My son is an only child. At three years old he would much rather play with an adult than a child. With him starting kindergarten in a year and a half I was getting a little worried about the new social aspect it would bring. He hasn’t been around a lot of kids. He has a few cousins, but I usually find him playing by himself. It’s easier that way; less sharing. I wanted to be sure that he would be able to make some friends at school, but I wasn’t sure how to approach the situation. With our busy schedule there aren’t a lot of opportunities for play dates.
Because of my son’s lack of social interaction I was terrified when I realized that I was going to have to put him in daycare last fall. What if the kids were mean to him? What if he didn’t know how to share? The first month was hard. He kicked and screamed and cried whenever I would drop him off. He wouldn’t play with the other kids. He just followed the daycare lady around the house wherever she went.
Last week something wonderful happened. It was a day just like any other day at daycare. The drop off went smoothly and I was off to school. When I came back the woman in charge of the daycare was so excited to tell me about what had happened that day. A new little boy had come in that was about Logan’s age. When he got there Logan came over to him, took his hand, and said, “Come play with us!” Little Logan who was once so afraid to play with the other kids had reached out to another little boy and made a friend.
While I hate that I had to put Logan in daycare this year, I cannot express how grateful I am for the opportunities it has given him. He is learning things that I couldn’t have taught him at home. He is getting the hands on experience playing with other children and learning about the important aspects of being a child. I would do anything to be able to be home with him all the time, but I am so thankful for the blessing it has been for him to be in daycare and making these little friendships along the way.