils.

One of the biggest physical challenges children face during their first year of school is learning to write. Writing requires a combination of hand strength, coordination, pencil control and the ability to sit and concentrate for a period of time. Helping your child develop these skills through play can make a big difference.

There are lots of fun ways to strengthen little hands, including playdough, threading beads, construction toys, drawing, puzzles and craft activities. 

Sensory play is another brilliant way to develop fine motor skills. Activities that involve squeezing, pinching, scooping, pouring and transferring materials naturally encourage children to strengthen the muscles in their hands while having fun. Tools like droppers and tongs are particularly useful for developing grip strength, coordination and control — all skills that support pencil control later on.

If you're looking for simple ideas to try at home, our 5 Sensory Play Activities to Strengthen Fine Motor Skills blog shares a range of playful activities designed to help children build hand strength and coordination. From squeezing droppers to using tongs and scoops, these activities make developing fine motor skills feel like play rather than practice. 

10. Keep Talking

Talking about school shows your child that you're interested in their day and that you value their learning. 

Rather than asking "How was school?" - which often gets a one-word answer - try more specific questions like: 

• What made you smile today?
• Who did you play with?
• What was the trickiest thing you did?
• What made you feel proud today? 
  

Sometimes children need time to process their day before they're ready to talk, so don't worry if conversations don't happen immediately after school.

The important thing is keeping those lines of communication open so your child feels comfortable sharing both their successes and any worries they might have. 

Supporting Your Child Through Their First Year of School

Starting school is a big transition for both children and parents. There will be moments of excitement, pride and new achievements, alongside days where things feel a little more challenging — and that's completely normal.

The most important thing to remember is that you don't need to recreate the classroom at home. Children learn best when they feel happy, confident and engaged, and some of the most valuable learning happens through everyday moments of play.

Whether you're sharing a bedtime story, exploring letters through sensory play, creating a small-world scene or strengthening little hands through playful activities, these experiences help children build the skills, confidence and curiosity they need to thrive.

As a former Reception teacher, my biggest piece of advice is to keep learning joyful. Give your child plenty of opportunities to explore, experiment and follow their interests — because when children are having fun, they are learning too.

Looking for simple ways to support your child's development through play? Explore our range of sensory play tools, activity cards and resources designed to make learning hands-on, creative and fun.