Why does my 2.5 year old boy cry every morning when we take him to daycare?

Question

It's been over a year. He only cries when he gets there and it lasts only a couple of minutes. He's happy the rest of the day.

Answer 1

He wants to be at home with you during the day. How is he when you pick him up? If he is upset when you pick him up, it may be time for a new daycare.

Answer 2

my 2.5 yar old boy also cries when I take him to nursery school. Everything is ok - we walk in, say "hello" to the birds and the fish, go to the toilet and then when we get to the "classroom" he starts pulling back towards the door and starts crying (well sometimes it sounds more like screaming) and then sits down so the teacher cant pick him up or take his hand. He then keeps on saying "hug". Which I then give and I tell him I love him, have fun and pick you up after lunch/this afternoon,etc.Im not even out of sight and he stops crying and starts playing or interacting with the others. Strange enough he sometimes cries when I pik him up too. He ould be busy eating snacks or playing, but as soon as he sees me he starts running towards me, crying and then dont want to let go of my hand,.Awhile back it seems to go better. He wasnt crying in the afternoon anymore and in the morning he was still crying but it was calmly and he said goodbye and walked away. I felt so good that he was finally adjusting. But now a week later he is back to square one. We get to the class and he screams. When im gone, he stops and have fun and is ok during the day but in the afternoon cries again. Why? I have no idea.It breaks my heart.When you read some of the answers you worry about "maybe its a bad daycare centre and something bad happened" but then I know he is happy and its a good school so that is not really an option.Been there during the day for a surprise visit and he was fine. I really hope you find an answer and please let me know then so I can try it too. At the moment I just try appear to be happy, say goodbye and leave quickly and hope he will soon start running to the class and saying goodbye b4 i get a chance to think about anything and that he just have a ball at school and wants to go to school...GOOD LUCK. I know how you feel.Hopefully some are right that say : "dont worry, he will get used to it"

Answer 3

It's called separation anxiety. Your son, as well as just about every kid in the world goes through it. It will eventually subside but in it's own time. Like potty training, or the onset of puberty, it's different for each individual. Your son is just taking longer to get over it than others. There's nothing wrong with it.

Answer 4

He just wants you to stay with him and he cries because he loves you. I used to do the same thing to my mom and now my son does it to me! Things have worked out so that I can stay at home, but he still cries if I leave him, so don't feel guilty! Some kids just do this and it is normal and he will be fine.

Answer 5

how do you know he is fine the rest of the day? you can't always go by what the teachers say. i worked at a day care for about 2 months this summer and we had a little boy that done that, but he cried and pouted ALL day. when the parents got there, the teachers were like, " Ah, he was fine all day." knowing he wasn't. if i were you i'd pop in in the middle of the day once or twice to see how he is. after a year, there may be other reasons...

Answer 6

He is just sad that you must leave him.

When I was a child and my mom had to work and was taking college classes, she made little audio tapes for my brother and I that she called "Mom's Messages," that we could listen to any time we missed her.

My mom would just record herself saying that she was making the tape so when she had to go to work or school and I missed her, she wanted to let me know that she loves me very much.

Then she would name off a bunch of great things about me, like how I had learned to dress myself and how I liked to help her dust the living room -- just silly stuff but I remember how it made me smile when normally I would cry. I am 26 years old now and I still have the tapes. :)

By the way, I am really annoyed with the people who say "Stay home and take care of him yourself!" Obviously, this woman leaves her child in day care because she must work to support her family as well as doing her job as a mother. And I give her props for that.

Good luck!

Answer 7

i run a daycare and the crying is usually when i get a new child and they are still uncomfortable and mommy or daddy is leaving them but it never last a year! only a day or 2. or if they are really tired still they kinda cry but i just put them to bed and they sleep and when they wake up they are a much happier person. so maybe he just misses you and doesn't want you to go. it happens.

Answer 8

He doesn't want to go hang out for 8 hours with a couple dozen other screaming kids and 2 or 3 overworked caretakers who probably ignore him all day. He'd rather be with his mom.

Answer 9

Seperation anxiety. Some children don't get over it for a long time. As long as he calms down after you leave, he'll be okay.

Answer 10

I worked in daycare for years and honestly, i know this is hard, but the best thing to do is to just leave . Tell him you love him and you will see him in a little while. They put on a show for us to see what we will do. Try to make drop off time as quick as possible. I am a mother too and i know it hurts to see your child cry. I used to dropped my son off and if he was crying i would stand outside the door and listen to see how long it took him to calm down. It usually took a minute or less. Thats how i knew he was just putting on an act for me. They grow out of it. It is just a phase. As long as he calms down he will be fine.

Answer 11

He wants to be with you but he wants to go and play too. Hes fine they all do that dont worry.