My 4 year old daughter will turn 5 years old this month. She has never been in a daycare setting. Although we tried many times over the years, she had severe separation anxiety and I didn't see it necessary, as I worked from home anyway. Another factor, regarding pre-school, is that we couldn't really afford the prices in our area (Where we lived the price was around $165 to $200/week for the good pre-schools). In an attempt to get her interested in kindergarten, we enrolled her into a church pre-school this summer, close to where we live. I went with her for "play time" several times - 30 minute intervals 3 days a week - before leaving her for the first day. She was Ok during these play times, but very nervous and shy. She didn't play at all, but stayed with me. She did seem interested in playing and was smiling at times. The first day I left her was for 2 hours and she seemed to do fine. She cried when
I left but was smiling when I picked her up. The second day that I left her was for 4 hours and during this 4 hours she was very unhappy. The director told me that she didn't eat, drink, or even want to go to the bathroom. Upon returning for the third day, the director met me at the door (where my daughter was trying to escape and was crying) and she told me that my daughter "is not ready". She expected that we leave and did not want my daughter to try any further. She said that when she is not with me she just "shut down" and didn't want to eat, drink, etc. She said that we should have tried this 2 years ago. I told her that I did try this 2 years ago and that it was a disaster. She replied that NOW it is a disaster. She suggested that in kindergarten they would have counselors that could help my daughter with any distress or anxiety. I decided to talk to my daughter's doctor about the situation and he said that she "needs to get over it!". This may be true but I feel guilty because I feel that it is my fault because I didn't have her in preschool or daycare before this point. We really just could not afford it. I have become so distressed and feel so guilty that I have considered home schooling her. The problem is that I simply do not have time, as I am running a business from my home and am re-turning to college to finish my degree in the Fall. If anyone has any suggestions, I would greatly appreciate it. I can hardly sleep at night as the time comes closer for her to start kindergarten. I need to go get her registered this week and I dread taking my daughter to even visit, as she gets so nervous whenever we mentioned going to school.
A little about me:
I am a stay at home mom, who works from home. I have a 6 month old daughter and a 4 year old, turning 5 this month.