Preparing Pre-schoolers for Primary School

Preparing Preschoolers for Primary School: The Importance of Personal Hygiene and Independence

As children take those exciting steps from preschool to primary school, it’s natural for both parents and educators to wonder how best to support them in getting ready for this big transition. While academic skills like recognising letters and numbers are often a focus, it’s just as important — if not more so — to prepare children with the personal hygiene habits and independence skills they’ll need to feel confident and capable in a busy school environment.

Why Personal Hygiene Matters

In primary school, children will be expected to manage many of their personal care routines independently. Supporting children in developing these habits during their preschool years can help reduce anxiety, encourage a sense of responsibility, and promote good health and wellbeing.

Simple routines like washing hands properly, wiping their nose, using tissues, and understanding when to visit the toilet are all essential daily skills for young children. Ensuring they understand why these habits matter — to stay healthy, avoid spreading germs, and take care of themselves — helps children feel empowered and in control of their own needs.

Key Personal Hygiene and Independence Skills for School Readiness

Before starting primary school, it’s helpful for children to be supported in mastering a few key self-care skills, including:

• Handwashing: Children should be able to wash their hands properly with soap and water, especially after using the toilet, before meals, and after playing outside. Practising the five-step handwashing routine can make this an easy habit.
• Toileting Independence: Children should be comfortable recognising when they need the toilet, managing their clothing, wiping properly, and washing their hands afterwards without constant adult support.
• Using Tissues and Managing Colds: Teaching children how to use a tissue to wipe their nose, dispose of it properly, and wash their hands afterwards is an important hygiene skill for any classroom environment.
• Managing Personal Belongings: In primary school, children will be expected to manage their own lunchbox, coat, schoolbag, and other belongings. Practising these skills in preschool can help them feel more independent and confident.
• Dressing Skills: Encouraging children to put on and take off their coat, shoes, and jumper independently helps them feel prepared for PE days, outdoor play, and classroom activities.

Building Good Habits Through Play and Routine

By focusing on these areas in the months before starting primary school, both parents and educators can help children feel ready for this exciting new chapter — confident, capable, and proud of what they can do for themselves.

To make this process enjoyable, here are a few child-friendly strategies and simple games you can use to build these skills through play:

• Handwashing Song Game: Turn handwashing into a fun routine by singing a short rhyme or the chorus of a favourite nursery rhyme while scrubbing hands. You could also use a sand timer or countdown clock so children know how long to wash for — it turns hygiene into a little challenge.
• Dress-Up Relay: Create a simple game where children race to put on a coat, fasten a zip or buttons, and put on shoes. This builds dressing skills and adds a sense of accomplishment when they ‘beat the clock’ or complete the challenge.
• Toilet Time Story Props: Use dolls or soft toys to role-play going to the toilet, wiping, flushing, and washing hands. Acting out these routines helps children understand expectations and reduces any anxieties about school toilets.
• Belongings Bingo: Make a picture checklist of items children need to keep track of (e.g., coat, lunchbox, water bottle). Play a daily game where children ‘find and tick’ their belongings before leaving preschool to practise managing their things.

• Nose Blowing Practice

Create a little character for example Tissue Ted (a soft toy or puppet) who “has a very runny nose.” Use the toy to demonstrate how to gently blow your nose into a tissue, fold it, and place it carefully in a bin. Children can then take turns helping Tissue Ted practice good hygiene.

You can also give each child a tissue and practice the blow, fold, bin, and wash hands routine together. To make it fun, you might add a simple rhyme like:

“Blow your nose, don’t let it drip,
Fold the tissue, and it slips into the bin.
Wash your hands, clean and bright,
Now you’re ready — feeling right!”

By adding these playful activities into everyday routines, children can develop essential life skills in a way that feels fun, achievable, and meaningful, giving them the best possible start for big school.