Hi all, advice or experiences would be greatly appreciated. My DD is 5 and been going to kindly ( in WA it's a 5 day fortnight). She doesn't want to go, drags her feet, won't get dressed etc in the morning. All school holidays tells me she doesn't want to go back. When we actually get to school she is fine, runs in, sits with her friends on the mat & doesn't even say goodbye. After school she is happy but often asks if she has to go tomorrow and when I say no, it's not a school day, she is relieved. She likes her teachers, has lots of friends. Getting her to school is just exhausting as she finds every possible way to not get ready.
She is fine with the work, could write, and sound out words before she started. They have comprehension homework and she begs me to do it all the time.
Has anyone been through this, is it phase or is she going to spend the next 12 years of her school life hating school??
My middle child went through that at about the same age, although I was also getting feedback from his teachers that he was unhappy whilst he was there. The discipline of the kinder was overly strict for him, whilst at the same time the routine was not structured enough and this was messing with his head and making him unhappy. I withdrew him for the last 1.5 terms until school started and began him in prep as normal and he has been much happier in school.
The key for me was to find out why he was unhappy and given that this was an institutional thing and I was unable to change it, it was easier for me to have him at home for a few months. What have your child's teachers said about why she is unhappy, have they been able to let you know? Can your child verbalise why she is unhappy? I would be trying to find out the cause and find out if there is something that can be changed to make it more enjoyable, or if maybe she needs a bit of a break from kinder for a while.
What does her teacher say? Has she been like this all year?
If the teacher is unaware of this problem ask them to keep an eye on her to see if one of the other children is giving her a hard time..
Children go through many weird stages and this might be one for your DD.
Sometimes they think the others at home are having more fun than she is at school. If she is home for a day sick, make it a sick day where life is uninteresting.
This has been going on since the second week of school at the start of the year. Teacher says she is fine at school and says that she probably just wants to stay at home because she cant be bothered going to school. She hasn't ever stayed home unless she was really ill.
When I've had families come to me with the same concerns about their child I usually have a friendly chat with the child to see if they can help me understand what's happening for them.
Another useful approach is a family meeting at the kinder with the child present so they get to hear that everyone is in the same page with supporting them to have a positive experience at kinder and asking the child what might help. . I'd also chat with the teachers and see if you can spend time at the kinder.
Sometimes children simply want to be with their family. I've taken photos of children playing happily in kinder who are in the same situation as your DD and given them to families to put on the fridge at home. It seems to help because families have the option of saying to their child ' I know you really enjoy kinder, I can see how happy you are in the photos'.
Sometime children also pick up on families feelings in the situation and saying they don't like kinder can be one way to keep parents 'engaged'.
Best of luck. Let us know how you go...
5year old doesn't want to go to kindly
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