Switching Childcare During a Pandemic

lraddatz05

Hi!  Not sure if this is the right forum, but I’ll start here.  Both my husband and I work full time.  We’ve been using the same daycare center since my 1st was 3 months old, she’s now 4.5 years old, and my son is almost 3 year old.  (My daughter has a late fall Bday, so she won’t start Kinder till almost 6.)  Our center has been like a second home to us, always the highlight of my day going to pick them up, seeing how happy they were, and just talking with the teachers.  Then covid hit.  Parents are no longer allowed inside the building.  And things changed.  Teachers have been leaving left and right (my daughter has gone through 3 teachers in 6 months!). Management has been super snippy.  Teachers don’t seem happy anymore, and we no longer get any personal interaction with them.  The school keeps closing for multiple reasons, Covid cases, flooding, other building issues ... my employer is getting irritated that I’m constantly having to pick up my kids and find alternate care.

my husband and I have made the decision to switch to a new daycare.  One that comes highly recommended, and is in district with our school district so our kids will go to daycare with kids they will go to actual school with (not the case now).  I’m feeling MAJOR anxiety about this now.  My daughter LOVES her friends, and for a highly anxious kid who once was in therapy for her anxiety - she is now the social butterfly of her room.  My son is finally old enough to have one little boy that he can call his friend, who he loves so much.  While my husband and I aren’t happy with how things are run, my kids are happy there, teacher changes and all.  Are we doing more harm then good by switching them from their other home and causing more waves in such an uncertain time??  I’m so worried my daughter is going to regress back to her old ways.  She loves her friends so much, and so often I ask myself if I’m just being selfish about making them move???

jtayl962

It's a hard decision to switch your child to a new daycare when you been there a long time. It's not uncommon for daycares to have a turn around of teachers all the time. It's hard to find a daycare that has longevity of teachers. Teachers leave because they make between $9-$12 without a degree and $15-$18 with a bachelor's.I know this because I've worked in the field for a while. Due to Covid we dont allow parents in the building and we did have to close due to Covid cases. I think your children will be fine with staying at the daycare you go to. If you do see any regression in your daughter then maybe it would be a good idea to change.