worries about starting the kindergarten and first day of school in children

 how storytelling and creating personalised story for child about this topic can help them to be prepare to overcome their fear.

Starting kindergarten or the first day of school is a significant milestone in a child's life, often accompanied by a mix of excitement and anxiety. It's common for children to worry about this new experience—they may fear being separated from their parents, meeting new people, or not knowing what to expect in an unfamiliar environment. These concerns can manifest as nervousness, reluctance to attend school, or even physical symptoms like stomach aches.

How can we as parents help the children to overcome these concerns?

Storytelling can be a powerful tool to help children overcome these fears. Any oral or written story related to this topic can help our children to understand the situation and overcome their fear.

What could be more effective is creating personalised stories that reflect their own upcoming experiences. By personalised story, the issue of starting the new stage in his or her life could be very specific and the children find themselves in these stories.

These Personalised stories, in particular, allow the child to see themselves as the hero of the tale. When the character in the story—who shares their name, likes, and dislikes—navigates the first day of school successfully, it can give the child the confidence to do the same. These stories can also introduce the idea of a routine, showing what a typical day at school might look like, which helps reduce the fear of the unknown.

It is good to know that storytelling opens up a dialogue between the parent and child. As they discuss the story, the child can express their own worries, and the parent can address them directly in a supportive way. This process not only prepares the child for the transition but also strengthens the parent-child bond, making the first day of school a more positive and less daunting experience.

One example of this Personalised story created by Wisemaple for one of its customer is about Emily's first day of school. The way that story helps Emily to come over her fear is a special gift from her mom to her. A set of colourful magical markers that can help her to understand and manage her feelings. She is drawing with different colors and understands her different feelings and how to sort them out.

References:

Wang, Q., & Fivush, R. (2005). "Mother-child conversations of emotionally salient events: Exploring the functions of emotional reminiscing in European-American and Chinese families." Social Development, 14(3), 473-495.

Nicholson, J. M., & Pearson, E. (2003). "Helping children cope with change: The role of storytelling and play." Young Children, 58(3), 68-72.

Pynoos, R. S., Steinberg, A. M., & Piacentini, J. C. (1999). "A developmental psychopathology model of childhood traumatic stress and intersection with anxiety disorders." Biological Psychiatry, 46(11), 1542-1554.

Fox, M., & Schirrmacher, R. (2005). "Art and creative development for young children." Thomson Delmar Learning.