Anyone else counting down towards a January start in reception?

[BluStocking]

I'm excited and sad and apprehensive, DS is looking forward to it...the reception teacher will make a home visit in the forst week of Jan, DS will start on Jan 12th, mornings only for the first week.

Good gentle induction, but a nightmare from the childcare pov.

Lots of things I don't seem to know.

Any other school-gate virgins? Shall we have a joint countdown?

Great news, Arabica.

DS1 went this morning. His only complaint was that he didn't like wearing the uniform!

He loved it, told me, after we had picked him up, that he no longer was scared of going to school, played Thunderbirds at breaktime with another new boy whose name escaped him and he cannot wait until tomorrow.

We took him to Pizza Express to celebrate.

Am a very proud mummy today

My ds1 started school nursery yesterday... I was dreading it.

When we arrived we stood outside with the other parents and children waiting to go in and I could feel his hand holding mine tighter and tighter. When the doors opened and it was time to go in his little feet stayed firmly rooted to the floor, I had to carry him in.

Fortunatly there was another child started the same day as ds1 and we were shown around the nursery together. It was not going very well - ds1 was quiet and his lip was wobberling! Until he looked out of the window and saw... A climbing frame! Then he looked alot happier about it

We were asked to leave him for just 45 minutes and his teacher took him off to join the other children on the mat (they had a nurse in visiting to talk about 'people who help us')

I worried for the whole time and rushed back to get my 'brave little soldier'. When i got there he was playing in the sandpit. He saw me and we off round the corner to try and be able to stay longer!! He went and washed his hands and made me come and look at the things he'd played with His teacher said that he had even volenteered to stand up and pretend to be the nurses patient! Most unlike him!

He insisted we had to tell nanny all about it and grandday and Aunty xxx and... etc

Today he was a little less happy about being left, but no tears. He stayed for and hour and a half today and enjoyed himself We bought him a uniform which he is very proud of.

I am so relieved that he is enjoying it. I am a little of how upset i was (in private) about him going!

WEll, pretty well, really.
BoyBlu was v excitied on the way in, ran up towards the school gatem ran up the ramp to his classroom, looked abit lost and wan when we left, but apparantly settled in very quickly.

he was keen enough to go back today, BUT said 'it's boring when you have to sit down and learn things, isn't it?' which surprised me because a) he is usually inerested in pretty much everything, and b) I can't see when he had time to do that in 4 hours yesterday, what with being shown the ropes, a music session, playing in the sand and 2 playtimes. He also told me that some boys 'were rough with me' at playtime, shouting 'go inside, go inside'. He said he ignored them. Today, he told DP that some boys hit him and another reception class child, and that they both told his teacher straight away. I will get to the bottom of this on Monday morning - but it desn't sem to have daunted him overall. I took him to a park yesterday afternoon,where he announced very proudly to anyone who would listen 'I go to school now' and '** is my school'. They were all from the cluter of v expensive schools round a certain nearby area, and looked distincly unimpressed, especially as DS was wearing his freebie Lambeth reflector jacket that he had been given alongside his book bag!

How's everyone else?

Hmmmmm.
Update - there is a problem, but not the one I thought we had! Any thoughts / advice?

DP explained to DS that we would be asking his teacher about what had happened in the playground so that she could make sure that it doesn't happen any more (thinking to re-assure him and not put him off school) and DS said to DP 'It was something that happened in my dream, it's true in my head but wouldn't think it is true in real life'. This is something that has happened before (I call it Nitgate) when he told us that his nursery teacher said he had nits (she didn't, he hadn't!).

DP has explained that he mustn't joke about these things or tell us things happened if it was just in his dreams, thoughts, imagination - because that is fibbing.

Why is he doing this?

Is he role-playing things he might have heard about school?
Is he trying to illicit sympathy, because despite his obvious confidence, he is feeling a bit 'new?
is he delusional and fundementally untrustworthy? 0 he is quite a sweet, sunny little boy.

Should I ignore, wait and let him settle in, or what?

Yes, i think he is picturing himself in a Jaqueline Wilson novel before he has even heard of her.

I think your reasoning of why it is happening, and suggested way of putting it to him is REALLY good. Thank you. Problem solved. Much better than focussing on the morality of fibbing.