Please help-Day Care!

Well, I tend to march to the tune of a different drummer, so here is what I would ask for personally.

The first thing you have to decide is if you want them in a home daycare or a facility.

Facilities tend to have a more strutured learning curriculum, and regardless of what the state's guidelines are, I would look for a ratio of 1:5..that is one employee for every 5 child children. If it's a home daycare, where the individual is alone, I would look for a ratio of 1:3.

Point to ponder: Home daycares are inspected by the state for daycare purposes, but are generally NOT inspected by the health department. That is something to keep in mind. Facilities always are.

I would ask about the education level of the workers and ask if they are screened for drugs and have criminal background checks and how they find their workers....you would be suprised at the ones that don't do this.

Find out what their medication/sick policies are. Some of them refuse to give medication unless you have a signed note from a physician, even if it's Tylonal for a minor sniffle. Most of them will require you to pull your child out immediately if they have a fever that hits 100...that's reasonable...but some of them have 99 as a guideline..which is ridiculous...a kid can run that on any given day and not be sick.

Keep in mind that licenses, ratings, etc...mean NOTHING in terms of quality. All that means is that they have submitted an application, paid a fee, and passed a yearly inspection...it doesn't mean that they will take care of your child, provide a safe environment, teach your child during the day, keep them clean, or serve healthy meals, or won't mistreat them.

Check to see if there are any complaints against your daycare...keep in mind that almost ALL daycares have complaints filed...don't let that scare you (there are too many paranoid mothers that will report a daycare if a 2 year old falls and gets a bruise...that doesn't equal neglect or abuse)..what you are looking for is the FREQUENCY of complaints and if the state found any cause of action. Where there is smoke, there is fire, regardless if the state found evidence of abuse or neglect.

The best way to find a good daycare is ask friends and co-workers, or start calling around to churches...if it feels right, it usually will be.

My twins stayed in an unlicensed home daycare...and that woman took better care of them than I did, and to this day, we are the best of friends and my children are very attached to her. I only moved them out because they needed to be in a facility with more children.

Take care, and I wish you luck.

Hi,

Hopeful's suggestions were great. I have found that my biggest issue is matching the shift hours with childcare hours. My daughter is now 9, so the issue is less frequent than in the past, but still challenging some days. I currently use a mom that lives a few houses down for before/after school care and weekends. I pay her a flat $5.00/hour which seems reasonable, except the weekends end up feeling a bit "expensive." Of course, I know she is safe and well-cared for and can run home if she wants/needs something!! It is awfully convenient driving home and knowing she is only a few houses away!!