I think I just became... (Day care again)

littlewinnie15 · August 2011

anti-in home day care.

I posted a while back about my disappointment after checking out the first of the in-home day cares we looked at. I just went and looked at a new day care center about 3 minutes from my house...and it was like night and day for me. There were 2 full time teachers, plus a floater, attending to the infants. They only accept 6 infants.

The place was spotless, they send home reports each day, there's an open door policy so I can stop in any time, the require full immunization (which was important to me, no offense to others that won't immunize). The toddlers were all so well behaved and were doing so many activities in the short 45 minutes I was there. They go right up through pre-school, where she showed me they have a book that tracks their learning progress, aligned with state standards, throughout their time there that we can send on to the kindergarten. I think my decision is made that in-home is just not right for me.

Just curious about others thoughts on this? Anyone else have strong feelings, one way or the other? Anyone else have a change of heart on the day care they ended up going with?

Mrs.Greeko · August 2011

It's funny, way back when we were looking for daycare we looked at a center and a couple of in-home daycares. We both hated the center atmosphere and loved the home atmosphere. So we went with an in-home. I've loved that it is more like a family setting and I love that my girls were together all day and that they were learning from the older kids. And I loved that there was no room changing or teacher changing or any of that. Everyone has different ideas as to what is important to them and what they need to feel comfortable leaving their kids somewhere.

littlewinnie15 · August 2011

Mrs.Greeko:
It's funny, way back when we were looking for daycare we looked at a center and a couple of in-home daycares. We both hated the center atmosphere and loved the home atmosphere. So we went with an in-home. I've loved that it is more like a family setting and I love that my girls were together all day and that they were learning from the older kids. And I loved that there was no room changing or teacher changing or any of that. Everyone has different ideas as to what is important to them and what they need to feel comfortable leaving their kids somewhere.

Exactly. I thought we would feel the same way about in-home versus a center. I really didn't think I wanted the whole structured/classroom setting... but my feelings were SO different after actually seeing places.

I know that both have their pros and cons, and we are still going to look at a few more to be sure!

Twin.Peaks · August 2011

I used to be a preschool teacher so I am well aware of how a GOOD center can work but if I had to leave my children they would go to a in home sitter.

If you find a good in home sitter you will find a person that will be your partner. Less sickness, same 'teacher' always, easier naps, personalized attention, etc.

But, I do agree that every parent has their own idea of what works and a center can be a great place. in both situations you just have to find the right one and it sounds like you did.

littlewinnie15 · August 2011

Twin.Peaks:
I used to be a preschool teacher so I am well aware of how a GOOD center can work but if I had to leave my children they would go to a in home sitter.
If you find a good in home sitter you will find a person that will be your partner. Less sickness, same 'teacher' always, easier naps, personalized attention, etc.
But, I do agree that every parent has their own idea of what works and a center can be a great place. in both situations you just have to find the right one and it sounds like you did.

All good points! I just know that a sense of panic set in when I went to the in-home center. It was 1 woman with 6 kids (would be 2 infants, 4 toddlers.) I just couldn't fathom how 1 woman could do it all and still give my 8-week old the attention I'd like.

I got to see first hand the attention being given to the babies in this center, and I think that's what sold it for me in the end.

ksuggitt · August 2011

I am a teacher also too, I teach babies 0-3. I was always set on sending my baby to an in home day care if I had to... Then I started reading, and coming across the horror stories of in home day cares. I love the "structure" and daily routines of centers, so if I had to go back to work ( I am lucky, I get to stay home w/ my baby) I would definitely put my baby in a center. I am like you, I like the daily sheets and activities my child would be doing, and would always fear that at in home my child would be set in front of the T.V. all day...

Twin.Peaks · August 2011

littlewinnie15:
Twin.Peaks:
I used to be a preschool teacher so I am well aware of how a GOOD center can work but if I had to leave my children they would go to a in home sitter.
If you find a good in home sitter you will find a person that will be your partner. Less sickness, same 'teacher' always, easier naps, personalized attention, etc.
But, I do agree that every parent has their own idea of what works and a center can be a great place. in both situations you just have to find the right one and it sounds like you did.
All good points! I just know that a sense of panic set in when I went to the in-home center. It was 1 woman with 6 kids (would be 2 infants, 4 toddlers.) I just couldn't fathom how 1 woman could do it all and still give my 8-week old the attention I'd like.
I got to see first hand the attention being given to the babies in this center, and I think that's what sold it for me in the end.

Sounds like you just went to a crappy sitter. There are laws for how many of each age and total you can have in your house. You are only permitted to have 2 under 2 (including your own) at a time unless you have hired help. 1 teacher to 6 children is ok by law IF the children are in the correct age groups. If your child would make 7 and be the third infant she is not following the guidelines and no WAY would I let me child go there.

My best friend do in home care and she is wonderful with the kids. She was a peds nurse before deciding to work from home to be with her children so they get the best care possible.

britzymama · August 2011

I think that it is what ever you and your hubby are comfortable with. We decided on in-home day care. The lady is amazing and she is flexible with our crazy work schedules. She also teaches English and Spanish which is great because DH is hispanic.

I enitially looked into child care centers and I found that it wasn't the best fit for us. I felt extremely uncomfortable with the idea of even dropping LO off. I even had a dream about it and I cried!

Do whatever you and your Hubby think is best for your LO and good luck

littlewinnie15 · August 2011

Twin.Peaks:
Sounds like you just went to a crappy sitter. There are laws for how many of each age and total you can have in your house. You are only permitted to have 2 under 2 (including your own) at a time unless you have hired help. 1 teacher to 6 children is ok by law IF the children are in the correct age groups. If your child would make 7 and be the third infant she is not following the guidelines and no WAY would I let me child go there.
My best friend do in home care and she is wonderful with the kids. She was a peds nurse before deciding to work from home to be with her children so they get the best care possible.

Sorry, I don't think I was clear. When our child enrolled, it would have been 2 infants, 4 toddlers - she was completely within the law. I made sure to research that. The woman came highly recommended to us, and she was very, very sweet.

It was just this gut feeling I got about sending my child there, I couldn't really explain it. I know there are WONDERFUL in-homes out there, I just think I'm too neurotic for them! Ha!

Andrea Cohoon · August 2011

We decided on a center versus a home-environment for the same reasons you did. Our center also gives kids, starting at age 3, swimming lessons and aligns with our school district's pre-school program. I really liked the idea of an in-home daycare, but it didn't fit what we wanted for our baby's development.

baby3ob · August 2011

we're going center route due to many reasons, some personal.

authorofdreamz · August 2011

One thing I learned through taking child development classes (within the last three years) and doing lots of observations in day-care centers/pre-schools is that apparently right now (at least in my area) the turnover rate for employees is very high and most people are not working in one place for more than a year. They say that at that early age consistency in who cares for your child is very important so that would bother me about day-care centers.

mrs. remy · August 2011

You are going to find so much variation between centers and between different in-home providers it is crazy.

At first I was sure I wanted an in-home for my DS. I went to a couple in my area that would have openings when I needed them and was scared away. At one place it was one stressed out provider watching six kids of assorted ages trying to wrangle them all into one room....total chaos. The toddlers were climbing furniture and getting into things while she was trying to change a baby and talk to me. The second place had two providers, great, but the house reeked of smoke and was filthy and I wouldn't let my DS set foot in there. One place she was just sitting watching talk shows and had all the kids in there on the floor watching Maury or whatever. I moved on to looking at centers quickly. I LOVE our center. He has so much fun there and loves his friends and teachers.

I'm not knocking in-home. My friend does it and she is WONDERFUL-has a great curriculum for the kids, does fun activities for them, and I would trust her with my kids in a heartbeat. She just lives too far from me to be practical.

littlewinnie15 · August 2011

mrs. remy:
You are going to find so much variation between centers and between different in-home providers it is crazy.
At first I was sure I wanted an in-home for my DS. I went to a couple in my area that would have openings when I needed them and was scared away. At one place it was one stressed out provider watching six kids of assorted ages trying to wrangle them all into one room....total chaos. The toddlers were climbing furniture and getting into things while she was trying to change a baby and talk to me. The second place had two providers, great, but the house reeked of smoke and was filthy and I wouldn't let my DS set foot in there. One place she was just sitting watching talk shows and had all the kids in there on the floor watching Maury or whatever. I moved on to looking at centers quickly. I LOVE our center. He has so much fun there and loves his friends and teachers.
I'm not knocking in-home. My friend does it and she is WONDERFUL-has a great curriculum for the kids, does fun activities for them, and I would trust her with my kids in a heartbeat. She just lives too far from me to be practical.

This is the exact scenario that made me so nervous. What if a toddler falls and cuts his leg open, but my baby is crying with a wet diaper? I just don't know how they do it..Plus, where is my baby while she is teaching the toddler group? In the corner in a pack and play? I'm just not down with that.

I know there are benefits to keeping with one caregiver, but they are still human. After seeing the place, I just can't wrap my head around how one person can give 6 little ones the attention that they need...

Again, not knocking the in-homes... I just know now that it's not for us.

hjbeckwith · August 2011

I worked at a childcare center for four years. I worked in every room from ones to afterschool. I have decided to send my son to a home daycare. I attended this daycare when I was a child and I am close to the owner and her family. I completely trust her with my child. She is the only person there but I trust her. I worked at a "five star center" and I saw nothing five start about it. All the stress that is put on the teachers at a childcare center is ridicilous. I know we were pushed and pushed to educate all day long. Children need to be children and PLAY! Structure is good but I don't want my child limited to what he can and can't do within safety limits. I guess I lucked out with me knowing my child's childcare provider. Everyone has a different opinion.

shanniebananie · August 2011

I run an in-home daycare and have never had my daycare kids running and jumping all over my furniture while I was attending one of my infants. Maybe that's just luck, but I've never experienced an in-home care with that dynamic. My kids are kids and kids sometimes get out of hand, but the onus is on the provider to be able to rein that in, regardless of ratio.

Kids run around and get hurt, no matter what sort of care facility you'll put them into. Center's can offer lots of advantages over an in-home provider and vice versa. It just depends on the person you are and the needs of your child.Some in-home providers have a preschool curriculum that rivals even the great Montessori and other's provide a more low-key, home-like environment. It's all in what you feel your child needs.

When I ask my parents why they chose me and my home, I get the following reasons:

1) My home is clean, orderly and inviting;

2) My curriculum is based on the needs of each child and varied without it feeling regimented like school;

3) They enjoy watching my dynamic with my kids during the interview process; and

4) They trust that, when they're at work, that I'm here loving their kids and that they feel confident that it's the right place for their children.

Go with your gut, if the center feels right, jump on it, but please don't write off all in-home care based on the few you've experienced. We're not all like that.

smilelari · August 2011

This is such a personal decision. We love our daycare center. I absolutely could not leave my child in an in-home unless the provider were someone that I already knew and trusted because there is only that 1 person. I feel like there are more checks and balances in a center. And it's worked out very well. We love the director. We love the teachers. They have been very flexible with us allowing us to bring in food from home, glass bottles, cloth diapers. Only 1 teacher has left in the 2 years we've been there (2 have gone on maternity leave) and LO still sees the teachers from the infant rooms regularly even though he's moved up. I like knowing for sure that the center will be open and that I won't ever need back up. We do have issues with illness from time to time. We've had RSV (once), croup (once) and pink eye (several times). Usually when we're home sick it's due to vaccine related fever and if the in-home is following state regs, that would occur there as well.

babywing · August 2011

littlewinnie15:
The place was spotless, they send home reports each day, there's an open door policy so I can stop in any time, the require full immunization (which was important to me, no offense to others that won't immunize). The toddlers were all so well behaved and were doing so many activities in the short 45 minutes I was there.

This is how I would describe DS's daycare. I think you just need to find the right one if that's what you are looking for. The kids actually help DS with his potty training, they are all so well mannered. The older kids read to the little kids. She sends home a weekly bulletin every Friday of what they did. During the summer he'd bring home art projects all week (they did the planets), now starting Monday it's "school" time. He has started bringing home school work he's been doing. She's started to give us a list of what he's doing well in and what we can encourage when we have him of what he struggled with that week.

Anyways.... I'm just really happy with them as you can tell. We recently pulled him out of another that promised a lot of this and we never saw it, so we are pleased. I think it depends on what you want and you need to find it. Daycare centers are MUCH more expensive here so not an option. I don't think in-home daycare should be written off just because you are looking for more of a school atmosphere.

Summer20 · August 2011

littlewinnie15:
It was just this gut feeling I got about sending my child there, I couldn't really explain it. I know there are WONDERFUL in-homes out there, I just think I'm too neurotic for them! Ha!

I think you nailed it - there is a lot to be said about that "gut" feeling. There will probably be several options that are good, but you'll feel the best if you go with your gut. We just knew as soon as we met ours that it was right and 15 months later we're still extremely happy. (FWIW, we use an in-home and LOVE her!)

littlewinnie15 · August 2011

I certainly didn't start this post to encourage anyone to write off in-home day cares. I just know, from my minimal experience of what I've seen, that a center is right for my personality and our family. It is more pricy - $265 per week, versus $165 per week. But DH and I have talked it over and are okay with an increase price if it means we are more comfortable with the care we know our baby will get.

Again, I know there are pros and cons to both, and there are some great in-home day cares out there. I loved reading everyone else's feedback and personal experience, just because I was so surprised at the change of heart I had considering I was SO pro in-home before. It definitely is a very personal, case-by-case decision, for sure!

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