Hey Mum,Oh man...this is such a hard topic. I looked at about 6 or 7 day care centers before I settled on the one that G is currently at. This center happens to be a company that contracts with my employer, so he's close to my office, but that was actually the last place we visited.
Fortunately, I feel that G's care providers are an extension of our family, and the center has become an extension of our home, as we partner together to nurture and teach G. (The tricky part is that if I were to leave my current job, we'd have to find alternate childcare, many options of which seem sub par. This a little stiffling from a career perspective. Sigh. That's a topic for another day.)
Here are some things I've learned in the past 1 1/2 years that G's been in daycare:
1 Go with a daycare/nanny where the caregivers look like they're enjoying their job. Some day cares I went to seemed depressing, the staff was underpaid and disgruntled. Not the type of person I want taking care of my baby.
2 Do they have their policies written/printed/posted online that they can easily share and articulate?
3 How clean is the facility? What condition is the equipment in? Some places I visited, the toys and play structures seemed to be falling apart, the crib rail was held up with a plastic tie. Not good.
4 What is the ratio of caregiver to child? (1:4 seems to be average around here for babies and toddlers. Once they hit age 2, it's higher than that. I don't have the numbers on hand, but there are federal regulations here mandating what the ratios should be.)
5 What kind of training have the caregivers had? I think that in Calif that 12 hours of training are required...but I assumed that was 12 hours of college courses (maybe 3-4 courses?) but at one place I went to, it seemed like they had literally just 12 hours of training, like a crash course in CPR and infant/toddler care. Obviously, there's a difference between 12-college course hours and 12 hours of a crash course in child care.
6 What kind of turnover has there been for the teachers?
7 What is their policy for keeping things sanitized? Again, some day cares seemed better about this than others. Children are certainly going to put toys in their mouths. How do they prevent spreading germs? Are parents and kids asked to wash their hands before entering the room? Do we remove our shoes or put on booties before entering? Do the teachers wear plastic gloves when changing diapers?
8 Food? What do you need to bring from home? How do they require things to be labeled so that your child is not accidentally given another's bottle/food?
9 Can the day care articulate what they do with the children during the day? Do they have a curriculum, or is it mostly chaperoned play time? Some places I visited kind of said, "Ummm..." when I asked what my 6-mos old would be doing. Others had activities and curriculum and songs and weekly themes. Even though, at the time, G could only sit and roll over, I still expected that they interact with him and he wouldn't just be sitting there all day.
10 Sleeping arrangements -- will your child have her own crib at the center? Who provides the bedding? How often is it changed?
11 What is their sick policy? How do they define "sick"? Is the sick child removed from the others so as to not spread the infection until they're picked up? Do they notify the parents of the other children when a child is sick? Do they have to stay home for 24 hours symptom free?
12 If you need to cancel the day care service, what is their policy? 30 days notice in writing?
13 Are you able to stop in and see your child at any time?
14 Does the center provide a written report at the end of the day, outlining what your child ate, diapers (wet and BM), naps? (I find this info vital and review it carefully at the end of each day, looking for trends or things that seem different.)
15 What is the center's approach to discipline? If your child were to be bullied, how would they address it? Or what if your child were the bully, how would they address it?
16 How can parents work with the teachers and administration when they have a concern? What is the center's policy for how they'll respond?
17 Go for a day care option closer to your work? Or closer to home?
18 Do the caregivers speak English well? Some people near us are really proud of their center that has native Mandarin, Spanish, Russian, etc. teachers who teach in a language-immersion type setting. That sounds really great, but because I don't speak those languages, I want to make sure that their English is also good enough that we can discuss concerns. There was one center I looked at where we had a hard time getting past, "My son's name is G...". Hmmm...
19 I've heard that some day cares will negotiate on price, considering this economy and that enrollment at some centers has been down (I have a co-worker who negotiated). Definitely worth asking about.
20 Are there any reviews of the daycare online? Are there other parents you could ask re: their experiences there?
21 Does it seem like the other children at the center enjoy being there?
22 Does it seem like the center wants your business? Hopefully when you do a tour, they're trying to make a good first impression.
23 How do they report accidents?
24 Have background checks been performed on the center staff?
25 Has the staff been trained in CPR and first aid?
This is a lot of info! I hope this helps as you're evaluating different centers, and I'm sure you'll have additional questions to add to your list as well. Keep me posted about what you decide, and I'm always happy to act as a sounding wall as well.
xoxo!
