Screamer not settling in
 

DCG, 15 months, is in her 3rd week here and there's no signs of the screaming and crying settling down yet.

This is a first for me. Usually by week two, there are some signs that the new child is starting to adjust. This one wants nothing to do with the other kids and cries...all.day.long. Just yells at the front door and screams. Never smiles, not once played with toys or children, nothing but cry.

Nap is about 15 minutes, cry for 15 minutes, repeat.

She's M-F (full-time) and has the typical blanket from home and paci for nap.
The problem is mom is a teacher and has had her home since birth. She's never been in daycare.

I've never in my life heard a child have such a loud cry and scream. I've been to heavy metal concerts that were quieter than her.

How long do you typically give for a 15 month old to at least show signs of adjusting?

IME, by week two you should see signs.

I know some will say it takes *months* but I don't think that's fair to you, the distraught child or the other kids in your care. :ouch:

In the years I've done this, the only kids I had to term during the adjustment period were like yours (though mine were a bit older) I knew the end of the first week that it wasn't happening. It was to the point the SA kids didn't want to get off the bus to come here because they didn't want to deal with crying/screaming.:eek:

This job is hard enough as it is, without trying to acclimate a child who just isn't going to be a good fit.

We had a child in the center where I worked exactly like this. It was insane. One of the ECE's got such bad migraines at the end of her day every day that she had t start wearing earplugs. She finally settled in around week 4. Then she was ok for a week until Christmas break when he parents went to China for a month. Then when they came back the crying resumed all over again....another 3-4 weeks. Some kids are just extremely stubborn. If it is affecting your mental health you may want to term.

I personally termed after only 1 week of non stop crying! I cannot handle it and it isn't fair to the other kids who were very stressed.

At 3 weeks she should have some sort of improvement. Have you talked with parents about helping in the transition? Are they co sleeping, carrying dcg around everywhere?

I have a new 15 month old who cried at drop off (a lot) for the first week. On Thursday and Friday that first week, he cried all day. After that, he's been fine. I had another that never did stop crying, unless she was in a stroller on a walk-we walked every day for quite a while because of her. She's nearly 4 now, and her parents have had to take her to daycares in bordering towns because of behavior issues, because she had been kicked out of nearly everywhere in our town (the crying escalated to hitting, biting, etc.). You just never know. If a child hasn't settled in 4 weeks, or if the screaming is simply too much to deal with (you and the other kids are going insane), it's time to term.