A bus driver has been roundly praised on social media for giving a terrified schoolboy a helping hand of encouragement on his first day at school.

The child, Axel, was in tears when his mother, Amy Johnson, put him on the school bus. The driver, Isabel Lane, however, found a way of comforting him, simply by holding his hand.

Axel, who hails from Augusta, Wisconsin, was just about to start at a pre-kindergarten school for children aged four and under.

Johnson spoke to CNN about the heartwarming moment. "He was super excited to go, but when the bus came around corner he was really quiet," she said. "The bus opened the door and I looked at him and he started crying.”

His mother helped her son onto the bus, but as she proceeded to leave, he reached out for his mother. Luckily, Lane could see that the little boy was in distress, and turned around to attempt to soothe him.

"I told him: 'Buddy, you got this and will have so much fun.' I stuck my hand behind the seat as maybe something else to grab onto and he grabbed my hand," she told the publication. "I could see that he needed to be comforted and that was the best I could do at the time."

Thanks to the actions of the bus driver, Axel calmed down by the end of the journey, according to his mother. She hopes Axel can be a role model for his younger brother, who is two-years-old.

A bus driver has been roundly praised on social media for giving a terrified schoolboy a helping hand of encouragement on his first day at school.

The child, Axel, was in tears when his mother, Amy Johnson, put him on the school bus. The driver, Isabel Lane, however, found a way of comforting him, simply by holding his hand.

Axel, who hails from Augusta, Wisconsin, was just about to start at a pre-kindergarten school for children aged four and under.

Johnson spoke to CNN about the heartwarming moment. "He was super excited to go, but when the bus came around corner he was really quiet," she said. "The bus opened the door and I looked at him and he started crying.”

His mother helped her son onto the bus, but as she proceeded to leave, he reached out for his mother. Luckily, Lane could see that the little boy was in distress, and turned around to attempt to soothe him.

"I told him: 'Buddy, you got this and will have so much fun.' I stuck my hand behind the seat as maybe something else to grab onto and he grabbed my hand," she told the publication. "I could see that he needed to be comforted and that was the best I could do at the time."

Thanks to the actions of the bus driver, Axel calmed down by the end of the journey, according to his mother. She hopes Axel can be a role model for his younger brother, who is two-years-old.