My dd started playgroup when she was 2yr and 1 months old. She went on Monday mornings only at first. Dd had always been at my side - she was breast fed until she was 23 months old and we always did things together. Dd screamed and wailed the place down, to the point I was once asked to take her home at around 10:30am. "She has had enough" said that playgroup leader.
Dd loved the first session for which I stayed on - and she didn't even noticed that I had popped out to the post office for 1/2 hour. The second session the following Monday went well too even though I didn't stay. Third time round was the time I received the phone call. My dd didn't talk at the time, but she does talk a lot now. I asked her about it some time ago now. Dd replied that some of the girls were pinching her, so she pinched back, but got caught and was told off! Anyway, can't do anything about it now. Dd was ill the following sessions and then there were the easter holidays. So when she started in the summer term again, there were yet more tears. I also got her to go on Tuesday mornings and things soon changed. She made a good friend who was 1 year older than dd. This friend Jessica asked her parents if she could go on Monday morning too, which they agreed and dd was very happy. No more tears, screams or wailing. The playgroup did a couple of group photos at the end of term with dd and her friend Jessica with their arms around each others shoulders smilling at the camera. I think this was a sign of things to come, because they were the only ones smilling at the camera and looking happy. The others were turned looking away in one photo and miserable in the other. There was a hiccup with this playgroup - staff changed etc - and Jessica moved on to a school nursery. You'll need to read my other posts for details. Dd now attends a re-opened playgroup on Monday and Tuesday mornings and another nursery on Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday mornings in which she started this term at 2 years and 9 months.
My advice: do not just run off when you drop ds off. Say bye, bye, kiss and then run off! Sometimes all lo needs is to get started on an activity. You know that he's OK when you try and help and he turns round and says "go away mummy. I want do it. Mine, it's mine." That's your cue to leave. Sometimes leaving an item, such as your coat helps too. It has to be an item that he knows you cherish and therefore will come back for. Ask him to look after it whilst you pop out. Tell him something along the lines of "you know how important it is for mummy to have her coat, so please take good care of it." dd clung onto my coat when I left although when I came back to pick her up my coat had been shoved in the dressing up box and dd was happily playing outside! Dd has just been toilet trained and is very happy is both her nurseries. Well, at least that's what she tells me.
Do not let him keep a favourite toy in nursery. If another child takes it away and God forbid, they 'loose' it, your ds will be devastated and will associate nursery with the loss of his beloved toy. Name everything. Things do go missing. "Cherokee" clothes you'll probably get back but branded clothes, especially "NEXT" items for some reason go missing. If he is still in nappies, buy the cheapest wipes - a supermarket own brand. At one time I was replacing new packs of Huggies or Pampers wipes every week in her change bag. There's no way she was going through 1 whole pack of wipes in 3 hours! Every week? And there's no point asking the staff where all these wipes have gone to - especially at the mad scramble of dropping off and picking up time.
Lunch boxes: There's no reason why she can't have baked beans. Some lunch boxes have flasks with very wide necks so he could still eat out of the flask using a spoon. Other ideas include: using small individual portions of fruit (bananas) and cheese. Annabel Karmel has loads of great ideas - it's on the mumsnet website.