September 16, 2025

Things to Focus on in Your Child’s Primary 1 Prep

Starting Primary 1 is a big step for you and your child. It’s when your child’s preschool journey ends and formal schooling begins. 

Given that, it’s no wonder most parents feel a little anxious about it!

The transition to primary school is about more than your child’s knowledge of letters and numbers. It’s also about emotional readiness and independence.

In this guide, we’ll show you what our educators advise when preparing for Primary 1 and what works best for smoothing the preschool to primary school transition.

Academic Readiness

1. Strengthen Your Child’s Listening and Following Skills

One of the main differences between preschool and primary school is that the latter involves more multi-step activities. You can prep your child for this at home. 

Start off simple, with tasks involving only 2 to 3 steps. Try starting with everyday routines he/she can work on, like putting away toys and washing his/her hands as part of getting ready for a meal.

You can add more steps after that. It’s a good idea to provide the steps verbally too. It’ll hone your child’s listening skills at the same time!

2. Build on Literacy and Numeracy

Your child will be expected to read and count at a basic level in Primary 1, so building these skills can help to improve your child’s confidence and readiness for this at school!

This is something we consider a focus area at My Little Campus. Our curriculum builds strong foundations for both English and Maths in fun ways, such as word and number games.

By adding bilingual foundations, we also prepare children for academic topics like Mother Tongue in Primary 1. You can start working on building bilingualism at home too by speaking to your child in both English and their Mother Tongue!

3. Cultivate a Love for Reading

The sooner your child falls in love with books, the better. Reading will be a big part of his/her life in primary school, after all.

So, try to read with your child daily even if it’s only for half an hour. It’s a great bonding experience and supports your child’s literacy and vocabulary growth.

We also do this at My Little Campus through interactive storytelling and roleplay. These activities make stories come alive and nurture both imagination and comprehension – all while making reading an enjoyable experience!

4. Develop Your Child’s Attention Span

Lessons and planned activities are much longer in primary school than preschool. In Primary 1, your child may struggle if he/she isn’t used to staying focused for extended periods of time.

You can help your child build up his/her attention span at home by offering quiet tasks that require sustained focus for a specified time. Think puzzles, drawing/colouring, crafts, and the like. 

You can slowly increase the duration your child spends on each task over time, eventually building their ability to focus for 40-50 minutes.

Life and Socio-Emotional Skills

1. Encourage Independence

Navigating Primary 1 involves various independent tasks. Children carry their own bags, unpack and pack up their own things, and move between classes on their own with little guidance.

Prepare your child for things like this by offering chances to take charge of daily routines. 

We do this at My Little Campus by encouraging children to put away their own shoes after outdoor play sessions or clearing their trays after meals. These empower children and teach them the basics of responsibility and agency early on.

2. Build Daily Routines

Primary school is more structured and routine-dependent. So, picking up these routines in advance can ease the preschool to primary school transition.

Give your child a clear routine at home. For instance, build a daily morning routine of waking up early, washing up and dressing independently, and getting seated at the dining table for breakfast.

You can also add bedtime routines or after-school routines while your child is still in preschool. It’s early practice for the primary school transition!

3. Nurture Social Confidence

One of the biggest changes for your child will be in the faces around him/her. They’ll meet many new peers and teachers, which may be a cause for anxiety for some children.

To support your child with this, frame the experience as a chance to make new friends. 

Give your child ample opportunity to practise doing that with regular playdates, or sign your child up for enrichment programmes with children of similar ages.

This will give your child opportunities to learn how to get to know new people before Primary 1. It will also show him/her that socialising with new people can be rewarding!

4. Build Resilience

There will be a lot of challenges in Primary 1 – even with the best preparation, you can expect your child to see a few setbacks every now and then. 

This is where resilience comes into play. You want to teach your child that trying again is often part of life and can produce rewards, so that he/she understands that mistakes aren’t the end of the world.

We do this at My Little Campus by using encouraging language and approaches. When children struggle with a task, we reassure them that it’s all right to take their time to try it again, and offer our support if they want it.

Praising efforts over results can also help your little one look at challenges with a more positive mindset.

Advice for Parents on Staying Supportive and Positive

Remember that you play a big part in how your child manages the transition to primary school. Your attitude may well set the tone for your child’s experience!

If you’re positive about the transition, your child is more likely to be positive too. It can also help if you tell your child what to expect in advance. This way, there are fewer surprises to cause anxiety.

Share with your child that it’s fine and completely normal to feel nervous about entering primary school as well. And above all, reassure your child that you’re always there for support if he/she needs it.

Get Help Preparing for The Transition to Primary 1

Preparing a child for Primary 1 takes time, but it can be made easier if you know what to do.

If you want to get expert support with that preparation, seek a preschool that gets them ready for it as soon as possible. For instance, preparation for Primary 1 is a core part of our approach to preschool at My Little Campus.

Reach out to us to see how we do it or book a school tour with us today!