Nursery question

My upstairs neighbour said nursery has improved his little boys speech so much. We just went to one or two groups a week, but since we've gone to a group with older toddlers and children, my little boys speech is coming on amazing! Even singing twinkle twinkle now! Do you do Makaton with them? Are you concerned at all about their speech? X

I had really good experience with my daughter I sent her at 28 months old as she wasn’t talking much and didn’t like playing with other children she much preferred her own company. I viewed many nurseries found one I really like the speech and language therapy on site and she’s come leaps and bounds. She just turned four last week. Even after just one month people could see a huge improvement in her communication, even tho I was skeptical it was the best decision I ever made for her as the children center and parks just was not enough

She’s come on so much more since starting nursery, but she started in September at 18 months. She’s deffo learning to play around other children, and they deffo teach her stuff as she comes home saying odd words I’ve never said. She loves going, plays all afternoon/morning and comes home knackered from a busy time. She goes 3 half days a week. She doesn’t speak loads, she doesn’t say sentences or more than 2 odd words together like “more juice” but she’s deffo slowly getting more words daily x

I think its good to send them to nursery, even if just a day a week. My daughter has learned so much from the other kids and staff there, they track her development and let us know how we can support her reaching the next step. She won't have siblings, so for her it's good to develop those social skills. Plus it will make the transition to school easier.

My now 5 year old didn’t go to nursery for 5 months when she was 1 due to lockdown and when she went it was incredible. She was saying all these words and pointing out colours and all sorts. I’m a huge fan of nursery’s, both my children have thrived.

My LB goes to a childminder & he’s come on soo much & loves the slightly older children who go too. They do so much with them & take them to different places which I love so he’s seeing the world around him. I think it’s soo good for them to be around other children without us & learn new things. Worth viewing some & get the feeling for different nurserys (& maybe childminders too) :)

If you don’t feel 100% sure that nursery is the best for your child then please don’t send them to nursery because of social or economic pressures. The first three years are not about language development but about emotional and social foundation-building. Young children don’t learn social skills from equally immature peers but through one-on-one relationships, primarily with their mother. Nursery is absolutely unnecessary for development during this period. In the first three years, 85% of right-brain development takes place, which is why the focus should be on nurturing this process rather than pushing cognitive learning. Right-brain development is about emotional regulation, stress and conflict management, and reading social cues—all of which are best supported through a secure, responsive relationship with the mother. I highly recommend watching Erica Komisar videos on YouTube and reading Love Matters by Sue Gerhardt if you want to make an informed decision about nursery.

My little one started nursery at 18months. His speech was also a bit behind and I definitely think nursery has helped. He absolutely loves it and has learnt so much. He's almost 2 now and is saying new things every single day and this has really helped us understand more of what he wants/needs (obviously not all the time!). I think there are definite advantages in sending them to nursery but I would also say you don't disadvantage them if they don't go. If you are still engaging in regular play and getting some time at toddler groups/classes occasionally then that's fine. For speech, you could try Ms Rachel videos with you joining in alongside them? 😊

My LO has been in nursery for three days a week since 9 months old. I have absolutely no doubt it’s been wonderful for him in relation to social, speech, just everything. It’s a great balance for us too.

@Nora I really wanted to try and articulate this point, and then I came across your comment and *louder for the people at the back*!!! So nice to see someone on the same page ❤️

@Jodie Oh, thank you so much for the feedback. It honestly feels really comforting to talk to like-minded people. Sadly, nowadays the propaganda is so strong (mainly for economic reasons not for the sake of children) pushing parents to put their children into institutions as early as possible so they can get back to contributing to the GDP. It’s almost become a countercultural lifestyle to truly value motherhood and the work that goes into giving your child the healthiest emotional and mental foundations.