Bus driver sweetly eases nervous kindergarten kid’s first day nerves

First days can feel like the worst days for some little ones. That’s definitely the frame of mind four-year-old Axel Johnson was in, when the school bus appeared on his street.

First day blues

“He was all smiles when he saw me around the corner and I started to slow down and that’s when you could see his face start to change,” brilliant bus driver Isabel Lane told WEAU.

Things then went downhill fast, as young Axel decided he didn’t really want to start kinder after all, thank you very much.

Axel’s mum Amy tried to help her little boy transition from bus stop to bus. 

“I picked him up and got him on the bus,” Amy told Fox7. “He started to cling to me and I told him, ‘Buddy, you got this and will have so much fun!’”

But Axel was having none of it.

A helping hand

Luckily bus driver Isabel instantly knew what to do to help this nervous little boy. She reached back and grabbed Axel’s hand, giving it a reassuring squeeze.

Amy snapped a photo of the moment that helped to make both her and her son feel a little less daunted. It made a big difference to Axel who adjusted to his big transition like a total champ.

“The day after that he was waiting at the bus stop all by himself, he got on all smiles and talking to me the whole time so he is doing much better now,”  Isabel explains. #Naww

Augusta Police Department shared Amy’s photo on Facebook to highlight the excellent work that so many education-related professionals do.

“This is one of our wonderful bus drivers, Miss Lane, holding the hand of a scared little one on his first day of school,” they wrote.

“The compassion we see every day in our teachers, bus drivers, custodians, administration, food service staff, and paraprofessionals is truly admirable.”

“As simple as reaching out”

People on Facebook agreed.

“Thank you so much Izzy!!! It definitely takes a village to help out with our youngest students,” one wrote.

“What a precious gesture! Thank you Isabel Lane for being such a compassionate and caring employee!” another person posted.

“I have tears rolling down my face! What a wonderful bus driver!” someone else commented.

“If you see someone maybe struggling just to do something as simple as reaching out a hand and showing that you are there,” Isabel said. “You don’t have to say anything but just to show someone you are there makes a big difference in someone’s day.”