Transitions
Charlotte’s transition to the next class (2–3-year-olds) began this week. According to the director, her current teacher, and her upcoming teacher, our girl is doing a fantastic job so far.
The school takes two full weeks to transition children into the next class, which makes me feel SO much better about any move. For starters, it gives us a chance to detect any signs of stress or difficulty adapting before the move is official. Second, it’s just plain humane.
Charlotte is moving to a brand new classroom that’s much bigger than her current one and with twice as many (12) children. BIGGER children. We’re told that on her first day, she went over for activities and circle time. She was a bit hesitant, so to let her get acclimated to the new environment, the teachers let her roam and explore everything the cool new room had to offer while the other kids did their more formal thing. Apparently, this tactic paid off, as Charlotte loves nothing more than exploring something new. From then on, her hesitation coming into the new room evaporated.
Yesterday, Day 2, Charlotte stayed in the new room through snack time. She mimicked the big kids, watching how they collect their snacks and clean up after (in her current class, everything snack-related is done for them). According to her new teacher, she watched the big kids very carefully and once she caught on, she didn’t hesitate to jump in and fully participate in the big-kid way. The teachers gave her lots of kudos, which Charlotte totally eats up. She LOVES to be helpful, and Chris and I are currently pondering how we might exploit this trait of hers.
On Day 3, Charlotte will stay through lunch, and I’m confident she’ll do great. She’s apparently concentrating very hard on figuring out what she’s supposed to do, and holding back until she gets it, but the teachers are giving her lots of support.
You can see why the two-week transition is so great for the kids (and parents!). We’re staying hyper-alert for any sign of distress, but so far, so good. I’m a bit concerned that once she goes to the new class all day, she’ll get sort of mentally exhausted trying to learn the new routine, adapt to all the new faces (though a few are familiar), and acclimate to the new 1:6 teacher-to-kid ratio. I’m examining my schedule to see if I can shorten her days somehow, even just once or twice per week. Our schedules are very tight as they are, so any changes will require giving up carpooling, which means spending more on gas and parking. But, with the lower tuition, this might be an okay trade-off. We shall see.
In short, we’re so ridiculously proud of Charlotte. Her jolly little disposition just shines in the preschool environment, and though wary (a sign of great intelligence, we’ve decided) of change, she’s not against it. She’s open to new things, new experiences, new people. She works so hard to figure things out and does not easily give up. (I can hear the choruses of “Stubborn! Stubborn! Stubborn!” echoing out there. Shush.)
Oh, our sweet, goofy girl. I love her!
The school takes two full weeks to transition children into the next class, which makes me feel SO much better about any move. For starters, it gives us a chance to detect any signs of stress or difficulty adapting before the move is official. Second, it’s just plain humane.
Charlotte is moving to a brand new classroom that’s much bigger than her current one and with twice as many (12) children. BIGGER children. We’re told that on her first day, she went over for activities and circle time. She was a bit hesitant, so to let her get acclimated to the new environment, the teachers let her roam and explore everything the cool new room had to offer while the other kids did their more formal thing. Apparently, this tactic paid off, as Charlotte loves nothing more than exploring something new. From then on, her hesitation coming into the new room evaporated.
Yesterday, Day 2, Charlotte stayed in the new room through snack time. She mimicked the big kids, watching how they collect their snacks and clean up after (in her current class, everything snack-related is done for them). According to her new teacher, she watched the big kids very carefully and once she caught on, she didn’t hesitate to jump in and fully participate in the big-kid way. The teachers gave her lots of kudos, which Charlotte totally eats up. She LOVES to be helpful, and Chris and I are currently pondering how we might exploit this trait of hers.
On Day 3, Charlotte will stay through lunch, and I’m confident she’ll do great. She’s apparently concentrating very hard on figuring out what she’s supposed to do, and holding back until she gets it, but the teachers are giving her lots of support.
You can see why the two-week transition is so great for the kids (and parents!). We’re staying hyper-alert for any sign of distress, but so far, so good. I’m a bit concerned that once she goes to the new class all day, she’ll get sort of mentally exhausted trying to learn the new routine, adapt to all the new faces (though a few are familiar), and acclimate to the new 1:6 teacher-to-kid ratio. I’m examining my schedule to see if I can shorten her days somehow, even just once or twice per week. Our schedules are very tight as they are, so any changes will require giving up carpooling, which means spending more on gas and parking. But, with the lower tuition, this might be an okay trade-off. We shall see.
In short, we’re so ridiculously proud of Charlotte. Her jolly little disposition just shines in the preschool environment, and though wary (a sign of great intelligence, we’ve decided) of change, she’s not against it. She’s open to new things, new experiences, new people. She works so hard to figure things out and does not easily give up. (I can hear the choruses of “Stubborn! Stubborn! Stubborn!” echoing out there. Shush.)
Oh, our sweet, goofy girl. I love her!
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