Nursery School Mommies - questions for you.

DD goes to nursery school, every morning for 2.5 hours - she took very well to it and looks forward to it but I find that when she gets home she is tired and sometimes cranky and I am sure its because she is up early and needs a nap.
My problem is - SHE WONT NAP - absolutely refuses, throws tantums and will not go down. She just threw a 1/2 hour tantrum because I tried to have her lie down with me and rest, hoping she would go to sleep.
Do you find your toddlers to be cranky/tired after school? Do they nap at all? DD will be 4 in February. the advantage is she goes to sleep around 8:00 without a problem but at this point Id rather her go down at 9:00 if only she would nap and not be so demanding and cranky.

Also - I ask her all the time about school, what she did, did she sing, color, etc.? Its so hard to get information out of her - but the end of the day ill have a general idea of what she did by seeing her homework and her projects but she tells me "She doesn't want to talk about it". She refuses to answer our questions. I can't believe my 3 year old is already telling me "SHE doesn't want to talk about it". UGGHHHh, i only imagine what she will say as the years go by. lol.
I know its normal but im so curious about her day and what she does.....How do you get information out of your kids about school......

TIA

Message edited 10/9/2009 1:23:26 PM.

Re: Nursery School Mommies - questions for you.

My DS is 3 1/2 and doesn't nap anymore so I can't comment on that, but he is sooooo hyper/wound-up after his mornings at school! He really loves it, and he's usually bouncing off the walls for a while afterward.

Re: Nursery School Mommies - questions for you.

My son is 3 1/2 and he still naps. He doesn't ever want to, cries and yells, but eventually he settles down and falls asleep.

I also get very little information about his school day when I ask him directly. He will tell me things here and there throughout the day, but rarely when questioned.

Re: Nursery School Mommies - questions for you.

My son doesnt tell me anything about school! Its frustrating. I feel your pain. And he doesnt nap.

good luck

Re: Nursery School Mommies - questions for you.

My DS is almost 3 1/2 but hasn't napped for over a year. He does get tired on the days he is at school. He gets speech therapy and we had to move it bc he gets too tired to focus on the therapy session after school.

Some kids tell more than others. My older son has always been so hard to get info from - I have found that chatting with him right before bed, he tells me tons, laying in the dark or sitting on the couch together. My DD is a jabberjaw, I know everything and then some. DS #2 (the 3 1/2 yr old) tells me nothing as well. So I ask a couple specific questions ("what did you have for snack?" "Who did you play with?") and I get a bit of info that way.

Re: Nursery School Mommies - questions for you.

Kerri will nap if we put her down but I stopped it because the days she napped she would get up at 5:30am the next day...also doesn't tell us about school. we have to eavesdrop on her playtime with her dolls...thats where I get my info

Re: Nursery School Mommies - questions for you.

Ava doesn't nap and seems to have a meltdown every evening at the same time. Around 4-5pm she's a hot mess. The way we've been dealing with it is to put on a long movie that we know she'll watch. It's probably not the best way to get her to rest, but she does. She'll lay on pillows on the floor and just relax for like an hour. She never watches the whole movie, but what she does sit still for is usally her just chilling out.
I'd rather her not nap because she's in bed at 7pm, and I like it that way!
Also, Ava hates to talk about school. She's got the attitude of "been there, done that, onto the next thing". Every now and then she'll share with me, but whatever, anything I can get out of her is good, in my book.

Re: Nursery School Mommies - questions for you.

+I'm a PK teacher & parents ask me this often. I just tell them to ask specific questions...ask what friend they played with that day. Ask what was their favorite thing about recess. Ask what they glued; or what story the teacher read.
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Re: Nursery School Mommies - questions for you.

DD is 3.5. she still naps, most days. Although, lately its becoming more and more of a fight/struggle. And when she does nap, its much shorter than it was just a few mths ago. I purposely put her in the AM class so she could still take her naps after school. She does come home tired some days, depends on if she was up early too.

She doesnt offer a lot of info on her day..a little though. But she will answer any questions I have so I ask who she sat next to at snack time and what they ate, what songs they sang, what they learned, what she played on at the playground, etc.