Hi Everyone!
Hope all of you are having a good start of the week!
As you may know, Isaac has been in PG since beginning of April and I have been updating about him quite frequently but I would also want to take this opportunity to blog it out and pour out what I have been feeling for the past week since both boys have been in school and I am literally feeling like an empty nester here! (After having 2 kids for awhile now, I feel the deafening silence in the house when both kids are not home). Can anyone relate please?
Preparation (days before school)
I think other than materials preparation like his school bags, attire, milk bottle etc, I did not really do much prep. I tried to spend more time with him leading to his PG enrollment and he became very clingy towards me. During weekdays, we tend to bring Isaac down to the playground so that he could try to socialise with other kids and not feel intimidated or scared of strangers (Callum was more reserved as we seldom brought him out due to COVID situations back then- but I think bringing our LO out plays a crucial part in their social skills).
During weekends, we also brought the boys to my pil's house so that they (especially Isaac) could get used to other caregivers (and tbh, I think it does help). Meanwhile, I could go and run errands for 3-4 hours during weekends - this would help him with his separation anxiety (Usually my pil mentioned that the kids won't look for me as long as they are distracted! Yes, the key word is distraction!)
Preparations in the morning before heading to school
1.Since we were not sure who the teacher in charge would be, I figured, the best way to convey messages to his teacher(s) was by writing a note and placing it in Isaac's bag. It really worked wonder as the teacher could keep it and refer to it whenever they need to care for Isaac!
<Head over to my IG feed to view the reel on packing list for LO’s first day of school (PG)>
2. Going to school means that higher exposure to bacteria and viruses. (Not being kiasu but I really cannot afford for any of the boys to be sick so I tried all means and ways to keep them healthy and at least shield them from the bacteria and viruses) by pasting Happy Noz & Mozzie repellent on the shirt, spraying Bioshield on their shirt, spraying BioCair Anti HFMD on their school bags, feeding them Sambucol twice a day and pray really hard!
< Links to these products can be found in my IG story highlights under 'Products'>
3. Breakfast at home. Usually we prepare a quick oatmeal or pancake breakfast for both Callum and Isaac. But we noticed during the first week of school that when he is full after breakfast, he tends to gag or vomit when he cries during drop off. So, we tried to limit his morning intake to milk (when he wakes up) and currently, we are trying to halve his breakfast portion.
Week 1 (01 April - 05 April)
01 April 2024
Day 1 was terrible - As expected, he was happy to leave the house in the morning, thinking that he would be going to the playground. When we reached the school, he still had no idea what's going on until he had his temperature taken and we passed him to one of the teachers (very very heartbreaking moments). When he cried, unfortunately, Callum was triggered and cried too, which led to another girl (who saw them crying) also cry! *facepalm*
Though parents were allowed to sit in for the first 3 days, we decided to let him adapt and stay independent. It was perhaps one of the hardest decisions we had to make but one of the best too. He was clingy to the first teacher who took care of him (even until today). He would cry on and off but he was fine after some activities and distractions.
We picked him up at 12 pm, right after his lunch time. Brought him back home for his nap and he initially refused to go home so we guessed that he was OK with school (except the morning drop off part)
02 April 2024
Day 2 drop off was not any different from Day 1. The only exception was Callum did not cry. Instead, he tried to console Isaac by saying that 'teacher has alot of toys for you' (Indeed, very sweet and heartwarming)
Day 2 drop off was still full of tears. We try to get updates from the teachers through Little lives app (it's an app that many pre schools use to do the check ins and check outs, and also to communicate with parents) and are very grateful that the teachers have been updating us very frequently on Isaac's well being.
Of course we try not to spam the teacher. Just one simple message to ask if Isaac is ok and once we know that he is doing fine in school, we thank the teacher and stop the conversation.
Same thing, we picked him up at 12 pm after his lunch time
03 April 2024
Day 3 drop off still full of tears. It was a chaotic morning that I even forgot to remove Isaac's shoes haha! But again, his teacher mentioned that he was fine in school and even learning to self feed!
We have been trying to let Isaac self feed himself at home but everytime we do that, he would stop feeding himself (he would just stare at the bowl and gesture to us to feed him). So by being in school, self feeding and independence would be greatly enforced. He would learn it sooner or later! Jia you, Isaac!
Same thing, we picked him up at 12 pm after his lunch time.
04 April 2024
Morning drop off was still full of tears.
I am very grateful that many fellow parents can relate and share some of the tricks to help comfort our LO during the first weeks/ months in school, such as:
- Letting them bring/ carry their favourite toys or soft toys. Isaac has this small elephant soft toys that he would always bring to sleep. However, I would not want to mix the soft toys to bring to school and to bring to the bedroom for hygiene purpose so I decided to get the exact same one to be put at home.
- Bringing his favourite snacks during pick up
- Bringing him out for a short walk to the supermarket after pick up ( only when he is not tired)
These 3 (so far) work for Isaac, so I hope these work for your LOs too!
For older LOs, you may try giving a prep talk to them and to let them know that you will pick them up (I tried this on Isaac and he walked away haha, I guess he is still too young for this)
05 April 2024
Morning drop off still full of tears but as soon as he entered the classroom, we stopped hearing him cry.
There was an Easter celebration in school and I think Isaac had as much fun as Callum did. He did this bunny craftwork. As you can see from his facial expression, he is easily grossed out by items such as mushy things or cotton wool (This made so much sense since he also refused to touch his food with his bare hands during BLW). Hope he outgrows it one day!
On this day, we also let him bring his favourite soft toy to school and indeed it worked! His teacher mentioned that prior to this, he refused his nap but after bringing his soft toy to school, he started falling asleep during nap time (but we came and picked him up so it was disrupted)
What I feel as a mum and how I manage my feelings: I think overall, what we can do as parents is to lower our expectations and try our best to comfort and spend time with them at home as much as possible. Although this is not the first time I am sending the kids to PG, the feelings still sucked. Deep down, I always tell myself that kids can learn to adapt and this is one skill that we cannot really teach at home as they see home as their comfort zone.
Drawing from personal experience, I, myself, had been put in a situation where I had to adapt in a foreign place with little English spoken at a tender age of 13 (together with my younger sister, she was 11 at that time). We cried badly, yes. We wanted to fly back to Indonesia, yes. But I also remembered fondly all the fun times that I had with my friends and all the friendships forged that last till today. Not only that, because my sister and I have been through so much on our own since young, we are also very close :) My parents would call and check on us every single day. Tho we were not growing up with them by my side, we learnt to appreciate, be more tolerant and love them more. Most importantly, not to take every single time they visit me, for granted. And, perhaps, that's what I want to instil in both kids. Independence and gratitude.
We just have to be strong for our kids and trust that they are in good hands :)
That's all our updates for the first week of Isaac in PG.
Will continue updating his progress in this space.
Hope this sharing can be insightful for you in preparing your LOs and yourselves for preschool enrolment! Thank you for reading!
With Love ❤️,
Jane
