Advice about moving 1st grader to public school in fall

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Since it is time for re-enrollment contracts, you can tell the school you won't be returning and request that the information be kept confidential to those staff who need to know (Director, Business Office and Admission) until you are ready to tell your child. If you have parent teacher conferences in the spring, I would take that opportunity to share the news with your child's teacher and develop a game plan for sharing the news with friends. I have seen this done a number of times, with the child sharing the news at show and tell or sharing time with teacher support -- it always goes well, and always better than parents imagine. Again, a teachable moment.

This is what we did and it went well. We told dd about a month before school ended, and she shared it with her class then. It helped that another child (and good friend) was also leaving due to an out-of- town move. She wasn't happy about it, but it gave her time to say goodbye to the things and people she loved. We also have continued to maintain some contact with her friends from the private school, and visited for the fall fair so she could see other friends and teachers.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I moved my child on a Thursday to the public school. It was 2 months before the year ended. She just missed her former school on Friday until she adjusted to the new routine. On Monday I asked her if she would like to go back to the private. She looked at me and said: " Are you kidding? That school was a joke. This is a real school.Mom, I can't believe you paid so much money for a joke."

How old was the child you moved?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I moved my child on a Thursday to the public school. It was 2 months before the year ended. She just missed her former school on Friday until she adjusted to the new routine. On Monday I asked her if she would like to go back to the private. She looked at me and said: " Are you kidding? That school was a joke. This is a real school.Mom, I can't believe you paid so much money for a joke."

How old was the child you moved?

She was 6. She adjusted extremely well, I would say until the end of the school year. So glad we had the guts to do the crazy move.

[Anonymous]

Do you feel as though she is being challenged/nurtured as much in her public as her private? does she miss the "specials?"

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I moved my child on a Thursday to the public school. It was 2 months before the year ended. She just missed her former school on Friday until she adjusted to the new routine. On Monday I asked her if she would like to go back to the private. She looked at me and said: " Are you kidding? That school was a joke. This is a real school.Mom, I can't believe you paid so much money for a joke."

What school? What was such a joke about it?

[Anonymous]

Good luck OP. Children change schools all the time and she will be fine! At her age, she may be upset for a few weeks, but as long as she is able to make some new friends (which you can set up and facilitate over the summer) she will be ok. I am a former first grade teacher (public school) and I knew which students were new to the school and community and always made sure to encourage friendships with the kinder, more welcoming students in my classroom to ensure a smoother transition and the make sure that the new student felt comfortable. I bet your daughter's teacher will do the same thing!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I moved my child on a Thursday to the public school. It was 2 months before the year ended. She just missed her former school on Friday until she adjusted to the new routine. On Monday I asked her if she would like to go back to the private. She looked at me and said: " Are you kidding? That school was a joke. This is a real school.Mom, I can't believe you paid so much money for a joke."

I have never told my children that I paid for their school. When they got a little older they figured out that private school costs money, but I would never tell them how much if they didn't ask. They haven't ever asked. I might just say "you don't need to worry about things like this." Why tell them school costs "so much money?"

[Anonymous]

Why didn't you think about this in the first place? Why enroll her in private school when you were probably pretty sure you couldn't afford it?

[Anonymous]

OP, I think you should tell late. There are months and months between now and the start of the new school and if your child is a worrier, that is a lot of time to worry. I switched my child's school last year (going from preK to K) and I told him in May or June, which I regret. He was starting camp and he thought camp was the new school and worried a lot about having to leave midway through camp, etc. It added a lot of stress he didn't need. The actual transition was fine.
For kids a few months is an eternity. I would not make a big deal about saying goodbye to classmates in kindergarten. They all say goodbye at the end of the school year, and she can stay friends with her friends. As someone who switched schools repeatedly in elementary school (military family) i really don't think it will be a big deal. If anything it is enjoyable at that age as they make frieds fast. If she were in fifth grade it would be a different story.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Why didn't you think about this in the first place? Why enroll her in private school when you were probably pretty sure you couldn't afford it?

Because I didn't know parents like you exist in the. Private schools, parents who want everything fixed by the time their child is 7. Parents seem to think that children come in 2 colours only: disabled and giftedm There is normal curve in this area,

[Anonymous]

OP here. Thanks again to everyone. I really appreciated 12:21's post. The last poster sounds like she's responding as the OP (in a nonsensical way), but that wasn't me.

To the "why didn't you think of that before you enrolled?" poster: I think you're just a troll trying to provoke me. But obviously, there's a recession on. Even if there weren't, we still would have enrolled in a private school during these first years to avoid large classes for our shy child.

I do think my child would spend the summer fretting, so I've decided to wait until August to tell -- and to make sure that she'll see her friends both over the summer and in the fall until she's made some new pals. Again, I appreciate the chance to talk it through with you all, even if I didn't come to the same conclusions as everyone.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I moved my child on a Thursday to the public school. It was 2 months before the year ended. She just missed her former school on Friday until she adjusted to the new routine. On Monday I asked her if she would like to go back to the private. She looked at me and said: " Are you kidding? That school was a joke. This is a real school.Mom, I can't believe you paid so much money for a joke."

I have never told my children that I paid for their school. When they got a little older they figured out that private school costs money, but I would never tell them how much if they didn't ask. They haven't ever asked. I might just say "you don't need to worry about things like this." Why tell them school costs "so much money?"

I too have been contemplating when to move my 1st grader and PreK student. Do to a relocation and selling a home we have been away from my husband/there father for the last 5 months. Both boys have made it very clear they will adjust just fine as long as we are together as a family. Thank you for sharing your post and letting me know that some children do make smooth transitions when there are only 2 months of school left. I gave our boys the decision to stay and finish school or move and they said move. So that is what we are doing. Hope it all goes well.