The first week of out of school care is a different problem from starting daycare as a toddler. A six-year-old is not worried about being left. They are worried about the mechanics.
What they actually worry about
- Who will come and get me, and how will I know it is them?
- What if I get on the wrong bus, or go out the wrong door?
- Where do I put my backpack?
- Will I know anybody?
- What if I need the toilet and do not know where it is?
- Will there be food, and when?
Almost all logistics. Which is good news, because logistics can be answered precisely.
What helps
Walk the route. Before the first day, physically show them the door they will come out of, where the van waits or which way they walk, and the door they come into here. Concrete beats reassuring.
Name the person. A specific educator's name, said several times before day one, is worth more than "someone will meet you."
Show them their spot. Their hook, their cubby, where the water is, where the toilet is, where the snack happens.
Tell them the shape of the afternoon. Arrive, snack, free time, homework if they want, pickup. Knowing the sequence removes most of the anxiety.
Get the pickup list right in advance. If a grandparent is collecting on Thursdays, they need to be on the authorised list before Thursday. Otherwise your child watches an adult being refused at the door, which is the exact opposite of a settled first week.
What we do
We take attendance at the school, in the van, and at the door. We introduce a new child to one or two others rather than to the whole group. And we let them do nothing for the first few days if that is what they want — a new child sitting quietly with a book is settling, not struggling.
The September pattern
Expect exhaustion. A six-year-old doing a full school day plus after-school care for the first time is running a considerably longer day than they have ever run, and the first fortnight is genuinely tiring. Early bedtimes, low-demand evenings, and patience.
It levels out by about week three. Details on the program are on the out of school care page.
