Are you considering enrolling your child into a childcare program?
If that is a big yes, you might be wondering how you can help your kids transition to daycare without any problems.
For kids, it is a traumatic experience to transition them out from staying at home with their loved ones to entering daycare. Even if the daycare has the same loving environment like the environment at home, kids will still find it difficult to adjust.
Here are some tips you can try to help your kids prepare for their childcare sessions and make it enjoyable for them. We also included some tips which you can also try to adjust to your child’s childcare sessions:
Introduce the Idea
Before you enrol your kids to daycare, it is important you introduce the idea to the child.
Start by introducing what school is and what things they can do while in there. If your child has any questions about daycare, answer them as best as you could. Answering their concerns could ease their worries about entering daycare.
Daycare centres and preschools also offer a flexible program for beginners, so kids can see what a school is all about. Start with a 3 day per week session and assess your child’s reaction during this trial period. If they enjoy the experience, you can slowly adjust their schedule until they fully ease into going to daycare.
Some kids may take a while to adjust to daycare because they are not “emotionally ready.” If this is the case, do not rush them and let them adjust at their own pace.
Utilizing this trial period can also help us, parents, to adjust. Parents can also experience the same level of separation anxiety kids experience when they first enter daycare.
Sometimes, it’s us the parents who have a harder time letting go than the kids!
Stay Positive
While introducing the idea of daycare to your kids, you need to show that you are excited for your child. If you are anxious about enrolling your child to daycare and your child sees it, your child will be reluctant to join daycare.
If you show you are excited and explain why daycare is important, your kids will pick up this positive attitude and become excited.
If you do have worries about enrolling your kids to daycare, take some time to watch your child during one of her sessions. Speak to their teachers about how you can help ease your child’s transition and ask questions about your other concerns. If your child sees that you are trying to befriend their teachers, they will mimic what they see.
It is also important that you are careful when it comes to what you say when your child starts childcare. Do not say things like “I will miss you” because it will only cause your child to feel bad for leaving you alone. When you say goodbye to your child, give them a smile and support them all the way.
Do not stay long
One of the major reasons why children find it difficult to adjust to school is because of separation anxiety.
Once they are dropped off at daycare, kids will slowly feel sad and cling to their parents, fearing their parents won’t go back to fetch them. Some parents would try to stay to quell their fears, but doing so can make the transition more difficult for the kids.
When you drop off your kids to daycare, make your goodbyes quick and simple. Don’t stay too long so your child won’t immediately run after you. Give them a quick hug and kiss and tell them you love them.
Allow them to Bring their Comfort or Security item
If your child has a comfort or security item of some sort, ask your child’s daycare if they will allow your kids to bring them. These comfort objects can help your child feel better whenever separation anxiety hits them during the day.
Experts suggest that parents give their child something you own which the child can hold on to until the end of their session. Parents could say to their kids “I want you to keep this item safe until I come back to fetch you” to help their kids trust their parents to always come back to them.
Comfort items do not need to be visual. You can record an audio clip for your child to listen to whenever they miss you.
How to Deal with Your Child’s Crying
No matter how you well prepared your kids for daycare, there will be days when they will feel very sad and start crying.
If your child does cry during drop-off, ask your child’s teacher how long they cried after you dropped them off. Some kids tend to cry during drop-off just to keep their parents stay longer and stop them from leaving. Piling high on the guilt factor.
When the parents do leave, the child would be alright after a few minutes. Grit your teeth, turn your back and don’t look back!
Be Open to Talking to Your Child
If your child continues to show worries about going to daycare, don’t be afraid to speak to them.
Ask your child about the things they did in daycare and use their answers to pick up what things causes them to worry and learn what happens during school. You must also let your kids know that you are always available to hear them out. Even if you cannot solve all their problems at school, letting them vent out can help them relieve their fears.
Letting your child speak out can also help you determine if your child is overwhelmed with the experience. If they do feel overwhelmed, you can reach out to their teachers and find solutions to their problem.
Conclusion
Every child will react differently when it comes to the idea of going into daycare. Some kids may become excited about the idea, while others may become anxious and scared.
As parents, we must help our children understand how daycare can help them and ease their transition as best as we could.
Granted, it is not easy to transition to a new environment. But, if we show our support and our confidence to the idea, kids will pick it up and they will slowly ease to their new world.
Looking for suitable childcare for your toddler? These articles may help you:
Guide to International School Curriculum in Singapore
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