Well, that time came; in fact, he has been going 3 mornings a week for a few weeks now.
His first day came, and he was unsure; we had been talking about it; however, this made him upset, and he kept up with, “No, Eggy, go school, not me”.
We let him take the lead as much as possible, and he wanted to walk, so off he set with Emmy. Both children start at 9 am in different schools, so pre-schoolers are happy with him being later. It works better as he can see Emmy off and know he isn’t missing anything she is doing. It also means the mad rush to get in his door has died down and we don’t have to queue or wait around.
They do a self-registration where the children are encouraged to find their own name and put it into the post box. He thought this was great.
Without a second thought, he sat down with the cars, and we left.
No tears and happy all morning.
He kept saying, “Mummy, come pick me up later ” when I collected him, so I fear he may have gotten a little upset at times.
A photo posted by Clare Nicholas (@emmysmummy1) on Apr 15, 2015 at 4:39am PDT
He does Monday, Wednesday and Friday mornings. I had a fear he would be unsettled the next sessions he would realise I was going. I’ve never left him before, only with good friends and family. I was right. There were lots of tears.
Having worked in childcare for so long I know it’s easiest on both staff and the children to leave as quickly as possible. That said it’s hard but I didn’t stay more than 5 minutes. Leaving him with a teacher to cuddle.
He was fine on pick up and settled quickly.
This happened twice and he clung a few more times.
Now, he happily leads me to what he wants to play with. He shows me, and I leave.
He seems to be enjoying himself and has grown very fond of 2 teachers in particular. In fact, they changed his keyworkers to these two ladies.
I’m pleased he has settled well and the staff are lovely and remember Emmy fondly which puts me at ease.
Here are our top tips for easing the transition into Pre-School :
Involve them in the getting ready process. Let them choose their own special school bag and lunchbox if they need one. This will help them to identify it in the classroom and make it something special to them.
Talk to them before they go. Explain in basic language where they are going and enforce that you will be back to collect them again soon. This helps them to understand they aren’t being left forever.
Place a comfort toy or item into their school bags. This could be a favourite Teddy, a comfort blanket or even a dummy. Let them and the teacher know it’s there incase of emergencies I.E they get very upset
Help them to choose an activity before you leave the room. Either lead them to something you know they like or let them choose. This means they are showing you what they want to do and help enforce a little independence.
Leave the classroom as quickly as you can. They may get upset but it rarely lasts long and trying to settle them all over again and then retreat often leads to the whole process starting over again and disturbs the whole class
Remember if there is a problem or your child doesn’t settle you will get a call and you can call yourself to check too
Talk about their day when you pick them up, make it fun. Talk about what they played with, friends. Ask them to recall songs they’ve sung or snacks they’ve eaten as they will enjoy telling you about their day
Recall the things they enjoyed before their next session. Remind them of the fun they had on previous visits.
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Clare
Hi, I'm Clare (Emmy's Mummy). A former Nanny and Mother of 2 - Emmy (born February 2010) and Harry (born October 2012). We are Essex based and share our adventures and misadventures of a busy crazy life.
Comments (5)
Sensible tips from a Mummy who has done it all before! Looks like Harry is very settled.
Great tips, we are going through this with Baby at the moment. It is so difficult! Thanks for sharing x
Very welcome Aby. I hope she settles soon. It can be such a difficult time but reassurance is key and once she realises you are actually coming back she will be happier
Goo to read, Ted starts in 2 weeks and have never really left him! No idea how he will be or me! Think he is more than ready for it and will love it when he settles though x
I'm sure he will love it kate, there maybe a few tears but they don't last long. Outs usually last longer
Sensible tips from a Mummy who has done it all before! Looks like Harry is very settled.
Great tips, we are going through this with Baby at the moment. It is so difficult! Thanks for sharing x
Very welcome Aby. I hope she settles soon. It can be such a difficult time but reassurance is key and once she realises you are actually coming back she will be happier
Goo to read, Ted starts in 2 weeks and have never really left him! No idea how he will be or me! Think he is more than ready for it and will love it when he settles though x
I'm sure he will love it kate, there maybe a few tears but they don't last long. Outs usually last longer