Two Great Stories for the First Day of School Which Address Preschool Kids' Fears & Concerns

Two Great Stories for the First Day of School Which Address Preschool Kids' Fears & Concerns
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Reading the Stories

These first day of school stories for preschool children are the perfect tools to use at the beginning of the school year. They address preschool kids’ main fears about starting school – “How will I make friends?” and “What will I do there?” You can also read these first day of school stories with preschool kids right before they start school.

Story 1 - Making Friends

Dennis was scared. It was his first day of school, and he didn’t know anybody there. His mother had waved goodbye to him at the door of his classroom, and he had waved back. He tried to smile, but he felt tears in his eyes. Why was his mother leaving him?

The teacher came up to Dennis. “Hi, Dennis,” she said. “Do you want to play with the other kids?” She pointed to the art area, where a boy and a girl were playing with clay.

Dennis shook his head. “I don’t know them,” he said.

The teacher smiled. “That’s OK,” she told him. “It’s OK not to know people on the first day of school. Maybe if you start playing with them you’ll get to know them better.”

The teacher led him over to the art table. The girl who was playing with the clay looked up at Dennis. “Hi!” she said. “My name is Ava. What’s your name?”

“I’m Dennis,” he answered. “I love clay. Do you want to see me make a dinosaur?”

Ava nodded and smiled. Dennis smiled too. The teacher was right. It’s OK not to know people on the first day of school, but you can get to know people if you talk with them and play with them. Maybe you’ll even become best friends!

Story 2 - Jenny’s Big Question

This year Jenny would finally be going to school, just like her big sister Emma. Jenny was excited for the first day of preschool. Her mother had bought her a brand new red jumper with a bow on each shoulder. She had two more red bows on the sides of her head, right at the tops of her pigtails, but she had one big question. What do you do in school?

“What do you do in school?” Jenny asked her mother.

“You learn how to read,” answered her mother. “How to write your name, how to count to a hundred, and how to do all sorts of things.”

Jenny frowned. “But I don’t know how to read yet,” she said. “What if they don’t let me go to school?”

“Oh, they will,” said Jenny’s mom. “Nobody knows how to read at the beginning, but then the teacher helps you. You do know some of your letters, don’t you?”

“I do,” answered Jenny. “I can even sing the ABC song.”

“Then you’ll do fine,” her mother said, smiling, but Jenny was still nervous. She still had a big question: What do you do in school?

Jenny turned to her big sister Emma. “What do you do in school?” Jenny asked Emma.

“You play!” said Emma. “All day long. You play games, you hear stories, you eat lunch, and sometimes you even get to plant flowers in the school garden.”

“That sounds like fun,” said Jenny. “But I get to do all of those things at home with Mom. Why should I go to school?”

“What do you do in school?” Jenny asked her stuffed Dog, Rover. Rover just looked at her. He didn’t answer. Jenny thought and thought. Then she had an idea.

“I know!” she said. “I’ll just wait until tomorrow. When I come home from school, I’ll have an answer to my big question. I’ll know just what you do in school, because I’ll already have been there!”

Don’t just read these stories and then move on to another activity! Instead, use the characters in these stories to discuss kids’ fears about the first day of school with questions like “Why was Dennis sad?” or “What do you think is the answer to Jenny’s big question?”