Nursery should be a place where your child has fun, learns the gospel and learns to interact with others. So what do you do if your child hates nursery class? Recently my son has decided that nursery class is not for him. I think that this is a result of many things. The nursery leaders just changed, the nursery has suddenly increased in size and there are a few bigger boys that intimidate him. Here are a few things that have helped him to keep going to nursery.
1) It is important to be consistent in having your child attend. (Nursery is optional. If you really want to you can have your child stay with you until he is in the Sunbeam class. However, nursery will help him to learn gospel basics, and how to listen and sit still. It is a good foundation.) If you insist that he goes every time, he is likely to begin playing sooner once you drop him off.
2) Speak to the nursery leaders about your concerns. This can make a big difference in how things go. Your child may react negatively to the way things are handled, and explaining this to the leader may make a difference. It is also important to learn how he is interacting with others, and see if you need to address anything at home.
3) When you drop your child off, take it at his pace. I am a big proponent of not following my child into nursery, but my son would just scream if I did that. Finally I realized that if I sit with him and play for a few minutes, he will tell me when he is ready for me to leave. (This technique might not work for new nursery children).
4) Speak positively of nursery whenever you are around your child. He will pick up on any negative feelings or concerns that you may have towards nursery or the way things are being run. If you continue to speak positively, he will see it in a positive light.
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