If the time has come for your child to attend their first day of daycare, you will want to help prepare them for the transition. They are going from being home all day with either mom or dad, to being sent to someone they probably don’t know. That can be a bit traumatizing if they are not prepared.
So by getting them ready for the first day, it will be helpful for not only your child but for you as well. Save yourself from a crying and clingy child with a few tips to help prepare you kid for day nursery.
Check Out the Place Beforehand
If the owner is okay with it, visit the facility ahead of time with the child that will be going. Allow your kid to become familiar with what the place looks like and who will be in charge. This will allow you to point out all the exciting things they will get to do to help get them excited about attending.
Start Slow
If it is feasible, ease into your daycare as slowly as possible. Start by taking your child to their daycare or nursery a couple of times a week. Diving into childcare fulltime can be hard on a small child as they may not be emotionally ready to be going all the time.
Even if your daycare is the best around with caregivers that receive rave reviews, your child won’t care if they are thrown in fulltime right away. They are leaving their comfort zone of being home with you. So help them adjust positively by starting off slow.
Drop Off and Go
Although it is tempting to stick around to see how your child handles being at daycare and what they caregiver has scheduled, it will only make things worse. Don’t give your child a chance to cling on to you; this will just make it harder to leave and probably cause more tears.
Dropping off your child, quickly saying goodbye and leaving right after also helps establish a routine. So help keep your child on a schedule by not lingering at the daycare for too long.
Be Positive About Daycare
If you as the parent do not have a positive attitude towards daycare, you can’t expect your child to be thrilled about daycare either. So help foster a positive and exciting environment towards their daycare by instilling it yourself with a positive attitude.
Children pick up on your emotions and interactions. They learn from you. So if you are uncertain about the teacher, your child too will become uncertain. This becomes especially important if your child is anxious and nervous about being separated from you. Show the child you are excited for them to have fun and meet lots of friends, not that you will miss them (even though you will).
Making the transition from being at home all day with mom or dad, to going to daycare every day can be hard on a child. But by using these tips, you can help make it easier for both you and your child when the first day a
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