Son Struggling in Kindergarten

Updated on October 21, 2011
J.Z. asks from Worcester, MA
10 answers

Help - I am stressing!! Last night my son's K teacher called to explain some difficulties he is having in class. He is having a hard time with some of the pre-reading skills (can't write well etc. gets frustrated and has meltdowns), so they are going to put him in a small group to work on it. I am FINE with that - the more help the better! What is killing me is that he is also having some trouble socially. He has made one friend that he plays well with...but the teacher says he is trying to make friends with a group of boys but doesn't know how to go about it....so he does something silly or inappropriate (like stick his foot out to trip them), so then the boys run and tell on him.
I am surprised at the social part as he has been in FT daycare since he was 3 months old...around other kids all day long! I thought he'd be fine in this arena. The good thing is that we are going to have a meeting at school next week to brainstorm how to help him. I am just dying inside thinking of him not knowing how to interact/make friends. On the plus side he happily goes off to school each morning...he is such a trooper!
Has anyone else had a kindergartner with these problems? What helps? Did they grow out of it?
Thanks so much for any advice and support :)

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So What Happened?

Adding info based on some responses so far....his kindergarten is in an entirely new school, in a new town. He did not know a soul going in. We still have playdates with children from the daycare, and I plan on trying to strike up some new playdates with his new classmates in the future....going to a bday party this weekend so hopefully I can connect with some other Moms (since it is about us making new friends too lol).
He had Early Intervention between 2-3 for low muscle tone, so his fine motor is certainly related to his difficulty writing. The school is going to have an OT observe him to see if he would benefit from some assist in that area. At that time (of EI) no signs of a spectrum disorder were observed, and I don't think that is the issue.

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D.K.

answers from Pittsburgh on

If he was in the same daycare his whole life, he probably knew almost all the kids and only had to meet new ones one at a time - and they were the newbies. It helped us to give DS a 'script' to meet new people and to practice. It went something like this - run up to new kid and say - hi my name is X, would you like to play Y? Substituting this intro for running up to new kids and roaring at them, sticking out his tongue etc worked wonders. Making new friends is a skill and skills need practice.

2 moms found this helpful

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L.W.

answers from Chicago on

Please do not be alarmed. My son Aiden turned 5 2 weeks before the cut off for Kindergarten. He too was always in daycare 3 days a week and went to preschool. However, he had speech therapy form the age of 4.
Anyway, I would get monthly calls from my sons K teacher explaining that he could not stay focused and that he would skip down the hall. Oh no, not skipping. He really didn’t talk too much about friends either. My son has always been the type to only have a couple of close friends though. My son is the type that is very quiet and once he gets to know you he will open up. She suggested that we keep in 1st grade for another year. His Speech Pathologist thought that Aiden was a little young, but that he would be fine. It was out choice.
We decided to keep Aiden in K for another year with another teacher. What a difference!!! His new teacher was great, and she kept reassuring us that Aiden was right where he needed to be socially and academically. Aiden’s new teacher actually took the time with her students. I’m not trying to knock his other teacher, but from talking with other parents she did not want to take the time with students that needed a little extra help. He is my oldest so I was not sure what to expect.
Flash forward to 2nd grade. Aiden has friends, he has won several awards for his character and he loves school. He ended speech therapy last year and he excels in all of his subjects. All of his teachers rave about him. I wouldn’t change a thing.
Unfortunately, my parents still think that we did the wrong thing by holding him back. I believe that holding them back in Kindergarten is less traumatizing.
Good luck!!!

4 moms found this helpful
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L.S.

answers from San Diego on

I noticed that you were already on it about getting the OT to observe. I would push the OT services a little and find out if your school (or school district) offer social skills class through their speech department. That may help him too. Also, if OT observes and they don't notice anything wrong then find a tutor or independent OT to have him work with. The more confidence he has in this area the better he will feel about himself and may open himself up to friendships too. Good luck!

1 mom found this helpful
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M.H.

answers from Chicago on

I recently changed my son's daycare, and I wonder how he is doing with making new friends. He had one kid that he was friends with, but he has moved up to the next room and my son is still in the last room. But I saw this in the other daycare, how the new kid is singled out and "shunned" in a matter of speaking. you say your son has been in daycare since an infant, are any of those kids in his new school? My son's best friends are two from his orginal daycare and further more are the ones that were in the baby room with him at the same time. so you son played with the kids at daycare because he did not know how not to.. but now he has to break the ice. I think it is normal. Does he have friends that he see from his daycare? are you friendly with any of the parents? Our new daycare seems to make it harder as you stand in the door way and they call your child up to the front. Once I hear my son talking about the same kid a few times I am going to send a note to daycare to have the mom call me so we can arrange a play date with the kids. We still have play dates (I can not believe I call them that) with his two friends from our original daycare we get the 3 of them together, we have gone camping together, zoo, museum etc..

How is your son when he goes to the park? Does he make friends there? I think it will be a matter of time. But talk to him and say did you interduce your slef etc.. start the ground work.. have him pretend that you are the kid he wants to "play" with and see what he does. Just like we need to get interviewing skills down being the interviewer or inter-vie.

Good luck

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B.G.

answers from Champaign on

Kindergarten can be difficult for boys. They really do mature later than girls. My son has a summer birthday, so I was particularly concerned about him. We're lucky that our school district has a 2 year kindergarten for summer birthdays or whatever reason a child might need a little extra time maturing.

Just a thought, but you could ask his teacher if he seems like one of those kids that just needs more time. Maybe an extra year in a PreK or other type program would be very helpful. Would you consider him beginning kindergarten next year as a possibility?

Our son's kindergarten teacher very nicely let me know that placing him in the two year program was the right decision. This is his first year, and she said he would be struggling (socially and maturity wise) if he were in the regular kindergarten.

Just a thought! Good luck.

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G.B.

answers from Oklahoma City on

Sounds like you are doing a good job! Just take it one step at a time and I do encourage you to approach the other moms. They often have the email addresses in the school phone book so send them all one and say "Hey ladies and others, we're going to be at Burger King on XX street this coming Saturday morning around XXam, why not join us for some play time". That way they can just show up or choose to not come. Those that you have met should be asked personally so they can help with spreading the word.

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T.C.

answers from Austin on

Even if he does not qualify for the OT help at school, they could still give you some ideas of things to work on at home. Choose fun activities like picking up small objects with tweezers, fingerpainting letters, stand up and write at a chalkboard, trace a dotted line of a bee flying in circles, follow a maze without touching the lines, etc. Ask if they use a certain method of learning to write, such as Handwriting without Tears.

Another thing to ask is whether they have a social skills training group. Sometimes this falls under the category of speech.

When my son was 3, my friend who was an OT saw him W-sitting(a sign of poor muscle tone) and she told me that he would have a lot of trouble with handwriting. I don't really understand what core muscle strength has to do with writing, but she was spot on with her prediction. My son was diagnosed with Aspergers/ADHD in kindergarten, and has dysgraphia/disorder of written expression. He didn't qualify for OT at school til 2nd grade, so we did private OT until then. Unfortunately, after so much pressure to do better he has meltdowns during writing(now in 4th grade). He never colors or draws for fun. He picks the shortest possible sentences to write, and panics when he has to figure out which direction a number goes.

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S.L.

answers from New York on

does your son like board games? Find out what board games they have in his K class and teach him to play those games (Hi HO Cherry O or Candyland or Chutes and Ladders) or buy a game for the class that your son loves. (Neds Head) Play act how to ask kids to play. At home try to get him to work on fine motor skills with fun activities, arts and crafts, coloring cards for people, games like Operation and Perfection) and of course play dates so he can have one on one with kids in his class. Good luck at the meeting!

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L.M.

answers from Kansas City on

Have you thought of having your boy evaluated for ASD or SPD? I am not posting this to scare or worry you.. Just to rule it out.

You can get an OT or a SLP in your area to observe him at school, and see if they suggest that you have your baby evaluated by a professional. They know all the signs to look for. KinderCare is a great place, but they don't necessarily know what to look for. Great place to read about autism symptoms is:

http://ezinearticles.com/?What-Are-the-Most-Common-Symtom...

Hope you get the help and support you need for your little one.

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P.S.

answers from Houston on

My kid is a good reader but he's in a small group. I'm thinking most schools divide the kids up anyway, so they'll know which group needs extra help. At my kid's school, they spent the first 9 week period assessing all the kids. Now that we are in our 2nd 9 wk term, they have divided the kids into same reading levels and have the appropriate books set aside for each group.

I have a philosophy on some kids (and some adults) who have trouble making friends but some people might take offense to it, so if you are interested, let me know and I can PM you my thoughts.

gl and here's to a productive meeting on behalf of your son.

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