Personalised book preparing child for nursery: your child Packs Their Nursery Bag

What happens in your child Packs Their Nursery Bag

1. Your child spots an empty nursery bag waiting by the front door.
2. A spare top, a drink and a comforting little item are chosen together.
3. A tiny pocket mouse makes a simple picture checklist for the bag.
4. Your child practises zipping the bag and saying goodbye at the door.
5. After nursery, your child comes home to unpack and talk about the day.

How the first page could read

On the chair by the front door sits a small bag with a big zip. “This is for nursery,” says Mum. Your child opens it carefully. What shall go inside first: a spare top, a little drink bottle, or something soft to hold on the way?

Your child’s name, look and little details replace these words, and the whole story is written for their age.

Why this story works

Getting ready is a useful place to begin when nursery is new. This story gives your child a small, practical part to play before the first morning: finding the bag, choosing a few things, putting them in and closing the zip. The sequence is clear enough to talk through at home, while the goodbye at the door and the return home give the routine a gentle beginning and end. It is well suited to ages two to four, when children often enjoy naming familiar objects and copying everyday jobs. A book starring your child, created from their photo, makes the bag-packing conversation especially concrete.

Reading it together

• Read it while packing the real nursery bag, pausing for your child to name each item they use.
• Let your child practise opening and closing a bag or zip when there is no rush to leave.
• After nursery, revisit the final pages and ask your child which part of their day they would put in the bag next time.

Suggested art style: Storybook watercolour

Soft watercolour scenes make the home routine and nursery doorway feel familiar, calm and easy to look at together. A sidekick idea: a tiny pocket mouse with a picture checklist. You can pick any of the four styles and change the details in the form.