What are some things I should consider or ask when looking for a suitable daycare?

Answer 1

Ask whether it's ok for you to drop in at any time during the day unannounced. It should be ok.
Ask what the ratio of caregivers to children is.
Ask what the schedule of activities is. There should be a routine that includes activities to promote both fine and gross motor development, music activities, reading stories to the children, outdoor play, and plenty of time to engage in social interaction.
Ask about the ages of the children in care and how they are grouped by age.
Ask if criminal background checks and fingerprint checks are required of all employees in the facility.
Ask about the training and experience of the caregivers.
Ask about whether the facility has been approved by the state or other governing agency.
Ask about disciplinary methods used.
Ask about safety provisions.
Ask about meals. How are they prepared and served and about the nutritional quality.

Answer 2

ask around with parents your know, check with your county they should have recent evaluations for every daycare in the county which would include the good and the bad stuff, make sure you meet with the teacher that would be in the room with your child(ren), look around the center, look around outside on the playground, ask if food is provide and if so ask for a copy of the menu, ask what snacks are offered, what is their schedule like, what activities do they do, if you have an older child then ask about fieldtrips, ask about the child to teacher ratios (1 teacher to 5 infants....that is the ratios, each classroom is different), ask about how many children will be in the room with yours, ask the price, ask the open and close times, you can I believe even ask to see proof that the teachers in your childs room are CPR and first aide certified (as required in order to work in a daycare), ask about medical policy in regards to medications, if you have an infant ask where bottles will be stored and how they will be warmed up, make sure you will get a note at night telling you when your child ate and what they ate and diaper changes if you have an infant or toddler, check out where your child would be sleeping and eating and playing....

Answer 3

- Price

- distance from home or work (it is a whole lot easier when you don't have to drive out of the way after a long hard day to get to the daycare)

- what do you have to provide (for instance some daycares require that you provide diapers, change of clothes, blanket to sleep on, etc.)

- can you drop them off/pick them up any time of the day ?(some daycares do not accept children after a certain time)

- do their discipline style match your discipline style? (do they spank, time out, redirect, ridicule, encourage, etc.)

- how many staff members work there and who will actually be watching your kids? (some daycare center with limited staff hire young teenagers to watch the kids while management do paper work or cleanup)

- how much TV do they let the kids watch per day?

- what do they feed your kids during the day?

- Do they have a lesson plan? (ie. do they read to the kids, talk about colors, have activities like animal dress up, etc.)

- some daycare center have web cameras with a password that let you log on and see what your kid is doing

Answer 4

You should meet a couple of the people working there. Should find out what the child will be eating while in their car and have a look around the centre to make sure its safe. You should also ask what happens if a child is naughty in terms of discipline. How they go about teaching the children that what they have done is naughty.

Answer 5

Ask about sanitation. How ofter does staff wash their hands (should be after touching any other child, after all diaper changes and after all feedings and after picking up any or all toys and after touching anything during the day that is not related directly to your child. Ask about security, who can pick up child and who cannot! Ask about education. Ask about safety (IE. fire protection and about fire plans (evacuation) Ask about how much staff exists per child in the center. Ask if you can come at any time to pick up child without notice. If they say no, then find another center! Good luck and I hope you find an excellent daycare center for your child! Happy hunting!

Answer 6

i asked a similar question not so long ago and when i went to check them out i just knew which one was wrong and which was right. go and visit at the most chaotic time of day and make no apologies for doing so.

i went to 2 different ones at lunch time - the first one made me cry the next was just so serene and peaceful - you will know whether you are comfortable but the basic questions should be child to staff ratio and food requirements etc

perhaps even inquire about their policy on sick children so you know if your kids will be around sick kids or not

Answer 7

what the worker/child ratio is, if the workers are CPR/First Aid certified, the age range of the workers (if the place is being run by a bunch of teenagers, forget it), snacks, meals, discipline, sick policy (if the workers and/or children are allowed to stay if they have the sniffles, flu, pink eye, etc).

Answer 8

Well u shld ask bout how their time table goes about ... their charges per mth.. and wat if u come late .. will there be any extra charges shld u come later than u are expected to fetch ur child ...

wat activities do they teach the kids... are they closed on certain public hols or on all public hols... than shld u have no time to send ur kid to this particular branch cld u send ur kid to another branch?? (depending on ur location)

spend a day or 2 at the child care when u enrol ur child than u can observe on wat goes on... how many teachers look after how many children??

best of luck ... hope this info helps u...

Answer 9

dont be cheap,ask around,other people are the best info