ok need some ideas for Transitions?

We call it seperation anxiety when the child cannot leave parent without hesistation, and misses the parents when they leave them. Since this child parents have separated you as a teacher knows the child what daily schedule, things are now different and the child wants the same patterns of time with parents. The first thing to tell the child you are going to school and Mommy and Daddy(Which ever is picking them up) will be waiting for you when you come home from school. Doing circle time read a book, let parents volunteer if possible, some children like to bring something from home, after a while transitions should be smooth, if not you as the teacher should implement plans for the child to help with the transition. Stories about school, Mom etc, let child talk about home and parents draw pictures and you as teacher label them, if child is crying let him bring a stuff animal from home etc. You as the teacher have to find a way to alleviate the child's seperation anxiety, maybe pictures of parents etc, a picture of home and talk about how all students come to school and go home and parents are waiting for them. When you have parents meeting have parents to step in room and go through the things the child is doing usually if chid sees parents and teacher communicating positive this can help also. As a teacher you should not be emotional to the father or mother plight, professionals are to stay nuetral I have seen in experiences where teachers side with parents which is not in the best interest of the situation or the child or the facility. It is hard but please stay nuetral if the parents complain you may have a problem with Supervisor or Director.

Is there any way the parent can stop and play for a little bit (5-10 minutes or whatever works with them) with the child at pick up time instead of coming in, picking up and leaving right away? Maybe the mother/father can sit down with the child and read a book, color, play blocks, etc before getting ready to leave. Sometimes that little transition (easing from childcare and caregiver ....to parent....to home, instead of the abrupt "I'm at childcare with my caregiver...now I'm with mommy/daddy and going home") may help.

It might help also during this time, just before the parent/child playtime is over, that the parent can tell the two year old what they will do. For example, he/she can say "When we're done with this book, we're going to go home in the car and have chicken for dinner." This will help the child know what is coming and hopefully ease the transition.

I also agree with the poster who suggested talking during the day about who is coming to pick her up. This will also help her know what to expect. Is the split between the parents fairly recent? It might just help the parents to know that this may be normal acting out for this type of situation, and that all her pickup transitions are difficult (not just dad's...not just mom's). Gauge the family and situation though...that kind of information may be helpful or hurtful.

Tough situation. Luckily they have a good caregiver who understands what's going on and wants to help the family. :) Kudos to you and good luck!

Hopefully you know ahead of time who will be picking her up and at what time. Help her draw a picture or make a small gift for that parent and mention to her ahead of time who is coming and when. "Oh! Only one more hour and then daddy will be here! Let's paint a picture for him!" Try to maintain a positive attitude. You may want to add a little levity to the situation. "Now Dad, you know it's her job to make you feel guilty! Isn't she good at it?" Do tell her that she makes her daddy/mommy sad when they see her upset. Do tell her how very much they both love her. When she says she doesn't want to leave you, remind her that she will be back tomorrow, and that you will be there every day for her. Right now, her world feels like it has fallen apart and you probably feel like the only solid, consistent presence in her life. Hug her, let her know that you care about her, but be firm in supporting the parents efforts to build a new life and relationship with her. You may want to look up some articles to print out for them on how to go about helping her understand that they are the ones who have split up and it does not change their love for her or their relationship with her. Let me know if you want help finding some articles. I would be happy to help.