Another daycare question

djtippietoes

The daycare we've been doing to to since LO was 3 months is pretty bare bones.  It's inexpensive (relatively speaking) and close to my office.  I have this feeling that while LO is being cared for and his needs are being met, not much else is going on.  I don't really think they're teaching them much - very sporadic art projects, no sensory play, etc. I guess my question is - does that matter?  In a perfect world, I'd love to send him to baby utopia where they do art projects all day and email you pictures of your LO throughout the day.  (I have several friends who have children in dc's like this.)  I guess while I don't feel like he's being neglected, I don't feel like he's being stimulated either.  Or at least, if he is, they don't tell me about it and all I've ever witnessed is a bunch of crying babies.  Plus, there's definitely been times where the state ratio isn't being met.

If his basic needs are being met, is that enough?  If I need to, I can cut back in other areas of my life to put him in a "better" daycare, but it's not the easiest thing to do right now.

Codypup

I'm not an expert in this by any means. But I don't know that I'd feel comfortable with a place that only did the bare minimum.

That being said, my DC doesn't send photos, or do daily art projects, or tell me about specific sensory play stuff. I can't log in and watch their cameras. It's pretty basic in that sense. But I know they work on tummy time, and encourage kids to crawl (like help them along), and have 80 bajillion sensory toys around all the time. They go outside every day too, which I like. It's not Baby Utopia, but I feel like the teachers LIKE the babies, and have fun with them. That's more important to me than emailed photos, to be honest.

The babies crying constantly thing would bother me, even though logically, I know that's what babies do. Is it really all the time? Is your LO crying too?

How do you feel about the teachers? Have you bonded with any of them?

BxMama4

I second what PPs said. Our daycare is not baby utopia but they definitely engage with the babies and work on skills.

My biggest concern is the fact that all you've seen are babies crying. I would absolutely not be okay with that knowing that if they are letting other babies cry, they are probably letting my LO just cry. That would break my heart and I would definitely look for something else!

shellbell3845

Breaking ratio would be a deal breaker for me. My state's ratio is one ece to 4 infants, but my center very often has three teachers to 8 babies. It's part of what made me feel comfortable going there.

I'm ok with no daily art projects, daily outside time, no photos/texts/cameras. I've noticed that there are often different toys in the room and that there are sometimes certain centers set up for play (tummy time, mirrors, etc).

LO has never been upset when I've picked him up, and very rarely are the other babies crying. I'm sure there will be a day when he's not happy, but right now, it's telling me that he's happy and engaged.

I think I'd start by talking with the director. I think you'll be able to tell a lot based on her response. It also doesn't hurt to look at other dcp options.

djtippietoes

The ratio in GA is high anyway - 1:6.  I counted this morning and with LO, there were 6 babies.  So that was within the ratio.  My LO is often one of the last ones dropped off.  As for the crying, I think that has to do with the high ratio.  If I'm in the room, they won't let LO cry, they'll pick him up, but who knows what happens when I'm not in the room.

The emails, video and stuff - I just want to know that they're doing something with the babies and not just plopping them down.  I thought emails and pics might show me that, but I'd be fine if they just told me what LO did all day - how he was, what he liked and disliked.  Is that a lot to ask for?  (Honestly, I don't know.)  

The main teacher left about a month ago.  I never really cared for her.  Now there have just been other teachers from other classes subbing. 

shellbell3845

djtippietoes said:

The ratio in GA is high anyway - 1:6.  I counted this morning and with LO, there were 6 babies.  So that was within the ratio.  My LO is often one of the last ones dropped off.  As for the crying, I think that has to do with the high ratio.  If I'm in the room, they won't let LO cry, they'll pick him up, but who knows what happens when I'm not in the room.

The emails, video and stuff - I just want to know that they're doing something with the babies and not just plopping them down.  I thought emails and pics might show me that, but I'd be fine if they just told me what LO did all day - how he was, what he liked and disliked.  Is that a lot to ask for?  (Honestly, I don't know.)  

The main teacher left about a month ago.  I never really cared for her.  Now there have just been other teachers from other classes subbing. 

IMO, no that is not too much to ask. LO has a notebook at DC and they write all of his meals, naps, and diapers down. There's also a place for comments, and the teacher always writes 3-4 sentences about what LO did, who he played with, if he was fussy, etc. I have a pretty good idea of what he does while he's there and how his day went. 

Have you tried popping in to check on him? (I don't know if this is feasible for your work schedule, etc.) DH occasionally pops in on his lunch break (I work too far to be able to do this). He always has a positive report, and there's never been anything that gives us a red flag. I'm just thinking it might be interesting to see what's going on when they're not expecting parents to be around. 

djtippietoes

shellbell3845 we do get a piece of paper every day but they never fill out that part at all.  I think they've filled it out once.  I had to get on them to make sure the food part was filled out.

Codypup

re: letting you know what LO likes and dislikes...

For us, it depends on the teacher. The morning teacher is more vague - hence the "Willa seems sensitive and emotional lately." The afternoon teacher will tell us specifics, like that she pulled up on something, or that she had a lot to say that afternoon. I've not thought to ask specifics though, like "So, is she doing anything new these days?" Maybe asking specific questions like that would get you more information. 

I think the fact that teachers are subbing in is probably having an effect on the overall feel of the room for you guys. One main teacher builds a bond, and notices differences day to day. When you swap people in and out, it's probably harder for them to know what's normal for each child.

I second what @shellbell3845 said about popping in unexpectedly. I also don't think there is anything wrong with talking to the director and saying you'd like more detail.

I mean, we leave our children for 8+ hours a day. It's not unreasonable to want details about what goes on! 

sdlaura

I agree with codypup. Our in home daycare doesn't have kids counting in Spanish by age 1 or whatever, and they don't do art projects until they're actually old enough to color, but they play outside a lot, get encouragement to move and crawl, sing songs and dance, etc. I wouldn't be ok with ratios regularly being off or with a bunch of crying babies. We don't get any kind of paper filled out, but since DD has been going there for almost 2 years, I know generally what they do and what the schedule is like, so our provider just tells me anything important that's going on,