Universal
and high-quality pre-K and child care can throw a much-needed raft to families
that are struggling to stay afloat while maintaining costly child care bills,
taking leaves from work to provide care, or sending children to low-quality
care centres. If you too are struggling to find the right destination for your
kid, here is an excellent guide to finding the right daycare:
Look for recommendations: You may trust a family friend for this, but that doesn't mean you necessarily have the same ideology about childcare. The choice of preferences, tastes and the kind of environment you may need for your kid may differ for everyone. Also, the choice depends on the budget that is available for the children.
Look
for signs of an organized, well-thought-out daycare: Young
kids feel safe when they spend their days in a structured and predictable
manner. This makes sense and demands you to look for a daycare with clear plans
and programs. A well-run school will keep you posted on lesson plans and daily
schedules. The lessons must be appropriate according to the child's
developmental stage, and the children must enjoy them. Other signs that daycare
is well maintained and appropriately ran include bulletin boards with creative
artwork, a regular newsletter, and a parent committee.
Know
your priorities: Nothing is perfect in this world of
imperfections. Daycare centres are not untouched from this harsh reality.
Parents see it as a good idea to be realistic about what you need. The liveable
and value practices needed in daycare can be different for every family. Some
things are negotiable, but other things are not. Make sure you enlist your
priorities and stick to them while on the recce.
Look
beyond credentials and degrees: A
daycare staff may have an impressive degree, but this doesn't mean it is
sacrosanct or the centre is the right one for your family. The daycare staff
and management must be able to answer your questions clearly, without using
degrees or jargons as an essential medium. Use your common sense as a guide to
understanding the nature and behaviour of the staff.
Determine
whether the teachers feel empowered: Caregivers
working directly with kids often have great ideas, and the director should be
able to entertain them over reasonability. But if a caregiver is scared to ask
the organisation for basics like a few extra art supplies, something may be
amiss.
Look for engagement: A quality daycare centre must have a sense of engagement. The teachers should be seen playing down on the floor with the kids, and the senior management must not be scared to help. When on a visit, watch how the children respond and communicate. Shy kids may look to the teacher or other kids for reassurance; more outgoing kids may come up to you and say hello. Such reactions are signalling that the children feel at home at the daycare.
Don't
ignore your intuition: Not every daycare is right for every kid and
various types of families. Each family has its own culture and wishes to find
the centre that matches their style and meets its particular child-rearing
style.
The
most crucial factor is that whatever type of facility you explore, you must
check if it's accredited by an organization like NAEYC, or any other Child
Protective Services. Such factors are a strong mark of quality and have
detailed instore information related to classroom space, teacher
qualifications, sanitary practices, safety & equipment, etc.
