Helping children succeed in their first week at school by managing anxiety and physical symptoms

Experts emphasise the importance of recognising and addressing anxiety in first-year pupils through familiarisation, consistent routines, and supportive language to ensure a smooth start to school life.

Families preparing to send children into the first year of primary school are being urged not to brush off stomach ache or nausea as a convenient excuse to stay at home. Dr Zelal Şahin Cingiler, a child and adolescent mental health specialist at Sivas State Hospital, said physical complaints can be one of the clearest signs that a child is anxious about starting school, particularly in the opening days of the new term.

That warning matters because school anxiety does not always arrive in the form adults expect. Cingiler said tears at the school gate and outright refusal to go into class are only part of the picture for children encountering school for the first time. Local reports on her written statement said she wanted parents, especially those with first-year pupils, to recognise repeated complaints early rather than dismiss them as simple stubbornness or a passing dislike of lessons.

Her advice centred less on discipline than on making the new routine feel familiar. She said children cope better when they have seen the school before the first day, walking through the classroom, corridors and garden with a parent so the place stops feeling unknown. Reports in Sivas İrade and Canlı Gaste added that playing school at home and packing the schoolbag together can help turn an abstract change into something a child can picture and understand.

Cingiler also argued that the handover at the school door should be brief and predictable. One example she gave was to say, “Gün içerisinde iş yerinde olacağım, okul çıkışı da seni tam buradan alacağım”, giving the child a clear sense of where the parent will be and exactly when they will return. The emphasis, according to several local outlets, was on clarity and consistency rather than drawn-out reassurance.

What parents do matters as much as what they say. Canlı Gaste reported Cingiler’s warning that slipping away without saying goodbye, or stretching out the farewell, can intensify distress rather than calm it. She added: “Çocuklar anne babalarının yüz ifadelerini, ses tonlarını ve endişelerini bir ayna gibi hızla içselleştirirler.” Separate guidance from Okan University Hospital makes the same point more broadly, saying that children often absorb the anxieties of adults around them as they approach school for the first time.

That is one reason specialists are wary of using school or teachers as a threat. The Sivas reports said parents should not try to secure co-operation by frightening children about what might happen in class. Okan University Hospital’s advice similarly warns against telling a child that a teacher will dislike them or that they will be left friendless if they misbehave, arguing that supportive language is more likely to protect self-confidence during a vulnerable transition.

The broader message is that adjustment is not a race. Several reports on Cingiler’s statement stressed that each child settles at a different pace, and that families should combine patience with firmness rather than changing course every morning. Haberler’s version of the guidance said a healthy start depends not only on calm parenting at home but also on co-operation between school and family, suggesting that consistency across both settings can reduce uncertainty for the child.

Background guidance from Okan University Hospital adds one further point for families trying to judge when nerves have become more serious. If stomach ache, nausea or headaches keep recurring, adults should give children room to express what they are feeling through play or drawing, and seek expert help when needed. That does not mean every complaint signals a disorder. But as the new term begins, the advice from both hospitals is that physical symptoms, sudden clinginess and fear around the school run deserve attention, not dismissal.