ModernMom: Moving on Up

Drop-off today was a bit crazier than usual. I was running late and my daughter was especially clingy. She clutched me with all four limbs while I tried to gently remove her coat, put her lunch away, fill out her daily sheet, and make my way out of the room. In the middle of all this, her beloved teacher dropped a small bombshell: they’ve decided to transition my daughter from the toddler room to the preschool room a bit early.

I froze in my tracks. Preschool? With the big kids? Surely they must be mistaken. After all, she’s barely putting two words together, and she doesn’t turn 3 for several months. (In fact, she’s 2 years and 8 months so “a bit early” is just that…one month early.) My initial response was completely heartfelt and wholly irrational. I asked the teacher if she planned to transition along with my daughter. She reminded me that it doesn’t work that way. Then I asked about my daughter’s two best friends and was told that they’re several months younger so they won’t be transitioning for some time.

My husband says the transition will be a good thing; she’s been in the same room for a long time and the move might encourage her vocabulary development. She’ll be challenged by being around older kids and exposed to new people and different activities. He says she’s ready, and maybe he’s right. I, on the other hand, could stand another few months in the comfy, cozy, safe toddler room. In the end, of course, this has nothing to do with my comfort zone and it’s probably a good thing…otherwise I can only imagine the struggle she’ll face when she’s ready to head off to college.