scared Jaden

A little preschool update...

Monday and Tuesday, Jaden took naps at school. We thought this was ok even though he is not taking naps at home any more. He has been more tired lately because of all of the change in his life, emotionally draining and probably getting less sleep due to getting up earlier.

Tuesday we found out that the main reason for Jaden wanting to take naps was not his sleep deprivation but instead his fear of his teacher. He started telling one of the caretakers at school that he was scared of his teacher. Then I was informed when I picked Jaden up.

This didn't surprise me because I had been noticing that he was disliking school more and more. Tuesday night we talked a lot about school and why Jaden was scared of his teacher and what had been happening at school. Jaden has a lot of fears so this was just one more to get over.

Wednesday, I talked with Jaden's teacher and he was so disturbed by Jaden's comment and hadn't realized a problem till then. He did check with Jaden himself and realized he really needed to do something. Jaden's teacher went the extra mile that day and took some extra time with Jaden. They even talked in their group time about being scared and what other kids are scared of. Jaden's teacher also shared that he was scared of the dark as a child. Jaden didn't say a word. The teacher asked if anyone else wanted to share anything and Clay spoke up, "He's scared," while pointing to Jaden. That was all my boys contributed. The teacher called me at work at lunch to give me an update which I was very grateful for.

That evening when I picked Jaden up from school, he enthusiastically ran to me and said, "Mom, I like school. I had fun today." Wow, what a change! I guess that the teacher's extra effort really made a difference. Jaden now says that he likes his teacher and he is excited to go back to school.

Until this week I have been feeling unsure about the teacher and assistants at the school because they haven't seemed very welcoming to me. This situation changed my mind and I feel very well taken care of. I trust them with my boys and I am glad to see that they care about my boys too. I am hoping that Jaden's fear does not return and that he continues to like school.