Day Cares

The most important things to look for in a daycare are safety, quality of care, cleanliness. You can get a sense for a lot of this by touring the facilities, asking for referrals, looking up reviews, asking about their policies, etc

Then there are daycares that may fit better with your parenting style - talk to them about how they discipline, nap, teaching methods, how many kids in rooms, how they move kids up as they get older.

Last are the convenience type stuff - which can also be important in working with your work/life schedule: Do their hours work for you, when are they closed (some only close on major holidays, some close when the public schools close which can be very inconvenient). What meals do they provide (mine provide ALL meals and snacks which was a major bonus not to have to pack food everyday).

Overall, just have to weigh the cons/benefits of each one and see what works best for you

You visit a bunch, and you go with your gut. And then after you choose one, and your child starts, you stop in unexpectedly and you keep your eyes open. If it doesn't work out, you find a different one.

I say this from experience. I visited a bunch of daycares. I picked one that I thought was good after much agonizing over the decision. It didn't work out. We moved to a different one after 6 months, and we've been there for 7 years (we're on our 2nd child there).

There is no way to guarantee that you will choose the 'best' one the first time. Please take the pressure off of yourself. You do the best you can, and you always keep your eyes open. You are not making a permanent decision, and you can always change your mind later.

I visited several daycare centers. I was very nervous about asking all the right questions, but I soon found that I didn't need to. The directors already knew the questions people would ask and went through their prepared "script" during the tour. At the end, I really didn't need to ask any questions.

I called the daycare centers and set up tours. The directors showed me around and gave me some information. I watched teachers interacting with the kids, saw the playground, saw the classroom my son would be in, etc.

After you've done that, you'll know. You'll just know which place makes you feel good and comfortable and which places don't.

Visit. You must see it in person, with kids at the facility. Note the vibe. Note if the kids are happy or not. Note the cleanliness. Ask about play time, discipline, learning, employee turnover and training. I picked a center that was pricewise in the middle of the pack. I couldn't make myself love the nearby one in a house that was not kept up (with a TV in the baby room) or the highly recommended one that cost way more but seemed institutional. The one we picked was "just right" for DD. All other things aside, go with your gut.

ETA: I asked coworkers for pros and CONS of different places. That way I didn't waste time with somewhere with a known issue. When they shied me away from a center, I asked why. Usually it was a policy that I also wouldn't agree with. Ask people the age at which their child started there. Someone's baby room experience may be very different than in preschool. I do agree to know how communication happens and find out what their policies are for things like vacations (yours and theirs) and sick days and accidents. Can you truly call them any time or show up any time to get your kid (like if I wrapped up work early)? If they discourage that, and are not open in general, skip it. You are asking them to care for your child, and you need them to be upfront and be able to communicate with them.

I owned my own center and have worked in child care many years.

In my opinion what I want to see when I go into the toddler room is order. Toys in play area, cots stacked nicely, tables set lower for the little ones to be able to sit comfortably, the kids art work on the walls because the teachers think it's beautiful, cubbies that the kids can reach and put their own coats and stuff in them, and the changing table having shelves or someplace for the kids diaper bags so the teacher doesn't have to reach to another place and leave the kiddos on the pad alone. I had individual cubbies that a few diapers and their wipes would fit in.

I also had a mirror on the bottom of those cubbies so the kids could see themselves while laying down, I also had some toys attached to the wall so they could do stuff. This keeps the kiddo busy and they lay stiller.

The toddler room is a new adventure for kids just coming out of the baby room. The infant room has baby beds, floor padding so they can do tummy time and other infant things.

In the toddler room they lay on cots to nap at certain times of the day and they don't get to lay down other times. They have a full and busy schedule all day and they can't stray too far from that. If the state comes in and sees a kiddo laying down asleep but it's story time or recess time and the whole class is inside because one child is asleep they can lose their license. So in the toddler room the kids lay down for 1 nap per day after lunch. The rest of the day is BUSY!!

You want a parent center so you can see what's going on, what the last inspection shows, if there is any illnesses going round that you should be watchful for, and more.

You want to see security. I will tell you though that if you're divorced the child's father has just as much right to that child as you do. The center cannot keep a child from the parent for any reason. What they "can" do is keep the parent busy doing something while someone else calls 9-1-1 if there is legal cause such as a restraining order or alcohol smell emanating from said parent.

A child care center should fell like they are a surrogate mom for you. If you don't fell right try to ponder and find out what is effecting you.

One thing that wasn't obvious to me at first, and might be worth asking about, if it is important to you, is, whether, through what method, and how frequently the daycare will communicate with you.

Some give handwritten daily notes - your kid ate XYZ at snack, had this many oz of milk, slept for this amount of time, had xzy wet/ dirty diapers. really enjoyed - playing with the blocks, is showing an interest in - figner painting.

Others will call or e-mail when if there is a problem.

Others will give you a chat at pick up or drop off and that's about it.

Figure out whether communication is important to you, if so, make sure to ask about it, and include it in your selection process.

Best,
F. B.

Drop In and "set up" a visit. If they know somone is coming in the center is "prepared" vs, see what really goes on.

Check out several, ask the parents that are there what they think .

I have had good luck and bad luck with centers. The teacher is really the one who makes the room for the child.

We have done nannys, home daycare, daycare centers. .They way we have it now is the BEST we have ever had it.. My youngest is in a home daycare, that is where my son goes on non school days (the daycare is by my hubbys work). My son goes to the YMCA for after care, I can not be happier with both of those child care options.

You have follow your mommy gut.. if something seems off, there is a reason for that.

Good luck.

Think about you, too.
The best option will be close to home or work so you are not stressed getting there. And no long drives to stress child, or add more danger to the drive.

I chose ours based on convenience. It's not a full-time center but certainly those are options. The parking lot was easy enough (I had to take kids in/out and it can be dangerous). Close by and a little more money, but so worth it for easy in/out. There was nothing about it I didn't like, really.

You have to visit multiple places. I can tell you we went to the three most highly recommended places here when we were looking for pre-school for our oldest, and all were clean, in order, had great safety, etc. The reason we went with the one we did, is that the kids seemed most happy there. They were interacting with the teachers, smiling, playing, laughing. The other places the kids just didn't seem happy to us.

We never used a center for daycare, we were fortunate in that my sister watched out kids until our youngest was 3, and then he went to a daycare with the place my sister still uses for her daughter (an in-home place). Our kids were the 2nd and 3rd to go there, a newborn beat them by a week, but we did our research on the sitter. She was a nanny for a state trooper friend of ours and he couldn't say enough good things - sold! Between my kids and my nieces, we have had family in her care since she opened over 4 years ago.

So really go with your gut. Find out what is most important to you. You'll learn different things as you are checking out the places, and then you will know.

Good luck!