*** Help with New Daycare Adjustment ********

We moved our son into a new daycare almost a year ago & it was a really rough transition for him.

I know people say you should make the drop-offs quick, but that really didn't work for us. We made sure he had a comfort object (or 2 or 3) - for him it was a special blanket & his stuffed cat. He really connected with one of the teachers (she would let him sit on her lap & would rub his head if he was crying), so she took extra care to welcome him in the mornings. It was a rough 2 weeks, but he loves going to "new school" (he still calls it new after a year!) now.

It was tough to fit into the new routine & make new friends, but having some familiar objects really seemed to help him. I tried to make a few extra minutes available for us in the mornings so I could give him his extra hugs and help him put his tears away in his pocket. Once he realized school was fun, new friends were exciting & we still picked him up at the end of the day, things got good fast.

Talking with the daycare providers helped too - they had the ideas for comfort objects & they were willing to give him some extra attention at first to help the transition go more smoothly. When it got right down to it though, there were mornings I left crying as I listed to him cry while I walked down the hall to leave. It's definitely not easy, but it gets better.

*hugs*
J.
Mom to Chase (3.5) & #2 on the way 6/2/08

I work at a daycare and honestly most kids adjust within 2 months. Usually after mom or dad leaves the child will stop leaving within the hour. Most times it works best for the parents to reassure there child they will come back, give them a hug and kiss and leave. We find when the parents just hang around forever the child thinks the parents aren't sure about leaving them so it makes the behavior worse. Please never sneak out this leaves the child without the reassurance that their parent is coming back. My daughter stayed at home with my mom until she was two and had a very hard time adjusting to daycare. The only thing that saved her was to be able to take her special blanket. hang in there it will get better!

The first question is how long have you been at the new daycare? Many children can take 2-3 weeks til they are comfortable at a new daycare. Your child might be having a hard time because it is a big move from a new house and now also a new daycare. He might just be overwhelmed with all the "BIG" changes in his little life. If he is having fun during the day then he is starting to make the adjustment. Remember it's harder if you stay at daycare longer at drop off. It's easier on both parent and child if you just leave, I know it's hard when he's crying, but he will get over it, most children do. I'm not trying to sound mean, but I have had children come to my daycare and cry while the parents are here, once they leave they stop and they are off having fun.

T.

If the trouble is simply with drop of, I wouldn't worry too much. A lot of children go through that stage where they don't want their parents to leave. As he gets more comfortable with the daycare and moves out of this stage it should get better.