Summer activity pack to help prepare young children for reception created by Northamptonshire schools

A group of primary schools in Northamptonshire has created a summer activity pack to support parents as they prepare their children for reception in September.

David Ross Education Trust's booklet, Horizon's Summer Adventure, includes a series of engaging activities that youngsters can do at home before they go to school for the first time.

Kim Duff, principal of Kings Heath Primary Academy, which is part of the trust, said: “We appreciate how difficult the last year has been for parents of young children.

"We have plenty of experience and knowledge about how best to prepare for reception, and we wanted to share our knowledge in the hopes that it could be beneficial for local families struggling for ideas.

"We are proud to support our local community and we hope that these activity packs will prove both useful and fun for parents and children alike.”

After a year of lockdowns and limited options for kids’ activity camps this summer, the resources not only allow parents more time to engage with their children by reducing their workload.

The activities have also been specifically designed to help keep young children on track and prepare them for the challenges of entering reception next year, whether those challenges are social, emotional or educational.

These include dressing a 2D dolly with their school uniform using a cut out, learning how to wash hands using a catchy song, practicing fine motor skills such as balance, and challenging children to spot a number of different shapes around the house.

The pack also includes a range of adaptable ideas for how to complete activities and ‘top tips’ for parents on developing their child’s social skills.

Janey Cooksley, principal of Briar Hill Primary School, also part of the trust, added: “In the midst of all the challenges we have faced over the last year, at Briar Hill we are determined to continue to look ahead and prepare our next generation of young learners for the start of their school journey, which means providing parents with the resources they need to do that.

"Our activity pack is designed to be easy and effective, not to mention fun, and we hope that it will provide some comfort for parents preparing their children to start their school journey with us next year.”

The Horizon’s packs will be distributed to future David Ross Education Trust families and will also be available for all parents in the community to download on the schools’ websites.

Trust chief executive Stuart Burns continued: “We are delighted to be able to offer this fantastic activity pack to our future families, and to the wider community, over the summer.

"As a t rust, we believe that every child deserves the absolute best education on offer, and we strive to provide our pupils with that every day.

“We know that due to lockdowns and restrictions parents have faced many setbacks in preparing their children for school the way they normally would.

"We hope that providing this digital pack will help ease the pressure over the course of the next couple of months by providing some fun and engaging activities, whilst also helping nursery aged children start to prepare for primary school.”