All children in Queensland, Australia are required to attend Prep at school prior to commencing Year One.
To attend Prep, your child must turn five before the 30th of June in the year they start.
Prior to Prep, you can enrol your child in Kindergarten or 'Kindy' (we call it in Queensland). Kindy is currently a free program where your child can attend a registered program a few days a week. You can learn more about Kindy by clicking here.
My eldest son Brooks is due to start Prep this year in 2025, so I've written this blog post to show how I've helped to prepare him for this big change ahead!
Food at Prep
During your child's Prep year, I believe it's important to help their transition by giving them a quality lunch set. We love the brand b.box for kids in my household, and although it is more expensive than other brands, I find it lasts an entire calendar year and is good value. They do offer sales throughout the year, and offer a discount code if you sign up to their mailing list.
Below is a picture board of everything I've bought my son to start his year at Prep in 2025, the links to purchase are also below. To my knowledge in Queensland, Prep children have three breaks to eat their lunch. The first break is called a Brain Break, where the children stay in their classroom where they are encouraged to eat their 'munch and crunch' snack box. Teachers encourage healthy foods here, such as cut up fruit and vegetables. The second break is morning tea time, where Prep children are encouraged to eat their cold food first, e.g. their yoghurt pouch or cheese snack.
The third and final break of the day is their lunch break, where they are free to finish their lunchbox!
Children are encouraged to learn how to open their own packaged food prior to starting Prep. Parents are also encouraged to not bring tins of food (e.g. tuna) or food that requires heating up. Ordering school canteen or tuckshop is also not encouraged during Term One of Prep, as the children are learning lots of new things and need time to adjust to their new school.
You and your child can practice opening and closing their lunchbox, any food packages and their water bottle prior to starting Prep so they feel confident and ready!
Lunchbox - this one has several compartments to keep food seperate and free from leaks. It holds a sandwich (and has a removable compartment underneath to place a small circular icepack), a whole apple, a compartment for yoghurt and much more.
Munch and Crunch Snack Box for Brain Break - this one has two compartments, perfect for cut up fruit and vegetables.
Insulated Water Bottle - perfect in hot and humid Queensland. This insulated water bottle holds 500mls of water and keeps it cold! It also has a straw sipper and an open and close lid to keep other people's germs away. I add a few ice cubes in the morning to keep the water cold.
Insulated Lunch Bag - again, perfect for hot and humid Queensland. This lunch bag is insulated, which means when you use a frozen ice brick, the food will stay cold and fresh! You really need this at Queensland schools, as children often do not have access to any fridges, so their lunch will stay in their backpacks the entire day. This specific lunch bag will fit the below Lunchbox, Munch and Crunch Snack Box and an ice brick.
Cutlery - this is optional, but these mini cutlery sets are great for the lunchbox.
Ice Brick - definitely not optional! You will need several of these throughout the year, do yourself a favour and go to Kmart and stock up and have several frozen in the freezer ready to go at all times.
Insulated Food Jar - this is optional, but handy, especially in winter! If you'd like to pack your child food that needs to stay warm for their lunch, this is a great option. You heat up the child's food, and then boil some water from the kettle. Carefully place the boiled water into the food jar and close the lid, and keep it there for 10 mins or so to heat up the jar. Carefully open the lid and empty the hot water out, and place your child's hot food in there and seal it up well. The food will stay warm for lunch!
Small Ice Packs - really needed in Queensland, place one under your child's sandwich or in their lunchbox to keep it all cool.
🥪 Lunchbox | SHOP HERE
🥪 Munch and Crunch Snack Box | SHOP HERE
🥪 Insulated Water Bottle | SHOP HERE
🥪 Insulated Lunch Bag | SHOP HERE
🥪 Cutlery | SHOP HERE
🥪 Ice Brick | SHOP HERE
🥪 Insulated Food Jar | SHOP HERE
🥪 Small Ice Packs | SHOP HERE
Stocking the Freezer for Lunch Boxes
During the Christmas school holidays, when I had the inclination I baked some goods that would freeze well for my son's lunchboxes.
I use Freezer Guard Ziplock Bags and I usually write the name of the baked goods and the date. Food keeps so well in these blue bags, and I have had zero problems with defrosting or freezer burn.
Shoes for Prep
Like anything in life, of course you don't have to go out and buy an expensive item for your child's school year. We all have different budgets and experiences, but I believe if you can afford to buy a quality pair of school shoes, you will thank yourself later! A good pair of school shoes should last the calendar year, and during fittings tell the shoe salesperson to keep growing feet in mind!
👟 Black Leather 'League' Shoes by Clarks | SHOP HERE
👟 Black Shoe Polish | SHOP HERE
👟 Asic GT 1000 Running Shoes | SHOP HERE
Label Everything
Our Prep teacher has already asked us to please label every piece of clothing that will come to school. We have also been asked to label our child's lunchboxes and water bottle.
We use a company called Hippo Blue for sticky name labels and iron-on clothing labels. They constantly have sales throughout the year and you can customise them with cartoons, colours and fonts of your preference!
Stationary for Prep
The local state school that my son is attending does not require any stationary items for Prep children! This is due to parents paying a stationary fee to the school, and they will source a pack for each child to use as a group in their classroom. We were required to purchase a chair bag, which is essentially an open-style bag that hangs over the back of your child's seat in the classroom. You usually purchase these from the same store as where you bought your child's Prep school uniform.
Extra Things for Prep
I bought a spare pair of school shorts (from the second-hand uniform shop) to pack in my child's bag, along with a spare pair of underwear and wet wipes. These are handy things to store in your child's backpack in a ziplock bag incase of any accidents during their Prep year.
Getting Your Child Ready for Prep Learning
I bought my son Brooks a school-ready kit which helps develop his writing and maths skills. You can personalise these kits with your child's name, so they can continue to learn to write their name with confidence!
The company name is My Pen Pals and the kits are designed by Australian school teachers. The kits come with markers and an eraser, and a bag to carry it all in. It's a great way to introduce school work gently to your child in a fun way!
You can purchase a school kit here.
Disclosure: No brands sponsored this blog post you are reading today. All opinions are 100% our own and reflect our honest experiences with the products mentioned. We only share what we believe you’ll find helpful as parents.
We hope you enjoyed our blog post on how to get your child Prep-ready in Queensland! ♡ Any questions or comments? We'd love to hear from you! Tag us at @thejohannessenfamily or contact us!
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