Preschool
As mentioned in my previous post, both kids started preschool on April 8th. I was excited and terrified at the same time, plus a little sad. Since Reagan was born she has been home with me, her dad or close friends. Of course Trevor was too and these arrangements were great for us all. I started looking at preschools in February to get a jump on picking one for Reagan to start VPK (voluntary pre-kindergarten) in August as I was told that if you wait then your first choice may no longer have open spots. I have a tendency to procrastinate so I wanted to get the choosing and registering done well before August approached and sent me into a panic-driven choice.
After visiting several daycare centers and talking to other moms who already use daycare I narrowed down my choices to tour. The center I decided on is small (no children under 2 and no children older than VPK), has lots of teachers and assistants in ratio to the number of kids, does not do field trips and is right across the street from where I work. I was very happy with the "vibe" of the place, the availability of the director and teachers for all of my questions and their rates are very reasonable. I sealed the deal in March by filling out the VPK registration forms and getting our list of supplies.
Meanwhile, back at the home front, Trevor was participating in his weekly speech therapy. His therapist and pediatrician both agreed that at home Trevor just doesn't really have any motivation to communicate. He gets fed when everyone else does, he has a sippy cup available at all times, he naps and sleeps on a regular schedule and diapers get changed as necessary. This also meant that he would frustrate easily during those times when communication would be helpful and have himself some pretty big, but short, tantrums. After many discussions it was decided that he would benefit from being in a small preschool class. In Florida the rules are 11 two year olds per teacher and many centers will put 2 teachers in a room with up to 22 two year olds. While legal and fine for most kids, the larger scenario would actually be worse for Trevor's communication efforts.
The center where Reagan will be attending VPK has one teacher and one assistant and 8-10 kids on any given day in the 2 year old room. Trevor's therapist deemed this perfect for him and felt he should start as soon as possible. I had also been told (by moms and teachers) that since Reagan had never been in a daycare setting that she should start at least a month before the actual VPK started so that she could have some time to adjust. I spoke to the director about possible start dates and she informed me that she had openings starting that next week and could take Trevor legally now since he was past 22 months of age even though she normally didn't start kids until they were already 2. After some internal agonizing and over-analyzing and talks with his therapist, both kids were set to start that coming Monday.
Here is Reagan the morning of Day 1 - she was SO excited to be starting school!
I couldn't get Trevor to stand still long enough for a morning Day 1 picture of him and of course getting out of the house in the morning with two kids and all their stuff took way longer than I anticipated - it always does! Drop off went great. Reagan happily went into her room and began to get acquainted and barely even said good-bye. In fact I do believe she shot me a look from across the room that said "don't you DARE embarrass me Mom!". Trevor happily trotted off to play with a group of little ones once we got him to his room and never looked back. I was happy that they were confident enough to not melt down but my mommy-heart was a little traumatized at the lack of their trauma. :-) They both got good reports and were happy to see me when I came to pick them up. It sure looked like they had fun:
Day 2 was more of the same - they both happily joined their classes with quick waves and hugs and kisses. Here they are on the morning of Day 2. I snapped Trevor's from his crib after getting him dressed so he couldn't run off without a picture!
By Day 3 Trevor had caught on to the routine and started to cling and whine during drop-off. I knew he'd be fine after I made a quick exit but hearing him cry was not fun at all. By Day 4 Reagan had caught on and while getting ready in the morning she loudly announced "I HATE school!!!!". Ahh, so much for easy drop-offs. Both of them have adjusted now but it was a rough road for a bit. I'll save that for another post as well as Trevor's speech progress from school.
After visiting several daycare centers and talking to other moms who already use daycare I narrowed down my choices to tour. The center I decided on is small (no children under 2 and no children older than VPK), has lots of teachers and assistants in ratio to the number of kids, does not do field trips and is right across the street from where I work. I was very happy with the "vibe" of the place, the availability of the director and teachers for all of my questions and their rates are very reasonable. I sealed the deal in March by filling out the VPK registration forms and getting our list of supplies.
Meanwhile, back at the home front, Trevor was participating in his weekly speech therapy. His therapist and pediatrician both agreed that at home Trevor just doesn't really have any motivation to communicate. He gets fed when everyone else does, he has a sippy cup available at all times, he naps and sleeps on a regular schedule and diapers get changed as necessary. This also meant that he would frustrate easily during those times when communication would be helpful and have himself some pretty big, but short, tantrums. After many discussions it was decided that he would benefit from being in a small preschool class. In Florida the rules are 11 two year olds per teacher and many centers will put 2 teachers in a room with up to 22 two year olds. While legal and fine for most kids, the larger scenario would actually be worse for Trevor's communication efforts.
The center where Reagan will be attending VPK has one teacher and one assistant and 8-10 kids on any given day in the 2 year old room. Trevor's therapist deemed this perfect for him and felt he should start as soon as possible. I had also been told (by moms and teachers) that since Reagan had never been in a daycare setting that she should start at least a month before the actual VPK started so that she could have some time to adjust. I spoke to the director about possible start dates and she informed me that she had openings starting that next week and could take Trevor legally now since he was past 22 months of age even though she normally didn't start kids until they were already 2. After some internal agonizing and over-analyzing and talks with his therapist, both kids were set to start that coming Monday.
Here is Reagan the morning of Day 1 - she was SO excited to be starting school!
Day 2 was more of the same - they both happily joined their classes with quick waves and hugs and kisses. Here they are on the morning of Day 2. I snapped Trevor's from his crib after getting him dressed so he couldn't run off without a picture!
By Day 3 Trevor had caught on to the routine and started to cling and whine during drop-off. I knew he'd be fine after I made a quick exit but hearing him cry was not fun at all. By Day 4 Reagan had caught on and while getting ready in the morning she loudly announced "I HATE school!!!!". Ahh, so much for easy drop-offs. Both of them have adjusted now but it was a rough road for a bit. I'll save that for another post as well as Trevor's speech progress from school.
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