Preschool readiness doesn’t arrive all at once, and it doesn’t always line up with age. Some children begin showing signs at two, others at four - and many continue developing these skills well into their early school years. Rather than focusing on a fixed age, it’s more helpful to look at the trajectory of a child’s comfort, confidence, and capacity to engage with the world beyond home.

Preschool readiness is a set of skills and feelings that take shape slowly, through ordinary, everyday moments. One of the most powerful things you can do as a parent is to help that readiness grow gently, from home.

Build comfort with short separations

A big part of preschool is learning to be away from a parent or familiar adult. This doesn’t have to start with a long goodbye. You can begin small: playing hide and seek, stepping into another room, or leaving your child with a trusted family member for a short while. Simple goodbye rituals like “one hug, one kiss, one wave” can also help create predictability and ease.

Practise everyday routines

Preschool days are full of little transitions - putting things away, washing hands before snack, wearing shoes when it’s time to go outside. Supporting these routines at home builds familiarity and a sense of independence. Try involving your child in packing their snack box or helping choose what goes into their bag for a day out. These small habits make the school day feel less foreign.

Support social-emotional learning through play

Games that involve turn-taking, waiting, or following simple rules can help children practise the kind of interactions they’ll have with peers. Labelling emotions - your child’s and your own - builds awareness and vocabulary. Over time, children begin to understand their own feelings and those of others, laying the foundation for empathy and connection.

Gently stretch their tolerance for the new

This is where scaffolding comes in - offering just enough support to help your child try something unfamiliar, without doing it entirely for them. For example, you might say, “I’ll stand with you while you ask for a turn,” or “Let’s go together the first time.” Gradually reducing your support as your child grows in confidence is key.

There isn't a single moment when a child is fully ‘ready.’ What matters is that they feel safe enough to try, and supported enough to return when things feel uncertain. Readiness is a process - not a race - and it begins, as most important things do, at home.