Many children will be making the move from preschool or childcare to school and until day one of the new term these children often remain "invisible" to schools.

"There are some kids who won't have had any contact with the school before they arrive on the day to start, and there are some parents who won't have had any contact, and that's not often a large proportion of children, but there are certainly a number in that boat each year," said Emeritus Professor Sue Dockett, from Charles Sturt's Faculty of Arts and Education.

Professor Dockett said that while some families will have attended transition programs and started to connect with other children and families who will attend the same school, for others this won't have been possible, and the transition for these children can be difficult.

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"We know that children who start school positively tend to engage positively and seem to do pretty well. We know that for some kids this can be a challenging time and we know the biggest things to help them through that challenging time are their teachers and families," she said.

It is possible for kids to have a difficult time and go on to do well with those strong supports in place, but professor Dockett said there are things parents can do to ease a child's transition.

Providing opportunities to say goodbye to previous schools and old friends is important, she said, especially for families that may be moving to a new area. A drive past the new school creates a sense of familiarity with an unfamiliar setting and helps create a plan for pickups and drop-offs.

Parents could also check the school's Facebook page and website for handy tips. Some schools have a 'get to know your teacher day' before school starts, where children and families are invited to the school to meet teachers and see the classroom.

Some schools also have a day before term starts where you could enroll children

"Rather than arriving the first day of school with a new child saying 'I'm here to enroll' and finding everybody is really quite busy and feeling like perhaps you don't belong there just yet," professor Dockett said.

And as parents and their children both feel anxiety relating to the pandemic and a new school start, Dockett's advice for parents would be to simply give yourself a break.

"Any transition involves change. And change in itself can produce anxiety... I wouldn't pretend that anxiety doesn't exist. I think it's a matter of recognising it, talking about it and talking about strategies to manage it," she said.

"Parents often get themselves in a tiz and they get really worried...kids get themselves in a tiz, so do teachers. I think it's a time to be gentle to yourself and just, creating time to talk and somewhat enjoy the experience."

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