All three of my children are now in school, with my youngest in preschool this year. Isabel and David went to the same preschool that Benjamin is now going to and I can already tell that Benjamin's time in preschool is going to be interesting.
When Isabel went to preschool there were really no issues. She did what she was told to by the teachers and followed directions. About the only "big" issue was that Isabel was very quiet and shy at the ages of 3 and 4 and therefore rarely participated in class discussions about the things they were learning.
David's preschool experience was different. He, too, for the most part followed directions and did as he was told. However, David had some issues with authority and often threw tantrums. We, along with is preschool teachers, tried many different things to help David through this time and to teach him more appropriate behaviors. Fortunately, these behaviors were not everyday occurrences during preschool.
Now to Benjamin. He just started preschool this past Wednesday. I took the morning off from work so that I could take him and pick him up on his first day of preschool, just like I have done with Isabel and David. My only real big concern about him starting preschool is the fact that he still sometimes has accidents as he doesn't always like to take the time to go to the bathroom. When I picked him up at the end of the morning his teacher indicated that she needed to talk to me before we left. This caused me to become very concerned. When I got a chance to talk to his teacher, she informed me that Benjamin had run off from them and that all three teachers were looking for him. They found him in the basement of the church where the preschool is located. I was utterly surprised by this and equally embarrassed. What a way for my son to introduce himself to his teachers. (I should also mention that we attend this church and so Benjamin is very familiar with the layout of the church.)
After several talks with Benjamin about expected behaviors at preschool, his second day (Friday) seems to have gone much smoother as I did not receive any phone calls from the preschool teachers. I do have a feeling though that this year is going to be a big learning curve for Benjamin as far as what is expected of him by other adults. While his daycare does a wonderful job with Benjamin, I think they let him get away with too many things because they think he is cute and funny.
It is going to be a very interesting year!
