Home | How It Works | Stats Login | Register         Case: Why are you crying, Mommy will be back There's a kindergartener that crys every morning whenever the student's mother drops them off. After about 10 minutes the student stops crying and is fine, but this does get annoying when this happens every morning. Is this something where the student is just young and needs to grow up a little or is this something where I need to have a meeting with the parents about? When asked, all the student says is that they miss mommy. Obviously the mother can't sit by the student's side all the time. What should be done? Solution: (Rates are posted for this solution!) I see this all the time in my students aged 2-5. We always tell them that "mommy will be back" and have a variety of other things that we do to encourage them to stop crying. We tell them that it makes mommy sad to see them sad like that, and suggest that they want mommy to be happy and have a good day at work. Alternatively, if there is a blanket or a toy that makes them feel like their mom is with them, we let them carry it around for a little while/until they are more comfortable with the school environment. We also try to distract them with their friends on the playground/in their class/etc. so that their focus isn't on their parents, but on their friends and having fun. Similarly, if the student has a favorite toy on the playground/in the classroom, try and make sure that that toy is available for them right away. It is also important, though, that the parents not hover around for too long. It is hard for parents to leave when their child is in the middle of crying, but it is imperative that they trust you to take care of the situation and that they not stick around. If the child sees their parent staying for longer and longer the more they cry, they are going to continue crying because it means that mommy will stay longer. Parents should say goodbye no more than two times, give them a kiss, and leave, no matter how hard it may be.