The transfer from pre-school to school is nothing less than a rite of passage for every child. But it can be made easier.

The transition into reception class is a momentous occasion for everyone involved. It's a process that needs delicate handling.

Margaret Robinson, early-years inspector for Warwickshire, feels that settling children into their new reception classes needs to be done carefully over a period of time and with parents' support.

"The best way of supporting children at this stage is to have worked with their pre-school beforehand on a whole range of policy and practice, so there's no culture shock for the children," explains Robinson.

"They need consistency. If you know your feeder schools you can come to agreement about methods of learning. Early-years teachers realise that disjointed learning causes progression and continuity problems. A good deal of Sure Start work is hinged on this all-important transfer, too."

This goal of consistency is hotly pursued in Thomas A Becket First School in West Sussex. With its five-class entry, it's one of the largest first schools in England. Reception team leader Claire Axworthy says that despite reception children being in a brand-new setting, some routines are kept the same where possible.

"The way that classrooms are set up and the table-top activities that we use are as close as possible to what they've been used to in pre-school, while allowing for development in their progress through personalised learning," Axworthy explains.

The school uses staggered starts in September to allow children gently to find their feet. Within about two weeks all children are in, having arrived as individuals, not en masse.

There isn't one single best route to good early-years education, but the key issues during the transition are preparation, integration and continued progress. Keeping these in mind while building on the often excellent pastoral work that's evident in schools — and invoving parents wherever possible — is a goal to work towards.

BEST PRACTICE TRANSITION TIPS

Involving parents

At Field Place First School in West Sussex, home visits by reception teachers and learning-support assistants to meet the child (and parents) are seen as a key factor in maintaining continuity in learning.

"This is a pivotal moment that children refer to for a long time," says headteacher  Frances Dunkin. "Their new teacher has been welcomed into their own home, so when they start school they do not feel like they are being dumped with a stranger."

Visual timetables

At Thomas A Becket First School, West Sussex, reception team leader Claire Axworthy creates visual timetables, so that the children know by looking at the pictures what they will be doing.

Photographic guides

Cameras can be used as an assessment tool to record achievement, to create a welcome board for the classroom, to show how each area of the room should look when it's tidy, or to create photography books of classrooms and key people and places, such as teachers, support staff, the playground, toilets and so on.

This goes in the book corner of pre-schools for the children to look at before they go to their new class. 

Play-based learning

Frances Dunkin at Field Place First School strongly believes that the reception year should not be about preparation for Key Stage 1. She suggests working on that transition in the autumn term of Year 1 and focusing on the play-based foundation stage for the duration of the reception year.

Buddies

Reception classes at Thomas A Becket School are 'buddied' with Year 2 classes for some story sessions, assemblies and play times. They can share work, and the reception children have Year 2 'experts' to talk to. 

Transfer profiles

Warwickshire LEA has created a 'transfer profile', a summary document of relevant statements from the Foundation Stage Profile for pre-schools, to make a basic judgement on each child. In this single, effective transfer of information, reception teachers have a guideline of where each child is in their learning at the end of July.

FOR MORE INFO, VISIT

www.teachernet.gov.uk/teachingandlearning/library/transitionphase

Originally published in Teacher magazine