The first day at school is a major milestone both for your child, and yourself. Many parents are filled with mixed emotions, both proud of their child's independence, but sad to see them taking their first steps away.

Ease your child into the school habit by following this advice:

Both children and parents will be understandably nervous. Help your child out by concealing any heightened emotions; they'll cope much better if you're taking the whole thing in your stride, and not over-emoting extravagantly.

Talk about starting school well before the actual date; show your child where it is, involve them in buying the uniform and equipment.

Try and instill positive feelings in our child; tell her how smart she looks in her new uniform, give her a brand new pencil case or lunch box to mark the day, take a photograph of her as she sets out to school.

Follow the school's guidance on saying goodbye; generally, it's best to make it short and sweet.

Be ready and waiting to pick up your child after school. Make sure that she's coped with the new environment - check that she has managed to find the toilets, negotiated the lunch queue etc.  Any practical teething problems can be ironed out immediately.

Never dismiss your child's anxieties. Problems that seem trivial to you may appear to be insuperable to an anxious five-year-old.

See Miss Debrett on School Bores

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