Please advise on daycare..

[aeroplane]

Hi everyone,

I am a first time mom and my baby recently turned 15 months...I want to get her into daycare...But I am clueless about daycare...I would greatly appreciate advise from other parents/moms...

Like what do you look for when you are deciding on which daycare to choose?...And how much day care usually cost? (an idea)...Do they teach kids stuff or have a curriculum?...Is it the same like a pre-school?...I want my kid like in a learning environment that way she have an advantage when she starts school...

Also, do you have to take their food etc and someone feeds them?...Like my daughter still eats puree stuff and she has to be feed..She have not yet learnt to eat wholesome food and she does not take her own bottle...

I would appreciate any advise...Thanks

[nadiabreckon]

Most would suggest visiting a daycare that you want to know more about, but don't call in advance to let them know you're coming...unexpected visits will allow you to notice how they act with children without "putting on a show" for visitors...

As for prices, curriculums and so on, all daycares are different. We have a babysitter for DS, mainly because DH works full time and I only work part time so he's only in her care a few days a week. She has 3 daughters and has her degree in Early Childhood Education, and we felt comfortable leaving him with her as soon as we met her. She also charges us a lot less than a daycare would, and provides him with food as well as art supplies for craft-time.

Hope this helps!

[bargain_hunter_lola]

I also have a post on this topic (it may have been bumped to page 2 if you are interested in looking at some of the responses).

I have decided to go with Centre Based Daycare as it is more structured. DD is on a waitlist to go part-time in September. The reasons we chose the particular daycare are:

-small class sizes (10 kids for 2 teachers and sometimes 1 coop student)
-classes are divided by age (18months - 3 years, 3-4 years, etc)
-very organized
-routines/schedules (posted outside each classroom for the day and month, so parents & children know what to expect)
-teachers are very qualified (most have additional specialty courses etc)
-highly recommended by other parents and our doctor (whose children went to there)

Those are some of the reasons we chose the daycare DD will hopefully be enrolled in. As for the cost, it's a little steep at $45 per day (regardless of hours or attendance - ie, you still pay if they are sick).

I did a drop in to the centre and they had no problem showing me around and answering a ton of questions (there is an admin person to handle paperwork and do drop ins).

The only con that I have been able to come up with is the lack of flexibility. As I said before you pay regardless of whether your child is sick or on vacation etc. Also there is no room to change days (if you are part-time).

HTH. Good luck finding a great daycare for you, I know it can be stressful.

[aeroplane]

Thanks guys for the tips...But somehow I feel more confused...I did not know there was so much to choosing a day care...I guess because being a parent you just want to make sure you get it right the first time...

[Zonny]

Here in NS there's often a waiting list of up to a year for daycares. For us there were several factors in our choice, aside from the obvious (is it clean, are the kids there happy, etc.).

For one thing we don't have a car, so it needed to be in our neighbourhood. I'd recommend that anyhow, in case you have to go get them when they're sick or something. Better to be close to home rather than close to work.

Also, not all daycares take all ages. For younger kids here (under 18 months), there's different child/caregiver ratios, so not all centres will take them at that age.

Our daycare is open every weekday, except for holidays. In the three years DS has been there, I've never seen it close except once when the power was out. Some daycares close when the schools are closed, or when there's inservice days. One daycare we're looking at for the future (when DS is in school and needs before/after school and lunchtime care), they close for two weeks in December. You have to make other arrangements to either stay home with them or have someone else look after them.

Here in NS we pay $36 a day, which adds up to about $740 a month. That includes all food, drink and snacks, but we had to provide diapers and wipes.

Hope this helps!

Z

[Sally888]

I also have a post on this topic (it may have been bumped to page 2 if you are interested in looking at some of the responses).

I have decided to go with Centre Based Daycare as it is more structured. DD is on a waitlist to go part-time in September. The reasons we chose the particular daycare are:

-small class sizes (10 kids for 2 teachers and sometimes 1 coop student)
-classes are divided by age (18months - 3 years, 3-4 years, etc)
-very organized
-routines/schedules (posted outside each classroom for the day and month, so parents & children know what to expect)
-teachers are very qualified (most have additional specialty courses etc)
-highly recommended by other parents and our doctor (whose children went to there)

Those are some of the reasons we chose the daycare DD will hopefully be enrolled in. As for the cost, it's a little steep at $45 per day (regardless of hours or attendance - ie, you still pay if they are sick).

I did a drop in to the centre and they had no problem showing me around and answering a ton of questions (there is an admin person to handle paperwork and do drop ins).

The only con that I have been able to come up with is the lack of flexibility. As I said before you pay regardless of whether your child is sick or on vacation etc. Also there is no room to change days (if you are part-time).

HTH. Good luck finding a great daycare for you, I know it can be stressful.

But more daycares do accept a drs note if your kid was sick and had to be out more then a couple days, then they wont charge you the fee.

[Zonny]

But more daycares do accept a drs note if your kid was sick and had to be out more then a couple days, then they wont charge you the fee.

Our centre won't, but maybe that's not the way it is everywhere.

We give six months of cheques at a time, they don't offer a chance to do them over in cases of illness. There's been times THEY are the ones to send him home and he's home several days. They know darned well he's sick, since he barfed on them before he left. Makes no difference.

Z

[nadiabreckon]

Our centre won't, but maybe that's not the way it is everywhere.

We give six months of cheques at a time, they don't offer a chance to do them over in cases of illness. There's been times THEY are the ones to send him home and he's home several days. They know darned well he's sick, since he barfed on them before he left. Makes no difference.

Z

This is one of the reasons I love having my son attend an in-home daycare...If something happens before we are supposed to drop him off (change of schedule, DS gets sick, etc...), just a quick phone call and she doesn't charge us (we asked about this before hiring her). Plus, she has amazing rates, and provides receipts for tax purposes!

[bargain_hunter_lola]

The daycare we have chosen charges regardless of a doctor's note. Now, that may be different for a long term illness but not for 1-2 weeks. I can see their point since they only have so many spots and need to have those spots filled and paid for in order to run the centre and pay the teachers & administrator etc. I'm pretty sure you can withdraw your child/spot in the daycare for a fee (so depending on the circumstance that might be a better option).

Like I said it is a bit of a downside but for us it really doesn't make that much of a difference since DD will only be enrolled 2 days per week.

It is certainly something to ask and consider if you have worries about your child being absent from daycare.

On a side note, the daycare we have chosen allows for 1 week vacation for each child per year if they are enrolled full-time year round. That way the family can have vacation and not have to pay for the daycare that week.

[Insane]

I've never heard of a daycare that doesn't charge when your child is sick. They still have to pay their staff.

We've always chosen a center based daycare. I like that they are licensed (although many home daycares are too), they change the toys every week, my kids are always in a group of their peers, learning is structure, the daycares were for the most part attached to their schools (makes transition easier), and the workers all had ECE diplomas at the very least. With the exception of the current daycare, they also provided food (when they would eat table food). I used to joke that they ate healthier and better than me at lunch! The current one has the facilities but no one with the food prep diploma to do it.

We have always paid a set fee per month. Regardless of sickness, vacation or whatever. It used to irk me that I paid if they sent them home (ie power goes out, a cracked pipe once, ect...) Like I said they have to pay their staff too. My employer has to pay me if they send me home. A lot of home daycares are the same way. Many make you sign contracts a lot like center daycares. Many make you pay for 1-2 weeks per year over the summer when you don't send your child as vacation for the provider.

Wait lists tend to be super long. I had 1 of my daughters on a wait list for an amazing daycare when I was pregnant with her (to start when she was 1)!!!! You don't mention where you are, but if you are looking at a licenced daycare you should check into wait lists.

You should look into daycares in your area. Look at licenced and unlicenced. Many unlicenced daycares are fantastic. Defiantely "interview" and go see them. If when you go the kids are in front of the TV and you don't see artwork and stuff everywhere, that should give you a bad feeling.

Most importantly, look for a caregiver that has the same parenting philosophy as you. You want them to be an extension of you. Once you find that, everything else will fall into place.

[nadiabreckon]

Most importantly, look for a caregiver that has the same parenting philosophy as you. You want them to be an extension of you. Once you find that, everything else will fall into place.

I agree with this quite whole-heartidly!

Our child care provider is amazing with her kids, and they have to be some of the most well behaved little girls we have ever met, and so far our little guy has been doing well (even his vocabulary seems to improve).

[Zonny]

This is one of the reasons I love having my son attend an in-home daycare...If something happens before we are supposed to drop him off (change of schedule, DS gets sick, etc...), just a quick phone call and she doesn't charge us (we asked about this before hiring her). Plus, she has amazing rates, and provides receipts for tax purposes!

But the downside of home-based care is that if your caregiver is sick, then it's probably YOUR problem. In a centre, there's enough staff to cover that.

The home based ones that we looked at, they would close for storm days too. My office doesn't close for much of anything except holidays, so that wouldn't have worked for us.

Z

[nadiabreckon]

But the downside of home-based care is that if your caregiver is sick, then it's probably YOUR problem. In a centre, there's enough staff to cover that.

The home based ones that we looked at, they would close for storm days too. My office doesn't close for much of anything except holidays, so that wouldn't have worked for us.

Z

That's true, but thankfully that hasn't happened to us (yet...)...but being part time at work, my employer is pretty good about having us call in case of emergencies, or go home early, or whatever (especially the ones with children...we had to take DS to the hospital once and my boss wasn't hesitant at all to let me go).

[aeroplane]

I appreciate all the info friends...Does anyone know about early learning in ontario???...A relative mentioned this as an option and said its free...Like the kids have interaction with other kids and they learn stuff...The only disadvantage is that you have to be present while they are there...You don't have to be with them but somewhere in a corner I guess..Smiles

[Zonny]

Personally I'd love to be living in Quebec, at least for the daycare part. I've read that it's subsidized, so that Quebec residents pay $7 a DAY for childcare? I pay FIVE TIMES more than that!

Z