Getting Ready for Kindergarten
Getting Ready for Kindergarten
A campus walk-through, a short list of practical questions, and the equipment that helped our son start school.
If your LP child will start kindergarten next year, begin the conversation with the school early. In our case it took about nine months—and a lot of follow-up—to get every adaptation in place. Another family may need less time, but a last-minute campus tour leaves very little room for assessment, ordering, or custom work.
Ask the school whether your child should be evaluated for an IEP, a Section 504 plan, or another form of support. Then walk through a normal day with your child and the people who will help plan the setup. We met with teachers, administrators, special-education staff, and the district’s accessibility contact. The most useful part was looking at real spaces together rather than trying to solve everything in a meeting room.
Playground and movement
Our son benefited from equipment that fit his proportions and let him move with classmates. We liked sturdy, adjustable Kettler tricycles and even modified one for a shorter reach; see our Kettler tricycle modification. That specific model was discontinued, but the fit questions are still useful: Can the child reach the pedals, steer comfortably, stop, and get on and off?
A lightweight kick scooter also worked for our son. We sent a helmet and discussed where and when he would use it. The right playground plan depends on the child’s health, balance, stamina, and the exact equipment at the school.
Lunch and snack
At first I resisted the idea of a separate child-size table because I did not want our son isolated. The answer was not to make him perch or hunch at a table that did not fit; it was to make the smaller table social. Friends sat with him, and soon classmates were asking for a turn.
Child-size picnic table
Our district provided a table at a comfortable height. Ask where it will be placed and how classmates will be included, not only whether the table can be purchased.
Backpack and supplies
Keep the backpack as light as possible and make sure the child can reach the storage area. A lower hook, a second set of materials, help carrying an occasional heavy item, or a child-size rolling backpack may help. Check the school’s rolling-bag rules and make sure the handle, wheels, and overall size fit the student.
Bathroom
We had two toilet stools: one in our son’s usual stall and another near the nurse in case he needed more help that day. The school lowered the stall latch, installed reachable soap and a motion-activated faucet, and attached a smaller seat ring to the toilet.
Before school starts, check the whole routine from the child’s height: opening the door, locking the stall, getting onto the toilet, supporting the feet, wiping, flushing, reaching the sink and soap, drying hands, and getting out again. Privacy and independence matter as much as the equipment.
Seven-inch toilet stool
A stool can provide foot support, but the right height and width depend on the toilet and the child’s transfer method. Test stability in the actual stall.
Toilet seat reducer
A smaller opening helped our son feel secure on a standard school toilet. A permanently available integrated ring may be easier to manage than loose equipment.