For many of our pupils, even those that are not new to the school, moving up a year means studying new topics and having to build relationships with new teachers, and for the older ones, an increasing emphasis on independent studying.  Many flourish with this transition, but some may take a little longer to adjust. At the beginning of this week, I had several discussions with staff as to why this might be the case, even at a warm and friendly setting like All Hallows, and what we can all do to help pupils get off to a positive start to the new school year.
Recent research from the University of London (and indeed our own common sense) found that uncertainty can be a big trigger for stress. It turns out that, for some of the time at least, it is not the worst-case scenario that brings about the most anxiety – it is the not knowing. If we want to reduce stress, we have to reduce uncertainty.
Recognising this in school, there are a number of strategies we employ at the start of the start of term to ensure children quickly feel they belong and bounce into school in the morning such as: providing buddies for new pupils; staff taking time to build a rapport with pupils so that they know that their teachers care about them and that they are on their side; comprehensive transfer meetings to share information between staff prior to the start of term; fostering a growth mindset; encouraging pupils to ask questions; reminding children that they have encountered change before and that they managed to work through any challenges; team-building and fostering social bridge-building with people they might not know well; regularly checking in so that children know that we are thinking of them, etc.
If uncertainty causes stress, we also need to minimise its impact to provide children with information so that they know what to expect. One way to remove any ambiguity is to have clear guidelines in place so that students know exactly what is expected of them.
At All Hallows, these are often developed alongside pupils themselves, so they can invest in their importance.  It is also beneficial for pupils to understand what is ahead, as this helps them keep a sense of perspective and appreciate better why these aspects of learning are important – and where they fit into the big picture. These foundations provide a firm platform that can be returned to over the course of the year.