This week begins a new school year at Little Footprints Learning Center. We welcomed our families at an Open House on Friday and enjoyed getting to know the children and parents just a bit. But the big day is tomorrow, Orientation. This is the first day that parents relinquish their precious children to our care for just a short time. This can be especially difficult for first-time parents. Many questions echo in their hearts and minds such as, “Will my child be okay without me?”, “Will he be able to tell the teacher if he needs something and will the teacher listen?” and “How can I leave my child crying like that?”.
Having taught and worked in preschool for over 15 years, I am confident that the children in our care will be able to adjust to a new school environment. Parents can help with this adjustment with just a few simple steps.
- Having done the research for the perfect school for your child, be confident in your choice. Your child is watching you for non-verbal clues as to whether or not to be worried.
- Talk about school with your children ahead of time explaining what they can expect. Always tell them the truth….they are going to play with the other children and you are leaving to run errands, go to work, etc. Please do not tell them you are just going to wait for them in the car. Nothing good comes from lying and we always get caught.
- When you arrive at the door of the classroom, allow the teacher to welcome your child into the room, even if she has to “peel” him off of you. It is not unusual for a child to cry when mom leaves, but they rarely cry for long. However, if mom lingers or tries to cajole the child, the crying usually intensifies,
- If your child cries when you leave, feel free to hang out in the director’s office to listen for the tears to stop. But if listening is tearing your heart out, go get a cup of coffee and give us a call in about a half hour. Most children stop crying within the first 10 minutes of being left by mom and teachers always welcome the chance to let you know how your little one is doing.
May this be the beginning of a happy healthy school year for you and your child!
All comments (1)
Mia Evans
It really helped when you said that doing our research about the preschool that is perfect for our child will give us confidence. I am going to start my research this year here in West Akron, Ohio, because my son will be at the right age next year. It's the first time that I will be sending a child to a school for their education, and I want to make the right choice so that their future will be bright.
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