2 yr old not happy in new room - will it get better?

[Blossomleafy]

My 2 YO moved rooms from baby to toddler 2 weeks ago and every drop off is full of screams. Nursery had been settling him by exposing him to the room over a whole month. He was even lucky enough to have a worker move from baby to toddler room with him who is now his keyworker but he is still sad and it’s breaking my heart. We never had issues before 😔 I am also heavily pregnant and hormonal and struggling to hold back my own tears which is a tad embarrassing as I walk out of nursery 😅 anything I can do to help him settle in the morning? Apparently he is then fine during the day - eats plenty, naps, plays… maybe he is playing me! And it’s working if that’s the case 🤣

Not every childcare centre is perfect for every age. It may be something you need to look at changing, if he's older now would he be better suited to another type of childcare, maybe outside of a centre in general

As pp said would changing childcare provider be an option. My 2 year old goes to a childminders and he absolutely loves it there. I think the fact there are less kids to adult ratio means they get more interaction and form more of a bond than they'd get at a nursery

I don’t think changing nursery is the requirement here. I can’t think of anything the staff are doing wrong and it would be too much of a gamble to change and then he might not like the new one either.

Many children struggle with transitions so I would just give it a little time. Baby rooms tend to be a lot more nurturing as the needs of babies are more demanding. In a toddler room they will be encouraging independence so it is a big change from what he's used to.

It may be that there are a lot of transitions going on; they have just had their 2nd birthday, you're pregnant theyve moved rooms and youre hormonal/feeling tearful at drop offs.

Try to do the quick drop at the moment just to get them used to the drop off

@PrincessScarlett @BallerinaFall yes you are both right. Yesterday he didn’t cry at drop off! So I think we are getting there 😊 sending them to nursery is all well and good when they’re all smiles but when not… it’s a bit of a heartache. The staff are so lovely. I always find him cuddled up in their arms. So yes, anyone in the future who reads this, I wouldn’t jump the gun and change nursery!

Does he have good friend? Could you plan to arrive when they do so they can go together? Or arrive after them so they can run to the door to welcome him?

It will get better! Make a note to plan for his next transition. What’s worked and what hasn’t etc.

i think you should ignore advice to move him to a different nursery to take him
to a childminder. You've said yourself he's totally fine once you go. I think it's quite typical for them to find a change at 2yo quite hard: IME the vibe totally changes - the staff become less like "mummy like", he'll suddenly be around much older kids, and the staff:kids ratio has changed so it will seem busier. He'll be treated as older aswell. Don't question the nursery and just give it time. X