DS won’t sit still for story time

[AthollPlace]

DS 22m has started messy play group. It always begins with a hello poem and a story, and ends with a singsong on the mat. DS absolutely will not participate - I’m trying to hold him on my lap and he’s whinging and twisting around trying to escape. If I let go he wanders off to play. The other children (ages 18-36m) all sit nicely and look interested while their mummies clap their hands and use the story props that have been handed out, and they listen and smile when the group leader says their name in the hello poem.

Yesterday the group leader said could I please keep DS on the mat until everyone is ready to start playing, because he’s messing up the prepared play areas before anyone else has a chance to use them. So should I pin him down and let him wriggle and cry?

I’m not sure why he won’t participate. At home he sits on my lap nicely for story after story. I’m slightly concerned that every other child is interested and participates, even those who are younger than DS.

He’s an explorer and that’s perfectly normal, sitting is boring as fuck and I don’t blame him one bit for not being interested in it.
This isn’t the group for him OP find something where has the freedom to explore and touch and mix materials, this his current learning method, he’ll learn to sit in his own time.

I don’t know what my phone has against the word ‘is’ but you get the gist!

I used to love messy play because all the mums would sit and the table and enjoy the craft while our toddlers bombed round the room having a whale of a time.

Messy play is messy play. Story time is story time. They are different things. Why not find another fun toddler and invite them and parent over, or go to the woods together to dig mud and climb.

Ugh I had this when my DS was 2. I took him to a rhyme time thing at the library and all the children of varying ages stayed so still, my DS was running around wanting to play. He just wasn't a sit stiller and neither is my other 2 year old. They want to be active and exploring and busy. I felt like my child was the odd one after that but I'd assumed most kids were wanting to be moving around. I've since realised that my children are totally normal and it's just people with active kids don't go to those groups.
My DS was about 3 1/2 when he could sit still.
I would not bother with the group, the woman leading it doesn't seem to understand children.

This was my child- all the other baby/ toddlers sat and followed instructions but gormless like and mine just ran around. Find something better suited to him- for us it was softplay!

Ugh, the group leader sounds awful. I’d find another group, but not before letting your little boy mash the autumnal scented pumpkin play dough into the ocean foam during story time .

If you don't want to find another group could you just turn up a bit later after story time, to avoid all the sitting issues.

All the other kids can sit nicely because she's scared away all the ones that won't... Do you enjoy the group other than the storytime? If you've not paid upfront, I'd probably leave (but not before ruining a few more of her insta pics).