The first day of school need not be a traumatic one for youngsters. If parents talk with their children before-hand, making the event sound like it will be a wonderful experience, youngsters should fully enjoy their first day of school.

Jascinth Albuoy-Onyia, a nurse with the Child and Adolescent Services Department of the Bermuda Hospital Board, said communication was the most important aspect of preparing a child for its first day of school.

"Communicate, communicate, communicate,'' she said. "I can't stress that enough. And don't talk negatively about school, make it sound like it will be a positive experience.

"If it will be a preschoolers' first time, parents could start talking about the clothes they will wear to school. Older children should be encouraged to talk about the good experiences they had in school.

"And if children do ask questions, answer them as honestly as possible.'' As the new school year approaches, parents should try to prepare their young children for being in -- or returning to -- a learning environment.

"Hopefully parents would have started reading with preschoolers,'' Mrs.

Albuoy-Onyia said. "They should ask them questions like what they did today so they will get used to responding to questions.'' And parents should take their children to see their new school, before September 8 -- the first day of classes.

Mrs. Albuoy-Onyia said: "They should take their children to see their school if they haven't done it by now. Visit the facility so they will get familiar with their surroundings.

"Parents should know the name of their children's teachers and principal so they can tell their kids.'' To make the transition from summer to school easier on children, Mrs.

Albuoy-Onyia said parents should get them back into a routine before school starts.

"In younger children, start emphasising routines in their lives,'' she said.

"They have had all summer to run wild and kids get perturbed if you change their routine too quickly.

"Set aside time for them to read to you or you to read to them. Have supper at a certain time each night, give them baths at a certain time each night and put them to bed at a set time.

"Ease them back into a routine.'' On the first day of school, parents should be calm and relaxed -- or at least present a serene image to their children.

"If the parent is anxious the child will pick it up,'' she explained.

"Parents should address their own anxieties before they take their children to school -- especially mothers who are sending their first child off to school for the first time.'' And parents should make prior arrangements with their bosses just in case of first-day nerves.

"If a child is clingy, parents may have to stay a little longer so they may want to arrange to go into work late on the first day of school,'' Mrs.

Albuoy-Onyia said. "But if your child runs into school, take the cue and go.'' If hanging around the school does not help your child to adjust, parents may have to brace themselves for an emotional scene.

Mrs. Albuoy-Onyia insisted that parents should never let their children see them cry -- it will only make the situation worse.

"You can always call the school up later to see how the child is doing,'' she said.

After the school day is completed, parents should talk to their children about their experiences.

"Ask how their day went, did they make any new friends, what's their teacher's name, and so on,'' she said. "Turn off the T.V. and communicate. If activities or school work was sent home, sit down with them and do them together.'' Mrs. Albuoy-Onyia added that teachers will probably notify parents if their child is having trouble adjusting to school.

"If a child seems to be regressing in their behaviour, acting more babyish, wetting themselves, or not communicating -- these are signs of kids in distress,'' she explained.

"It may not be school-related, but if it is the only recent change in their lives, parents should talk with the teacher or school counsellor.''