Being a first time mom is hard, you are just getting the hang of things, you are healing and you are tired. Some of your first time mothers are also already thinking about preparing to go back to work, which means you are already on the hunt for possible daycare options. Leaving your little blessing in the care of, what feels like, a stranger can be really scary. This is why, when it comes to daycare, there is always one thing you should do: talk to your fellow mothers.
Which is why we took the time to chat with a few amazing moms who have gone through the daycare process to help us figure out what exactly moms should be looking for in a daycare and daycare provider.
First Impressions Are Important
You always want to make sure you have a couple in person meetings with your possible daycare, of course bringing your own child along with you. Never ignore your gut feeling when it comes to choosing a childcare for your child. If you feel uneasy then it isn’t the right choice, keep looking until you are fully happy.
“First impressions were everything. I had initial gut feelings about each person we saw, only a couple were not-so-good but those places were crossed off the list right away.” – Dana Leigh BC Mom of 1
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Interaction
The other reason you want to make sure your child is coming along with you is so you can see just how your little one interacts with the care provider/s and vice versa. Being able to see how your child feels and plays with the provider is a great way to see how things might work out in the long term.
“Go with your gut and choose by interaction with your child over size, price or modality… Our daughter has been in daycare nearly two years now and has such a wonderful bond with her provider and has learned so much that I know the decision was right for us.” – Tanya Godfrey BC mom of 1
Daycare Employee Moral
Happy daycare providers means a happy environment, which means thriving children. One of the biggest suggestions to us was to get a feeling for how the employees are being treated. You want to ensure wages are fair, breaks are fair and everything else inbetween. After all a daycare that can take care of it’s employees well is able to care for their children even better.
“Employees that are well taken care of provide better care and I wanted to make sure my child was in a place where the workers loved the people they worked for.” – Dana Leigh BC mom of 1
Do Your Research
You never want to leave your child with anyone you haven’t done your research on. Make sure you are contacting the appropriate people, asking your mom groups and doing the best you can to get a well rounded look at the daycare. Even the ones that look super great can sometimes sound too good to be true – make sure you are being smart and using reputable sources.
“Call and ask licensing if there have ever been any investigations into the day care. Or if there are any reports other than the general inspections reported on the website. There is a freedom of information form one can fill out to request copies of reports of any investigations.” – Heather Nowak BC mom
Open Door Policies
As a provider myself I always found any childcare with an open door policy to really go above and beyond. Granted there were times etc.. put in place lots of daycare’s offer this to help both child and parent transition. It can mean the world to any first time parent who is feeling a little more than anxious about the daycare journey. It also gives you a chance to pop in and see how your little one is doing during the day and how they are adjusting to a new care provider and set of friends!
We hope that with these things in mind it will help you make the best daycare choice for you and your little one!
Share with us in the comments below what you looked for in a daycare!