XP: Starting a toddler in daycare

PhilsWife07

I'm considering putting DS into a center part time. He's been home full time with either DH or myself since he was born (we work opposite shifts). How did your older child adjust to their new environment and routine?

julia0402

I don't know how helpful this will be since Caro was 11m when she started DC, but since no one has replied yet I thought I'd answer. 

She had a pretty rough time for about 2 weeks-- it was mostly just hard for her to adjust to napping in a noisy area.  She did cry for a couple of days when we left her and that was hard.  But now she loves it and is always thrilled to see us at the end of the day.  The napping improved after about 2.5 - 3 weeks; she went from maybe 20 mins at a time to an hour and a half.

butterball123

DS started when he was 3 months so I don't speak from personal experience but we have seen several children start later in his room.  The first week or two can be a big adjustment for them, but I think the mornings are the hardest.  It is truly amazing how quickly they adapt though and generally when we pick DS up in the afternoons those new to the classroom are happily playing with the other kids.  Good luck!!

butterball123

I don't know where exactly you live, but I'm in northern VA too.  We absolutely love our center, if you'd like a rec, feel free to PM me.

betsnup

D was 13 months when he started, so he's younger than your LO, but his transition has actually gone pretty well.  We went for an hour or so the week before and hung out and he got to meet the teacher.  The day I dropped him off for his first full day, I bawled my eyes out, and he was fairly indifferent.

He's been in DC part-time for a little over a month now, and it's going pretty well.  It was a bit of an adjustment to get on their schedule (one nap per day), but he got that pretty quickly (within the first week).  Drop-offs are usually fine, if he's clingy, I just give him a couple extra kisses and physically hand him to his teacher, and they are off and playing before I'm out the door.  The only part that D really has a hard time with is he gets really attached to his teachers - so when his morning teacher leaves for the day, he cries, and if his afternoon teacher leaves to go to the bathroom, he cries.