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So, my 5 year old son started kindergarten this past Monday, and he is having a difficult time getting in the swing of things. Up until now, he has always been at home with me, never in an organized classroom or around a lot of kids, mainly his older sister and neighborhood kids. I know he is a "mommy's boy" and I know he has a lot of energy. According to the teacher, he will not stay in his seat, he has hit other kids (he does not do this at home), and he generally will not listen. His teacher today asked me if I would be their "room mom". I do not know if my presence in the classroom would help or hurt him. Any suggestions?
So, my 5 year old son started kindergarten this past Monday, and he is having a difficult time getting in the swing of things. Up until now, he has always been at home with me, never in an organized classroom or around a lot of kids, mainly his older sister and neighborhood kids. I know he is a "mommy's boy" and I know he has a lot of energy. According to the teacher, he will not stay in his seat, he has hit other kids (he does not do this at home), and he generally will not listen. His teacher today asked me if I would be their "room mom". I do not know if my presence in the classroom would help or hurt him. Any suggestions?
First of all my SIL lives in Round Rock...what a small world!
I find with my 5 year old, (who is a handfull at home but was an angel in preschool) who also began traditional kindergarten this week that if I am in the classroom he is worse behaved. He went to a Montessori preschool and I used to volunteer there. Montessori isn't traditional in that the whole class doesn't do the same thing at the same time so there is a lot of movement in the class..and I think that helped his energy levels and his behavior. I did tell the new teacher to let me know if his good behavior at school changes to let me know right away. Since your little guy never went until 5 he is making a huge adjustment and may find your presence comforting and it may actually settle him. So I would try it and see. If his behavior is not better with you there then I am sure the teacher will not want to continue the situation anyway...so no problem. But in the meantime if he is slow to adjust and his behavior does not improve I would seek the advice of your pediatrician and possibly a behavior modification therapist for help. Good luck!
So, my 5 year old son started kindergarten this past Monday, and he is having a difficult time getting in the swing of things. Up until now, he has always been at home with me, never in an organized classroom or around a lot of kids, mainly his older sister and neighborhood kids. I know he is a "mommy's boy" and I know he has a lot of energy. According to the teacher, he will not stay in his seat, he has hit other kids (he does not do this at home), and he generally will not listen. His teacher today asked me if I would be their "room mom". I do not know if my presence in the classroom would help or hurt him. Any suggestions?
We have been going through some similar issues with our twin sons that started kindergarten about 3 weeks ago. The first 3 days consisted of phone calls from the school that one or the other of our boys were not participating in certain activities, not listening, etc. We were surprised about this, because the boys attended pre-K last year and we didn't run into these issues...and we didn't observe this behavior at home.
Since those first few rocky days, we have seen quite a bit of improvement as the boys have adjusted to new routines/schedules. I think some of their issues stemmed from coming from a small pre-K school with very few kids, to attending a large elementary school with tons of other older kids (around 1100 kids attend this school this year). Plus their kindergarten class is more structured than their pre-K class.
There's just so much to adjust to when a kid starts kindergarten. Some kids adapt faster than others. I think it wouldn't hurt to try out being the room mom for a while and see how it goes. Also talk to your child at home to see if he expresses any particular things that might be upsetting him, and then suggesting ways he can deal with the situation.
Your son isn't really "in trouble." He's just going through a HUGE adjustment period. I know you don't want to get off on the wrong foot with the teacher, but she's going to have to be patient as he learns the rules of the classroom. I don't have any real suggestions for you, but please don't punish him and don't let her punish him til he has had enough time to learn what is expected of him. He's not behaving because he doesn't know how yet. Give him a few weeks (or months), talk about what behavior is expected, and he'll get the hang of it.
Honestly, in my personal opinion, your 5 year old son sounds pretty typical. My grandaughter had similar problems. Sometimes I think the teachers over react.....but then they have a lot of other children that also require their attention so it is tuff when a few kids cause a bit of trouble. But they are children and this is a whole new environment, unless they have attended pre-school. He will adjust. I did help with my daughters class only because I wanted to but in your case it sure wouldn't hurt to give it a try----at least until he does adjust. Some children just have a harder time adjusting. He will figure it all out!!
My daughter could not sit still and would constantly fall out of her chair. She was not paying attention in school and the teacher thought she was a terrorist. She suggested drugs which I refused to do. Another, more sensitive teacher, with many more years of experience, suggested I give her a little coffee in the morning as it has the opposite results with children than on adults. It worked miracles with her (so did changing teachers). Check with your Dr. first, but you might consider it. Today they seem to jump for the pills first. My daughter now grown and is a very successful business woman who still falls out of a chair from time to time.
So, my 5 year old son started kindergarten this past Monday, and he is having a difficult time getting in the swing of things. Up until now, he has always been at home with me, never in an organized classroom or around a lot of kids, mainly his older sister and neighborhood kids. I know he is a "mommy's boy" and I know he has a lot of energy. According to the teacher, he will not stay in his seat, he has hit other kids (he does not do this at home), and he generally will not listen. His teacher today asked me if I would be their "room mom". I do not know if my presence in the classroom would help or hurt him. Any suggestions?
I think I would hang back a little, give him space and time to adjust and to mature. Many families decide to "hold back" their sons a year, many aren't ready for the rigors of a classroom.
Try not to fret too much. It would be interesting to know if his teacher is new or experienced. His so-called acting out sounds pretty typical.
I hope as the school year goes on. he begins to shine.
Thanks for all the great advice. I had to let everyone know he actually had a good day today (Friday). He came home with his lunch box (teacher has had it all week b/c he refused to put it up). The first thing he said to me was "mommy, I listened to my teacher today, I did not go to timeout today either", he was so proud!
I have also figured out my husband being gone has a lot to do with his misbehaving. We moved to Austin from TN so hubbie wouldn't have to travel anymore. But, of course, he had to go to Michigan the week before school started. He has been talking to our son a lot more the last couple of days on the phone and by video online, trying to make him more understanding of how his behavior is not good for learning and distracts the rest of the class. So, maybe things are turning around. We will have to see next week.
By the way, Sara, what part on Union County do you live in? My husband and I are originally from Gaston County but moved to Nashville in 1996 the to Austin this May. I miss Gastonia but really miss the sundrop! Would killfor one right now!
Hi Statefan mom I'm so glad I found this forum because my son is having the same exact difficulties as your child. He started school just last Monday and I've heard from the the teacher and the aide on two different occasions. This isn't really something a mother expects to hear after only a week and half of school. Like you I didn't send my son to pre-school or child care. I'm having the hardest time trying to figure out how soon these teachers expect him to adjust. I've checked out several books at the local library and all of them say it can take months. My husband is going to go to school with him tomorrow to get a sense of what's going on and just to learn his routine. Do you find your child isn't exactly eager to discuss his day?
My daughter could not sit still and would constantly fall out of her chair. She was not paying attention in school and the teacher thought she was a terrorist. She suggested drugs which I refused to do. Another, more sensitive teacher, with many more years of experience, suggested I give her a little coffee in the morning as it has the opposite results with children than on adults. It worked miracles with her (so did changing teachers). Check with your Dr. first, but you might consider it. Today they seem to jump for the pills first. My daughter now grown and is a very successful business woman who still falls out of a chair from time to time.
I tried coffee and he doesn`t like the taste of it. I have also tried the french vanilla, and the chocolate coffee mate. Isn`t working either.
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Frustrated
