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Choosing the Right Childcare Provider
By J Gardener
Family life in the twenty-first century presents challenges our parents and
grandparents never imagined. With the preponderence of two-career marriages, and
a growing number of single-parent households, no longer is it a foregone
conclusion that a mother will automatically be her pre-school child's primary
daytime caregiver.
Fortunately for parents today, the child daycare industry has grown
exponentially in the past couple of decades. In most cities and towns, families
generally have a wide variety of choices from which to choose, when making the
formidable decision about their child's daytime care. There are formal daycare
centers, more informal situations with only a few children ("family" daycare),
and in-home babysitters or nannies.
But the variety of choices brings its own headaches, chief among which is the
obvious question: How should you go about choosing the right daycare providers
for your children? The obvious answer is also the most difficult: careful
research, well in advance.
If you have decided that you will want outside daycare for your infant,
shortly after birth (though most experts discourage the use of a daycare center
during the first six weeks of life), then research should begin in the last
trimester of pregnancy.
The best daycare research begins with word-of-mouth. Ask other parents in
your family's network about their experiences and for their recommendations. But
always follow up with first-hand investigation of your own. Visit any
prospective locations on your list, well before you need their services.
According to webmd.com, most facilities-though
licensed by the states where they do business-are not high quality. A license
only means that the business provides the minimum care necessary.
Get to know the caregivers at the home or business you're considering.
Observe their interactions with the children in their charge. Child caregiving
is as much a calling as it is a career; ask about worker turn-over and the
business's hiring policies. Make sure the caregivers convey warmth and
responsiveness to the children-do they talk gently and interact with every
child? Do they make you feel welcome and encourage parents to visit often?
What is the ratio of caregivers to children? The American Academy of
Pediatrics (http://www.aap.org/parents.html)
has specific recommendations regarding these ratios. About the Author Brought to you by Imaginary Greetings, focusing on how families can get by in this wonderful world of ours. Make this Christmas magical, visit http://www.santas-depot.com for the best selection of everything Christmas.
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