[Housepedia]

At home, my 4-year old nephew talks endlessly and is so active, but he behaves differently when he is outside and with other people. He becomes so shy, even refusing to talk and mingle with others. His parents are getting worried. This September, he is going to Junior Kindergarten and they aren't sure how he will respond to the new environment. Have you experienced a similar case with any of your kids? How did you handle it?

[Livvie]

I've seen this happen before. I think they do nothing at first. See if it when he becomes more used to people he opens up. Some kids are just shy until they warm up to people.

[Bella]

My daughter is going on three and she is exactly the same way. She's a total chatterbox at home, but she won't say boo out in public, even around people she's known since she was born. I don't really think anything of it because I was a painfully shy child and turned out to be a very outgoing adult.

[missyk]

Many kids will do this in unfamiliar areas but for schools it can be a bad thing turned good. Many parents I know had this issue but when the first day of school started or even when they do the pre-start and take the tour of the school; most kids open up then. Does the child have any friends their own age right now?

[KitchenKing]

I was the same when I was a kid. And I turned out to be a shy person in general. I'm not sure how exactly parents should handle this issue when it happens.

[Housepedia]

Originally Posted by missyk

Many kids will do this in unfamiliar areas but for schools it can be a bad thing turned good. Many parents I know had this issue but when the first day of school started or even when they do the pre-start and take the tour of the school; most kids open up then. Does the child have any friends their own age right now?

His mother has a couple of friends who have kids who are the same age as he is, and we have observed that when he is with these kids, he tends to open up a bit. We really hope that he'll get over this shy behavior when he gets older or when he starts school.

[missyk]

He might just be a little shy to start with and takes longer to warm up to new people. I still do the same. And also, what is "Junior Kindergarten"? Is that like nursery school?

[easyliving]

I think once he starts school and learns how to socialize he will outgrow it. It may be hard at first, but he will adjust eventually. I think it is pretty common with some kids.

[Hypolita]

I don't think this is unusual. Once he gets comfortable in his new environment, he'll probably come out of his shell a bit. If I were his parents, I'd send him and see how he does.