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What every parent should know before their child goes to secondary school by Jane Bidder

publication date: Aug 27, 2007
My daughter has just left secondary school. Nearly eight years ago, I made decisions based on what I knew about Libby, the type of education I thought she should have and the sort of school I wanted her to attend. So how do I feel about my decisions now?

Basically I got it right but please don’t think I’m smug – there was a lot of heartache in “choosing” a school and everything wasn’t smooth sailing. (I put choosing in inverted commas because most of the time schools choose you.)

Making the transition to secondary school can be very unsettling for your son or daughter and planning things in advance – like buying school uniform while the shops still have a full stock of all sizes – can help to make your child more comfortable and confident about the change.

The first day is a major milestone and - to my shame! – I made a very silly mistake about the school bus. There were two branches of the shop it stopped by and we went to the wrong one. To get to school in reasonable time I had to hail a taxi – and we arrived flustered and a little late. Not the ideal way!

If your child is starting secondary school this September, start reading What every parent should know... at Chapter 4 and keep the book at hand to dip into as and when you need to. If your child will be going into Year 6 in September, start at Chapter 1. Better still read this book when your child is in Year 5 and congratulate yourself for your forward planning!

What every parent should know... is easy to read and dip into, contains check lists and sample questions to ask, plus helps the parent navigate the years at school so that your child gets the best from the education on offer. It contains a wealth of information from parents who’ve been through the system to what the experts say. Some of the advice is very basic but it doesn’t hurt to state the obvious and remind us to be confident about our own ability to help our children through school.

Full marks to Jane Bidder for producing such a user-friendly book for parents.

What every parent should know before their child goes to secondary school is published by White Ladder Press, to order a copy from Amazon please click the link below:

What Every Parent Should Know Before Their Child Goes to Secondary School