N started going to a montessori school since June 7th. There are children in age group 2 - 4 in a class. The funda is that the younger kids will pick up things (faster) from the elder ones and the elder ones will learn how to coach the younger ones. Since N follows everything that M does at home, we thought this would be a right kind of approach for N.
Our only experience with starting school has been with M, and that has been something that none of us will every forget anytime soon. M had started going to a home daycare near our house in Seattle. So when the time came to put him to a preschool, we thought he would blend right in. But we were so wrong. He used to howl and we literally had to drag him to school everyday for almost a month. The first couple of weeks, he would cry in the preschool most of the time. Since M has always been more attached to A, I used to do the drop off to make the transition easier. It was a heart wrenching experience to see him cry and there have been days when I have just sat in the car, umb for a few minutes after dropping him off. Things gradually improved after a month or so and pretty soon he started to enjoy his time in school. One of his teachers, Miss Masa had a particular liking for him and he would be with her most of the time.
Given this experience as a background, we had braced ourselves this time around. Since N is more attached to me, A dropped and picked him up the 1st few weeks. At school, it was a gradual transition as well. The 1st week was with a parent in class for 30 mins or so. Next week was 1 hr with the parents waiting outside incase the kids were crying non-stop. The week after that was 1.5 hrs with the parents free to go away. The 4th week was again 1.5 hrs but starting at 9 am (which is the regular timings) instead of 10 am. After 4 weeks, it was going to be 3 hrs school from 9 - noon. N had been pretty good the 1st few weeks. He did not cry on his own but there were other kids in the class that cried a lot and so looking at them he would cry for some time. After the 1st few weeks, he started crying a little at home when we would get ready for school. However once the school started for the full 3 hrs, he started regressing. He would plead/cry to not go to school at home and in the car. One could see that he was truely trying to be a brave boy and not cry in the car. However the moment we would get to the school gate, he would not be able to control anymore and start crying. Also after a month we figured he was getting used to it and so I started dropping him off as well as picking him up. It has been a week of full day school and he has cried everyday. Also he has regressed in his potty training as well. We had started his potty training in May and by the time he started going to school, we felt he was 90% potty trained - he would tell us most of the time and when we took him to this potty seat, he would do the job quickly. The 1st month in school went smoothly as well since he was there only for 1.5 hrs and didn't need to go in school. Once the school started for 3 hrs, he has to go there as well and most of the days he would come back with a wet pant or would have had a change of clothes. Hope N settles soon and that there is a big improvement in his mood when he goes to school.
Our only experience with starting school has been with M, and that has been something that none of us will every forget anytime soon. M had started going to a home daycare near our house in Seattle. So when the time came to put him to a preschool, we thought he would blend right in. But we were so wrong. He used to howl and we literally had to drag him to school everyday for almost a month. The first couple of weeks, he would cry in the preschool most of the time. Since M has always been more attached to A, I used to do the drop off to make the transition easier. It was a heart wrenching experience to see him cry and there have been days when I have just sat in the car, umb for a few minutes after dropping him off. Things gradually improved after a month or so and pretty soon he started to enjoy his time in school. One of his teachers, Miss Masa had a particular liking for him and he would be with her most of the time.
Given this experience as a background, we had braced ourselves this time around. Since N is more attached to me, A dropped and picked him up the 1st few weeks. At school, it was a gradual transition as well. The 1st week was with a parent in class for 30 mins or so. Next week was 1 hr with the parents waiting outside incase the kids were crying non-stop. The week after that was 1.5 hrs with the parents free to go away. The 4th week was again 1.5 hrs but starting at 9 am (which is the regular timings) instead of 10 am. After 4 weeks, it was going to be 3 hrs school from 9 - noon. N had been pretty good the 1st few weeks. He did not cry on his own but there were other kids in the class that cried a lot and so looking at them he would cry for some time. After the 1st few weeks, he started crying a little at home when we would get ready for school. However once the school started for the full 3 hrs, he started regressing. He would plead/cry to not go to school at home and in the car. One could see that he was truely trying to be a brave boy and not cry in the car. However the moment we would get to the school gate, he would not be able to control anymore and start crying. Also after a month we figured he was getting used to it and so I started dropping him off as well as picking him up. It has been a week of full day school and he has cried everyday. Also he has regressed in his potty training as well. We had started his potty training in May and by the time he started going to school, we felt he was 90% potty trained - he would tell us most of the time and when we took him to this potty seat, he would do the job quickly. The 1st month in school went smoothly as well since he was there only for 1.5 hrs and didn't need to go in school. Once the school started for 3 hrs, he has to go there as well and most of the days he would come back with a wet pant or would have had a change of clothes. Hope N settles soon and that there is a big improvement in his mood when he goes to school.
No comments:
Post a Comment