Happy Place, Happy Children

As a mom, I want my children to be happy. Happy with me and happy without me by their side. Their great big smiles bring them good thoughts and that follows by happy experiences. That is what the Pre-K Center at Bay 11th street is all about. I truly need to admit that I could not be happier with the teachers and staff at the center.

September of 2016 was the first time I was sending my middle daughter off to school. As a lot of moms out there can relate – I WAS PETRIFIED to my core! I did not know what to expect. How would they handle my dear child? Would they snuggle her when she needed it? Would she be heard when she spoke in her squeaky, tiny voice? Would she be HAPPY there? And so on and on … a never ending chain of questions. But the moment we walked into my daughter’s new classroom, we were welcome with huge, enormous smiles from her teachers – Ms. Sideli and Mrs. Rodriguez. They truly made us feel welcome from the beginning. At our introductory meetings, we were able to address all our worries and concerns which truly made a huge difference. I loved the fact that I could see and visit the classroom. This is where my daughter would be going every day. That gave me a certain relief, knowing what environment she was going to be in. I was happy and satisfied. My daughter was anxious to start. There were some struggles we had to face, like crying at drop off time. But her teachers were there for her and her friends. They would hug the children, get them engaged with activities and make sure they were alright. Also, they were always there for the parents. We could talk to them about anything regarding our kids.

I would ask,

“Was she happy?”

“Did she eat?”

“What did she eat?”

“How was her nap?”

Her teachers became part of our family. They knew the kids so well that we found humor together knowing what would they do.

So, when the time came to sign up my youngest for Pre-k, I knew where I wanted him to go. That was the only school I put on his application. On the first day of registration, I was there to sign him up. I wanted my son to have the same amazing experience my daughter was having.

I knew there could be some challenges with my youngest, because he is the baby and stayed home with me the longest. But I had faith that the center would work with me to overcome any difficulties we would face. There were some tough weeks for us. My son had a very hard time staying there, and he spoke very little to nothing for almost 6 weeks from September 2017. Yes, he kept to himself from 8:20 to 2:40 in a room filled with other kids. But Ms. Sideli and Mrs. Rodrigez worked hard with him and never gave up. The results are in! He talks and sings, and he is HAPPY!

P.S. It was my turn to drop a lake of tears 😊 after receiving this picture from his teachers.