Some Reasurance

[Unregistered]

My 25 month old has been attending a center 6 hours a day since he was 15 months old. When he was in the infant and toddler rooms i had no problems at drop off. Now at age 2 he is in a different room But now he cries every time i drop him off. Teachers tell me that it lasts at most 3 mins. That He is fine all day. When i pick him up he looks like he is having fun but once he sees me he wants me to pick him up and refuses to look at anyone or say goodbye. When we get home everything is normal, he is starting to talk about his day and friends his language is bursting with new vocabulary.

I keep telling myself he must be doing this for my benefit now that he is more aware. I just need to be reasurred that this is normal. I guess because i didnt have this problem before when he was younger. Plus i hate leaving him crying everday.

[Michael]

If it lasts only three minutes it sounds pretty good to me. If the teachers say he is fine after that, I would take their word on it. He also sounds like he is fine at home. I say, no worries.

[Cradle2crayons]

My 25 month old has been attending a center 6 hours a day since he was 15 months old. When he was in the infant and toddler rooms i had no problems at drop off. Now at age 2 he is in a different room But now he cries every time i drop him off. Teachers tell me that it lasts at most 3 mins. That He is fine all day. When i pick him up he looks like he is having fun but once he sees me he wants me to pick him up and refuses to look at anyone or say goodbye. When we get home everything is normal, he is starting to talk about his day and friends his language is bursting with new vocabulary.

I keep telling myself he must be doing this for my benefit now that he is more aware. I just need to be reasurred that this is normal. I guess because i didnt have this problem before when he was younger. Plus i hate leaving him crying everday.

Completely normal in my opinion also. It sounds like just a phase.

[heyhun77]

I think you are on the right track. Make sure that you are not showing any anxiety at drop off time and maybe work with the teachers to find a goodbye activity to help with separation. Odds are good that the new room has more things to do which can overwhelm some kids. On top of the transition to a new classroom this is also prime time for another round of separation anxiety which is developmentally normal. Even when I've been the only caregiver for a child from birth it shocks parents when all of a sudden around 18 months they have a hard time separating at drop off. It usually lasts about a week and then it's over.

[Familycare71]

I agree- completely normal . I call it guilt crying... They cry long enough for the parent to feel guilty for leaving and then go on a have a great day!
Hang in there- hopefully he will stop soon!

[Unregistered]

Irs callled child development, children change as they grow

[Unregistered]

Thank you for your replies

Today when I dropped off I lingered abit and he cired even more. But i did get the chance to observe without him seeing me and yup sure enough he was participating and looked happy. I will try to make a routine with him. Thank you for your responsed it did put my mind at ease.

[melilley]

I call it the "mom" or "dad" syndrome... I have seen this many times and it's normal. One of my dck's here used to have all out tantrums when mom or dad would go to leave, but was fine by the time they were down the street. They know mom or dad will stay longer if they cry. It's heartbreaking as a parent, but as a provider, we know that that's what some children do and they really are fine a few minutes later.
I saw that you did stay with out him seeing you, so hopefully now that you saw that he really is fine, it will give you a piece of mind! A lot of times when children transition to a new room, it takes them a bit to get comfortable with all the newness. I have worked in centers for 14 years before opening my fcc and saw it all the time....and most of the time the kids are fine and happy!

[MsLaura529]

I say he is right on track I have on boy here who will cry for as long as he can see his mom's car driving away. As soon as it is out of sight, he shuts it off and is completely happy for the ret of the day.