---Back story---
Okay, so I am in a room probably 20' by 15' with now 12 toddlers, age 20 to 30 months, plus a teacher's aid. Also, of course, tables, bookshelves, and two cabinets. There is very little I can do about the space, as it is a shared space--for instance, I would like to rearrange and move one of the cabinets out, but am unable to. ---Actual problem---
This is an okay situation--until pick-up. Now, drop-off is a little chaotic, too, with so many parents coming and going and the need to calm down so many criers (especially since I have a lot of new children at this point), but that is to be expected. Pick-up, however, is an utter nightmare. A bunch of parents come at the same time--again, can't be avoided, but with a room this size, makes for a very crowded space. Children linger by the door in groups, waiting for their parents once they know they are coming. Parents often leave the door open, causing me to have to rush over there and close it so that no one leaves the room. It gets so chaotic that I often forget to inform parents of the things that they need to know and I feel leaves a sense of chaos with parents about their kid's room--which I hate, because the rest of the day really runs quite smoothly. I have never been a fan of this time of day, but this year just seems so much worse. Maybe it is the group, or just having 2 more kids (I used to have 10), but it makes the end of every day so awful and impedes my ability to develop a relationship with the parents, I feel. What do your kids do at pick-up? Do you have any management strategies that might be helpful?
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