Daycare touring tips?

missnacholover · June 2014

Anything specific to ask/look for? About how long will each tour take?

sweetbabyrahe · June 2014

Things I asked: student/teacher ratio, drop off/pick up times, their comfort with breast milk and policies, same with cloth diapering if you plan to do that, cost, how they transition and when to older rooms, their policy on sick days, the teacher's certification, daily schedule with feedings/naps and if they would be flexible with you, if they have plans to help the babies meet milestones, what they provide as far as diapers/food/milk. That's what I can think of off the top of my head. The tour was I think about 30 minutes and I would recommend looking at older rooms as well to get a feel of the whole place. They also allowed us to spend a part of a morning in DS's classroom after he was born, but before he started attending which was nice and made me feel more comfortable with the teachers on his first day. Good luck!

missnacholover · June 2014

sweetbabyrahe said:

Things I asked: student/teacher ratio, drop off/pick up times, their comfort with breast milk and policies, same with cloth diapering if you plan to do that, cost, how they transition and when to older rooms, their policy on sick days, the teacher's certification, daily schedule with feedings/naps and if they would be flexible with you, if they have plans to help the babies meet milestones, what they provide as far as diapers/food/milk. That's what I can think of off the top of my head. The tour was I think about 30 minutes and I would recommend looking at older rooms as well to get a feel of the whole place. They also allowed us to spend a part of a morning in DS's classroom after he was born, but before he started attending which was nice and made me feel more comfortable with the teachers on his first day. Good luck!

Thanks! This is a great list of stuff!!! I appreciate it!

abbyful · June 2014

@sweetbabyrahe‌ a good list.

If you are going to cloth diaper, I suggest taking one with you to show them, most people don't realize what modern cloth diapers are like, they still think of folding & pinning.

I would also ask about how often the kids go outside. That was important for me, I want my kids playing outside.

And ask about vacation rates. For example, if we gone the entire week, we pay half.

Ask what they do with the kids in emergencies, such as fire or tornado.

And the #1 thing is trust your gut. I know it sounds cheesy.

mb314 · June 2014

PP gave good lists. I would add that you'll want to see the older kids' rooms. I had a place only show me the infant room, which was nice, but then be weird when I asked to see the toddler rooms (and the toddler rooms were terrible). Your LO will be a toddler before you know it, so you'll want to be comfortable with the entire facility.

Also, ask if they separate out mobile and non-mobile infants, and how they determine when your LO is ready to move to the next room.

And I agree that you'll get a feel for the place, and that will tel you a lot.

mrsvoy · June 2014

After you tour I would suggest just dropping in one time unannounced. Then you'll see them not in "tour mode." The daycare we chose for DS actually encouraged us to drop by sometime randomly before he was born so we would feel confident that they were a great place. Also, like some previous posters said....totally trust your gut.

missnacholover · June 2014

Thanks all! They said that they will be showing us all the rooms, but good call about asking when they move them up and mobile vs. non-mobile babies.

You're helping this FTM out a bunch!

nighthawkswife · June 2014

wow should i be looking at this already?this seems so soon. i suppose it isn't though?

dnetherl · June 2014

Great recommendations! I am going to make sure that no drop side cribs are in use. I would assume that any state inspected daycare would already be in compliance, but it wouldn't hurt to ask.

Drmommy84 · June 2014

Teacher kid ratio, breast milk policy or if using formula do bottles have to be premixed, sick policy, ask to meet teacher who will be in charge of caring for your child, pick up and drop off times, activities they provide for child.

Look up recent complaints or non-compliances/rule violations filed for the daycare. This is public record. Normally each state keeps a database of these violations discovered during site visits by state department who license the daycare.

Also ask if daycare have internet video feed so you can check on your kiddo in daycare -when I was a FTM this helped me eliminate my nervousness with having someone else caring for my kid. Good luck with your search!

kstirton · June 2014

Bringing up this thread again - quick ? for those experienced What do you guys think of home daycare?? Tips on how/when to prepare for those and what questions to ask? We live in a smaller town with only a few day cares and the only one I'm impressed with is one that is WAY out of my price range. Would look at something a little out of town as I work 20 minutes away but have to be at work at 7, which is pretty early.

missnacholover · June 2014

kstirton said:

Bringing up this thread again - quick ? for those experienced What do you guys think of home daycare?? Tips on how/when to prepare for those and what questions to ask? We live in a smaller town with only a few day cares and the only one I'm impressed with is one that is WAY out of my price range. Would look at something a little out of town as I work 20 minutes away but have to be at work at 7, which is pretty early.

FWIW, I also get to work early (645 or 7) so we've discussed and DH will be taking baby in the morning and I will be picking up. Is this an option?

I figure I get the best out of the deal - baby will be happy to see me when I pick up!

kstirton · June 2014

DH is currently in the market for another car - if we can trade his truck in for a pretty even exchange - b/c there's no back seat. So until then he will really be transporting baby in an emergency - his air bags do turn off but I am still most comfortable w/ that being a limited occurrence. He also works in the town we live in, so it'd be out of his way and he get's to work by 7:30.

abbyful · June 2014

kstirton said:

Bringing up this thread again - quick ? for those experienced What do you guys think of home daycare?? Tips on how/when to prepare for those and what questions to ask? We live in a smaller town with only a few day cares and the only one I'm impressed with is one that is WAY out of my price range. Would look at something a little out of town as I work 20 minutes away but have to be at work at 7, which is pretty early.

I would consider home daycare if it was someone I personally knew ahead of time.

But in general, I'm wary of home daycares. I like having a lot of eyes around; different workers that don't have connection to each other outside of work make it more likely that someone will speak up if something bad is happening. And I like that chain daycares not only have to follow the state requirements, but also typically have even more strict requirements set by the company itself.

Also, it seems most of the time when something bad happens at daycare (busted for kiddie porn, kid dies due to unsafe sleeping conditions, get get injured/dies in another way such as getting stuck in a fence, etc.), most of the time it's a home daycare, not a center. At least that's the trend I've noticed in my city.

There are some great home daycares, but for us a daycare center is a better fit.

highbornhunter · June 2014

Timely bump of this post! Hubby and I are visiting two daycare centers tonight and tomorrow night.

Thanks!

kstirton · June 2014

Great point @bethas - hadn't even thought of that.

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