for children who have separation anxiety the daily drop off can be challenging back to school anxiety is normal and understandable many kids may feel anxious about going back to school after a long summer break others may feel nervous about starting school for the first time follow these tips to find ways to help your kids deal with school anxiety in daycare preschool and the elementary years school anxiety in daycare causes around eight months many children develop separation anxiety which causes them to scream and cry hysterically whenever their caregiver isn t around this anxiety coincides with a new intellectual skill called object permanence the ability to remember objects and specific people that aren t present in other words your baby starts calling up mental pictures of you when you aren t there and they miss your warmth comfort and familiarity young children also don t have a sense of time so they don t understand whether you ll be gone for an hour or two days signs and symptoms babies and toddlers may scream and cling during drop off but they ll usually stop once you re out of sight how to handle it dr greene suggests preparing your child with separation games such as peek a boo which reinforces that you ll always return after leaving you can also begin introducing small doses of separation into your little one s life a visit to an aunt s house or a day with grandma school anxiety in preschoolers causes school is an abstract concept to a kid who s never been before the unfamiliar people and routines can be scary for them some preschoolers might also have lingering separation anxiety but this is normal it simply means that a child has a strong attachment to a caregiver signs and symptoms usually kids with school anxiety will show a range of stress or anxiety related symptoms preschoolers might talk about their fear of school and ask for repeated reassurance can you stay at school with me do i have to go they may also complain about stomachaches or headaches or they ll throw tantrums when you re ready to leave how to handle it if your child is going into preschool take them on a tour a few days beforehand recommends sucheta connolly m d a child psychiatrist and director of the pediatric stress and anxiety disorders clinic at the university of illinois in chicago which treats children as young as 2 talk openly and excitedly to your child about their upcoming routine if they have trouble with new social situations arrange for playdates with some new classmates before school begins school anxiety in elementary students causes school anxiety in elementary students has many different causes such as the child might be stressed by the demands within the classroom most parents and teachers may not know that the student may have an undiagnosed learning disability the teachers might not be aware or think the student simply isn t trying the kid can fret about school other factors include generalized anxiety disorder gad and social anxiety which makes school seem scary children with gad suffer excessive worry about everyday things academic performance being away from parents making new friends fitting in and so on kids with social anxiety often feel intensely scrutinized and worry that they ll do something embarrassing some are fearful of speaking in front of the class while others have trouble even walking up to the blackboard this is real life trauma for them signs and symptoms children might have physical symptoms that include headaches nausea diarrhea difficulty sleeping etc these signs appear before the school day some will develop school refusal a fear so intense that they can t be put into the school bus or the building if they manage to get to school they may cry complain of aches and pains and can t be consoled by their teacher it s important to note that children with school anxiety struggle every day at school it s not something they have one day but not the next how to handle it always have recurrent physical symptoms checked out by a pediatrician to rule out medical problems assuming that kids are physically healthy parents need to be firm about not allowing them to miss school acknowledge that they feel scared but make them understand that nervousness doesn t mean they won t enjoy themselves remind them of new situations they ve dealt with such as sleeping at grandma s house for the first time without you and how it ended up being fun