Posted by Savneet Singh on Oct.26, 2010

©iStockphoto.com - kate_sept2004

Choosing a child care center is a very important decision, and your decision as a parent will influence your child’s comfort with and response to the new settings. While selecting one for my baby, I looked at lists of qualities and requirements for a good child care place after visiting many of the child care centers over a month’s time. I was not in a rush. The final one was visited at least a 5 times before I left my child there for the first time. After all, it is for my beloved son! And now I feel so satisfied and happy that he loves to go there and enjoys his time with the caregiver and other kid. The caregiver, Ms. Nancy, is a very good and loving lady. That day I was getting late for a meeting and in rush I just forgot to pack his lunchbox. And when I rushed into the door of the center I realized my mistake. By that Ms Nancy came over to greet my son Naunidh. She noticed my harried look and questioned what the matter was. I said sheepishly, “I forgot Naunidh’s lunch at home.”

Ms Nancy assured me that she would take care of this. She said that she would arrange for some fresh fruits, peanut butter, whole grain toast, strawberry yogurt (he loves it!), crackers and milk of course.

I was so relaxed. I consider child care centers as a family support system, which proved so true this very morning.

Thus, it is very important to find a quality child care for your child. I remember that the people at the center where my son goes now were very polite and easy going. I asked them many questions and they answered all of them. They even allowed me to observe them in action, which made me believe that it can be good place for my kid.

For reference I carried a checklist of indicators with me so as to identify, if that was a good place.

My checklist had following things:

• The license displayed
• Local, state accreditation
• Loving child-centered environment
• If the staff is well trained in early childhood development and care
• Staff members are working as a team
• Discipline is positive and not punitive, kind but firm and designed to help children learn important life skills.
• Safety in terms of physical settings, health policies and preparedness for emergencies.

I particularly paid attention to the space, if it was clean and well maintained. The equipment was at the eye level of the kids. I saw a place where children could climb safely but there was a wooden table next to that, which I found unsafe. I raised this question and they said it will be removed soon. The furniture was sturdy and there were many balls and rolling toys. Although Naunidh loves his red car which makes various sounds and his pull along helicopter, without which he would never go out of the house!

One more thing which I paid special attention to was, who was the other child spending time with my son because additional child may detract the caregiver from my child’s care. It was very important as presence of other children may provide an opportunity to build social skills.

Thankfully, there was other girl, Madison, almost the same age as my son. The very first day, they both had a nice time together. So there was no point to worry.

The time and energy I spent in looking for a good day care center repaid me. Now, he loves going there and comes running to me when I go to pick him up back with a wonderful smile on his face which gives peace of mind, enjoyment and satisfaction.

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Posted under Family, GDM Kids, Tweens, Teens.