drop offs at ps not going well

njbride0603

My dd transitioned to ps 3 weeks ago and is having trouble adjusting. In the beginning we woudl drop her off in her old classroom and then she would be brought over..seemed to be working. This morning since it has been 3 weeks I dropped her off in PS and she was a crying mess...then I started crying. In the past we have been lucky enough to have her prior teacher move up with us..she doesn't know the new teachers at all. All of her friends are in the classroom though so I thought that would help. I know it will just take time but I'm very upset about it today...certainly doesn't help being pg!

 

jsugrin

It really will get easier.  I'm sure after 3 weeks she had a set expectation of how her pre-school morning was going to start and this morning you turned her on her head so it's totally normal that she'd freak out a little.  Spend some time this afternoon letting her know what tomorrow morning is going to look like, that you'll take her right into her pre-school room and help her put away her things then she gets 1 big mama hug and then it's off to play with all her friends.  If she starts to get upset as you talk about the leaving part, pipe right up with " who do you think you'll say good morning to first?" and name off some of her friends, or her teacher.  Get her thinking about all the fun that comes after you leave, the parts that she is comfortable with.

However you decide to handle the drop off just stick with it and she'll get into her routine.  Good luck tomorrow.

n&bcarlson

My DD had a problem with drop offs, too, (after 2 weeks of being fine) to the point she started crying before we left the house.  We now do a few things- a sticker chart at home for getting ready and leaving the house in a happy mood, a sticker chart at school for not crying at drop off, and a photo of Mommy and Daddy on a piece of yarn that she can wear around her neck so she won't miss us.  When she earns all her stickers for the week, she gets to pick a prize ($3-5 range) from a grab bag at home.  One other piece of advice- leave as quickly and as unemotionally as you can.  She will probably stop crying really quickly after you leave, but the longer you stay, the more it gets drawn out.  It took DD 3 days to get over the crying at drop off.