My little one has been going to daycare 1 day a week for 6 months now (he's now 19 months old). Every time I drop him off he cries and is clearly upset. I usually call about an hour later and they tell me he has settled fine. When myself or my husband pick him up we see him happily playing but as soon as he sees us its tears again. I feel awful about it. I just use the one day a week to study and also thought it would benefit his social skills. I'm considering pulling him out as I really have no way of knowing if he enjoys it, if something bad has happened to him there or even worse he is being mistreated. How long does it usually take for kids to settle into daycare and how long should I persevere?
How long does it take for kids to settle into daycare?
Wednesday, 21 January 2015 - 15:54
How long does it take for kids to settle into daycare?
Posted in:
Baby & Toddler
8 Replies
What is your gut telling you? Talk to staff and you will probably know if they seem caring and observant or if they have a blasey attitude
I work in daycare, some kids take a while to settle in. Usually the kids mood changes whenever parents are around. Some kids act out, some get hypo and some cry. Actually increasing the daycare days can help, I have a little 19 month old girl in my care and she started nov last year. All last year she suffered terrible separation anxiety and she started 2 days a week this year. No tears when she arrives and she actaully doesn't want to go home now as she's having too much fun!
Sounds like separation anxiety to me. My oldest child got it bad around 16 months and to a certain degree still has it now. Would cry when i left, when i picked him up etc..
Now his in school and the teacher tells me as soon as he sees me he starts acting different.. louder, rude, silly and misbehaving etc..
When he doesn't see you at first he is happily playing, sounds like his happy to me. If you still think or feel there is more to it, pop in during the day and watch him have a chat to staff. I'm sure the day care centre will be more than happy to help you out in any way. Goodluck :)
I put my son in day care to get some socialisation for one day a week. But he really struggled they suggested to try two days so he had a chance to build relationships with other children and staff and he never looked back. The tears stopped and he would actually be excited to go.
Going one day a week would be like a new experience for him every time - I wouldn't pull him out, I would add an extra day in day care to his routine. He may settle better when it doesn't seem so new each week. Best wishes!
Try two days a week? One might not be enough for him to get use to it. Also my son use to hate child care and scream the whole way there so I took him out and put him in family day care and he loves it. Only 3 other kids so loves the attention, he's been going for two years now! Good luck
Totally normal, especially for boys. As long as he settles after u leave he's fine. My eldest (boy) cried every time I dropped him off for years! I used to feel terrible all day at work and he would be happily playing! It's better to send them early or they will be worse. Maybe increase to 2 (consecutive) days and see if that helps. Do u have any reason to believe he is being mistreated? Do the other kids look happy enough? If u really want to check just rock up in the middle of the day and have a look for yourself (through the window so you don't upset your son)
Hi Adele, what did you decide to do and how did it work for you? I have the same dilemma with my 2.5yo at the moment!