Latest / From 9 to Mom / kindergarten readiness with brittany brady
Transcript
- Catie: Welcome back to From Nine to Mom. Danielle: Where we discussed balancing the nine to five hustle with the beautiful chaos that we call motherhood. And today we have a very special guest in episode. We have Britney here with us. She's a school social worker and a mom of two, which means she has seen kindergarten from both sides. She built Bright Starts Co. after watching year after year the kids who thrive in kindergarten aren't necessarily the ones who know all the ABCs or know their numbers. It's those children that can manage frustration, can emotionally regulate themselves that know. routine separate from their parents without falling apart and because of what she saw that's what really drove you to build this company and your approach is so unique and I love it because it's not about flashcards or worksheets necessarily it's about those small daily habits connection moments and emotional skills that we can work on before the classroom so that your kids can walk in. with those things and be ready to go. So Britney, we are so excited to hear your whole story and for you to give us your advice. But welcome if you want, please give us your background so we can learn a little bit more about you. Brittany Brady: Sure. Thank you so much for having me. I'm so excited to be here today. yeah, so I'm a former school social worker. I focused on elementary school. So I had preschool students through sixth grade. but I'm also a mom of two myself. And I just have ⁓ my daughter just ended kindergarten. So she's a rising first grader, ⁓ and I have a three-year-old who will be entering the education space in a couple of years. So Through them and through my work as a school social worker, I was really inspired to create Bright Starts Co. so that I could help parents just feel confident and comfortable sending their kids to school, knowing that they can do it. And there's not a lot that you have to do at home. You don't have to make home like a school. It's some it's so simple and there are things that you can do at home every single day. Catie: Yeah. I was really excited when we first connected because obviously I have assumed to be kindergartner. He actually has his last day of the R U P K pre K here next week. So we're like, Okay, how do we make sure they're ready? We we hope that, you know, the programs that he was in, but I feel they think kindergarten readiness, I think a lot of parents don't even understand like what especially if it's your first kid, they miss the mark of like, what do they need to know? can we start with like what would you define as like kindergarten read readiness? Brittany Brady: Yeah, absolutely. So I've seen this time and time again, either with families I've worked with, my friends, even like in subreddits, it's like we all just seem to think it's academics. And I see like this summer before kindergarten, all of a sudden all these parents are like, My kid can't read. They don't need to be reading. They're five years old. That is what going to school is for. We're not to be the ones that are teaching them to read. ⁓ what true school readiness means is the schools teach. The academics, the letters, the numbers, but it's helping them build emotional regulation, independence, flexibility, persistence, keep like having them learn to keep trying when things get hard, grit, confidence. When they can get all those foundational skills, learning comes so much easier for them and it makes it so much easier for them to navigate a classroom because they can solve problems on their own and work through when things get challenging. so I see that kindergarten readiness is so much more than flashcards and worksheets and workbooks. Like I was just at Target the other day ⁓ I saw this whole area, kindergarten workbooks. I was like, Your kid doesn't want to spend their summer before kindergarten at a table doing workbooks all summer. They need to be playing and doing like practicing routines and just being a kid, not sitting at a table with a pen and paper, because that's not gonna get them actually ready for kindergarten. Catie: Right. I think two speakers. Danielle: Yeah, I remember sorry, Katie. I remember when Colton was going into kindergarten there well, the year before, one of our friends had all these worksheets all over their house getting them prepared. And I felt so guilty and unprepared. And it turned out that thing he needed was emotional regulation. That's what we ended up spending the most time on. But that word gets thrown around a lot. Can you kind of break it down for people who might not be familiar it? What does that actually mean? Brittany Brady: So when we're talking when we're talking about emotional regulation, we're not talking about kids who like just never cry or can handle all their feelings on their own, but it's the kids who can recognize feelings. They can notice when somebody's having a hard time in themselves or even in others. They can a calming strategy enough that they can solve a problem or work through something that it's not gonna kind of derail their whole day, right? Like I've worked with some kids that and super normal for kids to go into kindergarten, like we're and not be a hundred percent regulating emotions. Developmentally that's not appropriate. And we're not looking for perfection here at all. We're looking for kids who can eventually calm themselves down. They can co-regulate with adults. And what I mean is that when another a caregiver, an adult like a teacher or staff member comes to help regulate them, that they can respond and kind of connect heart to heart to them use borrow their nervous system and borrow their calm. So We're looking for kids who can express themselves and use their words saying, I'm frustrated, I'm upset, that person hurt me, that person took my toy, my they did the or you know, anything like that. I can't find this. Where's the bathroom? And they can also use coping strategies when things get hard, whether that's taking a breath, knowing to take a break, asking for help, anything like that is gonna be so valuable in the classroom. Catie: Yeah, I had Jack actually just had his like the kindergarten screening. So ⁓ sure and I am throwing this out of left field at you, I know that like in that they do a lot of academics. So ⁓ can imagine being a parent. I mean, it's my first kid, but luckily I have a good circle of people that I'm talking to, you and that that's like it isn't just the academics, but our school system only like tested ⁓ based on that. And they actually recommended that Jack do their like jumpstart program over the summer more for social like piece of it. And I was like, ⁓ but he got it like he aced everything on the academic portion. And they're like, it would just be good for him to be here and like be in school and be with the teachers and be with the kids and like feel comfortable. I think it's also like when you have been in a classroom, seeing the kids that aren't ready versus ready, like what's been like the biggest difference of the kids that Are ready versus not ready. Brittany Brady: Yeah, I'm I'm so glad you brought that up because I think definitely we have a long ways to go in just like our culture and in education to kind of like take the pressure off families that it's all the academics because I truly believe kindergarten is like that foundational year where they just learn how to be like a student and like be in a classroom setting, right? but when what separates kids who are ready from kids who are not ready are a few key things. So what I'm looking for as a school social worker. ⁓ ⁓ is k kids who can separate from their caregiver. And I know we might talk about this more in a little bit in more in depth, but and I'm I don't mean like just being like, ⁓ okay, I'm ready to go bye, but they can eventually separate and they can eventually calm down with the help of other grown-ups and and get into the routine of the day. we're looking for kids who can sit and attend to a story, an activity, or listen to, ⁓ you a teacher's directions for an age-appropriate amount of time. We're also for kids who can Hear the word no not right now without like a huge meltdown. Like disappointment is okay. We're gonna validate a kid's feelings. We're gonna be like, we get it. Like it it's hard to hear no right now, but they can like hear it, feel their feeling, and move on and bounce, bounce back from that instead of getting kind of stuck. a big part of kindergarten is routines and being flexible. So kids have to learn to navigate, like being flexible when things change. or expectations change or like you're going from okay, you have your classroom teacher all day, but maybe at the end of the day you're gonna go to a special area. So you have an art teacher, you have a math teacher, PE. Now you have to listen to their expectations and how they run their classroom and having to be flexible with that. so following simple routines and flexibility is so, so valuable. I also am looking for kids who can ask for help when they need it. And this is gonna be a s a skill that is definitely developed and Still being strengthened in kindergarten. Your kid doesn't need to come in like, okay, every time they need something, they ask for help. They're like, I'm in a whole different place of people I don't know and I don't trust. So like at first, kids can be like really quiet. Like sometimes we're like, ⁓ that kid can talk. You know, like after like a couple days of them warming up. But eventually as they adapt to the classroom, they start to get comfortable, you know, asking for help and and saying, I need this or I need that is so, so valuable. and then ⁓ always ⁓ Catie: For real. Brittany Brady: try to preface and like really instill in families talking about helping your kid have like a curious mindset and being willing to learn. And I talk about this as like intrinsic motivation, but that's you know like more of like my language. So just helping your kids like develop a love for for learning and like wanting to be at school. Like nothing breaks my heart more than when I have an incoming kindergartner and they already are like, I hate it here. I hate school. I'm like, how do you already hate it? Like you've barely been here. And It's usually because they're not used to like the slower paced learning. They're not used to having a lot of expectations and accountability all day. And there's a lot of there's a lot more expectations and demands put on them. And so helping them just be more open and love learning is really gonna help them thrive. Danielle: Go ahead, Katie. It's you talking. Okay. No, I was just gonna ask, you said like getting them ready for that, because that's definitely something I feel Colton was in daycare for for years, and it was a it was a mix of STEAM ⁓ what's other one? it was a combo school. So he had like routines and things like that, but obviously I felt like that did help him, but at the time, he had to reconnect and relearn the rules of this ⁓ new school. So you talk about Catie: No, you can go. Danielle: things like to get them prepped. I'm just curious your Do kids who go to pre-K or go to a daycare, full day daycare, do they have a better transition than kids usually don't or is it more about the parenting? Brittany Brady: So I think that it's a big misconception that if my kid went to preschool, like they'll be fine, they're automatically gonna be ready. Cause I have seen kids who went to childcare settings, preschool settings that still have a hard time adjusting. so and the reason is because now they're coming into a a ⁓ where there's ⁓ there's more kids, there's more structure, there's more of a need for independence, and there are a lot higher of academic demands. And so ⁓ Definitely preschool is an amazing preparation and I wish that we had ⁓ early childhood education for everybody in ⁓ in our country because I think it is that zero to five, like that is so foundational and that is definitely gonna help. But I wouldn't necessarily say that it guarantees an easy adjustment period, if that makes sense. Danielle: It does. Catie: Yeah. I think too, like something as you go I mean it's it's so shocking sometimes when it's your first kid. You go into these settings. So we had an in-home daycare situation. So it wasn't like a full daycare where he had consistent routines. He was in a home, very comfortable, like small group amount of kids. And then when he went to preschool, I think it was a little bit of a shock to him. Where he was used to like the authority figure, like he could easily understand who was in charge. like having to like put his own coat on. He was like, ⁓ my gosh, like I have to do that. Like he to pre-K this year and they're like, No, you have to try to zip it up. And like he would get so frustrated. And it but it ended up being so good for him, like to understand, like, okay, I do I can do that on my own. Whereas like sometimes you forget that you're babying your kids and you're like, wait, maybe should I have been teaching him how to like ⁓ do that? And like sometimes you're in the routines. Brittany Brady: Mm-hmm. Catie: of the mornings, which is what I want to kind of get into because I'm like the type A routine crazy, like to maybe almost to a fault where I'm like, okay, my kids can't adapt when we like are off our routine a little bit. but I know like a lot of your pro right a lot your program relies on that routine. So can you kind of take us through some of the recommendations you have about the good routines? Brittany Brady: Mm-hmm. I can relate to that. Mm-hmm. Yeah, so I think routines are so valuable because predictability equals safety. And when I'm talking about routines, I don't mean like these rigid, like, okay, from eight to nine, we're getting ready and then from nine to nine, fifteen we're having our snack. Like I I to more use the word like rhythms, like daily rhythms that help kids have predictability. Cause when we have predictability, we have safety, and when safe brains when when brains feel safe, brain can learn. And so that's where that's coming from for me. but when we do get too rigid and I've been like that, where I I'm feeling stressed because the routine's off. Well then my kids feeling stressed, it's probably not because the routine is off. It's probably because I'm freaking out that the routine is off because they're ⁓ feeling our feelings. So yeah, I think that routines are so, so important. but being careful that you don't let them like, you know, dictate your whole day or your whole life. Danielle: Is me. Catie: I really Brittany Brady: 'Cause they also have to learn flexibility too. So when our routine changes, I try to prep our my kids if I know about it ahead of time. if it is last minute, you know, I try to ⁓ for them like how we're gonna handle this setback, like, ⁓ that's so disappointing. We were gonna go have that play date and it didn't happen. Man, that's not that's not a good feeling. And and just being like, or oops, we messed up, we forgot about that appointment. Okay, what are we gonna do? You know, so like just showing them how you handle setbacks and and bounce back from that stuff. Catie: And you have a whole toolkit kind of around like school mornings and that critical window. So what should we be doing like before we send them out to school? So I'm ready when kindergarten comes here. ⁓ Brittany Brady: Mm-hmm. Yeah. So I was really inspired to make this toolkit kind of like two pillars. So is I see and I spent a lot of time as part my primary job as the school social worker kind of hanging out in the office and waiting for those kiddos who had a hard time separating because they do have a hard time. Not all of them, but some of them. ⁓ my job was to be there to peel them off of mom and let mom know they're safe, they're okay. so ⁓ I was trying to reflect like, what can families be doing before they get to the school doors to help set their kiddo up for a good day? But then the other part that I was really inspired by was I was meeting with a lot of kids who had a rough morning at home, and it was just like the emotional tone set for their day was like already shy. Like they were like they were crying, and like my mom yelled at me in the car because I forgot my backpack, and now I'm up. You know, they're not, they're so dysregulated, like they can't actually. Learning when they're coming in like already heightened like that. So that's where this toolkit came from. so the goal of it is to help set that emotional tone for the day. And again, I'm not I'm never preaching perfection here, but anything we can do to try to get like a calm start is gonna help that brain be ready for learning. And it's just a good reminder that our kids borrow our nervous system. So if we're running around and we can't find anything and we forgot that it's a spirit day and they also need lunch packed, like This I will be like so for real. This happened to me this morning. My daughter and I were trying to get out the door. It's pick or not pickles and popsicles. It's popsicles and pizza. I always get all the peas mixed up. And I have popsicles like melting and I'm like, we gotta go. She's like, I hate my socks. I need new socks. I'm like, get out of here. You know, and I can feel myself getting worked up. Well, then what's happening? Right? She's not borrowing my calm anymore. Now she's getting more upset. And now the socks are more of a problem. Catie: I think. Danielle: Yeah. Brittany Brady: versus if I had like taken a beat you know helped her and like calmed down first. So they're always borrowing our nervous system and looking to us for that calm. But another part of it is it helps them practice independence. So my kids have a visual toolkit and like we're not always perfect about using it, but we have it handy when we're feeling off track and I'm like, ⁓ we're forgetting something like what do we need to do? And she loves going through it and it's just a little checklist and it's like okay Hairs brush, teeth are brushed, my shoes are done. ⁓ I need to get my backpack. So it helps build that independence for them too. So they're learning a little bit of accountability along the way. And then it's like not all on your shoulders. and then of course predictable routines ⁓ a morning reduce anxiety. When anxiety is reduced, those separations are gonna be a lot more calm when they get to the school doors. Catie: So now I have it made me think of I the beginning of the school year, we went through a really big phase where Jack was one of the kids that you were probably waiting for. I don't know that it was necessarily like he was it wasn't like he was like attached to me. He was just like the unknown or like the regulating of the drop off and we would try and I'm very I'm a very calm human, so I always am trying to be super calm, but every I I was trying to not let him feel my anxiety of like he is gonna cry, I'm gonna have to carry him up to the door, like and go through all of this. I was like, I just gotta stay calm, like talk to him, let's be distracted and like make it fun. But what would you tell I know you deal a lot with the kids, but what would you tell the mom in that situation who's dropping her kid off and is like trying to hold it together and not cry herself or or dad at this point, like to Brittany Brady: Mm-hmm. Catie: 'Cause a lot of the time I like, I'm holding it together as best I can and I'm turning around and crying and running to the car. Brittany Brady: Yes. I helped a lot of moms and dads who went through that and my mama heart just hurt for them because it's it's so much. You don't want to see your kid distressed. So I would always emphasize with them is that these kinds of tough s separations are normal and usually temporary. It's not usually something it's very, very did I see like a neurotypical kiddo have like these separation issues. ⁓ like all school year long. Usually we can get it control. and I always remind them that they're not manipulating you. They're not trying to like they are trying to get you to stay, but like they're not trying to like ruin your day. You know what I mean? Like they're just truly like just having a t they're just having a hard time, right? Like at the end of the day, they're just having a hard time. But what do and what helps with my daughter is like having a special ⁓ ⁓ like separation goodbye like quick connection moment so if like we would do like like high fives knuckles and then she had me do like something else like we would you know but some little handshake sometimes families have like a special phrase ⁓ and I always tell parents to remind them like grown ups come back right so that predictability and once they've seen that we do this over and over again they kind of can you know use that as like that that safety net ⁓ so I always remind the kids like grown-ups come back, mommy always comes back. but yeah, those confident, like little routines can and rituals can really help like that like connection heart to heart. Like, okay, we've got our little routine. They probably will still cry though, like they do, like they're really good at it. But I also remind them is like not probably like not even five minutes once I get to the classroom, they see their friends and they see what's going on and they see their desk and they're like, Catie: They are. Brittany Brady: Okay, I'm gonna slide right in and and they just they get into the routine and they they move on. Like I said, it's very rare that I've ever had a kiddo's distress continue and prolong. And I t I always tell the parents, like, if you do not hear from me, we're good. Like they're gonna be fine. And sometimes they'll call me back, like, did Johnny make it to class okay? And I was like, Yep, he was fine just a few minutes, you know. So another thing that I really recommend is don't Catie: Yes. Brittany Brady: And this is really hard. And it's and like as a parent, like to watch your kiddo be so upset and you're like, I wanna make them feel better. I wanna make these feelings go away. That's a natural instinct. But the more that our our parents will linger, the more we prolong the anxiety and the separation. And it makes it so much harder to the point where I'm like literally peeling them off. Danielle: Yeah. Brittany Brady: And I've ha and I'll I'll tell families, you know, just go, like I've got them. And so part of my job as a social worker was building trust with the families. Like, listen, I got you. I got you. I got your kid. Like, we'll be okay. But the more that families would linger and try to calm them down or bargain with them, like if you get in there, take you for ice cream after I'm like, they don't care about that. That's that's not gonna work. that often just like ⁓ makes way more intense. ⁓ So would be another like really, really big tip is like Danielle: Yeah. Catie: Yeah. Brittany Brady: Trusting the staff, trusting the teachers. If you don't have a teacher around or somebody to help, like go into the office and say, I need help. Sometimes it might be ⁓ somebody in my position, it could be an administrator. Sometimes, sometimes even the kids they didn't know me, and so they couldn't borrow my com and they weren't going to respond to me. And I would just trade places of the kindergarten teachers and they'd see their teacher and they'd be ⁓ I'm here, okay, I'm ready to go. so we will work with You know, those kiddos to get them in the door and like I said, after a few minutes, they're good. Catie: That was definitely Danielle: I think too, like you said that with Colton, I remember of his favorite people in the school is the school social worker because they're like the knowing who that person is and being able to understand their role is so I think so important. And when I did kindergarten readiness, Katie, they let us meet. That was the last person you met with to to and see what was going on. And I remember at Colton School, she did such a great job giving me advice on what to do before, because that was obviously a couple of months before we were gonna go into kindergarten. And she gave me similar pieces of advice around get the root have a routine in the morning, and I'm not a Not that I'm not a routine person, I'm more spontaneous, but I love how you put it as a rhythm. Start practicing that rhythm early so that if there's any like kinks in the plan, even for me, Colton hated brushing his teeth. But if once I brought the toothbrushes downstairs, could do it himself and it wasn't a big deal. It was so annoying to me to have toothbrushes in my kitchen. But it was like something silly that made him feel less stressed in the morning. And took that advice and started working with it. And I remember walking in on the first day of school because we were allowed to walk him in. we did the whole kissing hand book. Katie, I don't know if you have that book. It's about like you kiss, it's such a cute book. You kiss their hand, they kiss your hand, you put a little heart, right? Is that how it goes? You put a little heart, ⁓ you hold hands. Brittany Brady: That's so cute. Mm-hmm. Yeah, they like or like you could like draw a little heart. Yeah. Mm-hmm. Danielle: So you could see it to remind them. Like, if you get nervous, just rem like look at my kiss or whatever, or squeeze my kiss, or whatever. And I remember he walked in and I was so nervous. Walked in and he was like, Hi mom, love you. And I remember being like, What? you serious? You're not gonna cry or be upset or anything. But then I had to remember, like, that's what I wanted to happen. But I think there's like some tr true truth to like that bonding moment and that preparation. Brittany Brady: That's it. Danielle: preparation piece because that made it easier for me to say goodbye. Brittany Brady: Yeah. Catie: think too we got when we did our like pre-K that his teacher actually like it was it's part of her handbook of like we I have to bring him physically up to the door every day. It's not like a drop off line. So I think that makes it a little harder honestly. Like there's not like the the quickness of it. It's like, ⁓ we go stand in line and I have to sign him in and all that angst like waiting for his turn. and the best thing she said was like I know it's really hard but like you just Brittany Brady: Love that. Catie: You hand ⁓ hand your hand to me and you gotta turn and walk away, don't look back and just go Danielle: Katie, it's because you're always on time. You're the earliest one. If you're just like me and you're the last one there, you just you're you don't have to wait in line. Brittany Brady: Yeah. Catie: No, this is the craziest part, is I'm not. And the l recently we talk about like routines and I've created a monster already. Like he knows like time like I have an alarm that goes off when we get ready to like go out of the house. And then we get there and he now can like read our the clock on my car. And he like is like, I want to go stand in line at this time. I and so he's been super focused this week on being first in line. And these parents are getting there so early. I'm like, what are we doing? I morning we were there almost ten whole minutes early and we were third in line. And this poor kid wants to just ⁓ like, are you guys having a competition and you're all talking about this? And now we're all just all the parents are trying to get you're a little out here. ⁓ like, ⁓ my gosh. And it is funny because it's like at the beginning of the school year, like I like trying anything to get him up there without crying and that. And like, so we've made so much progress of like Brittany Brady: Even first. Danielle: Trying to get there first. Brittany Brady: There's like a preschool door buster that you're waiting for. Catie: That whole thing, but like, and maybe we can speak to this too, is like he's gonna take the bus next year. like that is gonna be a whole nother angle, I feel like, because it's the bus driver, really. ⁓ on the bus, there's no like you know, teach his teacher's not on the bus waiting for him. So it's like finding like his comfort people. any advice on the bus? I guess. Brittany Brady: Mm-hmm. Yeah. I would definitely maybe make like a social story about the bus, about like what it taught what it's like to ride the bus, maybe show some YouTube videos about being on the bus. I'd also walk him through like routine to get to the bus. Like any kind of preparation like that will decrease that anxiety, which will make that separation easier. ⁓ show him where his bus stop is. Catie: Yeah. Brittany Brady: Walk to the bus, like practice a couple days, you know, before the first day, like walking there together, to like walking him through what to expect. Okay, we're gonna wait here, and then the bus will sh will arrive, it'll park, the doors are open, we'll we'll say good morning to the bus driver, we'll do our special goodbye routine, and then you'll get on the bus and go. And that might be tricky, it just it's gonna depend on like how he responds. It it could be hard at first, or he could like totally be fine. Like you have no idea. Like, I feel like a lot of Catie: Be fine. Brittany Brady: times with my own kids, I'm like, ⁓ man, they're really gonna struggle with this. And then like they're totally fine. And I'm like, okay, beside, what do I know as they're mom? ⁓ Catie: you worried about? ⁓ Danielle: You're gonna be crying, Katie, not him. Watch. Catie: I will you know it's gonna happen, but it's just like, ⁓ my and then you they have one reaction and you're so right about that. So like he was like that at the beginning of this year. We've gone through a couple bumps, like if I've traveled for work and not been around, like he'll do he'll do a little bit of regression on it and that. And now like my biggest concern right now is he's gonna go to summer camp and it's not with anybody from his it's gonna be probably all new kids and like new teachers and you know, counselors and all that that are there. Danielle: Yeah. Catie: And I'm like, he's not gonna go like, I don't know how I'm gonna get him to go in there. Like he just is such a like he he looks for that calm, right? Like he's looking for that person, I feel. And I'm like, after a few days it'll be fine, but I'm like, I'm really trying not to let it show that I'm dreading it, but I'm like telling my husband he needs to go do the first day because I emotionally can't handle it. Brittany Brady: Yeah. that's so that's tough, especially when they do something new or unfamiliar and anything you can do to prep and walk them through. I don't know if they'll be willing to let you like meet one of the staff members beforehand so that he kinda has a familiar face. That could probably be helpful. yeah. It's tough. ⁓ Catie: Like. Definitely. Danielle: So we talked a lot about mornings because I wanna I do wanna know your opinion on this. You have a five minute night before reset. I wanna switch to nights because I do find that to be when they go to school equally as challenging and or impactful. What is a five minute night before reset? Brittany Brady: Okay, so from the five minute night before reset is just kind of like a really quick checklist to make sure you're setting yourself up for the best in the morning. And I think this is super helpful for working moms that are juggling a ton going on. and so we're making sure that we've checked their backpack, we've checked their folder, everything's cleaned out and kind of reset for the next day. Everything that they need is put inside. depending on your kiddo, maybe picking out clothes ahead of time can be helpful so that if they have like decision fatigue, they're not in the morning, like, what do I want to wear? Do they change their minds sometimes? Yes, they do. But at least maybe you have some of idea. if you like prep their lunch, ⁓ just if they're if you're having them take lunch to school, that can be really helpful so that in the morning you're not trying to prepare breakfast and pack lunch and deal with siblings over a toy and trying to get everything ready to go. another thing I like to do is just kind of check like if my kids have a newsletter, if I have a family calendar, just do like a double check to make sure I'm not missing anything for the next day. So one thing I do before my kids' school year starts is I take the calendar for the school and I put every single important event or calendar item in it so that I am as prepared as possible. Obviously things come up. in the in a school. That's just what we do. We like to keep parents on their toes. No. But ⁓ just check it, you know, I like to check to make sure, okay, I'm not missing like a spirit day. She doesn't need to bring anything extra, like a s you know, some sort of material or because that you know, I'd hate for her to get there and we forgot that. So that's kind of like myself, my time to just double check myself to make sure we're not missing anything. ⁓ and then I'll talk to them about Catie: Ha ha ha. Brittany Brady: what we're doing for that day, especially if there's maybe something changing or if we're gonna do something different after school or somebody's coming to visit. I might walk through that with my kiddos to say, hey, so tomorrow when you wake up, ⁓ we're actually not gonna be doing this. We're gonna be doing this instead to kind of give them a heads up on that. Danielle: Make sense. Catie: It is so much help it's so helpful to get things ready the night before 'cause it just for whatever reason, no matter how prepared you are, the morning like gets so chaotic. Danielle: Every single morning. Like it's unreal. And I started doing that probably after like a couple weeks at school. I realized how important the night was for mo for me next day. Because you can't control some even with your rhythm, you can't always control how long that rhythm might take or what might interrupt that rhythm. And that's why we have one. But the same time, I do see so much value in that nighttime prep because there have been days. Brittany Brady: Mm-hmm. Catie: Mm-hmm. Brittany Brady: Uh-huh. Yeah, it can really help. Mm-hmm. Danielle: where I'm making a costume at one AM because I forgot. Catie: Ha ha ha. ⁓ Brittany Brady: Yeah, been there. Catie: Alright, so if you had to kind of narrow things down and for working moms who are feeling guilty about their kids' kindergarten readiness, or really I feel like everything you've spoken on has been like getting them ready for all that early education prep, what's one thing that you would tell them to not feel guilty about? Danielle: Yeah. Brittany Brady: This is not about perfection. kiddo is still gonna be learning these skills and refining these skills as they go into kindergarten. And kindergarten teachers are some of the most amazing special educators. Like early childhood educators are so good at what they do. They're amazing. so don't feel like okay, they have to have all of this. They have to be like perfectly regulating their emotions, being completely fine with separations, and always asking for help, like. That's not what we're looking for here. So just no perfection here. It's all about progress. So I say that and progress is what is really the most important part here. so get rid of anything about perfection. You don't need that in your life. That's just gonna cause you more stress and anxiety and mom guilt. just having the predictability and the routines, those heart to heart connections, play. ⁓ You're doing probably more than you even realize, to be honest. Danielle: It is hard though. You've got a bunch of like millennial perfectionist moms out there that are just so used to being ⁓ overachiever and when things don't go like as planned, it's so difficult on your mental health. But I do you just have to keep reminding yourself of what you just said because it's not always easy when things don't go. ⁓ Brittany Brady: I also want to add that there's there's there's no race, you know, there's no like my kid needs to be the best or the best reader. I think we get caught up in that a lot. But also like every kid's readiness is gonna look different, especially if your kid has like developmental delays or neurodivergence going on. So I don't want moms who have a kiddo who has different needs. to feel like they have to compare their child to a child that doesn't have them because readiness is so individual and it's about what child needs in order to be ready. Catie: Alright, so you need to tell us about Ready Set Learn and what parents will walk away from from that program that you have. Brittany Brady: Yeah, so Ready Set Learn is my self-paced course that I put together. It is just packed full of everything that I have seen over my last, you know, decade in school social work that I think parents can use to prepare their child for school. So it's for any parent of a preschooler or rising kindergartner. I kind of base it like if at the ages of three to six. It's all play-based. So there's no worksheets, there's no flashcards, there's no drills, there's nothing like that. It's all about focusing on those learning behaviors, emotional regulation, working on independence, intrinsic motivation, persistence and perseverance, anything like that that's gonna help them be access learning easily for them. ⁓ so all of the strategies, everything that I talk about can be fit into everyday life. So there's no doing more or doing extra. You might have to do a little extra just to listen to it, but other than that, once you've listened to it, you're good. it just gives you like a more clear path and roadmap about readiness so that you're not feeling overwhelmed or feeling like, okay, we're a month out from kindergarten and I feel like my kid isn't ready and I don't know what to do. So it helps you and kiddo feel calm and prepared. Catie: Yeah. Brittany Brady: As they enter the classroom. Danielle: Well, thank you for putting that all together for the rest of us because your expertise is definitely appreciated. And the fact that you're willing to share that with moms who are feeling that is with a kid that's already been through kindergarten, I feel that way about Daisy already. And I still have a year to prepare. So thank you for sharing. And if people want to find you, ⁓ follow where can they do that? Catie: Yeah. Brittany Brady: Of course. Mm-hmm. Yes, you can find me on Instagram at Bright Starts Co. You can also head to my website, Brightstartsco.com, where you can find my online course. You can also find the link for my Call Mornings Toolkit. I also have some free resour resources on there as well for you to check out. Danielle: Amazing. Catie: Amazing. Well, thank you so much for joining. This was a good combo, and I feel like I'm definitely gonna benefit from looking at the program. Brittany Brady: Yeah. for having me. Danielle: Clacking out and clocking back in.