Infant Day Care

[amc80]

For those of you with babies in day care, can you tell me what your place is like? Do they have any sort of curriculum, or is it more of just basic needs stuff?

The reason I ask...

B has been at his day care for a month. It is located pretty much on site at my work (just at the edge of the parking lot). My company partially (very partially) subsidizes the fee for employees. It's also very convenient in that I can walk there in five minutes. DH and I didn't even check out any other places.

Yesterday, when I want to pick B up, he had glitter all over him. Including in the corners of his eyes. I asked what happened. Apparently, one of the 6-8" plastic, pointy, glitter-covered snowflakes hanging from the ceiling had falling on him. Landed (THANK GOD) on his torso. It seriously would have poked out his eye had it landed a few inches to the north. The main teachers weren't there, so I didn't say much. This morning I asked the main teacher about it. I told her that glitter in baby eyes is pretty dangerous and this was really close to being in his eyes. The response? "Oh,I'm sorry, I tried to clean all of the glitter off him." Um, not the point. I then said "well maybe sharp pointy things shouldn't be hanging above where babies are laying down." I got NO response whatsoever.

So this made me pretty upset. DH's mom used to work in day care. She said glitter should absolutely not be in the baby rooms. She also said there should be no decorations at all hanging down where they could fall. DH is pi$$ed.

Then I got to thinking about other thing I've noticed. I have no doubt that B's basic needs are being met. But it seems that unless the babies are being changed or fed, they are pretty much left to "play" by themselves. I've talked to other people and checked out websites of other day cares, and other facilities have actual curriculum for babies. As in music, stories, interaction, one place even does baby yoga.

I have appointments at two other facilities. They both have waiting lists, so B will have to stay put for a while regardless.

What are your thoughts? Am I overreacting?

 

[Loves Vintage]

Can you talk to the director about your concerns? I think I am probably known as a nervous-nellie type around here, but yeah, I would be having a conversation with the director. I am really fortunate in that my daycare has always been very receptive to my concerns. In your situation, they would have done a lot more to reassure me that something like that would not occur again. I think I am really careful not to come across as being critical (even if that's really the only conclusion that can be reached anyway), so I'm more like -- this is what I am comfortable with for my child, or I am not going to be ok with this or that specific thing. They have always accomodated, and I have not been unreasonable in my requests, even though I'm sure I make myself seem like I would be!

As far as the daycare, yes, they have lesson plans that the teachers prepare and follow each week. Infants have a broad weekly lesson plan. Toddlers have daily activities. They have a theme each week and come up with activities that fall within the theme. They indicate which areas of development each activity is related to - cognitive, language, social/emotional and physical. At that age, perhaps it's a bit overboard, and perhaps they really are working on developmental type things that you aren't aware of. I *think* lesson plans may be required by state law here, though they may be an incorrect assumption on my part. For me, I like the lesson plans because it gives me an idea about what she is doing there.

I think it's a good idea to take a look at the other daycares you mentioned. You might find a place that you like a lot more. You might find that you are happier with your current daycare than you thought. A lot of it comes down to how you feel about the people that will directly be providing care.

Good luck!

 

[SB621]

For babies there wasn't a whole lot of activity but daycare always took them out on walks, or lay on blankets outside when it was nice. They did lots of touch and feel activities. Like they would put paint in a pan with a ball then the teachers would sort of hold the babies to move the pan around so the ball "painted". They also blew bubbles outside for the babies to look at, played music. Did activities that encourgaged gross motor skills etc. There were weekly lesson plans posted so I always knew what they were doing.

I would talk to the director and see what sort of "learning" they follow. Most daycares go by the Learn through Play program or something like that. I think anything more then that is pointless for babies/toddlers. Goodluck with your other daycare visits. While I do think the daycare made a mistake- I don't judge on your reaction. I would be upset too. However, being someone that has had their own issues with daycare I would say dont' let B's teacher by your final judgement. Unfortunately daycare workers don't get paid very well and typically you don't require much of an education past an associates (at least in NC), so sometimes I feel when their is a conflict the daycare employees just don't respond well to it because of their backgrounds.

 

[amc80]

Thanks for the replies. I just went to two other day cares during lunch. One of them was a really nice facility, but seemed to be pretty limited on what the babies do. The workers were older. I wasn't in there for too long, but from what I saw it didn't seem a whole lot different from what B has now. The other place wasn't as "nice" but they had a bulletin board with a posted weekly curriculum. They also had sign language signs posted that they were working on. The two workers were youngish and really seemed to enjoy working with the babies. One thing I really liked about this place is there were no kids laying on the ground. The awake kids were either in those bouncy seat things or sitting up (on their own or with a boppy for support).

One thing that the current place has going for it is there are 8 kids and 2-3 teachers at any time. Our state law is a 4/1 ratio, so they are usually ahead of that. These two places I looked at had way more kids, and they always maintained a 4/1 ratio.

I went to visit B at lunch (sleeping) and was able to talk to the director. She said they shouldn't have put any glitter in the room unless it was laminated. She also said that she will talk to the teachers about not hanging such heavy objects from the ceiling.

We have one more place to look at tomorrow. It's the place I'm guessing I'll like the best, but it's also the most expensive ($75 more a week than what we pay now, and $50 more a week than the two places I looked at today. I'll pay what I need to pay, but $250 a week is a lot of money. But it's all worth it if I can have some peace of mind.

 

[NewEnglandLady]

amc, I admittedly tend to over-react to anything (I'm a first-time mom, after all), but this seems to be a legitimate concern. More than anything their reaction to it is what is so frustrating. Obviously the decorations are a hazard because they FELL ON AN INFANT, but they won't even acknowledge that it might be an issue?

We do in-home care, which is slighly different. There is a curriculum, though it's geared towards the two older toddlers. K is the only baby, but she participates when possible. Still, K does well with routines and I like that there is a daily routine. I don't think there is a "perfect" solution--I sometimes get frustrated with my babysitter, too, but I trust her and it keeps me from worrying about K the whole time I'm at work.

I don't think it would hurt for you to interview a few other options. I know how hard it is to find care, but maybe you'll find another place that "clicks" better.

ETA: I was posting while you were. I'm glad that at least the director was more understanding. Once you see the place tomorrow it might make your decision more clear. On one hand, $75 more/week is a lot, so that is a big consideration. On the other hand, $250 week sounds really reasonable, but I don't know how reasonable that is for the area. Sounds like it might be on the high end.

 

[Loves Vintage]

Wow, AMC, you are quick!! I say follow your gut instinct in choosing a place. As far as the cost, I know there is probably no point in my mentioning this (because I know from your posts on here that you are extremely well researched!!), but does your work offer a dependent care FSA account? It helps a little with offsetting costs.

I also think it's good that the director addressed your concerns more fully. That's how the director is at my daycare, and a lot of the teachers there have been there for a long time, so I think they have just adapted to her style, which is to accomodate the parent requests when reasonable to do so.

 

[amc80]

Honestly, I think part of the problem is I hate the idea of him being at day care in general. So I'm looking for the place that makes me feel the least bad. Not a great way to find a place.

ETA: I was posting while you were. I'm glad that at least the director was more understanding. Once you see the place tomorrow it might make your decision more clear. On one hand, $75 more/week is a lot, so that is a big consideration. On the other hand, $250 week sounds really reasonable, but I don't know how reasonable that is for the area. Sounds like it might be on the high end.

I live in a cheap-ish place (Reno). I'd say average is in the $200-225 range. I pay $175 right now. Put it this way- my mortgage is $951 a month. So we'd be paying more for day care than the house payment. But, like I said, I'm willing to pay whatever to get him somewhere where I don't have to worry (as much).

Vintage, yep, and I'm enrolled. The other thing is right now I'm getting $150/pay check taken out for our health FSA (for DH's braces), and that will stop Jan 1. So if I had to pay $75 more a week, it would even out once that drops off.

You are both right- it wasn't what happened as much as their complete non-reaction to it. Had they said "yeah, it fell on him, so we rethought are decorations and pulled the hanging stuff down" I wouldn't have even thought about it much. But they really don't seem to get it...that's the problem.

 

[Logan Sapphire]

Make sure you check out their record with your state licensing agency- I think most all places will have random violations here and there, but obviously some are way worse than others.

The one near us that's considered the gold standard is not nut-free and has been found in violation several times of not practicing proper protocol in handling those allergies. I have a severely allergic kid and that right there was enough to disqualify them for us.

 

[Puppmom]

Ditto what Logan said. Our state's star rating system doesn't make any sense to me. I've seen daycares rated 5 stars with supervision and medication exceptions logged on their inspection. Our daycare was rated 3 stars but had minor notations. Definitely read what the inspection findings were and judge for yourself.

 

[amc80]

Make sure you check out their record with your state licensing agency- I think most all places will have random violations here and there, but obviously some are way worse than others.

The one near us that's considered the gold standard is not nut-free and has been found in violation several times of not practicing proper protocol in handling those allergies. I have a severely allergic kid and that right there was enough to disqualify them for us.

Already checked that out! We can search online and see the reports, as well as any complaints.

 

[Puppmom]

Make sure you check out their record with your state licensing agency- I think most all places will have random violations here and there, but obviously some are way worse than others.

The one near us that's considered the gold standard is not nut-free and has been found in violation several times of not practicing proper protocol in handling those allergies. I have a severely allergic kid and that right there was enough to disqualify them for us.

Already checked that out! We can search online and see the reports, as well as any complaints.

Isn't the internet a wonderful thing? I love that you can see all of this online.

 

[lliang_chi]

Where do you find these notifications? I live in Chicago and keep trying to google "Illinois day care licensing review" and the like. I can't find squat!

 

[Loves Vintage]

LC - Does this help? https://sunshine.dcfs.illinois.gov/LicensedDaycareCompliance/Search.aspx Maybe it's somewhere around this site? I looked for CT, and for violations, you have to search through a list of all facilities (including healthcare, etc.) for each quarter or something like that.

AMC - Did you tour the third place today? Are there any other facilities that are maybe a little further out distance-wise, but less expensive? Not sure if that would be possible for you for drop-off/pick-up. Our day care facility is convenient to nothing for us, but we like it, so are able to leave work early, etc. to make it work. Is part time an option for you at all? I only mention it because of what you said about re: not like the daycare idea in general.

 

[amc80]

AMC - Did you tour the third place today? Are there any other facilities that are maybe a little further out distance-wise, but less expensive? Not sure if that would be possible for you for drop-off/pick-up. Our day care facility is convenient to nothing for us, but we like it, so are able to leave work early, etc. to make it work. Is part time an option for you at all? I only mention it because of what you said about re: not like the daycare idea in general.

Just got back from the third place. It was AMAZING. Teachers are required to have degrees (4 year) in ECE or the like. There's a curriculum every week. Parents get a print out daily of that day's curriculum as well. The curriculum covers several different areas- art, physical activity, reading (story time), etc. Today they read some kid's book about Hanukkah and practiced the star pose (yoga) for physical activity. The entire room only has one stationary "stick the kid there" type of thing, a bouncer. It was explained that this means the teachers are forced to interact with the kids rather than just set them down and leave them. And if a baby isn't mobile, they are moved to a different play area every 15 minutes so they don't get board and can have different stimulation.

Also cool is they have a M-Th option which cuts the cost a bit, and is perfect since DH is off on Fridays.

The unfortunate part is there is a wait list. Only one kid on it ahead of him, though. At the very least, they can definitely take him when he's a year old, at which point he'd go to the next classroom up.

So now, we need to figure out what to do for the time being. We are leaning towards moving him to one of the places I looked at yesterday in the interim. I hate moving him twice, but I really don't want him where he is now for any longer than he has to be. DH went with me at lunch to visit B, who was sleeping. But we saw that one teacher was cutting out decorations and the other was eating...and all of the awake babies were on the floor, doing their own thing. No interaction at all. Ugh.

 

[pavelover]

Hi AMC I'm sorry I don't have anything valuable to add but that last place sounds awesome, and you love it so that's great! I hope the time goes quickly and he can get there soon. You never know it might come up quick. I always worried about changing my son's routine for caregivers, etc. but you know what, they are such adaptable little creatures, I'm sure he will do fine. And if you feel more comfortable then that will be better overall. Good luck with your decision!

 

[NewEnglandLady]

amc, I'm so glad you loved the third place, it sounds great! And the fact that you can do M-Th is great, too! I agree with Pavelover that at this age, they are so adaptable that the change in caregivers won't really mean anything to him. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that you can get in before the 1-year mark, but even if you had to wait, it's not the end of the world. Good job for following your gut and finding a solution that is going to make everybody happier!