I’ll never forget the day my daughter came home from her first day in Year 1. Her little shoulders slumped as she dropped her book bag by the door. When I asked about her day, she sounded so sad as she told me, “We have to sit on a chair all day, Mummy.”
As a former early years and key stage 1 phase leader, I’ve watched countless children have similar reactions to the move to Year 1. They often struggle to adapt to a more formal learning environment, where play is viewed as a reward for completing “real work”.
It’s important to remember that when children enter Year 1, they’re only five or six weeks older than when they left Reception. In that time, their brains haven’t suddenly matured to handle prolonged formal learning.
As Julie Fisher notes in her book Moving On To Key Stage 1: Improving Transition from the Early Years Foundation Stage: “Developmentally, there is very little difference between a Reception child and a Year 1 child.”
That’s why effective transition between Reception and Year 1 shouldn’t be about abandoning play, but about creating a bridge between two worlds.
So, how can we create transitions that honour developmental needs while meeting curriculum requirements? Here are some practical approaches.
1. Create environmental continuity
Reception teachers can prepare children for transition by capturing their experiences of spending time in Year 1 spaces in the summer term, through photographs and discussion. Creating transition booklets featuring pictures of their new classroom, teacher and routines will help children to visualise what’s ahead.
Gradually introducing more structured table activities while keeping them playful will also help to prepare children for what’s to come, without overwhelming them.
For Year 1 teachers, it can make a world of difference to set up three or four clearly defined continuous provision areas in September. Construction, role play, reading corners and creative areas work particularly well as familiar spaces. Resources should be labelled with both pictures and words to maintain independence, just as they were in Reception.
Keep morning carpet sessions under 15 minutes for the first half term, recognising children’s limited attention spans. Position tables in groups rather than rows to encourage the collaborative learning pupils are accustomed to and create visual timetables that include designated times for play-based learning so children can anticipate their day.
2. Implement a gradual shift in teaching approaches
Reception teachers can ease the transition by introducing “Year 1-style” activities as special challenges in the summer term. For example, practising slightly longer (but still engaging) carpet sessions towards the end of the year builds stamina gradually.
Year 1 teachers might consider structuring September days with a 3:2 ratio of play-based to formal learning activities, gradually shifting this balance over the year. Begin with 10-15 minute teacher-led sessions, extending these by about five minutes each half term as children’s concentration develops.
Using visual timers helps children to see how long focused tasks will last, reducing anxiety about “sitting all day”, while breaking formal learning into chunks with movement breaks between activities maintains engagement and honours children’s need for physical activity.
3. Maintain meaningful, continuous provision
Ahead of September, Reception teachers should document successful continuous provision activities to share with Year 1 colleagues, creating provision maps that show how specific areas support curriculum goals. Noting which resources particular children engage with most will also help Year 1 teachers to prepare environments that will immediately engage their new class.
Year 1 teachers need to link continuous provision explicitly to curriculum objectives. For instance, placing measuring tools in the construction area supports maths concepts, while topic vocabulary displayed in role-play areas reinforces literacy.
Refresh provision areas every two to three weeks to maintain engagement, while keeping core resources consistent. Use simple observation sheets to track learning during play-based activities, helping to validate this approach to sceptical stakeholders.
I’d recommend allocating 30 to 45 minutes daily for children to revisit skills taught in focused sessions through purposeful play.
4. Foster communication between teams
Teachers in the different phases should be working together throughout the year, not just at transition time. Create a year-long transition calendar with monthly meetups to discuss progress and concerns, and establish a shared digital folder for passing observations and work samples.
Reception and Year 1 teachers should shadow each other for half a day each term to understand different teaching approaches and consider co-planning the first two weeks of the autumn term together. This will support continuity of approaches and allow staff to develop a consistent language for learning behaviours that will help children to recognise what is expected of them.
Sharing assessment tools and expectations will ensure children’s progress is tracked consistently as they move between years.
5. Involve parents and children
Reception teachers can host a “moving to Year 1” parent workshop in the summer term and create a simple handout outlining differences and similarities between the phases. Inviting Year 1 teachers to attend final parents’ evenings creates early connections with families and can help to alleviate anxiety.
Year 1 teachers might send welcome postcards to children during the summer break and create a photo presentation showing typical Year 1 activities to share with parents.
Hosting a “play alongside your child” session in the first half term of the new year can also be helpful, while providing a simple guide to supporting reading, writing and maths at home empowers parents as partners.
Effective transition requires commitment from both year groups and should be viewed as a gradual process spanning months, not days.
The investment in thoughtful transition pays dividends in children’s wellbeing, confidence and academic progress. When children feel secure in their new environment, they’re far more likely to take risks in their learning and reach their potential.
Michelle Windridge is a former lecturer in education at University College Birmingham, and a former assistant headteacher and EYFS aspiration leader
