Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. Protection built in.

Meet the Other Phone.
Protection built in.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
Education

Join the discussion on our Education forum.

Original poster

Please stop me strangling ds1 on his way home from reception class...

32 replies

GeorginaA · 22/09/2005 15:55

I know it's because he's tired and overwhelmed.

I know it's not true naughtiness.

But I've just had to walk out the room to take deep breaths because every single evening he's full of attitude and back chat after school.

Thing is, he was like this on the walk home from half day nursery as well.

Do they just hit school age then stay grumpy for the rest of their lives?! Got a horrible feeling this isn't going to improve...

OP posts:
saadia · 22/09/2005 16:07

GA I posted a similar thread yesterday (which got no replies boo hoo)as ds1 has just started nursery and has had a complete personality transplant - rude, unco-operative, tormenting his younger brother. I thought something was going horribly wrong at nursery but if this is the norm will not worry so much.

Looking forward to seeing what replies you get

spykid · 22/09/2005 16:09

It's unfortunatly normal.

They are picking up so many new influences, seeing new behaviour, and getting so tired out that unfortunately it shows in their behaviour.
Normally dies down a bit after start of term

QueenOfQuotes · 22/09/2005 16:10

Georgina I know exactly how you feel, except mine is like it in the mornings too

SoupDragon · 22/09/2005 16:11

I had to carry DS2 out of school today whilst he screamed "I DON'T WANT TO GO!"

Sigh.

frogs · 22/09/2005 16:18

Yeah, normal. Particularly with boys for some reason. Ds has more or less grown out of it now (Y2). Food helps -- take a snack and shove it at him as soon as he comes out of school.

Sabella · 22/09/2005 16:42

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Original poster
GeorginaA · 22/09/2005 16:57

That's another bug bear. He never seems to have enough time to eat his lunch at school (gets about half a sandwich eaten and that's it) so he insists on eating his fruit & cheese (or whatever "extras" he's been given) the second he gets home. This is fine except that then he doesn't eat any dinner.

ARGH!

Can I auction him on Ebay, can I, can I?

OP posts:
motherinferior · 22/09/2005 16:58

Oh, commiserations. I am just off to get DD1 and no doubt feed most of her lunch to the sodding cat.

Original poster
GeorginaA · 22/09/2005 17:02

Oh and now ds2 has gone mental, driving me AND ds1 to distraction by constantly switching the TV on and off.

This isn't what I signed up for, I'm sure...

OP posts:
SoupDragon · 22/09/2005 17:24

Read the small print, GeorginaA, they hid a lot of stuff in there on the parenting contract.

Cam · 22/09/2005 17:58

Also I think its because they have to sit still a lot and school and "be good" that they get somewhat hyper when the come out!

Original poster
GeorginaA · 22/09/2005 18:04

Would that be the small print written on the microdot above the 'i', Soupy?

And I've got "back to school" evening tonight where I have to be all "yes I care about my kid's education" mode rather than "can I just drop him off on Monday morning and have him back when he's 18" mode.

OP posts:
fimac1 · 22/09/2005 19:22

Ds was like this and turned out he was very anemic - due to undignosed absorbtion problem, although I doubt its anemia it may be something to do with diet in some way? Ds and dd both take fish oil supplements which has helped generally - or he could just be very, very tired!

commiserations anyway! Hope things improve

marthamoo · 22/09/2005 19:29

It gets better, georgina. Ds1 was just like this when he started in reception - I was devastated: I thought "OMG, what has school done to my lovely little boy?" I asked around the playground and everyone else's child (particularly boys!) was the same. It got better after that first half term - he was less tired, which helped too.

They do stay more opinionated/cheeky though - and I think that's partly a coping mechanism, part of fitting in with the crowd, and also just part of growing up and becoming more independent. Ds1 is 8 now and has just started in Year 4 - and I notice a real shift between the term-time ds and holiday-time ds. I like the holiday-time ds much better - but even in term-time I know my sweet little boy is still in there somewhere...and so is yours

motherinferior · 22/09/2005 19:40

Put it this way: I've buried all my principles and am driving my two home when DD1 is at afterschool club. I claim this is because I can't be in two places at once (have to go from school to DD2's childminder over half a mile away) but in reality it is because walking home with them has become a total [expletive deleted] nightmare during which I shout, bully, weep and generally behave like the sort of person other MNers post about in a worried sort of way

Kaz33 · 22/09/2005 19:41

On the positive side mine was almost dragging me upstairs to go to bed at 7pm

Original poster
GeorginaA · 22/09/2005 19:52

Thanks all - it's a relief that this is a "normal" process.

Had to laugh, MI, I read that and started seriously considering it... I'm a 5 min walk away from school

OP posts:
cod · 22/09/2005 19:53

Message withdrawn

Original poster
GeorginaA · 22/09/2005 19:53

.. and I shall be trying to grit my teeth and remember the sweet little boy in there somewhere - thanks for that image marthamoo

OP posts:
frogs · 22/09/2005 20:03

"Principles", MI? What are those? Must have lost them all years ago...

SoupDragon · 22/09/2005 22:21

The small print is in the microdot above the 'i', above every single i and j and also in pretty much all of the punctuation. I think they've got all possible eventualities covered. Your son becomes a transvestite Tory MP? Paragraph 2, subsection 3, fouth semi-colon.

Party time not for another 6 months, Coddy

Littlefish · 22/09/2005 22:37

GeorginaA, just a thought about lunchtimes. Do you think your ds is really short of time, or is he in a rush to get out to the playground with his friends? Peer pressure and the overwhelming desire to race around the playground make it really hard to want to sit and eat lunch in a boring lunch hall! Mention it to his classteacher and perhaps she can have a word with the whole class! I'm sure your ds won't be the only one eating very little.

fimac1 · 23/09/2005 11:13

My ds was not eating his hot dinners and I was not informed until his older sister told me! Took him off hot dinners and monitored his packed lunch to check he was eating at least some of it!

Other Reception parents were having the same prob so the lunch time supervisors now monitor Reception and Infants generally to check they are not leaving lunches

  • ds now in Juniors (and eating at lunchtime!) and is thrilled that the dinner ladies do not monitor Juniors eating habits!
motherinferior · 24/09/2005 08:24

Can I just say to anyone in the South East London area yesterday that if they saw a harrassed small redhead with a weeping, wailing and bellowing four year old in tow shouting I HATE YOU MUMMY WHY DIDN'T YOU COME IN THE CAR AND I HATE MY SISTER TOO, I apologise

Earlybird · 24/09/2005 08:29

OOh, not good, MI! Suppose she was simply exhausted after a long week of school?

DD has taken to declaring imperiously, "I'd like to take a taxi mummy" when I collect her from school. And sometimes, when I can't quite face the walk home, I am weak enough to obey her!