October 2019 Moms
greenbean-2
member
Options
Childcare questions and discussion
greenbean-2
member
Many of us are probably starting to think about childcare options and I thought we could use a thread devoted to this topic. No set format for this thread, but please feel free to chime in with questions, good and bad experiences that you’ve had, gripes about waitlist lengths, etc.
Re: Childcare questions and discussion
- limit for fevers. How long fever free?
- diarrhea rules
- pink eye and strep rules
- (safe) sleep policy
- can they sleep in swings?
- how do they get infants to sleep in a crib
- feeding
- for formula- do you need to prepare prior for the day or will they do it/ mine also took cold formula
so I needed to make sure they knew how to handle that
- For BM- do they do paces feeding
- diapering
- how often are kids changed
- will they do cloth diapers (this was/is big for us)
- general
- ratio per age group
- how is the turnover for main teachers
- how often do they watch movies/tv
- do they follow a curriculum?
- Do they do preschool/pre-k or will you need to go elsewhere in a few years
~~~ ~~~ ~~~
BFP #2 5/4/14, EDD 1/15/15, DS1 1/19/15
~~~ ~~~ ~~~
Our center can only take 8 infants (ages 6 weeks to 18 months) for reference and has stopped taking applications for any infants because they’re full through early 2021
~~~ ~~~ ~~~
BFP #2 5/4/14, EDD 1/15/15, DS1 1/19/15
~~~ ~~~ ~~~
DS1 is fairly allergic to strawberries (instant hives). His preschool has given him strawberry jelly twice this year 😒 they had to ban them completely from his room because of carelessness
~~~ ~~~ ~~~
BFP #2 5/4/14, EDD 1/15/15, DS1 1/19/15
~~~ ~~~ ~~~
- what is their turnover rate for teachers?
- what are the credentials of lead teachers?
- at what ages do kids move to new rooms? Is that flexible based on their developmental needs or does say, everyone move up as soon as they turn 2 or every September?
For an in-home daycare I would ask;
- are you licensed?
- who is around the children? (Eg if the daycare provider’s older kids are going to be around after school that’s good to know
- how do they handle different activities for different ages (Eg if your baby is just going to be in a bouncer all day while the daycare provider does fun things with the older kids, you want to know)
For either I would ask:
- what is the cost and are there other fees?
- who on staff is infant CPR certified? (not necessarily names, but every teacher? Just the director? Etc)
- do they provide food after infancy?
- are infants on a set schedule or do they all eat and sleep when they need to? (Note: I thought flexible infant schedules were better but my daughter basically never napped as an infant because there was always someone awake and that was more fun than sleeping. She’s much better now that she’s in a toddler room with a set schedule)
- do they have a separate area for sleeping babies?
- how do they handle communication with parents? - both day to day stuff like how much they ate, and the bigger developmental stuff
- what is their policy for late pick ups? (you’ll be late someday despite your best intentions)
- how do they handle discipline?
- what is the teacher/child ratio?
- if your child gets sick/power goes out/there’s a snowstorm and your child needs to be picked up early, how do they notify you and how long do you have to get there?
- how many days per year is the center closed? When is it closed?
- how long is the waitlist? If you are offered a spot and reject it, do you stay on the waitlist?
- can you talk to a current/former parent whose kids go there?
I would pay attention to your gut reaction too. Sometimes a place just feels off in a way you can’t put your finger on. Avoid those. Try to find a place where the kids and teachers seem happy. The place we went with was less good on paper than another place we toured but we got a warmer vibe and it felt right in a way that the better-on-paper place did not.
Don't let them rush your tour. Stay and observe. Watch how the employees treat the kids and each other.
I actually ended up pulling DD out of her first daycare. Literally decided one day because I was just fed up and said 'yea she won't be back'. And then I called the state and filed a formal complaint lol
We are MUCH happier in her current daycare.
The only thing I can think to add that hasn't been suggested is policy on breast milk (if you plan to BF). Some daycares have policies that require them to toss unused BM (insert crying face). I doubt it would be a deal breaker for me, but if there were two centers in the running and all other things were equal, it might tip the scales.
This time we're going to keep DD1 in daycare and have a babysitter for this baby until he's about 15-18 months. It might end up a little more expensive but it is so worth it in my opinion.
With that being said, I know so many who have started their baby in daycare when they go back to work and absolutely love it! Just remember, do whatever works best for you and your family!!!
Me 39 - DH 41
Married 8/26/07
TTGP #1 Jan '15 -
BFP 9/11/15 - DS born 5/31/16
TTGP #2 July '17 -
CP July '17
Blighted Ovum MC Dec '17
CP June '18
BFP 1/30/19 - EDD 10/13/19
That leaves us with two. Overall they were pretty similar. Has anyone else taken multiple visits before? We happened to visit one during snack time and the other during nap time. It would be nice to see some of their other daily activities.