Choosing a childcare facility can be a real challenge, especially when attempting to determine what constitutes a safe, high-quality facility. With so many options to choose from, how do I know which one is right for me? The following questions will help you determine whether a facility is right for your child.
Is the childcare facility properly licensed?
Proper licensing is vital to ensuring effective regulation of a childcare facility. Without it, there is little to no oversight to ensure the care and safety of your child. Licensing requirements also allow for a process of review and enforcement in the case of complaints.
What is the child-to-adult ratio?
Depending on the ages of the children in care, there are regulations regarding the number of adults that must be present at a given time. This maximizes the care and safety of your child, by ensuring appropriate supervision and care at all times.
What are the educational requirements for caregivers and/or administrators?
Many childcare facilities require only a high school education to qualify for employment, which may not prepare a caregiver to meet your child’s needs and properly adhere to childcare regulations. Look for a childcare provider or service run by someone with a background in early childhood education, and caregivers who’ve completed received degrees or certifications in the same.
Have all employees gone through a background check and fingerprinting?
Background checks and fingerprinting are extremely important in childcare, as they help ensure the quality and background of the caregivers. This screening process decreases the chances of an unqualified or unsafe caregiver being around your child.
Are the children always supervised?
Children must always be supervised —even when sleeping! Look for a childcare facility that puts a strong emphasis on supervision.
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5 Comments
I like that you mentioned how thorough background checks can help you ensure that the child care facility you choose is safe for your children. I am required to work during the day and need to find a place for my daughter to stay while I am gone, but I need to make sure that she doesn’t eat any food that she is allergic to. Maybe I should find a quality child care service that will keep her safe.
It makes sense that you should consider choosing a childcare service that has a sufficient amount of adults present in order to maximize the safety of your child. Now that my brother has decided to start attending college classes, he needs to find a daycare service that can keep his daughter safe during the day and needs to make sure that her breathing is constantly monitored since she has asthma. Hopefully, he can find a service that will give his daughter the attention she needs.
I love that you mentioned how a certain number of adults need to be in a child care facility depending on how old the children are. I remember my wife mentioning how she was planning on visiting her sister this weekend, and I need to find a professional that can take care of my newborn daughter while I am at work during the day. Perhaps I should find an expert that understands child care regulations.
I think it’s great that you brought up how you should find a childcare service that prioritizes regularly monitoring the children that they are caring for when they’re asleep. I need to find someone that can take care of my daughter since I am planning on attending college courses next year, but her asthma caused her to occasionally have breathing problems when she sleeps. Maybe I should find a service that will ensure that she is supervised at all times.
I think it’s helpful that you brought up how caregivers should be properly screened in order to ensure that your child will be safe. My uncle has recently mentioned that he needs to find a service that will watch his children while he and his wife go hiking for their anniversary next month, but he needs to find a caregiver that can help his son cope with the social anxiety he experiences. Maybe it would be best for him to find a quality service soon.