As some of you read in a previous article, my daughter is attending preschool two days a week. I had always thought my daughter would love school. She loves to learn and create crafts. She has always loved books and writing.
When my daughter began preschool, I learned something very disturbing. Although she is very academically sound, she is also slightly immature or socially behind. I take my children places. They visit family members and fare very well when they are there. My children attend Awana and simply love it. However, in an unknown environment, my children seem to not know how to respond. They sit back and watch instead of taking part. This is sometimes nice compare to the children that I see running wild with parents chasing behind.
At preschool my daughter was coming into contact with many different adults. I dropped her off with two people at about 7:15 AM. At 8:00 AM her two teachers came into class. The two teachers left at 1:00 PM and she received two more teachers. In the afternoon, she was being mixed into different classrooms with other teachers. For many children this situation is great. However, my child needed security, stability, and reassurance of very familiar adults and children.
For a month and half I endured my daughter’s “night before preschool” crying. We also had “morning of preschool” crying and “on the way to preschool” pleading and begging not to go. The preschool she attended is well known for being academically sound. To many it is the only option they consider. However, it just did not ‘fit’ or ‘click’ with my child.
I finally made the decision to change her to a different school. Some have frowned on this decision. They feel that I gave in to her and should have made her tough it out. However, my heart and gut said otherwise. My daughter is now at a preschool for two days a week. She has the same two teachers all day long. She sees the same children each day that she attends. She is happy. She no longer cries at night or in the morning. She still has some separation anxiety at the moment of release from parents to teachers but finally the chaos is over.
My point- a mother knows when something is not right. Go with your gut and lead your children with your heart.
We Went Shopping for Preschool