thread: Trouble adjusting to 3rd day

  1. #1
    Registered User

    May 2008
    where the V8's roar
    1,855

    Trouble adjusting to 3rd day

    ok so DS has been going to childcare for about a year now. The carers are great, they love him, are affectionate with him (which is important cause he is a snuggly kid) and the kids are great. He has really fitted in well.

    We started off on 1 day a week and then when he kept asking when is he going to school we went to 2 days (Tues and Fridays) and when he recently started saying he is bored and wants to be at school I increased it to 3 days a week. So he goes Tues, Wed and Friday.

    The problem now is that all of a sudden he decides of a morning he doesn't want to go, that he doesn't like it but when I go to pick him up of an afternoon he doesn't want to leave. We have really only had about 2 weeks for 3 days a week due to illness and that hasn't even been consecutive weeks. I ask if anyone is being mean or nasty (he is very verbal and likes to tell everyone everything that is happening) but he says no.

    Is it just a phase? Is there more going on? he never fussed before not even when we first started to take him. I figure there is probably times when he misses us but he has soo much fun there.

    Any advice etc... is welcome

  2. #2
    Registered User

    May 2009
    SEQLD
    2,308

    DD went through something similar at the start of the year when she started school.

    She was fine to begin with then all of a sudden a month or so into it she started crying in the mornings not wanting to go and again like your DS was perfectly fine in the afternoons, had a great day and didn't want to leave her friends.

    Thankfully she stopped it, did take a little while but she got there.

  3. #3
    Registered User
    Add ~clover~ on Facebook

    Sep 2007
    travelling
    9,557

    DD2 did the same. She started preschool/DC at 2. Was fine til she was 4 & going 2 days a week.

    Then suddenly she just didn't want to go anymore & would cry as soon as she found out it was DC day. I don't know why, coz I know she loved it.

    It was getting to the end of her last year before school anyway & we were having money problems, so I pulled her out, but she went to school with not a single issue at all! Still can't get enough.

    I'd say its just a phase, but maybe that one extra day is too much? I don't know, I'm thinking about putting DS in for an extra day depending on how our housing situation goes.

  4. #4
    Moderator

    Dec 2006
    Smidgen-ville
    3,736

    My only advice is having a chat with him about why he has a complain in the morning before he goes to CC. He knows why he is feeling that he doesn't want to go.

    Perhaps leave it until a day that he isn't going and suggest you have a bit of a chat about why he says he doesn't want to go.

    Don't put suggestions in his head, just keep gently asking until he can tell you. It might be that he feels he's missing out on you now. He might miss the cooking/cleaning/reading stories/shopping or whatever you used to do together. He might feel that time with you is now less and he's sad about that. He might just be tired (sleepy tired) because of the extra day.

    I wouldn't take him out of the extra day yet. Talk to him to see if there is something between you that you can do to make him feel happy about going again.

  5. #5
    Registered User

    Jan 2009
    pakenham, victoria
    3,660

    I think it's a phase. My dd1 tells me every Monday morning without fail that she doesn't want to go to kinder ( she goes twice a week) she always runs off fine once we get there though

  6. #6
    Registered User

    May 2008
    where the V8's roar
    1,855

    Thanks so much for you replies ladies. I am not ready to give up the third day just yet just surprised by his reaction He did start this just before going to 3 days but the days he wasn't going he wanted to go

    I have tried to chat to him but he never has a reason for "why" the answer is always just cause... I hate that I have started to prompt cause I know that doesn't help.

    We have been together everyday for the last 3 years (unless he has been at childcare) no-one else really looks after him so I do think that it's the thought of not seeing me all day and he no doubt has times that he would miss me but once he is there he seems to mostly forget about me I am glad to hear it was a phase from other people and will just see how it goes.