Tips Please: Helping 3 year old adjust to new school

[LovelySummer]

Wow. You guys are so awesome. I cannot thank you enough. This is so hard and I really appreciate the tips each of you has given. I am taking notes and will talk with his teachers with your suggestions today.

Yes, the day is longer. He used to go to school half day and no nap, and now it is about 2.5 hours long, with a nap. It also starts earlier than the other school so I am having to get him up about a half hour earlier. The school is near the house so no long ride but there is definitely an adjustment.

How does that 5 minute warning song go? Can I look it up on YouTube?

His other school was more structured and academic (although it was only half day) but this one is play-based. I think he likes the play-based part very much.

Is a child this age able to really adjust from going from 8 kids to 16 at his age? Is this asking too much? I don't want to screw him up and make him hate school. Last year, he loved school....

[LovelySummer]

Thank you. What is the buddy system? I'm taking notes!

Originally Posted by nana053

Since this larger school is basically all the way up to 12th grade, the rules about hugging students and kissing them are probably for all grades and meant to protect people from accusations of child abuse (an unfortunate problem nowadays).

A buddy system would probably help him. He may certainly be intimidated by the larger numbers of children at this school especially since he came in from a two year old classroom with only 8 children.

Since you already made the change, you may want to emphasize that he is a big boy now and that is why he is going to a bigger school. Can he have a picture of you to keep in his pocket or backpack and would the teachers let him get that out to look at when he is scared? Are there activities at this school that are more exciting and fun that you can talk to him about? Have you spoken to the teachers? What do they say? Does he stop crying when he has been in class for a few minutes?

How focused on academic activities is this classroom? If it is not play-based, I would suggest pulling him out and placing him back in the other school.

[germaine2626]

Originally Posted by LovelySummer

Wow. You guys are so awesome. I cannot thank you enough. This is so hard and I really appreciate the tips each of you has given. I am taking notes and will talk with his teachers with your suggestions today.

Yes, the day is longer. He used to go to school half day and no nap, and now it is about 2.5 hours long, with a nap. It also starts earlier than the other school so I am having to get him up about a half hour earlier. The school is near the house so no long ride but there is definitely an adjustment.

How does that 5 minute warning song go? Can I look it up on YouTube?

His other school was more structured and academic (although it was only half day) but this one is play-based. I think he likes the play-based part very much.

Is a child this age able to really adjust from going from 8 kids to 16 at his age? Is this asking too much? I don't want to screw him up and make him hate school. Last year, he loved school....

I made up my five minute warning song, but they may have one that they sing at school, or maybe they use wind chimes or a bell. Just ask.

I taught preschool (or children a with preschool/kindergarten developmental age) in public schools for over 30 years and it should not be a major adjustment to go from 8 to 16 students in his class unless they have a lot of times where he has to wait until 15 other children have answered first or done something else first. But I suspect that they will divide in two or three groups for that type of thing.

It may be a little problem to adjust to 50 children on the playground but most children are able to do that as well.

When I suggested a buddy, I meant that he be encouraged or assigned to walk in with a peer, perhaps a child that he knows from last year. That way he always has a friendly face to look forward to seeing in the morning. If he walks inside with a friend, it is likely that he will concentrate on his friend and not that you are leaving or that school is starting.

It is possible that his brief crying is more adjusting to the new schedule. if he loved school last year it is very likely that he will love school this year.