Education
FINISHING PRIMARY SCHOOL
30 THINGS EVERY YEAR 6 PARENT KNOWS It might seem like only yesterday that you were buying your child’s first-ever pair of school shoes, but now the end of their primary-school journey is approaching. Before you know it, they’ll be making the big move to secondary school, and your life will enter a whole new phase.
HERE ARE THE TRUTHS YOU DISCOVER DURING YOUR CHILD’S LAST YEAR OF PRIMARY SCHOOL - How many have you experienced so far? -
1 2 4 5 3
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7 8 9 8
hoosing your child’s primary school was a walk in the park C compared to picking the right secondary school. Not only do you have to consider things like Year 12 results and university destinations, but now your child has an opinion – argh! etting your child walk to school by themselves for the first L time is nothing short of terrifying. Can you trust them to look both ways before they cross the road? And would they ever forgive you if you followed behind them at 50 paces? egulation school uniform gets stricter and your daughters R are likely to be forced into a dress or skirt. s for name tapes, you haven’t sewn one on in years. Life’s A too short when a Sharpie works just as well. I f you thought homework was a struggle before, think again… You know that the questions are getting harder and don’t look foward to high school homework ‘help’. he final year of school is blinkin’ expensive. Seniors shirts. T Excursions. Incursions. Leaving dinners and events. Why did no one warn you that Year 6 camps cost as much as a family holiday? ou realise how much of your social life revolves around your Y child’s school. Chats in the playground, mums’ nights out, babysitting circle, book clubs… How will you cope when you’re not seeing the mums at the school gate every morning? ou rummage the lost property one last time and then Y wonder WHY you are actually doing that? ou simply can’t get used to the idea of your child being one Y of the eldest in the school. Wasn’t it only yesterday that they were walking into the playground for their first day in Prep, all shiny shoes and pristine uniform?
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ou have regular moments of panic about how your child is Y going to survive at secondary school. How on earth are they going to manage to keep on top of their homework, find their way around the site and get to the bus on time when you still have to remind them to get dressed in the morning?
11 You struggle with gifting their uniform on to the uniform shop or keeping it for a bit longer for… nostalgia. The whole year is full of lasts. The last parents’ evening, the 12 last sports day, the last school disco, the last assembly… How are you going to cope when it’s their actual last day? You realise how much energy you wasted on worrying about 13 things that really didn’t matter. Why did you get so worked up when you found out your child was three reading levels behind their friend in Year 1? Everyone told you it’d be okay in the end – and they were right. Now you’re the voice of reason and authority trying to calm 14 the fears of younger children’s parents – even though you know it won’t make any difference. You debate taking out a second mortgage to pay for all the 15 stuff your child needs for secondary school. Formal uniform, sports uniform, scientific calculator, shin pads, technology… Is there any way they won’t lose it all in the first week? 16 It might be years since you bought any school memorabilia, but this year, you have to get the whole lot – from the school photo to your child’s Christmas cards to the illustrated tea towel. It’s your last chance, after all. Facebook keeps showing your ‘memories’ and taking you 17 back to your child’s first year of school, and you get a lump in your throat every single time.
Your Local Families Magazine October / November 2020 www.familiesmagazine.com.au