Yesterday we had so many plans and none of them came to fruition. Lily had a hard time with gymnastics. Jeff had to drag her to the car screaming after less than 10 minutes. I guess we will try again next week. She has been following directions and acting well and I thought she would be able to handle gymnastics again. I don't know if she is just testing her boundaries or if maybe gymnastics is just not for her.
I worry about how well she will do in Kindergarten. I am not sending her to preschool and as of right now she lacks the ability to listen to other adults. I want to make sure she has that ability before I unleash her on a Kindergarten teacher. We have debated the preschool issue but in the end we have decided to wait until Kindergarten. 1. food allergies 2. I think behavioral she is still in a place where a one on one adult to child ratio best suits her needs 3. money-preschool is a fortune. So this is where we are. I am hoping the gymnastics will help her to learn to listen to another adult. At least here there are almost as many adult teachers as there are kid students in the class. And there is the option to pick her up and leave. She looks forward to going and has friends there, so hopefully she will start to behave. I know she has it in her.
I remember when I used to work at a preschool. There were several kids in the class who needed one on one attention. I ended up quiting because of how angry those kids made me. I was not able to do my job, no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't get those kids to act right without my undivided attention. All the other kids therefore got no attention. And since I couldn't give all the wild children my undivided attention at the same time there was always at least one kids climbing the walls. It was a horrid experience. Put me off taking care of other people's kids for life. I don't even like to babysit anymore.
I think it is human nature not to like kids who are so much more work than the other kids. I am afraid if I unleashed Lily in her current state on another adult that she would have a bad experience. I am pretty sure that her trying behavior would cause at least a bit of friction for her and the teacher. I would be nice if I could get her behavior a bit more under control before I unleash her on a poor unsuspecting teacher.
On the one hand I am amazed by how much progress she has made behavioral. On the other hand I don't think she is quite there yet. We still have a bunch of work to do. But, a part of me is worried that if I just let her go to preschool she would learn to behave. I have noticed that she is no longer a million times worse than her peers.
Meanwhile Lily and I are working on her numbers, letters, drawing, painting, puzzles, etc. Right now it is the time to register for fall preschool. So now that decision is made I can stop thinking about it and move on with getting her ready for Kindergarten. If they only had cookies and Dora the Explorer in Kindergarten she would be an angel.
Lily and Jeff got home from gymnastics and Lily continued to cry for over an hour. I tried feeding her, and then I just put her down for a nap. By the time she woke up from her nap we were not in the mood for festivals. We went to a bookstore and then out to dinner. Lily was OK, not great the rest of the day. At least there were no more fits. We also discovered that you have to pay $12 to go to the craw fish festival and then you have to pay for rides and food. That seemed like an awful lot, especially since with Lily we probably wouldn't stay more than an hour or two tops. We still have next weekend to go, I guess we will have to think on it.
Today I have to unclog a sink, remove a stain from the carpet, and fix a hole in the wall where Lily slammed open her bedroom door. You should see her right now, all angelic, sweetly playing with puzzles. You would never know that she has the will of iron.
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I Think I May Have A Screw Loose
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I saw my podiatrist yesterday. One part of my foot is still hurting (it's
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8 comments:
she's only three, she has plenty of time to grow "into" herself, and perhaps in a year or so, parent's day out or preschool will be an option.
griffin is in his second year of preschool and he loves it, on most days. but i'm even concerned about his adjustment going to kindergarten -- at the school he is out now he gets to plan his day and dictate how he spends some of his time (it's a high-scope ciriculum, and it has been great for him), but when he goes to kindergarten this fall he's not going to get any say so and i'm concerned of the issues that will arise.
to sum it all up: even kids with preschool experience may not adjust well to kindergarten.
Have you looked into a Mother's Day Out program for her? Check out the local churches to see if anyone has one. Usually they are two or three days for about 6 hours, you get time to yourself and Lily would get interaction with others and learn about behavior, which for her age is normal what your experiencing. MDO programs are usually not that expensive and they are worth it. She needs to get use to a "school" setting, but does not need it all week. Keep going to gymnastics. There will be good days and there will be bad days. Lily is learning about independence and how far she can push you. We are going through the same thing with Jake. He is lucky he is so cute! LOL Keep me posted on what you do. Is she 4 yet? What about a pre K program that is 2 or 3 days,(or is this what you mean by preschool?) or the enrichment program on base if they have it?
Opps, just read your friends entry, she is right. I taught Kindergarten for 5 years. Kids have a hard time no matter how much schooling they have had by the time they get to kindergarten. But remember the teacher knows how to handle it. It is usually worse when the parent is around too. Now that I think about it it is harder on the parent than the kid when they go off to Kindergarten. Hee hee!~
I used to attend a cooperative preschool with Em. Half of the parents stayed with the kids and worked with the kids, the other half met in a circle in the same room and talked over some child themed topic. I wonder if that would work for you two.
It is hard for many children to have to listen to other adults...especially when they are strong willed. I think that you will be surprised, when the time comes, how well Lily rises to the occasion.
That is where each child is different - if you feel your child needs more one on one right now then keeping her out of preschool is a good thing. Our preschool here is SA is also very expensive and I also don't believe kids get the stimulation and attention they need (What with 30 - 40 toddlers per class). I think Gymnastics will do wonders for Lily! Loved the interview down below.
Take Care
I think preschool is overrated and I will not be sending my babes. In my opinion, toddlers learn better individually than in group settings. Not to mention the food allergy angle...
I don't suppose it would be so bad if Lily didn't go to pre-school. Remember, lots of folks our age never went to pre-school - they weren't even around.
And she's only three. In another couple years she may be completely different.
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