Tell me all the amazing things about preschool/daycare

[halfpint]

B starts preschool on January 4th. Ultimately I know it's going to be awesome for him, but I've been home with him for most of his 2+ years, either as a SAHM or working from home with the nanny watching him. It's probably going to be a harder transition for me than him, but I keep picturing him crying at drop off, or struggling with the change, and I get all anxious. 

Who wants to pump me up with stories about how great preschool and daycare is for their family and kid(s)? Any advice to make the transition easier for all of us? We've started talking about it, but I don't know that he gets it. The next couple of weeks we're going to be able to drop in a couple of times for an hour or so to see how he does, too. What else?

[kershnic]

My kids lloovvee going to daycare. They get excited on the way there when they realize where we're going. And then they come home and they know all this new stuff. Like, we haven't really worked with them on numbers, but we were counting for their advent calendar and apparently they can tell you which number comes next. They're soaking so much up it's awesome!

[Deleted]

Seriously I am the biggest fan of preschool/daycare. My DD thrives there. She learns so many things that I dont think I would be teaching her. She learns a ton about different cultures and different holidays. She reads a ton of books. They do messy art every day. They sing songs I never learned. There are hard days where she cries that she wants to stay with me but they truthfully dont happen often. And never really happened until this year. Also she has a ton of little friends and they all get so excited when I come to pick her up.

[halfpint]

Dec 14, 2015 15:28:26 GMT -5 @cookiemonster03 said:

crying at drop off happens, but honestly it doesn't scar them. He'll be ok!

Logically I know this  

I'm super pumped that he'll expand his social circle - he does little play dates with friends from music class and other nanny families our nanny meets, so it's not like he's never around kids, but I feel like this will be such a good chance for him to make some little buddies. 

[pinotgrig]

Oh gosh! So much!

G is so social and loves his daycare friends. They're starting to say each other's names and I die of cuteness every time.

They've taught him sign language (with some help at home).

He now claps and says "yay!!!" At the end of every story and book because that's what they do at daycare.

He gets 2 hours outside a day which is the best thing ever to him.

He makes fun crafts - lots of finger and hand painting which would honestly never happen if he were home with me. Lol

He knows so many animal sounds!

He's learned so many words and throws his paper towel away after snack and automatically then goes to wash his hands.

He has a constant rotation of new toys.

He goes to music class with his friends and loves to dance.

He knows what "clean up" and "come sit down for a story" means.

It's really been great for him - he thrives there.

[magpie]

My DD had a hard transition when we switched her from a small, in-home daycare where she went from ages 16 weeks-18 months, to a center with a preschool program. That said, she loves "school" now and talks endlessly about her friends and teachers there. She's learned so much, especially social stuff, and grown to be a lot more independent while she's been there. It's adorable to hear her tell stories about her school days.

As for the transition, she did have a hard time and cried a lot at drop offs (she was also sad and weepy all day in the very beginning). It was really hard, but it gradually got better and after a couple of weeks, she was only crying for a minute or two at drop offs. It took a long time for her to stop crying at drop offs though and I had to learn that she just doesn't handle goodbyes very well (after a minute of crying, she was otherwise very happy at school and often didn't want to leave when I picked her up). We read a lot of books about school (Llama llama misses mama was a really good one) and talked a lot about how Mommy and Daddy are at work while she's at school and will always come back. She has an easier time with us leaving if she knows where we are (Daddy is at Daddy's office, Mommy is at Mommy's library). She also does better with drop offs if she has something exciting to go "show" or "tell" her teacher in the morning. For example, today when I dropped her off, she was all pumped to go show her teacher her pig tails. Even though it was a tough transition, it's been wonderful to see her grow and learn. I love that she has friends and tells me funny stories about their adventures every day.

[turtlegirl]

I'm in a similar situation. I only work part time and when I am at work either my mom or MIL watches the kids. So they hadn't been in any formal daycare/school until they started preschool at age 3.

My boys LOVE school. It may be took a week or two for DS1 to really get into it. But he did so well. He had a great time and I was just amazed at how much he learned and grew over the 9 months. He's always been a "smart kid", so I wasn't worried about "academics". He just had the best time making friends and becoming a more sociable interactive friend.

A year later when it was time for DS2 to start preschool he was soooo excited. He loves showing us his art projects, talking about his friends and what they did in school. His ability to recall events and tell long storied about his day has exploded since he started school just 3 months ago.

[anna7602]

My daughter learned another language fluently as a result of preschool, so hooray for that. She also doubled the amount of toys she had access to and loved, loved, loved being around other kids her age all the time as opposed to in short bursts at the playground or during mommy & me classes. 

But also, being at home during the day without a little one under foot is amazing. My mental space opened up so much when I didn't have the constant distraction of hearing DD in the background while I worked. I am so looking forward to sending DS to preschool next fall, if we can get a spot. 

[arch01]

I LOVE daycare. DS only goes 3 days a week due to DH's and MIL's work schedules, but it's seriously amazing for the 3 days he's there.

My biggest thing is that I truly feel the teachers can keep his little ass straight. He has a healthy respect for them and he KNOWS the rules. He KNOWS what is allowed and what's discouraged. We're a team. They know what the rewards and consequences are for his behavior at home-and I know how they (very) successfully deal with him there.

He tells the best stories from daycare. Each story starts with, "Once upon a time, today I/we/classmate...". It's the highlight of my day. We have a 5 minute drive home-and he talks about every last detail of his day.

He has learned things I've never even dreamed of teaching him. He knows about planets, seasons, how things grow, etc. I'm sure I would've done some of the stuff if I were a SAHM, but it blows my mind every day when he comes home and tells me something new.

[Brie]

Daycare is amazing.

Really, it's just more people to love your kid. That's never a bad thing.

[steamboat185]

DD loves school. She has lots of friends and gets to meet all different types of people at school. They teach her songs I wouldn't know and read books we don't have. They also do way more art and creative projects than we would do at home. She can play games like red light/ green light that are less fun in a small group.

The other day she didn't want to go to sleep and I told her she couldn't go to school if she didn't at least try. She was so worried she miss her friends and teachers she layed down right away. Oh and school helps with potty training. She loves to tell her teachers when she's done well at home.

[Velar Fricative]

Daycare is the best. DD had been in FT daycare since she was 3 months old. It's wonderful to see how much her caregivers/teachers love her and how much she loves them. And now that she's 2, it's so fun listening to her stories about what she did at "school" and who her friends are. It's adorable. And she does so many arts and crafts projects there so less for me to do at home since I suck at arts and crafts lol!

[woodenshoes]

I'm a SAHM and my almost 2.5 year old just started going to preschool Dec. 1. We're told he cries for about 10 minutes after we drop him off but they discovered that by taking him outside to the playground for a few minutes he's able to relax and start to enjoy himself. After that he is fine the rest of the time and has so much fun. The first few days we called about an hour after drop off to see how he was doing for our own peace of mind.

Even though it's only been a few weeks, I feel like he is already coming out of his shell a little more and following instructions better.

[oswin]

DD loves going to "school". She's had friends at daycare since she was about 7 months old (she started at 3 months). I'd heard that babies don't really have friends until they're toddlers, but DD was sad when two girls in the early infants room moved up to the later infants room next door. She'd crawl up to the connecting glass door and look at her friends, who would come to see her. It was so adorable. Now she's in the 2s room and will talk about her friends (now everyone in her class) and what they did. She loves playing outside on the playground there, and they do a lot of art projects (a lot more than I would do if I stayed at home). DS has only been going for 3 months, but he seems to like it to (but it is harder to tell with babies).

[jr009j]

DD1 really thrives in preschool. She started at 2.5 and went from a kid who liked to stand back and observe and was very tentative about strangers to an absolute social butterfly with tons of friends. She has gotten to experience loads of things and learn a ton.

I think she cried the first 2 drops offs last year and hasn't cried since. She had no problem going to camp there this summer and then moving to a 3 day a week class this year.

She cries on the way home most days because she doesn't want to leave her friends.

[sent]

My kid learned how to eat pretzels. And she comes home with either a snotty nose, cough, or both every Thursday afternoon so she is boosting her immunity.

No really, I like her school and she gets to experience stuff there that I don't do with her at home like painting. And I love that there is peer pressure to get them to do things like sit down and listen to a story or follow along with a sing along.

[lindsaymg]

My answer here is tiny baby specific, there are SO MANY MORE things when they are bigger!

DD loves day care. I love coming home and seeing all the new things she knows how to do. She literally grabbed the bottle from my hand the other day and started chugging it herself. I had no idea since I so rarely bottle feed her (she slept through her last bottle and I didn't want to toss the breast milk).

She is apparently really happy there. The teachers are far more patient than I am. She lights up when she sees me walk through the door. She has learned that other people can provide for her needs. She spends SO MUCH TIME on her tummy, she is super close to crawling already. She is trying to keep up with the older babies.

[redheadk]

DD loves preschool. She LOVES her teachers. They do so many more things than I could ever realistically do with her at home and she learns so much from other kids, being independent, etc.

That said, she does cry/fuss nearly every drop off. I shove her in with my leg. It has NOTHING to do with liking/not liking school and everything to do with having to do something on someone else's time table.

[VillainV]

My kid LOVES his day care. I like knowing that he has other adults besides family who care about him and help him learn. The socialization is awesome.

And selfishly, it helps me be more productive at work knowing that I don't have to worry about him at day care. And on days when I get off early I can have "me time" while he's still there.

[drloretta]

DD started 2 mornings a week at age 2.5. It was so great. She loved her teachers, they helped her/us PT, and she learned a ton. Plus I got some much needed me time. Win-win

[halfpint]

Thanks for all these great responses. I think I just need a little coddling/encouraging. I suspect he will have a blast from day one, he's just that kind of kid. He's pretty independent in most situations, but he also knows that we're always just a room away.

I'M probably the one who doesn't deal with transitions well I just need to remember how awesome this is going to be for him, and how much money we'll be saving over a nanny!

Today our nanny brought B his Christmas gift - she had made a photo book of all the best pictures she's taken of him and her daughter over the last year, and I lost my shit. I'm just really going to miss having her in our lives, and the ease of having care come to us. She's become part of the family!

[Deleted]

DS was completely SAH with me until he started preschool this fall at 3.5. No nanny, just him and me (and DD starting this March). I was so worried about the same things you are halfpint, but he did GREAT. We talked up all the fun things about school (the playground! Crafts! New toys! Snack time!). Before school started, we went to both the "meet the teacher" night with DS, and "parent orientation" (just us) so we knew everything to expect. On his first day, to my surprise, he hopped right out of the car into the teacher's arms, waved "bye bye mommy!" and went right inside. No tears, no nothing. He's had a great time every day since, and loves going to school.

[heyjude]

I can't say enough good things about quality preschool and most has already been said, but also, we have met some amazing adult friends through my DDs friends at preschool. Our social network has expanded in wonderful ways thanks to preschool.

[Alyssa]

It's so hard the first day or two I won't lie.  I remember leaving my daughter for the first time when she was 2.5 years old and leaving the parking lot without her feeling like I made a mistake.  I had my phone right with me and waited for a call to come get her, but she did alright and no call happened. 

The first day she seemed a little confused by me leaving.  I think she was a little overwhelmed by kids running around and people coming over and talking to her that she didn't really notice me leaving.  The second, third and probably the fourth time I left her, she knew that I was going to be leaving and that when we had tears.  It breaks your heart because you feel like you are being a terrible parent to "abandon" your child at some strange place.  What helps is to keep your time saying goodbye brief and get out of there as fast as possible.  If they have a window that looks out towards the parking lot, sometimes having one of the adults hold them up to wave goodbye helps. 

I would just reassure her and say, "I have to go, but I will be back to pick you up"


I went through the same thing with my son.  He's now 3.5 and my daughter is 6.  I think preschool has been wonderful for them.  They got to know other little kids and they both loved their teachers.  My son now has a close little circle of friends, he's constantly talking about Parker, Jackson and Wyatt.

[hermione]

C has learned so much even outside of things like letters and numbers. For instance she got bit and instead of hitting or screaming she firmly told the biter, "No! I do not like that! Bad choices!"

Plus they send home adorable crafts, lol.

[dancingirl21]

J was at home with my sister as our nanny until he was 2. I was really nervous about the transition but he has done so great and it's wonderful to see him making bonds with other kids. He's listening better and following rules. He asks to go to school in the morning. It's been really good for him. Good luck!