For many parents, one of the most difficult things about using Thornhill daycare services is the emotional toll it can take on all the parties involved. Your child might be very apprehensive about going to the facility, and you may also have a hard time letting go as well. The best way to avoid such difficulties during the first few days is to have a strategy that is aimed at reducing the stress associated with the change. There are a number of things that you can try out with regard to this including:
Avoid bringing them to daycare as a surprise trip
One of the worst things you can do when taking your kids to daycare is by springing it on them. Ideally, you should ease them into it. This can be done by talking to them about it well in advance. You could even include them in the decision making process, such as by visiting potential daycare centres with them so that they can decide which ones they like.
This will not only make it easier for your child to adapt to the concept of staying in a daycare centre; it will also make it easier for you to let go. However, when you surprise them such as by taking them to the daycare centre one day without any notice, they are more likely to resist. This will make it very difficult for the minders at the facility to take care of them, since the child is likely to perceive them to be hostile.
Ease them into attending the daycare facility by dropping them off
During the first few days after enrolling them in the daycare centre, you should try to avoid rushing them. For instance, when you are leaving in the morning, you should give your child enough time to get ready, as well as to get to the daycare centre and settle in. Remember, this is a major change for them and you need to ease them into it.
Linger when dropping them off, but do not overdo it
During the first few weeks of enrolment, it’s not wise to simply drop them off and drive away. You might need to help them settle in, and then say a proper goodbye. Spending just a few minutes with them after you drop them will make a huge difference. However, you should not do this for too long, since they might then end up having a hard time letting go as well.
In order to do all the above, you will need to be prepared. You might need to leave home a bit earlier than usual so that you can get the time to do all the above and not be late for work or any other obligations you have.
Seek to validate your child’s feelings
Many children tend to become very apprehensive about being left seemingly alone in a daycare centre when they have been used to living a sheltered life at home. They might communicate this to you, telling you that they are scared of the facility. In such cases, simply validating their feelings might make it easier for them to cope. This involves letting them know that their fears are normal, but that they are likely to get over them with time. You can also encourage them to talk to you about the same if they keep having a hard time adapting.
What you should definitely not do is give them the impression that their feelings are wrong or unwanted. This will only serve to make them more insecure. Unfortunately, the effects of such insecurity might not show up when they are young, but later on when they are older and when little can be done to correct the damage.
Plan some extra bonding time
During the first few weeks, you can schedule some extra bonding time with your child to make up for the reduced contact you have with them. For instance, you can choose a weekend to do something that they love. On the whole, your child will be happier, and will be better positioned to adapt to the new circumstances.
Try not to delay when picking them up
During the first few weeks, you should do your best to always pick the child at the correct time, and at the same time every day. Picking them up too late tends to induce a lot of anxiety in them, and this is something you should avoid if you intend to make it easier for them to adapt.
In summary, starting day-care is a very difficult thing for both kids and parents. The only way you can be satisfied with it is if you see your child being happy with the changes. Doing the above is one of the best ways to smoothen this transition. In addition to simply making it easier for your child to adapt, it will also increase the quality of the relationship you have with them.